KOSA-TV(channel 7) is atelevision stationlicensed toOdessa, Texas,United States, serving as theCBSaffiliate for thePermian Basinarea. It is owned byGray TelevisionalongsideMyNetworkTVaffiliateKWWT(channel 30, also licensed to Odessa),Big Spring–licensedCW+affiliateKCWO-TV(channel 4),TelemundoaffiliateKTLE-LD(channel 7.5) andThe365affiliateKMDF-LD(channel 22). The five stations share studios inside theMusic City Mallon East 42nd Street in Odessa, with a secondary studio and news bureau in downtownMidland;KOSA-TV's transmitter is located onFM 866west of Odessa. The station is relayed on low-powertranslatorK31KJ-Din Big Spring.
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| City | Odessa, Texas |
| Channels | |
| Branding |
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| Programming | |
| Affiliations | |
| Ownership | |
| Owner |
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| KCWO-TV,KWWT,KMDF-LD,KTLE-LD | |
| History | |
First air date | January 1, 1956 |
Former channel number(s) |
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Call signmeaning | Odessa |
| Technical information[3] | |
Licensing authority | FCC |
| Facility ID | 6865 |
| ERP | |
| HAAT |
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| Transmitter coordinates | 31°51′50.8″N102°34′42.5″W/ 31.864111°N 102.578472°W |
| Translator(s) | K31KJ-D 31 (UHF)Big Spring |
| Links | |
Public license information | |
| Website | www |
History
editKOSA-TV signed on the air onJanuary 1,1956, and has been a CBS affiliate since its debut. Licensed to the corporate entity Odessa Television Co., the station was part of the Trigg-Vaughn Stations group, owned and operated by Cecil L. Trigg and Jack Vaughn, along withKOSA radio.[4]KOSA-TV originally operated from studios located on North Whitaker Street in Odessa. KOSA-TV is the onlyBig Threestation in the Permian Basin to have never changed affiliation. In 1967, Trigg-Vaughn sold both KOSA-TV andKROD-TVinEl Paso, Texas,to Doubleday Broadcasting, a subsidiary of book publisherDoubleday and Company.
On November 26, 1983, acharteredtwin-engineBeechcraft B100 King Airturboprop was flying from Fort Worth back to Odessa[5]when it fell nose first, crashed and burned on impact. It killed all eight on board, instantly, some burned beyond recognition. Six of the victims were KOSA-TV station employees who had been away filminghigh school footballplayoffs. The plane burned for about four hours before firemen could extinguish the blaze. A charred and twisted heap of metal was all that remained.
The victims were eventually identified as assistant news director Gary Hopper, 32, of Midland; sports director Jeff Shull, 25, of Odessa; chief engineer Bobby Stephens, 47, of Odessa; assistant chief engineer Edward Monette, 26, of Odessa; production assistants Bruce Dyer, 26, of Midland and Brent Roach, 24, of Odessa; pilot Keith Elkin, 29, of Midland; and Jay Alva Price, 37, of Midland, a helper for the station at football games and Hopper's brother-in-law.
Local real estate company Investment Corporation of America (ICA) purchased the station fromBenedek Broadcastingin 2000. On May 20, 2015,Gray Televisionannounced that it would acquire KOSA-TV from ICA for $33.6 million;[6]the sale was completed on July 1.[7]The deal reunited KOSA-TV with several of its former Benedek sister stations, as Gray acquired most of Benedek's stations following the latter's bankruptcy in 2002.
By fall 2017, the over-the-air digital signal of KOSA-DT2 had been upgraded into720p16:9high definition,thus giving viewers in the Odessa–Midland market over-the-air access toMyNetworkTV's high definition feed for the first time.[8]
On June 25, 2018, Gray announced it had reached an agreement withMontgomery, Alabama-basedRaycom Mediato merge their respective broadcasting assets (consisting of Raycom's 63 existing owned-and/or-operated television stations, including competingNBCaffiliateKWES-TV(channel 9) and itssatelliteKWAB-TV (channel 4), and Gray's 93 television stations) under Gray's corporate umbrella. The cash-and-stock merger transaction valued at $3.6 billion—in which Gray shareholders would acquire preferred stock currently held by Raycom—required divestment of either KOSA-TV or KWES-TV due to FCC ownership regulations prohibiting common ownership of two of the four highest-rated stations in a single market (as well as more than two stations in any market). Gray announced it would retain KOSA-TV, and sell KWES-TV to an unrelated third party.[9][10][11][12]On August 20, it was announced thatTegna Inc.would buy KWES and sister stationWTOLinToledo, Ohiofor $105 million.[13]However, Gray retained KWAB and converted it to aCW+affiliate under the callsignKCWO,[14]with a simulcast on KOSA's second digital subchannel.[15][16]The sale was completed on January 2, 2019.[17]
On July 24, 2020, it was announced that Gray would purchase MeTV affiliate KWWT, and sister low-power station, KMDF-LD for $1.84 million, pending FCC approval.[18]Gray sought a failing station waiver as the Odessa–Midland market would not have at least eight independent voices after the transaction (KCWO-TV is licensed as asatelliteof KOSA-TV despite airing different programming).[19]In addition, Gray also announced that after the sale, KWWT would move its operations to the shared KOSA/KCWO facility in Odessa. The FCC granted the waiver on September 14.[20]The sale was completed on September 30.[21][22][23]
Making News: Texas Style
editKOSA-TV was the setting for aTV Guide Networkreality seriescalledMaking News: Texas Style,which revolved around the inner workings, staff, and personalities of the station's news department.[24][25][26]The show aired Mondays from June 11, 2007, to September 23, 2007.
