KFXK
| KFXK | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Longview, Texas/Tyler, Texas | |
| Branding | FOX 51 |
| Slogan | Come Get Some |
| Channels | Analog: 51 (UHF) Digital: 31 (UHF) |
| Translators | KFXL (Ch. 30, Lufkin-Nacogdoches) |
| Affiliations | FOX |
| Owner | Communications Corporation of America (White Knight Broadcasting) |
| Founded | 1984 |
| Call letters meaning | FoX Kids, defunct children's network by Fox |
| Former affiliations | CBS (1984-1991) UPN (secondary, 1995-1997) |
| Website | www.fox51.com |
KFXK (UHF channel 51) is the FOX affiliate station of Longview, Texas. Its East Texas coverage area includes Tyler and Longview. The station is owned by the ComCorp Corporation under the banner of White Knight Broadcasting. Its transmitter is located near New London, Texas.
The station began life as CBS affiliate KLMG-TV on September 9, 1984. It made national news because the owner, Clara McLaughlin, was the first black female to own a TV station in US history. She bought a school building on I-20 in Longview and turned it into the station's studios. She had big plans to open stations around East Texas as part of what she was calling the East Texas Television Network. She got construction permits for KLNL-TV on Channel 19 in Nacogdoches, KLPH-TV on Channel 42 in Paris and KLDS-TV Channel 20 in Denison. Unfortunately, this plan never panned out and none of the other TV properties ever came on the air. KLMG wound up in bankruptcy just a few years after it opened because the East Texas male shareholders (Clara was the only female shareholder) felt that she was no longer needed and fought her once the station was on the air and operating and they did not wish it to remain as a station with majority ownership by a black woman. Once Clara was out of the picture, the award winning news department was closed.
KLMG switched its call letters to KFXK and affiliation to FOX in April 1991 leaving the market without a CBS affiliate for 13 years - until 2004 when KLSB moved to low-power channel 53 in order for a new CBS affiliate, KYTX, to sign on.
A second, low-power station, KFXL, was established (before 2000?) on Channel 30 as a satellite companion station to KFXK. Its tower is in the Lufkin vicinity and signals serve the Lufkin-Nacogdoches area. This was the first instance of a station serving that area as a Fox affiliate. KFXL helps spread the Fox signal further south, as KFXK's signal is not strong enough on its own to cover the whole East Texas TV market.
In 1998, KFXK launched a 9:00 newscast, the first in the market. The newscast focused on the Longview market and was taped at KETK NBC 56's studios in Tyler. It was always recorded at 9:00 regardless of sports broadcasts delaying the airtime. On rare occasions, this led to seeing the same meteorologist on both KFKX and KETK simultaneously, despite the impression that KFXK's news was live on such nights. The newscast did not fare as well as the station had hoped, and only lasted a few short months.
KFXK launched a full power digital television feed on UHF channel 31 on July 30, 2006. The digital signal carries KLPN 58, MyNetworkTV, as a digital subchannel (31.2). KFXK began testing an HDTV signal on Friday, October 20, 2006, with a full HDTV signal going live on Wednesday, October 25. The signal appeared on SuddenLink Digital Cable systems on channel 705.
FOX 51 News to begin at KFXK-TV
It has been reported that KFXK is starting up news operations once again, conflicting reports indicate a launch date of November 2007 or January 2008. Employment openings are currently posted for anchors, sports anchors, producers and photographers with their sister station, NBC affiliate KETK-TV. KFXK plans to launch a 9pm primetime newscast called "FOX 51 News First @ 9:00" as well as a 2 hour morning newscast called "Good Day East Texas".
Former On-Air Personalities
- Wes Sims, anchor at KION-TV
- Steve Larocco, anchor (to Springfield, Mo.)
- Doug Ohlemeier, reporter
- Cynthia Cisneros, reporter. Now at KTRK-TV in Houston
- Rusty Garrett, weather KWTX- Waco, Texas
- Larry Potash, Anchor.(WGN-TV)
- J.D. Miles, reporter
- Tony Taglavore now at KTVE/KARD in Monroe, Louisiana
External links
| Broadcast television in the Tyler / Longview / Lufkin / Nacogdoches market (Nielsen DMA #111) |
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Tyler / Longview: |
| Fox Network Affiliates in the state of Texas |
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XHRIO 2 (Matamoros / Brownsville)* - KDFW
4 (Dallas) - KIDY 6 (San Angelo) -
KTBC 7 (Austin) - KCIT 14 (Amarillo) - KFOX 14 (El Paso) - KXVA 15 (Abilene) - |
| See also: ABC, CBS, CW, MyNetwork TV, NBC, PBS, Telefutura, Telemundo, Univision, Religious, Other English and Other Spanish stations in Texas |
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