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Taft Broadcasting

Taft Broadcasting

Overview
The Taft Broadcasting Company, also known as Taft Television and Radio Company, Incorporated, was a media conglomerate based in Cincinnati, Ohio
Cincinnati, Ohio
Cincinnati is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. The municipality is located north of the Ohio River at the Ohio-Kentucky border. The population within city limits was estimated to be 333,336 in 2008, making it the state's third largest city...

.

The company is rooted in the family
Taft family
The Taft family of the United States hails from Cincinnati, Ohio, with historic origins in Massachusetts; its members have served Ohio, Massachusetts, Vermont, Rhode Island, Utah, and the United States in various positions, such as Governor of Ohio, Governor of Rhode Island, U.S. Senator , U.S...

 of William Howard Taft
William Howard Taft
William Howard Taft was the 27th President of the United States and later the 10th Chief Justice of the United States....

, the 27th President of the United States
President of the United States
The President of the United States is the head of state and head of government of the United States and is the highest political official in the United States by influence and recognition...

. William Howard's half-brother, Charles Phelps Taft
Charles Phelps Taft
Charles Phelps Taft was an American lawyer and politician. Born in Cincinnati, Ohio, in the powerful Taft family, whose members had been in politics since at least 1815, he graduated from Yale University in 1864, and from Columbia University's law department in 1866. In 1867 he received another...

, purchased the Cincinnati Times-Star newspaper in 1879; its later publishers included Charles' son Hulbert Taft, Sr., and grandson
Grandson
Grandson has multiple meanings:*Grandson, a son of a child of a person, see family *Grandson, Switzerland, a municipality in Switzerland*Grandson , a district in Switzerland...

 Hulbert Taft, Jr.
The Taft family's involvement in broadcasting began in 1939.

The company is notable for having been the owner of such major media and entertainment properties as Hanna-Barbera
Hanna-Barbera
Hanna-Barbera Productions, Inc. , was an American animation studio that dominated North American television animation during the second half of the 20th century...

, Worldvision Enterprises, Ruby-Spears Productions
Ruby-Spears Productions
Ruby-Spears Productions was a Burbank, California-based entertainment production company that specializes in animation...

, KECO Entertainment
KECO Entertainment
Kings Entertainment Company owned and/or operated six theme parks around the world. The company was originally owned by Taft Broadcasting and in the mid 1980s was purchased by a few top level executives of Taft's....

 and many television
Television station
A television station is a type of broadcast station that broadcasts video and possibly audio to television receivers in a particular area. Traditionally, TV stations made their broadcasts by sending specially-encoded radio signals over the air, called terrestrial television...

 and radio station
Radio station
Radio broadcasting is an audio broadcasting service, broadcast through the air as radio waves from a transmitter to an antenna and a thus to a receiving device. Stations can be linked in radio networks to broadcast common programming, either in syndication or simulcast or both...

s.

It also owned 50% of CIC Video
CIC Video
CIC Video was a home video distributor, owned by Cinema International Corporation , and operated in some countries by local operators...

's Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the continental mainland , the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans...

n operations, CIC-Taft Home Video.
  • 1939 - The Cincinnati Times-Star purchases WKRC radio
    WKRC (AM)
    WKRC is a radio station based in Cincinnati, Ohio that is owned by Clear Channel Communications and broadcasts at 550 kHz. Broadcasting under the branding of 55KRC, the station is a news/talk outlet featuring a local morning show and national hosts like Glenn Beck, Rush Limbaugh, Sean Hannity,...

     from founding owner Kodel Radio Company.

  • 1949 - WKRC-TV
    WKRC-TV
    WKRC-TV, branded Local 12, is the CBS affiliate serving Cincinnati, Ohio. Its transmitter is located in the Mount Auburn area of Cincinnati...

     in Cincinnati begins broadcasting.

  • 1953 - Known at the time as Radio Cincinnati, Inc., the company purchases WTVN-AM
    WTVN
    WTVN is a full-service AM radio station in Columbus, Ohio located at 610 kHz. It has news, talk, and sports programs, is the dominant AM station in the Columbus market and is consistently rated either #1 or #2 by Arbitron...

