Communications Corporation of America
Encyclopedia
Communications Corporation of America (also known as ComCorp) is a broadcasting company in the United States
that owns television station
s in smaller markets. The company is headquartered in Lafayette, Louisiana
. It owns and/or operates 20 stations (counting satellite stations and those controlled via local marketing agreement
s).
At one point, ComCorp was also an owner of radio station
s in its home market of Lafayette; it subsequently sold those stations to Regent Communications
.
In June 2006, ComCorp filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy
. The company emerged from bankruptcy in October 2007 under the control of Silver Point Capital, who also controls Granite Broadcasting Corporation
.
Local news on ComCorp's owned or managed stations are structured variably, with most stations not producing news in-house. As of May 2011, the only ComCorp owned-and-operated stations with in-house local newscasts are KTSM-TV
and KETK-TV
; two ComCorp managed stations, WVLA-TV and KDBC-TV
also produce their own newscasts. Most of the remainder of the company's stations have their newscasts outsourced to other stations in the company portfolio: most of ComCorp's Fox stations in Louisiana and Texas have local newscasts produced by KETK (with the exception of WGMB
in Baton Rouge, whose newscasts are produced out of area sister station WVLA); the newscasts for NBC affiliate KVEO-TV in Brownsville, Texas
, though are produced by El Paso CBS affiliate KDBC-TV
); the remainder of ComCorp's owned and managed stations, including CBS affiliate WEVV-TV (the only Big Three station in the group without any local news), do not carry news at all.
Footnotes:
Footnote:
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
that owns television station
Television station
A television station is a business, organisation or other such as an amateur television operator that transmits content over terrestrial television. A television transmission can be by analog television signals or, more recently, by digital television. Broadcast television systems standards are...
s in smaller markets. The company is headquartered in Lafayette, Louisiana
Lafayette, Louisiana
Lafayette is a city in and the parish seat of Lafayette Parish, Louisiana, United States, on the Vermilion River. The population was 120,623 at the 2010 census...
. It owns and/or operates 20 stations (counting satellite stations and those controlled via local marketing agreement
Local marketing agreement
In U.S. and Canadian broadcasting, a local marketing agreement is an agreement in which one company agrees to operate a radio or television station owned by another licensee...
s).
At one point, ComCorp was also an owner of radio station
Radio station
Radio broadcasting is a one-way wireless transmission over radio waves intended to reach a wide audience. Stations can be linked in radio networks to broadcast a common radio format, either in broadcast syndication or simulcast or both...
s in its home market of Lafayette; it subsequently sold those stations to Regent Communications
Regent Communications
Townsquare Media is an American radio broadcaster, based in Greenwich, Connecticut., after it acquired sister companies Gap Broadcasting and GapWest Broadcasting, it owned 171 radio stations in 36 radio markets, with concentration in the Northeast, Midwest, Southwest, and Mountain...
.
In June 2006, ComCorp filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy
Chapter 11, Title 11, United States Code
Chapter 11 is a chapter of the United States Bankruptcy Code, which permits reorganization under the bankruptcy laws of the United States. Chapter 11 bankruptcy is available to every business, whether organized as a corporation or sole proprietorship, and to individuals, although it is most...
. The company emerged from bankruptcy in October 2007 under the control of Silver Point Capital, who also controls Granite Broadcasting Corporation
Granite Broadcasting Corporation
Granite Broadcasting Corporation, founded by W. Don Cornwell and Stuart Beck in 1988 , is a broadcasting holding company which owns or operates 14 television stations in the United States, largely centered in the midwest with a cluster in New York state...
.
Local news on ComCorp's owned or managed stations are structured variably, with most stations not producing news in-house. As of May 2011, the only ComCorp owned-and-operated stations with in-house local newscasts are KTSM-TV
KTSM-TV
KTSM-TV, also known as NewsChannel 9, is an NBC affiliated television station based in El Paso, Texas. It broadcasts its digital signal on VHF channel 9...
and KETK-TV
KETK-TV
KETK-TV, virtual channel 56, is the NBC television affiliate serving the East Texas viewing area. It is owned by Communications Corporation of America, under licensee of "ComCorp of Tyler", which also operates Fox network affiliates KFXK and KFXL-LP, and MyNetworkTV affiliate KLPN-LP through a...
