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KXRM-TV

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KXRM-TV
CityColorado Springs, Colorado
Channels
Branding
  • Fox 21;Fox 21 News
  • SOCO CW (on DT2)
Programming
Affiliations
Ownership
Owner
KXTU-LD
History
First air date
January 22, 1985(39 years ago)(1985-01-22)
Former channel number(s)
Analog:21 (UHF, 1985–2009)
Call signmeaning
"Christ Exalted in theRocky Mountains"
Technical information[1]
Licensing authority
FCC
Facility ID35991
ERP51kW
HAAT641 m (2,103 ft)
Transmitter coordinates38°44′42.9″N104°51′41.9″W/ 38.745250°N 104.861639°W/38.745250; -104.861639(KXRM-TV)
Translator(s)see§ Translators
Links
Public license information
Websitewww.fox21news.com

KXRM-TV(channel 21) is atelevision stationinColorado Springs, Colorado,United States, affiliated with theFoxnetwork. It is owned byNexstar Media Groupalongsidelow-powerCWowned-and-operated stationKXTU-LD(channel 57). The two stations share studios on Wooten Road in Colorado Springs; KXRM-TV's transmitter is located onCheyenne Mountain.

History

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KXRM-TV first signed on the air as anindependent stationon January 22, 1985. Itscall letterswere chosen in part to reflect the region in which it operates and its original intent of classic family friendly programing, current and classic cartoon programing mixed with Christian teaching and talk shows. The first two letters stand for "Khrist" (Jesus Christ) "Xalted" (Exalted) and the last two letters stand for "Rocky Mountains".The station had hoped to sign onChristmas Eve1984, but technical glitches prevented that from happening. KXRM was Southern Colorado's first independent station, and the region's first commercial television station sinceKRDO-TVsigned on 31 years earlier. KXRM-TV became one of the initial group of independent television stations to agree to affiliate with the Fox Broadcasting Company in 1986 and had remained an affiliate of the network ever since.

The station was locally owned until 2000 when it was bought byRaycom Media.After Raycom merged with theLiberty Corporation,KXRM was one of several stations that were spun off toBarrington Broadcasting.

On October 11, 2007, the station began airing programming from theRetro Television Network(RTV) on its seconddigital subchannel.[2]Previously, this airedThe Tube(a 24-hour music channel) until the network suspended operations on October 1. On September 15, 2008, KXRM replaced RTV programming on 21.2 with a simulcast of KXTU.[3]This signal increases KXTU's broadcasting radius; KXTU did not convert to digital until 2010, and even in digital, its coverage area is effectively limited toEl PasoandPueblocounties.

On February 28, 2013, Barrington Broadcasting announced the sale of its entire group, including KXRM-TV, toSinclair Broadcast Group.[4]The sale was completed on November 25.[5]On August 20, 2014, Sinclair announced that it would sell KXRM-TV and KXTU-LD, along withWTTAinTampa BayandWHTMinHarrisburg(which Sinclair, on behalf ofAllbrittonis planning on to divest) toMedia Generalin a swap forWJARinProvidence, Rhode Island,theWLUK-TVandWCWFduopoly inGreen Bay, Wisconsin,andWTGSinSavannah, Georgia.The swap was part of Media General's merger withLIN Media.[6][7]WHTM's sale of Media General was explored nearly two months earlier, and it was completed, nearly three months before the Media General/LIN deal was completed.[8][9]The sale was completed on December 19.[10]On January 27, 2016, it was announced that theNexstar Broadcasting Groupwould buy Media General for $4.6 billion. KXRM became part of "Nexstar Media Group" as Nexstar's second station in Colorado, joiningGrand Junction'sCBSaffiliateKREX-TV,along with their sister Fox stationKFQXthrough their JSA withMission Broadcasting.[11]The deal was approved by the FCC on January 11, 2017, and it was completed on January 17.[12]Nexstar would then acquireTribune Mediaand their Denver duopoly of CW affiliateKWGN-TVand Fox affiliateKDVR,thus consolidating full control over the Fox stations across Colorado.

News operation

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Currently, KXRM broadcasts 43 hours of local news each week (with7+1⁄2hours each weekday,2+1⁄2hours on Saturdays and three hours on Sundays). It has the highest local newscast output among all broadcast television stations in the Colorado Springs–Pueblomarket.