    -TV
    WSYX
    WSYX, channel 6, is the ABC television affiliate in Columbus, Ohio. WSYX is owned by the Sinclair Broadcast Group and is the sister station to Fox affiliate WTTE . The two stations share a studio in suburban Grandview Heights, which shares a post office with Columbus...

     in Columbus, Ohio
    Columbus, Ohio
    Columbus is the capital and the largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio. It is the county seat of Franklin County, although parts of the city also extend into Delaware and Fairfield counties...

    , from Picture-Waves, Inc., controlled by Toledo
    Toledo, Ohio
    Toledo is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio within the Great Lakes Region and the county seat of Lucas County. Named after Toledo, Spain, it is located on the western end of Lake Erie, on the Michigan border. It is the principal city in the Toledo Metropolitan Statistical Area. In the 2000 census,...

     attorney and broadcaster Edward Lamb
    Edward Lamb
    Edward Lamb was an American businessman, broadcasting executive and labor lawyer. He is best known for having defended striking workers during the Auto-Lite Strike in 1934 and for successfully resisting the federal government's attempt to strip him of his broadcasting licenses during the McCarthy...

    .

  • 1957 - Taft purchases WBRC-AM-FM
    WBPT
    WBPT is a classic hits music-formatted radio station licensed to Homewood, Alabama, that serves the Birmingham and central Alabama area. The station was assigned the WBPT call letters by the Federal Communications Commission on October 17, 2001. Since October 2005, it has used the branding "106.9...

    -TV in Birmingham, Alabama
    Birmingham, Alabama
    Birmingham is the largest city in the state of Alabama in the United States. It is the county seat of Jefferson County and includes part of Shelby County. According to a 2007 estimate, the city had a population of 229,800 The Birmingham-Hoover Metropolitan Area, as of the 2008 census estimates,...

    , from Storer Broadcasting
    Storer Broadcasting
    Storer Broadcasting, Inc. is a former owner of television and radio stations in the United States. It was incorporated in Ohio in 1927, and sold its broadcasting properties in 1983.-1920s—1940s:...

    .

  • 1958 - The Cincinnati Times-Star is merged into the Cincinnati Post, published by the E.W.
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Encyclopedia
The Taft Broadcasting Company, also known as Taft Television and Radio Company, Incorporated, was a media conglomerate based in Cincinnati, Ohio
Cincinnati, Ohio
Cincinnati is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. The municipality is located north of the Ohio River at the Ohio-Kentucky border. The population within city limits was estimated to be 333,336 in 2008, making it the state's third largest city...

.

The company is rooted in the family
Taft family
The Taft family of the United States hails from Cincinnati, Ohio, with historic origins in Massachusetts; its members have served Ohio, Massachusetts, Vermont, Rhode Island, Utah, and the United States in various positions, such as Governor of Ohio, Governor of Rhode Island, U.S. Senator , U.S...

 of William Howard Taft
William Howard Taft
William Howard Taft was the 27th President of the United States and later the 10th Chief Justice of the United States....

, the 27th President of the United States
President of the United States
The President of the United States is the head of state and head of government of the United States and is the highest political official in the United States by influence and recognition...

. William Howard's half-brother, Charles Phelps Taft
Charles Phelps Taft
Charles Phelps Taft was an American lawyer and politician. Born in Cincinnati, Ohio, in the powerful Taft family, whose members had been in politics since at least 1815, he graduated from Yale University in 1864, and from Columbia University's law department in 1866. In 1867 he received another...

, purchased the Cincinnati Times-Star newspaper in 1879; its later publishers included Charles' son Hulbert Taft, Sr., and grandson
Grandson
Grandson has multiple meanings:*Grandson, a son of a child of a person, see family *Grandson, Switzerland, a municipality in Switzerland*Grandson , a district in Switzerland...

 Hulbert Taft, Jr.
The Taft family's involvement in broadcasting began in 1939.