; two ComCorp managed stations, WVLA-TV and KDBC-TV
KDBC-TV
KDBC-TV is the CBS affiliate in El Paso, Texas. The station is owned by the Titan TV Broadcast Group. It broadcasts its digital signal on UHF channel 18. Its new digital subchannel carries My Network TV...
also produce their own newscasts. Most of the remainder of the company's stations have their newscasts outsourced to other stations in the company portfolio: most of ComCorp's Fox stations in Louisiana and Texas have local newscasts produced by KETK (with the exception of WGMB
WGMB
WGMB-TV is the local Fox affiliate for Baton Rouge, Louisiana. It is owned by Communications Corporation of America, and is sister station to the area's The CW affiliate, WBRL-CD. WGMB also shared facilities and staff with WVLA-TV and KZUP-CD...
in Baton Rouge, whose newscasts are produced out of area sister station WVLA); the newscasts for NBC affiliate KVEO-TV in Brownsville, Texas
Brownsville, Texas
Brownsville is a city in the southernmost tip of the state of Texas, in the United States. It is located on the northern bank of the Rio Grande, directly north and across the border from Matamoros, Tamaulipas, Mexico. Brownsville is the 16th largest city in the state of Texas with a population of...
, though are produced by El Paso CBS affiliate KDBC-TV
KDBC-TV
KDBC-TV is the CBS affiliate in El Paso, Texas. The station is owned by the Titan TV Broadcast Group. It broadcasts its digital signal on UHF channel 18. Its new digital subchannel carries My Network TV...
); the remainder of ComCorp's owned and managed stations, including CBS affiliate WEVV-TV (the only Big Three station in the group without any local news), do not carry news at all.
ComCorp-owned stations
| City of license City of license A city of license or community of license, in American and Canadian broadcasting, is the community that a radio station or television station is officially licensed to serve by that country's broadcast regulator.... /Market |
Station | Channel | Owned Since | Affiliation |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Baton Rouge, Louisiana | WGMB-TV | 44 (45) | 1991 | Fox Fox Broadcasting Company Fox Broadcasting Company, commonly referred to as Fox Network or simply Fox , is an American commercial broadcasting television network owned by Fox Entertainment Group, part of Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation. Launched on October 9, 1986, Fox was the highest-rated broadcast network in the... |
| WBRL-CD | 21 / 44.2 | 2002 | The CW The CW Television Network The CW Television Network is a television network in the United States launched at the beginning of the 2006–2007 television season. It is a joint venture between CBS Corporation, the former owners of United Paramount Network , and Time Warner's Warner Bros., former majority owner of The WB... |
|
| WVLA-TV 1 | 33 (34) | NBC NBC The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago... This TV This TV This TV is a United States general entertainment television network, with a large emphasis in its programming on movies.... (on DT2) |
||
| KZUP-CD 1 | 19 (20) | RTV Retro Television Network The Retro Television Network is a system of television stations that airs classic television shows as well as more recently produced programs... |
||
| Brownsville - Harlingen - McAllen, Texas | KVEO-TV | 23 (24) | 1990 | NBC Estrella TV Estrella TV Estrella TV is a Spanish-language television network owned by Liberman Broadcasting. The network launched September 14, 2009.-Affiliates:-Former Affiliates:-Controversy:... (on DT2) |
| Bryan Bryan, Texas Bryan is a city in Brazos County, Texas, United States. As of the 2010 census, the city had a total population of 76,201. It is the county seat of Brazos County and is located in the heart of the Brazos Valley . It shares its border with the city of College Station, which lies to its south... - College Station, Texas College Station, Texas College Station is a city in Brazos County, Texas, situated in East Central Texas in the heart of the Brazos Valley. The city is located within the most populated region of Texas, near three of the 10 largest cities in the United States - Houston, Dallas, and San Antonio... |
KYLE-TV (satellite of KWKT-TV) |