The station began airing a half hour prime time newscast at 9 p.m. on March 11, 2001, that was produced by local CBS affiliateKKTV.KXRM established its own in-house news department in 2006 and expanded the nighty 9 p.m. newscast to a full hour. The station hosts a morning show (first started in 2007 as a three-hour newscast) that currently runs from 5 to 9 a.m. that has been recognized by the Colorado Broadcasters Association as one of the best morning shows in themarket.On January 20, 2016, a 10 p.m. newscast was added for weeknights. KXRM also airs weekend morning newscasts running from 5 to 7 a.m. on Saturdays and 6 to 8 a.m. on Sundays. The Saturday evening newscasts run a half hour from 9 to 9:30 p.m., and the Sunday night newscasts run an hour from 9 to 10 p.m.

In late September 2010, KXRM became the fourth station in Colorado Springs–Pueblo to start broadcasting its local newscasts in16:9widescreen.

In 2013, theRadio Television Digital News Associationrecognized KXRM with a National Edward R. Murrow Award for continuing coverage of theWaldo Canyon Fire.[13]

Technical information

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Subchannels

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The station's signal ismultiplexed:

Subchannels of KXRM-TV[14]
Channel Res. Aspect Short name Programming
21.1 720p 16:9 KXRM-DT Fox
21.2 1080i SOCO CW The CW(KXTU-LD)
21.3 480i ION Ion
21.4 Mystery Ion Mystery
Simulcast of subchannels of another station

Analog-to-digital conversion

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KXRM-TV ended regular programming on its analog signal, overUHFchannel 21, 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 remained on its pre-transition UHF channel 22,[15]usingvirtual channel21.

As part of theSAFER Act,KXRM kept its analog signal on the air until June 26 to inform viewers of the digital television transition through a loop ofpublic service announcementsfrom theNational Association of Broadcasters.[16]

Translators

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References

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  1. ^"Facility Technical Data for KXRM-TV".Licensing and Management System.Federal Communications Commission.
  2. ^Three Markets Go Retro with Retro Television Network.Broadcastingcable.com. Retrieved on July 22, 2013.
  3. ^KXRM takes KXTU under its digital wing.Springstvtalk.blogspot.com (September 17, 2008). Retrieved on July 22, 2013.
  4. ^Malone, Michael (February 28, 2013)."Sinclair's Chesapeake TV Acquires Barrington Stations".Broadcasting & Cable.RetrievedMarch 1,2013.
  5. ^"Archived copy"(PDF).Archived fromthe original(PDF)on December 3, 2013.RetrievedNovember 25,2013.{{cite web}}:CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  6. ^"Media General, LIN Sell Stations In 5 Markets".TVNewsCheck.August 20, 2014.RetrievedAugust 20,2014.
  7. ^Malone, Michael (August 20, 2014)."Media General, LIN Divest Stations in Five Markets".Broadcasting & Cable.RetrievedAugust 20,2014.
  8. ^Staff (June 23, 2014)."Media General Buying WHTM For $83.4M".TV News Check.RetrievedNovember 22,2021.
  9. ^"Media General Completes Acquisition of WHTM-TV in Harrisburg, PA".www.businesswire.com.September 2, 2014.RetrievedNovember 22,2021.
  10. ^Sinclair Broadcast Group Closes on Certain Station Acquisitions and Divestitures with Media GeneralArchivedDecember 19, 2014, at theWayback Machine,Press Release,Sinclair Broadcast Group,Retrieved December 19, 2014
  11. ^"Nexstar Broadcasting Group Enters into Definitive Agreement to Acquire Media General for $4.6 Billion in Accretive Cash and Stock Transaction".Archived fromthe originalon January 30, 2016.RetrievedJanuary 28,2016.
  12. ^Nexstar Broadcasting Group Completes Acquisition of Media General Creating Nexstar Media Group, The Nation's Second Largest Television BroadcasterNexstar Media Group,January 17, 2017. Retrieved January 17, 2017.
  13. ^2013 National Edward R. Murrow Award Winners.RTDNA. Retrieved on July 22, 2013.
  14. ^RabbitEars TV Query for KXRM
  15. ^"DTV Tentative Channel Designations for the First and the Second Rounds"(PDF).Archived fromthe original(PDF)on August 29, 2013.RetrievedMarch 24,2012.
  16. ^"UPDATED List of Participants in the Analog Nightlight Program"(PDF).Federal Communications Commission. June 12, 2009.RetrievedJune 14,2024.
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