The company is notable for having been the owner of such major media and entertainment properties as Hanna-Barbera
Hanna-Barbera
Hanna-Barbera Productions, Inc. , was an American animation studio that dominated North American television animation during the second half of the 20th century...

, Worldvision Enterprises, Ruby-Spears Productions
Ruby-Spears Productions
Ruby-Spears Productions was a Burbank, California-based entertainment production company that specializes in animation...

, KECO Entertainment
KECO Entertainment
Kings Entertainment Company owned and/or operated six theme parks around the world. The company was originally owned by Taft Broadcasting and in the mid 1980s was purchased by a few top level executives of Taft's....

 and many television
Television station
A television station is a type of broadcast station that broadcasts video and possibly audio to television receivers in a particular area. Traditionally, TV stations made their broadcasts by sending specially-encoded radio signals over the air, called terrestrial television...

 and radio station
Radio station
Radio broadcasting is an audio broadcasting service, broadcast through the air as radio waves from a transmitter to an antenna and a thus to a receiving device. Stations can be linked in radio networks to broadcast common programming, either in syndication or simulcast or both...

s.

It also owned 50% of CIC Video
CIC Video
CIC Video was a home video distributor, owned by Cinema International Corporation , and operated in some countries by local operators...

's Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the continental mainland , the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans...

n operations, CIC-Taft Home Video.

History

  • 1939 - The Cincinnati Times-Star purchases WKRC radio
    WKRC (AM)
    WKRC is a radio station based in Cincinnati, Ohio that is owned by Clear Channel Communications and broadcasts at 550 kHz. Broadcasting under the branding of 55KRC, the station is a news/talk outlet featuring a local morning show and national hosts like Glenn Beck, Rush Limbaugh, Sean Hannity,...

     from founding owner Kodel Radio Company.

  • 1949 - WKRC-TV
    WKRC-TV
    WKRC-TV, branded Local 12, is the CBS affiliate serving Cincinnati, Ohio. Its transmitter is located in the Mount Auburn area of Cincinnati...

     in Cincinnati begins broadcasting.

  • 1953 - Known at the time as Radio Cincinnati, Inc., the company purchases WTVN-AM
    WTVN
    WTVN is a full-service AM radio station in Columbus, Ohio located at 610 kHz. It has news, talk, and sports programs, is the dominant AM station in the Columbus market and is consistently rated either #1 or #2 by Arbitron...

    -TV
    WSYX
    WSYX, channel 6, is the ABC television affiliate in Columbus, Ohio. WSYX is owned by the Sinclair Broadcast Group and is the sister station to Fox affiliate WTTE . The two stations share a studio in suburban Grandview Heights, which shares a post office with Columbus...

     in Columbus, Ohio
    Columbus, Ohio
    Columbus is the capital and the largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio. It is the county seat of Franklin County, although parts of the city also extend into Delaware and Fairfield counties...

    , from Picture-Waves, Inc., controlled by Toledo
    Toledo, Ohio
    Toledo is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio within the Great Lakes Region and the county seat of Lucas County. Named after Toledo, Spain, it is located on the western end of Lake Erie, on the Michigan border. It is the principal city in the Toledo Metropolitan Statistical Area. In the 2000 census,...

     attorney and broadcaster Edward Lamb
    Edward Lamb
    Edward Lamb was an American businessman, broadcasting executive and labor lawyer. He is best known for having defended striking workers during the Auto-Lite Strike in 1934 and for successfully resisting the federal government's attempt to strip him of his broadcasting licenses during the McCarthy...

    .

  • 1957 - Taft purchases WBRC-AM-FM
    WBPT
    WBPT is a classic hits music-formatted radio station licensed to Homewood, Alabama, that serves the Birmingham and central Alabama area. The station was assigned the WBPT call letters by the Federal Communications Commission on October 17, 2001. Since October 2005, it has used the branding "106.9...

    -TV in Birmingham, Alabama
    Birmingham, Alabama
    Birmingham is the largest city in the state of Alabama in the United States. It is the county seat of Jefferson County and includes part of Shelby County. According to a 2007 estimate, the city had a population of 229,800 The Birmingham-Hoover Metropolitan Area, as of the 2008 census estimates,...