28 | 1996 | Fox/MyNetworkTV MyNetworkTV MyNetworkTV is a television broadcast syndication service in the United States, owned by the Fox Entertainment Group, a division of News Corporation... |
| El Paso, Texas | KTSM-TV KTSM-TV KTSM-TV, also known as NewsChannel 9, is an NBC affiliated television station based in El Paso, Texas. It broadcasts its digital signal on VHF channel 9... |
9 / 16 | 1997 | NBC Estrella TV (on DT2) |
| KDBC-TV KDBC-TV KDBC-TV is the CBS affiliate in El Paso, Texas. The station is owned by the Titan TV Broadcast Group. It broadcasts its digital signal on UHF channel 18. Its new digital subchannel carries My Network TV... 5 |
4 (18) | CBS CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of... |
||
| Evansville, Indiana | WEVV-TV | 44 (45) | 1999 | CBS Fox/MyNetworkTV (on DT2 WEVV-DT2 WEVV-DT2 is the primary Fox and secondary MyNetworkTV television station for Evansville, Indiana. It is the second digital subchannel of CBS affiliate WEVV-TV, owned by Communications Corporation of America. Over-the-air, the station broadcasts a standard definition digital signal on UHF channel... ) |
| Jacksonville - Tyler - Longview, Texas | KETK-TV KETK-TV KETK-TV, virtual channel 56, is the NBC television affiliate serving the East Texas viewing area. It is owned by Communications Corporation of America, under licensee of "ComCorp of Tyler", which also operates Fox network affiliates KFXK and KFXL-LP, and MyNetworkTV affiliate KLPN-LP through a... |
56 (22) | 2004 | NBC Estrella TV (on DT2) |
| KFXK-TV 1 | 51 (31) | Fox | ||
| Lafayette, Louisiana | KADN-TV | 15 (16) | 1997 3 | Fox |
| KLAF-LP KLAF-LP KLAF-LP is the Communications Corporation of America-owned My Network TV affiliate in Lafayette, Louisiana, and is the sister station of Fox-affiliated KADN. KLAF is carried on cable TV channel 13 on Cox cable systems throughout the Acadiana region... |
46 / 15.2 | 1997 3 | MyNetworkTV | |
| Lufkin Lufkin, Texas Lufkin is a city in Angelina County, Texas, United States. Founded in 1882, the population was 35,067 in 2010. It is the county seat of Angelina County, and is situated in Deep East Texas.-History:... - Nacogdoches, Texas Nacogdoches, Texas Nacogdoches is a city in Nacogdoches County, Texas, in the United States. The 2010 census recorded the city's population to be 32,996. It is the county seat of Nacogdoches County and is situated in East Texas. Nacogdoches is a sister city of Natchitoches, Louisiana.Nacogdoches is the home of... |
KETK-LP 2 (satellite of KETK-TV) |
Cable Only | NBC | |
| KFXL-LP 1 (satellite of KFXK-TV) |
30 | Fox | ||
| Natchez, Mississippi Natchez, Mississippi Natchez is the county seat of Adams County, Mississippi, United States. With a total population of 18,464 , it is the largest community and the only incorporated municipality within Adams County... - Alexandria, Louisiana |
WNTZ-TV | 48 (49) | 1997 4 | Fox/MyNetworkTV |
| Odessa - Midland, Texas | KPEJ-TV | 24 (23) | 1990 | Fox |
| Shreveport, Louisiana | KMSS-TV KMSS-TV KMSS-TV is the Fox affiliate in Shreveport, Louisiana. The station is seen via satellite through Dish Network and DirecTV... |
33 (34) | 1994 | Fox |
| KSHV-TV 1 | 45 (44) | MyNetworkTV | ||
| Waco - Temple, Texas | KWKT-TV | 44 | 1990 | Fox/MyNetworkTV |
Footnotes:
- 1 These stations are owned by White Knight BroadcastingWhite Knight BroadcastingWhite Knight Broadcasting is a company based in Lafayette, Louisiana. It is a shell company for the Communications Corporation of America , owning seven ComCorp-controlled stations, all based in Louisiana, Texas, and Mississippi...
and controlled by ComCorp. - 2 This station is owned by KM Communications and controlled by ComCorp.
- 3 ComCorp took over KADN under a local marketing agreementLocal marketing agreementIn U.S. and Canadian broadcasting, a local marketing agreement is an agreement in which one company agrees to operate a radio or television station owned by another licensee...
in 1997, but the station remained under the ownership of Charles Chatelain until ComCorp purchased it outright in 2004. - 4 WNTZ had been acquired by White Knight Broadcasting in 1997, with ComCorp controlling the station; it was not transferred to ComCorp directly until 2007.
- 5 This station is owned by Titan TV Broadcast Group, but is operated by ComCorp under a shared services agreement.
