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KSCI

Coordinates:34°13′25.78″N118°3′47.91″W/ 34.2238278°N 118.0633083°W/34.2238278; -118.0633083
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KSCI
CityLong Beach, California
Channels
BrandingLA 18
Programming
Affiliations
Ownership
Owner
History
First air date
June 30, 1977;47 years ago(1977-06-30)(inSan Bernardino, California;license moved to Long Beach in 1998)
Former channel number(s)
  • Analog:18 (UHF, 1977–2009)
  • Digital:61 (UHF, until 2009)
Call signmeaning
"Science of Creative Intelligence"
Technical information[2]
Licensing authority
FCC
Facility ID35608
ERP1,000kW
HAAT892 m (2,927 ft)
Transmitter coordinates34°13′25.78″N118°3′47.91″W/ 34.2238278°N 118.0633083°W/34.2238278; -118.0633083
Links
Public license information

KSCI(channel 18) is atelevision stationlicensed toLong Beach, California,United States, serving theLos Angelesarea. Owned byWRNN-TV Associates,the station airs programming fromShop LC.KSCI's studios are located on South Bundy Drive inWest Los Angeles,and its transmitter is located atop Mount Wilson. KSCI served as a multiculturalindependent stationuntil June 2021.

History[edit]

1970s[edit]

The channel 18 allocation in Los Angeles was previously occupied by KCHU-TV, licensed toSan Bernardino,which signed on the air on August 1, 1962, before it went off the air in June 1964. The station was owned by theSan Bernardino Sun-Telegram.KSCI signed on the air on June 30, 1977,[3]operating from studios in West Los Angeles, although still licensed in San Bernardino.[4]It became a non-profit owned by theTranscendental Meditation movement(the call letters stood forMaharishi Mahesh Yogi's theoretical "Science of Creative Intelligence" ). The station broadcast news stories, prerecorded lectures and variety shows with TM celebrities.[3]KSCI's goal was to report "only good news"; sister stations were planned forSan FranciscoandWashington, D.C.[5][6]The station manager was Mark Fleischer, son of Hollywood directorRichard Fleischer.[5]

1980s[edit]

In 1980, KSCI switched to a for-profit operation and earned $1 million on revenues of $8 million in 1985.[7]In November 1985, the station loaned $350,000 toMaharishi International UniversityinIowa.[8]By June 1986, the station's content began to consist of "a hodgepodge of programming" in 14 languages.[4][9]They had dubbed themselves the "international station" and claimed to offer the most diverse ethnic television programming in the early 1980s.[10]Almost allIranian Americantelevision programs in the early 1980s were on KSCI.[10]

In October 1986, the station was purchased by its general manager and an investor for $40.5 million.[11]

1990s[edit]

In 1990, the station was sold to Intercontinental Television Group Inc., with programming being produced by Wahid Boctor of Arab American Television.[12][13]In 1998, KSCI transferred itscity of licensefrom San Bernardino toLong Beach.In 2000, aKoreannewspaper,The Hankook Ilbo,took over the International Media Group (IMG), which operated KSCI. IMG was re-launched as the AsianMedia Group, Inc., who purchased the station.[14]

2000s[edit]

By 2005, the station was broadcasting seven English-language and three Spanish-language newscasts plus "local news programs inVietnamese,Mandarin Chinese,andKorean"to 2.5 million Asian-American viewers in Southern California.[15]In early 2005, KSCI changed its on-air branding to "LA18".[citation needed]

In October2008,KSCI broadcast the Presidential debate along with translation in Mandarin and offered political analysis by their news staff. The broadcast was one of several that covered election events in Korean, Mandarin,Cantonese,Vietnamese andFilipinolanguages.[16]

2010s–present[edit]

On January 9, 2012, KSCI, Inc. filed a voluntary petition for reorganization underChapter 11 bankruptcyprotection to the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware.[17]On August 11, 2012, KSCI was purchased by NRJ TV LLC, a company which has acquired smaller television stations in various U.S. cities for the possibility of placing their spectrum for auction once theFederal Communications Commissionrolls out a voluntary spectrum auction for use for non-broadcast purposes in 2014.[18]

On June 22, 2017, KSCI announced that they had canceled all of its programming in Chinese, Filipino, Spanish, andArmenianand replaced it with English-languageinfomercialsbeginning July 1. The subchannels of the station continued to air its programs in Chinese and Armenian, but as a result of the station's programming cutbacks, KSCI also announced they reduced its Korean programming from 8 to 11 p.m. and would cut its subchannels list from 12 to 5 the following year.[19]

On September 12, 2017, KSCI's parent company NRJ TV LLC announced that they would sell itsPowaytranslator station,KUAN-LD,to theNBC Owned Television Stationsgroup (owners ofKNBC/KVEAandKNSD), for $650,000; the sale was completed on December 21, 2017.[20]

Sale to RNN[edit]

On December 9, 2019, it was announced that WRNN-TV Associates, owner ofNew York City–basedWRNN-TV,secured a deal to purchase seven full-power TV stations (including KSCI) and oneClass Astation from NRJ.[1]The sale was approved by the FCC on January 23,[21]and was completed on February 4, 2020.[22]

From February 1 until February 4, 2020, WRNN-TV Associates operated KSCI under a short-termlocal marketing agreement(LMA) while it awaited full consummation of its purchase. KSCI began airing WRNN-TV's independent network RNN on its primary channel. RNN's schedule consists primarily of infomercials, with occasionalreligious,E/I,and news/talk programs.[23]

On May 30, 2021, it was announced that KSCI (along with its sister stations owned by WRNN-TV Associates) would become an affiliate of theShopHQ24/7 channel on June 28, 2021.[24]

iMedia Brands filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on June 28, 2023.[25]On July 10, 2023, iMedia announced that it would sell its assets, including ShopHQ, to RNN Media Group for $50 million;[26]the deal was terminated in August in favor of a $55 million bid for ShopHQ by IV Brands, owned byManoj Bhargava.[27]In October 2023, KSCI switched toShop LC.