    , from Storer Broadcasting
    Storer Broadcasting
    Storer Broadcasting, Inc. is a former owner of television and radio stations in the United States. It was incorporated in Ohio in 1927, and sold its broadcasting properties in 1983.-1920s—1940s:...

    .

  • 1958 - The Cincinnati Times-Star is merged into the Cincinnati Post, published by the E.W. Scripps Company. Taft also purchases WKYT-TV
    WKYT-TV
    WKYT-TV is the CBS & CW affiliate in Lexington, Kentucky, serving the east-central part of Kentucky. Through cable, the station also reaches much of eastern, southern & northern Kentucky...

     in Lexington, Kentucky
    Lexington, Kentucky
    Lexington is the second-largest city in Kentucky and the 65th largest in the United States. Known as the "Thoroughbred City" and the "Horse Capital of the World", it is located in the heart of Kentucky's Bluegrass region...

    , from local interests.

  • 1959 - Taft purchases WLWF-FM in Columbus from the Crosley Broadcasting Corporation
    Crosley Broadcasting Corporation
    The Crosley Broadcasting Corporation was a radio and television broadcaster founded by radio manufacturing pioneer Powel Crosley, Jr.. The company was an early operator of radio stations in the United States. Based in Cincinnati, Ohio, Crosley's flagship station was WLW...

    , changing its call letters to WTVN-FM (it is now WLVQ
    WLVQ
    WLVQ is an FM radio station in Columbus, Ohio, United States, broadcasting on 96.3 MHz. Its brand identifier is Ohio's Best Rock, QFM 96. WLVQ is currently owned by Wilks Broadcasting and plays classic rock.- History :...

    ).

  • 1963 - Taft purchases several stations from Transcontinent Television Corporation: WDAF-AM
    KCSP (AM)
    KCSP is a sports/talk radio station located in Kansas City, Missouri. The Entercom-owned station broadcasts on 610 kHz....

    -FM
    KCKC-FM
    KCKC is an adult contemporary station based in Kansas City, Missouri that operates at 102.1 MHz with an ERP of 100 kW. The station is licensed to and operated by Wilks Broadcasting. Its transmitter is located in Independence, Missouri.-History:...

    -TV
    WDAF-TV
    WDAF-TV is the Fox affiliated television station serving the Kansas City, Missouri-Kansas designated market area. The station is owned by Local TV LLC, the media arm of private equity firm Oak Hill Capital Partners. Its studios and transmitter are located in the Signal Hill neighborhood of Kansas...

     in Kansas City, Missouri
    Kansas City, Missouri
    Kansas City is the largest city in the U.S. state of Missouri. It encompasses in parts of Jackson, Clay, Cass, and Platte counties. It is one of two county seats of Jackson County, the other being Independence, just to the city's east...

    , WGR-AM
    WGR
    WGR, or WGR Sports Radio 550, is an all sports radio station in Buffalo, New York that broadcasts on 550 AM. It is the flagship station of the Buffalo Sabres and the Buffalo Bandits, and is currently the only full-time sports talk station in the city of Buffalo...

    -FM
    WGRF
    WGRF is a radio station in Buffalo, New York, USA. The station's on air branding is "97 Rock". The station mostly plays Classic rock from the 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s...

    -TV
    WGRZ-TV
    WGRZ is the NBC affiliate in Buffalo, New York. Its studio is located at 259 Delaware Avenue in downtown Buffalo, while its transmitter is located at 11526 Warner Hill Road in South Wales, New York...

     in Buffalo, New York
    Buffalo, New York
    Buffalo is the second most populous city in the state of New York, second only to New York City. Located in Western New York on the eastern shores of Lake Erie and at the head of the Niagara River, Buffalo is the principal city of the Buffalo-Niagara Falls metropolitan area and the seat of Erie...