Television stations
| City of license City of license A city of license or community of license, in American and Canadian broadcasting, is the community that a radio station or television station is officially licensed to serve by that country's broadcast regulator.... /Market |
Station | Channel | Years Owned | Current affiliation/owner |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Evansville, Indiana | WTSN-LD | 36 | 1999-2009 1 | America One America One America One is an over-the-air television network in the United States. The network serves over 170 LPTV, Class A, Full Power, Cable and Satellite affiliate stations... affiliate owned by Evansville Low Power Partnership |
| Killeen Killeen, Texas Killeen is a city in Bell County, Texas, The United States. The population was 86,911 at the 2000 census. As of 2009, Killeen had 119,510 people. In 2010 Killeen's population shot to 127,921... - Waco - Temple - Austin, Texas |
KAKW-DT | 62 (13) | 1996-2002 2 | Univision Univision Univision is a Spanish-language television network in the United States. It has the largest audience of Spanish language television viewers according to Nielsen ratings. Randy Falco, COO, has been in charge of the company since the departure of Univision Communications president and CEO Joe Uva... owned-and-operated (O&O Owned-and-operated station In the broadcasting industry , an owned-and-operated station usually refers to a television station or radio station that is owned by the network with which it is associated... ) |
| Memphis, Tennessee | WHBQ-TV WHBQ-TV WHBQ-TV, channel 13, is an owned-and-operated television station of the News Corporation-owned Fox Broadcasting Company, located in Memphis, Tennessee. Its studios and transmitter are located in Memphis.-Under RKO General:... |
13 | 1994–1995 | Fox Fox Broadcasting Company Fox Broadcasting Company, commonly referred to as Fox Network or simply Fox , is an American commercial broadcasting television network owned by Fox Entertainment Group, part of Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation. Launched on October 9, 1986, Fox was the highest-rated broadcast network in the... owned-and-operated (O&O) |
Footnote:
- 1 This station was owned by Evansville Low Power Partnership and controlled by ComCorp. At the time, ComCorp held a 49 percent stake in Evansville Low Power Partnership.
- 2 This station was owned by White Knight Broadcasting and controlled by ComCorp. ComCorp did not actually own the station.
Radio stations
| AM Stations | FM Stations |
| Market | Station | Years owned | Current ownership |
|---|---|---|---|
| El Paso, Texas El Paso, Texas El Paso, is a city in and the county seat of El Paso County, Texas, United States, and lies in far West Texas. In the 2010 census, the city had a population of 649,121. It is the sixth largest city in Texas and the 19th largest city in the United States... |
KTSM-1380 (now KHEY KHEY (AM) KHEY is a Fox Sports Radio affiliate in the El Paso, Texas, USA area. The station is currently owned by Clear Channel Communications. The station is also broadcast on HD radio.... ) |
1997–1998 | owned by Clear Channel Communications Clear Channel Communications Clear Channel Communications, Inc. is an American media conglomerate company headquartered in San Antonio, Texas. It was founded in 1972 by Lowry Mays and Red McCombs, and was taken private by Bain Capital LLC and Thomas H. Lee Partners LP in a leveraged buyout in 2008... |
| KTSM-FM KTSM-FM KTSM-FM is an Adult Contemporary radio station in El Paso, Texas. It is owned by Clear Channel Communications and is a sister to KTSM 690 and was formerly a sister station to KTSM-TV... -99.9 |
1997–1998 | owned by Clear Channel Communications | |
| Lafayette, Louisiana Lafayette, Louisiana Lafayette is a city in and the parish seat of Lafayette Parish, Louisiana, United States, on the Vermilion River. The population was 120,623 at the 2010 census... |
KROF KROF KROF is a radio station broadcasting an oldies format. Licensed to Abbeville, Louisiana, USA, the station serves the Lafayette area. The station is currently owned by Townsquare Media and features programing from Citadel Media's The True Oldies Channel .... -960 |
1999–2001 | owned by Townsquare Media |
| KPEL KPEL (AM) KPEL is a radio station licensed to serve Lafayette, Louisiana. The station is owned by Townsquare Media and licensed to Townsquare Media of Lafayette, LLC. It airs a sports radio format featuring programming from ESPN Radio.... -1420 |
1989–2001 | owned by Townsquare Media | |
| KFTE-96.5 (now KPEL-FM KPEL-FM KPEL-FM is a radio station licensed to the community of Breaux Bridge, Louisiana, and serving the Lafayette, Louisiana, area. The station is owned by Townsquare Media and licensed to Townsquare Media of Lafayette, LLC... ) |
1996–2001 | owned by Townsquare Media | |
| KMDL KMDL KMDL is a country music formatted radio station in Lafayette, Louisiana.The station is an affiliate of the New Orleans Saints radio network.-History:... -97.3 |
1996–2001 | owned by Townsquare Media | |
| KTDY KTDY KTDY is an adult contemporary music formatted radio station in the Lafayette/Acadiana market in Louisiana, United States. The station's 100,000-watt signal allows it to be picked up clearly 24/7 in Baton Rouge, 55 miles to the east, and Lake Charles, 70 miles to the west.-History:KTDY signed on on... -99.9 |
1989–2001 | owned by Townsquare Media | |
| KPEL-FM/KRXZ-107.7 | 1997–1998 | changed frequencies | |
| KRXZ/KRKA-107.9 (now KHXT) |
1998–2001 | owned by Townsquare Media | |