Sports programming
editKOSA-TV became an affiliate forBig 12 Networkbasketball in 2008. That same year they entered into a contract withKTXAinDallas–Fort Worthto carry selectDallas Mavericksbasketball games. The Mavericks games aired in Odessa–Midland on MyTV 16 in2008–2009and2010–2011.In2009,KOSA-TV entered into a contract to air the locally televisedTexas Rangersbaseball games. The games took place on various nights in 2009 as they were programmed byKDFI.From2010to the present the Rangers games aired on Friday nights as part of theFriday Night Baseball on TXA 21package. In 2012, KOSA-TV entered into a contract to airSEC Networkfootballgames. In all these cases, the sports contracts placed the games on MyTV 16 (now MyTV 30) as CBS prime time andsportsprogramming usually airs during this time on KOSA. All these contracts expired. In 2016, KOSA-TV became the television home ofUTPB Falcons football.All home games aired on Tuesday nights viatape delayon MyTV up until 2021.
Technical information
editSubchannels
editThe station's signal ismultiplexed:
| Channel | Res. | Aspect | Short name | Programming |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 7.1 | 1080i | 16:9 | KOSA-HD | CBS |
| 7.2 | 720p | THE CW | CW+(KCWO-TV) | |
| 7.3 | 480i | TELEMUN | Telemundo(KTLE-LD) | |
| 7.4 | 480i | H & I | Heroes & Icons |
Analog-to-digital conversion
editKOSA-TV shut down its analog signal, overVHFchannel 7, on June 12, 2009, the official date on which full-power television stations in the United Statestransitioned from analog to digital broadcastsunder federal mandate. The station's digital signal relocated from its pre-transitionUHFchannel 31 to VHF channel 7 for post-transition operations.[28]
See also
editReferences
edit- ^abc"Channel Substitution/Community of License Change".Licensing and Management System.Federal Communications Commission.December 6, 2021.RetrievedDecember 6,2021.
- ^"Report & Order",Media Bureau,Federal Communications Commission,March 1, 2023. Retrieved March 1, 2023.
- ^"Facility Technical Data for KOSA-TV".Licensing and Management System.Federal Communications Commission.
- ^"1956-57 Telecasting Yearbook"(PDF).WorldRadioHistory.com.RetrievedMarch 11,2021.
- ^NTSB accident synopsis for B100 N1910Lretrieved November 27, 2009
- ^"Gray Buying KOSA Odessa For $33.6 Million".TVNewsCheck.May 20, 2015.RetrievedMay 20,2015.
- ^"Gray In 4 New Deals, Closes 3 Earlier Ones".TVNewsCheck.July 1, 2015.RetrievedJuly 2,2015.
- ^"KOSA-TV ODESSA, TX".rabbitears.info.
- ^"GRAY AND RAYCOM TO COMBINE IN A $3.6 BILLION TRANSACTION".Raycom Media(Press release). June 25, 2018. Archived fromthe originalon June 25, 2018.RetrievedDecember 17,2018.
- ^Miller, Mark K. (June 25, 2018)."Gray To Buy Raycom For $3.6 Billion".TVNewsCheck.NewsCheckMedia.RetrievedJune 25,2018.
- ^John Eggerton (June 25, 2018)."Gray Buying Raycom for $3.6B".Broadcasting & Cable.NewBay Media.
- ^Dade Hayes (June 25, 2018)."Gray Acquiring Raycom For $3.65B, Forming No. 3 Local TV Group".Deadline Hollywood.
- ^"TEGNA to Acquire the Leading Television Stations WTOL in Toledo, OH, and KWES in Odessa-Midland, TX".Tegna Inc.August 20, 2018.RetrievedAugust 20,2018.
- ^"Call Sign History",CDBS Public Access,Federal Communications Commission.Retrieved February 15, 2019.
- ^"FCC Filing: Gray Purchase of Raycom Comprehensive Exhibit".
- ^ab"RESCAN: New channels coming to CBS7 lineup".CBS7.com.Gray Television.December 31, 2018.RetrievedJanuary 1,2019.
- ^"Gray Completes Acquisition of Raycom Media and Related Transactions",Gray Television,January 2, 2019. Retrieved January 2, 2019.
- ^"Application for Consent to Assignment of Broadcast Station Construction Permit or License".CDBS Public Access.Federal Communications Commission.July 24, 2020.RetrievedJuly 28,2020.
- ^Request for Failing Station Waiver
- ^"Letter",CDBS Public Access,Federal Communications Commission,September 14, 2020. Retrieved September 20, 2020.
- ^"CBS7 Media Group continues to grow",KOSA-TV, September 30, 2020. Retrieved October 1, 2020.
- ^"Consummation Notice",CDBS Public Access,Federal Communications Commission,October 1, 2020. Retrieved October 1, 2020.
- ^"Consummation Notice" (KMDF-LD),CDBS Public Access,Federal Communications Commission,October 1, 2020. Retrieved October 1, 2020.
- ^"TV Guide channels 'News' - Entertainment News, TV News, Media - Variety".
- ^http://www.oaoa.com/news/nw020807b.htm[dead link]
- ^"dBusinessNews:: Daily Business News Delivered to Your Desktop".Archived fromthe originalon May 25, 2011.RetrievedFebruary 6,2007.
- ^"RabbitEars.Info".rabbitears.info.
- ^"DTV Tentative Channel Designations for the First and the Second Rounds"(PDF).Archived fromthe original(PDF)on August 29, 2013.RetrievedMarch 24,2012.