Technical information[edit]

Subchannels[edit]

Subchannels of KSCI and KOCE-TV[28]
License Channel Res. Aspect Short name Programming
KSCI 18.1 720p 16:9 LA18 Shop LC
18.2 480i 4:3 SBS SBS(Korean)
18.3 MBCD MBC-D(Korean)
18.4 YTV Yonhap News TV(Korean News)
KOCE-TV 50.1 1080i 16:9 PBS-HD PBS
50.2 480i PBS-2 PBS SoCal Encore
50.3 Daystar Daystar
50.4 PBSwrld World
50.5 PBSkids PBS Kids

Analog-to-digital conversion[edit]

KSCI shut down its analog signal, overUHFchannel 18, on June 12, 2009, as part of thefederally mandated transition from analog to digital television.[29]The station's digital signal relocated from its pre-transition UHF channel 61, which was among the high band UHF channels (52-69) that were removed from broadcasting use as a result of the transition, to its former analog-era UHF channel 18.

References[edit]

  1. ^ab"RNN Reaches Agreement to Increase Permanent Distribution Platform to 28 Percent of the US With NRJ Purchase".Globe Newswire.December 9, 2019.RetrievedDecember 10,2019.
  2. ^"Facility Technical Data for KSCI".Licensing and Management System.Federal Communications Commission.
  3. ^ab"Behavior: THE TM CRAZE: 40 Minutes to Bliss".Time.October 13, 1975. Archived fromthe originalon November 17, 2009.RetrievedOctober 27,2012.
  4. ^abHOLLEY, DAVID (June 15, 1986). "Eclectic TV KSCI's Programming in 14 Languages Offers News, Entertainment, Comfort to Ethnic Communities".Los Angeles Times.p. 1.
  5. ^abWilliam, Jefferson (1976) Pocket Books,The Story Of The Maharishi,page 118
  6. ^"The TM Craze".Time.October 13, 1975. Archived fromthe originalon November 17, 2009.RetrievedDecember 5,2010.
  7. ^Stevens, Gus (July 11, 1986). "Few languages are foreign at San Bernardino's KSCI".The Tribune.San Diego, Calif. p. C.21.
  8. ^"Maharishi U. Nets $6.3 Million In Gifts in '84".Omaha World - Herald.Omaha, Neb. November 4, 1985. p. 1."Private support also came in the form of a $350,000 loan from independent UHF station KSCI in San Bernardino, Calif., which is owned by a TM organization."
  9. ^"Eclectic TV: KSCI's Programming in 14 Languages Offers News, Entertainment, Comfort to Ethnic Communities".Los Angeles Times.June 15, 1986.RetrievedOctober 27,2012.
  10. ^abNaficy, Hamid (1993)."From Broadcasting to Narrowcasting: Middle Eastern Diaspora in Los Angeles".Middle East Report(180): 31–34.doi:10.2307/3013230.ISSN0899-2851.JSTOR3013230– via JSTOR.
  11. ^Valle, Victor (October 29, 1986). "KSCI to Cancel Its Spanish Programming".Los Angeles Times.p. 1.
  12. ^Haugsted, Linda (April 23, 1990) New basic set to launch. (Intercontinental Television Group Inc. to offer news and entertainment programming from Los Angeles cable station),Multichannel News
  13. ^Haugsted, Linda (July 9, 1990) International Channel officially launches with 300,000 subs,Multichannel News
  14. ^(October 12, 2000) Hankook Ilbo Buys KSCI-TV in US, Korea Times (Seoul, Korea)
  15. ^Romano, Allison (October 10, 2005) Asian-American market is ready.(KSCI Holding Inc.) Broadcasting & Cable
  16. ^(October 16, 2008) Los Angeles TV Station to Broadcast October 7 Presidential Debate Live in Chinese, Politics & Government Week
  17. ^"KSCI, Inc.: Private Company Information - Businessweek".Investing.businessweek.com. Archived fromthe originalon July 9, 2012.RetrievedOctober 27,2012.
  18. ^"NRJ TV To Acquire Asian-Language KSCI".TVNewsCheck.com. March 27, 2012.RetrievedOctober 27,2012.
  19. ^"LA18 To Replace Local Asian TV Programs With English Infomercials".CBS Los Angeles.June 22, 2017.RetrievedJune 24,2017.
  20. ^"Station Trading Roundup: 2 Deals, $660,000".TVNewsCheck.September 26, 2017.RetrievedSeptember 27,2017.
  21. ^"Application Search Details".
  22. ^Consummation Notice
  23. ^"WRNN-Tv | RNN".
  24. ^"KIKU Television Will Stop Airing Japanese Content in June".May 30, 2021.
  25. ^"iMedia Brands Files for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy in Delaware".Bloomberg Law.June 28, 2023.RetrievedJune 28,2023.
  26. ^Gilyard, Burl; Kennedy, Patrick."iMedia Brands to be sold for $50 million out of bankruptcy".Star Tribune.RetrievedJuly 12,2023.
  27. ^Kennedy, Patrick; Gilyard, Burl (August 14, 2023)."iMedia's $50M sale is canceled; founder of 5-Hour Energy emerges as new buyer".Star Tribune.RetrievedSeptember 25,2023.
  28. ^RabbitEars TV Query for KSCI
  29. ^List of Digital Full-Power StationsArchivedAugust 29, 2013, at theWayback Machine

External links[edit]

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