    , and WNEP-TV
    WNEP-TV
    WNEP-TV is the ABC-affiliated television station for northeastern Pennsylvania that is licensed to Scranton. It broadcasts a high definition digital signal on UHF channel 49 from a transmitter on Penobscot Knob in Mountaintop...

     in Scranton, Pennsylvania
    Scranton, Pennsylvania
    Scranton is a city in the northeastern part of Pennsylvania, United States. It is the county seat of Lackawanna County and the largest principal city in the Scranton-Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania Metropolitan Statistical Area. According to figures released by the United States Census Bureau in 2000,...

    .

  • 1967 - Taft purchases the Hanna-Barbera
    Hanna-Barbera
    Hanna-Barbera Productions, Inc. , was an American animation studio that dominated North American television animation during the second half of the 20th century...

     cartoon studio from its founders, Joseph Barbera
    Joseph Barbera
    Joseph Roland "Joe" Barbera ; was an influential American animator, director, producer, storyboard artist, and cartoon artist, whose movie and television cartoon characters entertained millions of fans worldwide for much of the twentieth century...

     and William Hanna
    William Hanna
    William Denby "Bill" Hanna was an American animator, director, producer, television director, television producer, and cartoon artist, whose movie and television cartoon characters entertained millions of fans worldwide for much of the twentieth century...

    . Taft also sells WKYT-TV to a subsidiary of Kentucky Central Life Insurance Company.

  • 1969 - Taft purchases WIBF-TV in Philadelphia and changes its calls to WTAF-TV
    WTXF-TV
    WTXF-TV channel 29 is an owned-and-operated station of the News Corporation-owned Fox Broadcasting Company, based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania...

    . The FCC initially grants Taft a waiver to keep both WTAF and WNEP, but later reverses itself and forces Taft to sell WNEP-TV as a result due to FCC regulations at the time prohibiting one company from owning two television stations with overlapping coverage areas.

  • 1972 - Taft opens its first theme park, Kings Island
    Kings Island
    Kings Island is a 364 acre theme park located in the city of Mason, in Warren County, Ohio. The park is located northeast of Cincinnati. The park owns close to , but only are currently developed. Kings Island is owned by Cedar Fair Entertainment Co., and was part of the former Paramount Parks...

    , outside of Cincinnati. Taft would own five other theme parks through is KECO Entertainment
    KECO Entertainment
    Kings Entertainment Company owned and/or operated six theme parks around the world. The company was originally owned by Taft Broadcasting and in the mid 1980s was purchased by a few top level executives of Taft's....

     division. WBRC radio and WBRC-FM in Birmingham are sold to Mooney Broadcasting.

  • 1974 - Taft acquires Top 40 station KQV
    KQV
    KQV is a radio station in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The station, which is owned by Calvary, Inc., broadcasts at 1410 kHz, with 5000 watts of power day and night. KQV's call letters reportedly stand for King of the Quaker Valley. The station is one of two in the market that use call letters starting...

     and rock
    Rock music
    Rock music is a genre of popular music that entered the mainstream in the 1960s. It has its roots in 1940s and 1950s rock and roll, rhythm and blues, country music and also drew on folk music, jazz and classical music....

     outlet WDVE
    WDVE
    WDVE is a Classic rock music formatted radio station in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA at 102.5 MHz. It is often referred to by Pittsburghers as simply "DVE" WDVE's transmitter is located on Pittsburgh's North Side...

    , both in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
    Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
    Pittsburgh is a city in and the county seat of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, United States, and the second largest city in the state. Its population was 334,563 at the 2000 census; by 2006, it was estimated to have fallen to 312,819. The population of the seven-county metropolitan area is...

    , from ABC Radio
    ABC Radio
    Citadel Media is an American radio network owned and operated by Citadel Broadcasting. It currently controls many of the assets of the former ABC Radio Networks, which Citadel bought in June 2007...

    .

