Hubbard Broadcasting Corporation

This article's tone or style may not be appropriate for Wikipedia. Specific concerns may be found on the talk page. See Wikipedia's guide to writing better articles for suggestions. (April 2008)

Hubbard Broadcasting Corporation is an American television and radio broadcasting corporation based in St. Paul, Minnesota that was started by Stanley E. Hubbard.

The corporation has broadcast outlets scattered across Minnesota, Wisconsin, New York, and New Mexico, though the flagships are the KSTP radio — KSTP (AM), KSTP-FM — and television — KSTP-TV — stations serving the Twin Cities region of Minnesota and western Wisconsin.

History

KSTP has its origins in the Twin Cities radio station WAMD ("Where All Minneapolis Dances"), which started broadcasting live dance music from a local ballroom on February 13, 1925. It was the first radio station to be completely supported by income generated by advertisements. Hubbard Broadcasting now operates three radio stations as well as several television stations.

In 1928, WAMD merged with KFOY (Kind Friends of Yours) radio (first broadcast: March 12, 1924) in St. Paul to become KSTP, which was advertised as being operated by the National Battery Broadcasting Co. Ten years later, in 1938, Hubbard bought the first television camera available from RCA. Following the television blackout brought on by World War II, KSTP started television broadcasts in 1948.

KSTP is still Hubbard's flagship, although there are now three different stations that carry that name. KSTP-TV is affiliated with ABC. KSTP-AM broadcasts a talk radio format, and KSTP-FM broadcasts adult contemporary music.

After the Federal Communications Commission relaxed rules about television station ownership, Hubbard bought a second television station in the Twin Cities. Originally affiliated with the Home Shopping Network when it started operations in 1994, KVBM channel 45 was bought by Hubbard and began broadcasting as KSTC in 2000. The station is normally independent (not affiliated with any broadcast network), but it has been used by KSTP to broadcast ABC network programming when channel 5 is broadcasting coverage of Viking football games or other special shows, including severe-weather coverage.

Aside from terrestrial broadcast stations, other current ventures include the film network ReelzChannel (launched in 2006), arts network Ovation TV, and the Hubbard Radio Network, which is used to distribute KSTP-AM's local talk shows to subscribing radio stations in Minnesota and Wisconsin. The cable channels are run through subsidiary company Hubbard Media Group.

In 1981, Hubbard Broadcasting started U.S. Satellite Broadcasting (USSB), and later was instrumental in the development and launching of the first digital satellite system for television in 1994. The new satellite could deliver 175 channels to a (at the time) tiny, 18 inch dish. USSB's development partner, Hughes Electronics (a General Motors subsidiary), launched their own subscription satellite service called DirecTV. The two services did not compete against each other (they carried different channels), and were often marketed together to subscribers by retailers and in advertisements until DirecTV's 1998 acquisition of USSB.

Hubbard Broadcasting also operated a 24 Hour News station titled All News Channel which featured longtime KSTP anchor Stan Turner. The news channel lasted from 1991 until it folded in September 2002.

Hubbard Broadcasting also owned the now-closed Bound to be Read bookstores in St. Paul, Albuquerque, and Fort Myers.

Hubbard Broadcasting is known for its outspoken support of conservative politicians and the Republican Party of Minnesota.

As of October 2007, it is engaged in a fevered battle with NABET union repping employees of WNYT Albany.

Television stations

All of the assets are owned by the Stanley S. Hubbard Revocable Trust, and administered by Hubbard Broadcasting, Inc.^[1][2]

Hubbard had built and signed on WTOG in St. Petersburg, Florida. It owned the station from 1968 until 1996, when it swapped the station to Viacom to obtain WHEC and WNYT.

Cable Channels (through Hubbard Media Group division)

• Ovation TV (purchased August 2006; co-owned with Bob and Harvey Weinstein and The Weinstein Company)
• ReelzChannel (launched September 2006)

Radio stations

• KSTP 1500 kHz AM - St. Paul, Minnesota – Talk radio
• KSTP 94.5 MHz FM - St. Paul, Minnesota – "KS95" – Adult contemporary
• WFMP 107.1 MHz FM - Coon Rapids, Minnesota/Twin Cities – Talk radio for women

Ownership notes

Stanley S. Hubbard and Karen H. Hubbard are married to each other. Their children are: Kathryn H. Rominski, Stanley E. Hubbard, Virginia H. Morris, Robert W. Hubbard, and Julia D. Coyte. They have many grandchildren.

See also

• Lists of corporate assets

References

• Fulton Klinkerfues. Stanley E. Hubbard pioneered local broadcasting. Good Age Newspaper.
• Jeff Miller (editor). A Chronology of AM Broadcasting (1900-1960).
• USA Today, June 11, 2006. [1]
• Los Angeles Times, August 30, 2006. [2]