KEYC-TV
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| Ownership | |
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| KMNF-LD | |
| History | |
First air date | October 5, 1960 |
Former channel number(s) |
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Call signmeaning | Key City (city slogan for Mankato) |
| Technical information[1] | |
Licensing authority | FCC |
| Facility ID | 68853 |
| ERP | 52.7kW |
| HAAT | 317 m (1,040 ft) |
| Transmitter coordinates | 43°56′12.4″N94°24′38.5″W/ 43.936778°N 94.410694°W |
| Links | |
Public license information | |
| Website | www |
KEYC-TV(channel 12) is atelevision stationlicensed toMankato, Minnesota,United States, affiliated withCBSandFox.It is owned byGray Televisionalongsidelow-power,dualNBC/CW+affiliateKMNF-LD(channel 7). The two stations share studios on Lookout Drive inNorth Mankato;KEYC-TV's transmitter is located nearLewisville, Minnesota.
The Mankatomarketis within reach of some television stations based in theTwin Cities.CBSowned-and-operated stationWCCO-TVhas anover-the-airsignal that reaches Mankato proper, and the station is offered locally onCharter Spectrumchannel 4. Due to the cable presence of WCCO, KEYC can invoke theFederal Communications Commission(FCC)'s network non-duplication rule resulting in Spectrumblacking outprogramming from the former during network shows. WCCO's newscasts and some of its syndicated programs can be seen, however.
History
[edit]KEYC-TV signed on October 5, 1960, just in time to broadcast the first game of theWorld Seriesthat night fromNBC.It was owned byLee Enterpriseswhich also started nearby KGLO-TV (nowKIMT) inMason City, Iowa.Less than a year later, KEYC switched its affiliation to CBS which has been maintained to this day. Lee Enterprises, intending to purchaseKOIN-TVinPortland, Oregon,was forced to sell KEYC toUnited Communicationsin 1977 due to ownership limits imposed by the FCC. DuringUPN's existence, the station carried some of that network's programming through a secondary arrangement.
KEYC was a major beneficiary of an exception to the FCC's "2+1⁄2+ 1 "plan for allocating VHF television bandwidth. In the early days of broadcast television, there were twelve VHF channels available, and 69UHFchannels (which was later reduced to 56 with the removal of high-band channels 70–83 in the early 1980s). The VHF bands were more desirable because signals broadcasting on that band traveled a longer distance. Because there were only twelve VHF channels available, there were limitations as to how closely the stations could be spaced. With the release of the FCC'sSixth Report and Orderin 1952, the Commission outlined a new allocation table for VHF licenses and opened up the UHF band. Through these initiatives, almost all of the United States would be able to receive two commercial VHF channels plus onenon-commercialallocation. Most of the rest of the country ( "1/2" ) would be able to receive a third VHF channel. Other areas of the country would be designated as "UHF islands," since they were too close to larger cities for VHF service.
However, what would become of the Mankato market was sandwiched between Minneapolis–Saint Paul (channels2,4,5,9,and11) to the north,Rochester(channels 3,6,and10) to the east,Sioux Falls(channels2,5,11,and13) to the west, andDes Moines(channels5,8,11,and13) to the southeast. This created a large "doughnut" in Mankato where there could only beoneVHF license. KEYC was fortunate enough to gain that license. To this day, KEYC is the only full-power commercial station based in Mankato, in the 13th smallest TV market (Nielsen DMA #198). However, KEYC is not without significant competition because outlets from the Twin Cities, the 15th largest market, cover major news and weather events in the region, and their signals are extended into the region via an extensive translator network.
On July 1, 2007, the station signed on a new seconddigital subchanneland brought Fox programming to the market for the first time; this subchannel replaced Minneapolis stationsWFTC(channel 29) and later KMSP-TV (channel 9), which have both been carried on cable systems in southwestern Minnesota since before the Fox network began operations in 1986.[2]KEYC's broadcasts became digital-only effective June 12, 2009.[3]
On February 8, 2019, Gray Television announced it was purchasing the United stations, including KEYC. In advance of the purchase, Gray assumed control of the station via alocal marketing agreement(LMA) on March 1.[4]KEYC would be Gray's first station in Minnesota.[5]The sale was completed on May 1.[6]
Programming
[edit]KEYC-TV airs the entire CBS schedule; it began clearing theCBS Newsprogram known as theCBS Overnight Newswhen it started 24-hour-a-day broadcasting on September 14, 2020.
KEYC-TV maintains a highly local focus such as through its production of the long-running music seriesBandwagon.Another program that have aired almost throughout the station's history was a localreligiousprogram,I Believe inMiracles,which first aired on February 19, 1961.Miraclesaired for the last time on KEYC on February 8, 2015. Various other local programs have aired over the years as well as a variety of specials such as onholiday musicor major community issues.
Newscasts
[edit]On January 15, 2018, KEYC debuted a new weekday morning newscast.KEYC News Now This Morningairs for one hour starting at 6 a.m.[7]On February 25, 2019, it was expanded to1+1⁄2hours starting at 5:30 a.m. There are local news and weather cut-ins duringCBS Morningsfrom 7 to 9 a.m.KEYC News Nowoffers local newscasts weekdays at noon for a half-hour, Monday through Friday at 5 p.m., Monday through Saturday nights at 6, and every night at 10.KEYC News Now at 9airs seven nights a week on KEYC-DT2. In September 2022, KEYC launchedKato Living,a weekday lifestyle program.
Technical information
[edit]Subchannels
[edit]The station's digital signal ismultiplexed:
| Channel | Res. | Aspect | Short name | Programming |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 12.1 | 1080i | 16:9 | KEYC-HD | Main KEYC-TV programming /CBS |
| 12.2 | 720p | FOX12HD | KEYC-DT2 /Fox | |
| 12.3 | 480i | ION | Ion Television | |
| 12.4 | WX | KEYC Weather Now | ||
| 12.5 | OXG | Oxygen |
Former translator stations
[edit]The broadcast signal of KEYC was extended by way of three digitaltranslatorsin southern Minnesota until December 22, 2017, when United Communications could not negotiate a new leasing agreement with tower owner BENCO/CTV.[9]
The Frost and Jackson translators were located in the Minneapolis–St. Paul market, while the St. James translator was in the Mankato market.
References
[edit]- ^"Facility Technical Data for KEYC-TV".Licensing and Management System.Federal Communications Commission.
- ^Mankato Fox station to launch July 1,Mankato Free Press,June 6, 2007
- ^KEYC Switching To Digital Signal In June,KEYC-TV 12, February 12, 2009
- ^"Gray Television Announces Purchase of KEYC-TV".KEYC-TV. February 8, 2019.RetrievedFebruary 9,2019.
- ^"Gray Enters New York State and Minnesota with Purchase of United's Strong Television Stations"(PDF).Gray Television.February 8, 2019.RetrievedFebruary 8,2019.
- ^"Consummation Notice",CDBS Public Access,Federal Communications Commission,Retrieved May 6, 2019.
- ^"KEYC - KEYC News 12 to Launch Morning News in 2018".Archived fromthe originalon November 21, 2017.
- ^RabbitEars TV Query for KEYC
- ^Keegan, Mitch (December 20, 2017)."Translator Changes May Impact Some Over-the-Air Viewers of KEYC News 12".KEYC.United Communications.RetrievedFebruary 9,2019.