  • 1979 - Taft purchases WDCA-TV
    WDCA
    WDCA, channel 20, is a television station in Washington, D.C.. Owned by Fox Television Stations, a division of the News Corporation, WDCA is a sister station to Fox network outlet WTTG , and is affiliated with the co-owned MyNetworkTV programming service...

     in Washington, D.C.
    Washington, D.C.
    Washington, D.C. , formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, the District, or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States, founded on July 16, 1790...

     from the Superior Tube Company. Around this same period, Taft also acquires independent distributor Worldvision Enterprises (formerly a division of ABC) and QM Productions.

  • 1982 - KQV is sold to General Manager Robert W. Dickey and other investors under the "Calvary, Inc." banner.

  • 1983 - Taft exchanges WGR-TV to General Cinema Corporation's Coral Television subsidiary in return for WCIX
    WFOR-TV
    WFOR-TV, , is the CBS owned-and-operated station in Miami, Florida. WFOR shares its studio facilities with sister station WBFS-TV in Doral, Florida; west of Miami...

     in Miami.

  • 1984 - Taft purchases Gulf Broadcasting, which included KTXA
    KTXA
    KTXA, channel 21, is an independent television station based in Fort Worth, Texas, and serving the Dallas/Fort Worth designated market area. With its transmitter in Cedar Hill, KTXA is owned by the CBS Corporation and is the sister station of CBS outlet KTVT .The station will pre-empt its...

     in Fort Worth, Texas
    Fort Worth, Texas
    Fort Worth is the seventeenth-largest city in the United States of America and the fifth-largest city within the state of Texas. Located in and a cultural gateway into the American West, the city covers nearly in Tarrant, Parker, and Denton counties, serving as the county seat for Tarrant...

    , KTXH
    KTXH
    KTXH, channel 20, is a MyNetworkTV-affiliated television station in Houston, Texas. It is owned by the Fox Television Stations, a division of the News Corporation, and is one-half of a duopoly with Fox network station KRIV ....

     in Houston, WTSP
    WTSP
    WTSP is a CBS-affiliated television station in St. Petersburg, Florida . It broadcasts its digital signal on VHF channel 10....

     in St. Petersburg, Florida
    St. Petersburg, Florida
    St. Petersburg is a city in Pinellas County, Florida, United States. The city is known as a vacation destination for North American and European vacationers. As of the 2000 census, the city population was 248,232. As of 2006, the population estimate by the U.S. Census Bureau is 248,098. The 2007...

    , KTSP-TV (now KSAZ-TV
    KSAZ-TV
    KSAZ-TV is the owned-and-operated Fox station in Phoenix, Arizona. It is co-owned with sister KUTP. The station broadcasts in digital on VHF Channel 10 in Phoenix and on numerous translators throughout Northern Arizona...

    ) in Phoenix
    Phoenix, Arizona
    Phoenix is the capital and largest city of the U.S. state of Arizona, as well as the fifth most populous city in the United States...

     and WGHP
    WGHP
    WGHP, channel 8, is the Fox-affiliated television station serving the Greensboro/High Point/Winston-Salem, North Carolina designated market area...

     in High Point, North Carolina
    High Point, North Carolina
    High Point is a city located in the Piedmont Triad region of North Carolina. As of July 2006 the city had a total population of 97,796 according to the US Census Bureau. July 2008 estimates place the city's population at around 101,835, making High Point the eighth-largest municipality in North...

    .

  • 1987 - Taft sells its independent
    Independent station
    An independent station is television terminology used to describe a television station broadcasting in the United States or Canada that is not affiliated with any network...

     stations (WDCA-TV, KTXA, and KTXH) and Fox
    Fox Broadcasting Company
    The Fox Broadcasting Company , commonly referred to as Fox , is an American television network owned by Fox Entertainment Group, part of Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation. Launched on October 9, 1986, from 2004 to 2009 Fox was the highest-rated broadcast network in the 18–49 demographic...

     affiliates (WCIX and WTAF-TV) to the TVX Broadcast Group
    TVX Broadcast Group
    The TVX Broadcast Group was a company that owned a group of UHF television stations during the 1980s. Originally known as the Television Corporation, the company was headquartered in Norfolk, Virginia, and was founded by a group of Norfolk-area businessmen led by Timothy McDonald...

