KPLC

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See also KPLC: Kenya Power and Lighting Company.

KPLC
Lake Charles-Lafayette, Louisiana
Branding	KPLC 7 KPLC 7 News
Slogan	7 at Your Service
Channels	Digital: 7 (VHF)
Subchannels	7.1 NBC 7.2 KPLC Weather Channel 7.3 This TV
Affiliations	NBC (Secondary to 1980)
Owner	Raycom Media, Inc. (KPLC License Subsidiary, LLC)
First air date	September 29, 1954
Call letters’ meaning	Port of Lake Charles
Former callsigns	KPLC-TV (1954-2003)
Former channel number(s)	Analog: 7 (1954-2009) Digital: 8
Former affiliations	ABC (secondary, 1954-1980)
Transmitter Power	31 kW (digital)
Height	451 m (digital)
Facility ID	13994
Transmitter Coordinates	30°23′46″N 93°0′3″W / 30.39611°N 93.00083°W / 30.39611; -93.00083
Website	www.kplctv.com/

KPLC is an NBC affiliate licensed to Lake Charles, Louisiana broadcasting on digital channel 7. It is owned by Raycom Media, with transmitter facilities located in Fenton, Louisiana.

The station also serves as the default NBC affiliate for the Lafayette, Louisiana market, since that market doesn't have an NBC affiliate of its own. It operates a "virtual station" for Acadiana and sells advertising in the area.

History

KPLC-TV began broadcasting in the summer of 1954. Owner T.B. Lanford of Shreveport had previously signed on KPLC-AM radio and was eager to expand into television.

The station was later purchased by a St. Louis group headed by investor Elliot Stien. He visited KPLC frequently along with his friend, St. Louis Cardinals baseball legend Stan Musial.

In 1970, G. Russell Chambers purchased KPLC-TV from the St. Louis group and dramatically increased the station's coverage by adding a 1500 foot tower, providing a quality signal for the NBC affiliate as far north as Leesville, as far east as Lafayette and to the Gulf of Mexico. FCC regulations required that the radio stations be sold. Perry Sanders purchased the AM/FM combo and changed its call letters to KLCL.

In 1986, Cosmos Broadcasting, a subsidiary of Liberty Life Insurance Company, took over. KPLC was one of the first television stations in the U.S. to launch its own website in the 1990s.

In 2004, KPLC began broadcasting in digital as well as analog with the launch of KPLC (DT). Later in the year the station launched its first local 24-hour weather channel, "KPLC WeatherPlus." Simultaneously, the station launched a service specifically for cellphones and PDA's, "7 On Your Cell."

In January 2006, Liberty and KPLC were purchased by Raycom Media, which also owns two other Louisiana television stations, KSLA-TV in Shreveport and WAFB in Baton Rouge.

KPLC is consistently one of the nation's most watched television stations, ranking among the top 5 Nielsen-rated stations nationally throughout the year.^{[citation needed]}

Digital television

The station's digital channel is multiplexed:

Digital channels

HD Programming

KPLC currently airs all of NBC network programming in High Definition and none of its syndicated programming such as The Ellen DeGeneres Show, The Oprah Winfrey Show and Entertainment Tonight in HD.

Currently KPLC does not offer any of its local news in high definition.

KPLC 7 News Team

Current Personalities

• Cynthia Arceneaux (7 News Live at 5, 7 News at 6, & 7 News Nightcast Lead Anchor)
• John Bridges (7 News Sunrise News Anchor)
• Britney Glaser (7 News Sunrise News Anchor, Healthcast Reporter)
• Lee Peck (7 News Weekend Anchor & Nightcast Reporter)
• Theresa Schmidt (General Assignment & Environment Reporter)
• Wade Hampton (7 Storm Team Chief Meteorologist - 5 pm, 6pm, & Nightcast)
• Kellie Hutchinson (7 Storm Team Meteorologist - 7 News Sunrise, 7 News @ Noon)
• Jeff Jumper (7 Storm Team Meteorologist - Weekends)
• Tom Annino - 7 Sports Director and main sports anchor
• Tiffany Blackmon (7 Sports team and general assignment reporter)
• Adam Hooper (General assignment reporter)
• Crystal Price (Assignment education/general assignment reporter)
• Brandon Richards (General assignment reporter)
• Jason Belk (7 Sports team and general assignment reporter)

Former Personalities

• Marty Briggs (6pm & Nightcast Co-Anchor) - Laid off from KPLC in late 2008 due to budget cuts. Currently (8/2009) working as a real estate agent in the Lake Charles area.
• Danica Abraham (General Assignments Reporter) - Left KPLC in 2007 - Joined KADN in Lafayette, LA
• Curtis Atkinson, (7 Storm Team Chief Meteorologist) - Left KPLC in June 2008 - Moved to Alabama
• Vince Atkinson (Nightcast Reporter) - Left KPLC in 2007, now a reporter at KSAN-TV in San Angelo, TX
• Pam Dixon (Noon News Anchor, Education Reporter) - Left KPLC in 2008 - Became an educator at the Lake Charles-Boston Academy of Learning
• Robert Hadlock (Reporter / Weekend News Anchor) - Now the evening anchor at KXAN in Austin.
• Rhonda Kitchens (Reporter / Weekend News Anchor) - Left KPLC in 2007 - Moved to California then back to Lake Charles; Now working at KYKZ-FM
• Garrett Lumpkin (Sports Anchor) - Left KPLC in 2007 - Launched new local sports show, 337sports.net
• Jerry Modene (Weekend Anchor/Weather; host "Louisiana Today"; co-host "Midday") - with KPLC from 1977 to 1981, now resides in Las Vegas
• Laila Morcos (Sunrise News Anchor, Healthcast Reporter) - Left KPLC in 2007, now a reporter at WGNO in New Orleans
• David Paul (Meteorologist) Currently in same position at KHOU-TV in Houston
• Joe Rawley (Sunrise producer) - Left KPLC in March 2006 for WAFB-TV in Baton Rouge, now a reporter at WGNO-TV in New Orleans
• Jordan Sandler (Sports Reporter) - Left KPLC in 2007 - Now a news reporter at WIS-TV in Columbia, SC
• Liberty Schauf (Noon & 5pm Producer) - Left KPLC in 2007 - No word on her leaving
• Game show announcer and host Bob Hilton started his career at KPLC.
• Rob Marciano (now at CNN) - Chief Meterologist 1994 - 1997.

News/Station presentation

Newscast titles

• 7 News (1980s-present)

Station slogans

• Louisiana's Most Honored News Team (1989-1994)
• 7 at Your Service (1994-present)
• Coverage. Community. Commitment. (1999-2004)

This film, television or video-related list is incomplete; you can help by expanding it with reliably sourced additions.

Service interruptions

KPLC's makeshift studio during Hurricane Rita coverage

In March 2004 while workers were installing a new transmission tower in high winds, the old transmission tower fell, causing a service disruption lasting about two weeks to over-the-air viewers in Southwest Louisiana. Service to cable customers was not interrupted due to the station's signal being delivered by fiber lines. A lower-power temporary tower was erected on top the station's broadcast studios a couple of days after the tower fell, allowing viewers within a few miles of the station to again receive the signal over-the-air.

During Hurricane Rita, which struck in September 2005, the station delivered around-the-clock news from a temporary, makeshift studio in a safer location than its normal studios in downtown Lake Charles.

External links

• Official homepage
• Query the FCC's TV station database for KPLC
• BIAfn's Media Web Database -- Information on KPLC-TV

References