    . Taft also sells WGR radio and WGR-FM in Buffalo to Rich Communications.

Later in 1987, Taft Broadcasting becomes Great American Broadcasting (also known as Great American Communications) following a major restructuring of its operations. Cincinnati-based billionaire Carl Lindner, Jr.
Carl Lindner, Jr.
Carl Lindner, Jr. is a Cincinnati businessman and is among the world's richest people. According to the 2006 issue of Forbes Magazine's 400 list, Lindner was ranked 133 and was worth an estimated $2.3 billion...

, becomes Taft's majority stockholder and renames the company after his Great American Insurance Company
American Financial Group
American Financial Group Incorporated is a holding company based in Cincinnati, Ohio whose primary business is insurance and investments. American Financial Group's purpose is to enable businesses and individuals to manage risk using insurance products and services tailored to meet their specific...

. Great American spins-off WTVN-TV to Anchor Media, a new firm comprised of former Taft Broadcasting board members. A new company, led by former Taft Broadcasting president Dudley S. Taft Jr., retains WGHP and later purchases another Philadelphia station, WPHL-TV
WPHL-TV
WPHL-TV channel 17 is a television station in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania owned by the Tribune Company and currently affiliated with News Corporation-owned MyNetworkTV...

.

  • 1991 - Hanna-Barbera, along with much of the original Ruby-Spears library, is acquired by Turner Broadcasting, which becomes part of Time Warner
    Time Warner
    Time Warner Inc. is the world's largest entertainment conglomerate , as well as the world's fourth largest media conglomerate, headquartered in the Time Warner Center in New York City...

     in 1996

Great American Broadcasting sells Worldvision to Spelling Entertainment Group
Spelling Television
Founded by the late television producer Aaron Spelling in 1969, Spelling Television, Inc. was a television production company that produced popular shows such as Charmed, Beverly Hills 90210, 7th Heaven, Dynasty and Melrose Place.In 1988, Aaron Spelling Productions acquired Laurel...

.

  • 1992 - KECO Entertainment, Great American's theme park division, is sold to Paramount and became Paramount Parks
    Paramount Parks
    Paramount Parks was an operator of theme parks and attractions, which annually attracted about 13 million patrons. Viacom had assumed control of the company as part of its acquisition of Paramount Pictures in 1994....

    , later to be acquired by Viacom. (These parks were sold to Cedar Fair Entertainment Co. by CBS in 2006.) Great American also reacquires WGHP from Dudley Taft.

  • 1993 - Great American files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy
    Bankruptcy
    Bankruptcy is a legally declared inability or impairment of ability of an individual or organization to pay its creditors. Creditors may file a bankruptcy petition against a debtor in an effort to recoup a portion of what they are owed or initiate a restructuring...

     and renames itself Citicasters. Great American also sells WKRC radio to Jacor Communications and shuts down Electra
    Electra (teletext)
    Electra was a teletext service in the United States that was in operation from the early 1980s up until 1993, when it was shut down due to a lack of funding, and discontinuation of teletext-capable television sets by the only US television manufacturer offering teletext capability at the time, Zenith...

    , a teletext service operated as a joint venture between Zenith
    Zenith
    In general terms, the zenith is the direction pointing directly "above" a particular location; that is, it is one of two vertical directions at the location, orthogonal to a horizontal flat surface there...

    , Taft, and WTBS-TV (now WPCH-TV).

  • 1994 - Citicasters begins breaking up its television stations unit, selling WDAF-TV and KSAZ-TV to New World Communications
    New World Communications
    New World Pictures was an independent motion picture and television production company, and later television station owner in the United States from the late 1980s to the mid-1990s. News Corporation became a major investor in 1994 and purchased the company outright in 1997; the alliance with News...

    , and WBRC and WGHP to the News Corporation
    News Corporation
    News Corporation is the world's second largest media conglomerate as of 2008 and the world's third largest in entertainment as of 2009...

    's Fox Television Stations unit, which would later acquire the New World chain.

  • 1996 - Citicasters, by then the owner of WKRC-TV and WTSP and several radio stations, including WKRQ
    WKRQ
    WKRQ, known on-air as Q102, is a radio station located in the Cincinnati, Ohio, area and broadcasts at 101.9 FM. Its transmitter is located in Cincinnati. It carries an adult-oriented CHR format and was owned by CBS Radio until 2006, when it was sold to Entercom...

     (the former WKRC-FM) in Cincinnati and WDAF in Kansas City, merges with Jacor. Three months after the merger is completed, Jacor exchanges WTSP to Gannett in return for Gannett's radio stations in Los Angeles
    Los Ángeles
    Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the municipality of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123.445 inhabitants...

    , San Diego
    San Diego, California
    San Diego , named after Saint Didacus , is the second-largest city in California and the ninth largest city in the United States, located along the Pacific Ocean on the west coast of the United States. The US Census Bureau estimates the city's population at 1,279,329 as of 2008...

     and Tampa. In 1997, as a condition of the Citicasters-Jacor merger, Jacor sells WKRQ and the original WDAF-FM (by then KYYS, now KCKC) to American Radio Systems (ARS), which would become acquired by Infinity Broadcasting (now CBS Radio
    CBS Radio
    CBS Radio Inc., formerly known as Infinity Broadcasting Corporation, is one of the largest owners and operators of radio stations in the United States, fourth behind main rival Clear Channel Communications , Cumulus Media and Citadel Broadcasting...

    ) in 1998. Also in 1997, Jacor sells WDAF-AM (now KCSP) to Entercom Communications
    Entercom Communications
    Entercom Communications Corporation is the fifth-largest broadcasting company in the United States. As of October 2008, Entercom operates 104 radio stations in 23 markets across the United States....

    .

  • 1997 - The Worldvision properties that had previously been under Taft and Great American (with the exception of the Hanna-Barbera and most of the Ruby-Spears material) are incorporated into Republic Pictures
    Republic Pictures
    Republic Pictures was an independent film production-distribution corporation with studio facilities, operating from 1934 through 1959 and best known for its specialization in quality westerns, movie serials and B films emphasizing mystery and action.They were also responsible for financing one...

     (today part of Paramount Pictures
    Paramount Pictures
    Paramount Pictures Corporation is a Worldwide American film production and distribution company, located at 5555 Melrose Avenue in Hollywood, California. Founded in 1912 and currently owned by media conglomerate Viacom, it is the world's oldest existing American film studio; it is also the last...

    ).

  • 1999 - Clear Channel Communications
    Clear Channel Communications
    Clear Channel Communications is an American media conglomerate company headquartered at 200 East Basse Road in San Antonio, Texas. It was founded in 1972 by Lowry Mays and Red McCombs, who wields considerable influence in radio broadcasting, concert promotion and hosting, and fixed advertising in...

     acquires Jacor Communications, Inc.
    Jacor
    Jacor Communications, Inc. was a media corporation which owned a large number of radio stations in the United States. Jacor was acquired by Clear Channel Communications in May 1999....

    .

Television stations

  • Does not include ownership by the second Taft Broadcasting, a company formed in the wake of the Great American takeover of the original Taft Broadcasting.
    Current DMA
    Media market
    A media market, broadcast market, media region, designated market area , Television Market Area or simply market is a region where the population can receive the same television and radio station offerings, and may also include other types of media including newspapers and Internet content...

    #
    Market Station Years Owned Current Affiliation/Owner
    4. Philadelphia WTAF-TV 29
    (now WTXF-TV
    WTXF-TV
    WTXF-TV channel 29 is an owned-and-operated station of the News Corporation-owned Fox Broadcasting Company, based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania...

    )
    1969-87 Fox
    Fox Broadcasting Company
    The Fox Broadcasting Company , commonly referred to as Fox , is an American television network owned by Fox Entertainment Group, part of Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation. Launched on October 9, 1986, from 2004 to 2009 Fox was the highest-rated broadcast network in the 18–49 demographic...

    owned-and-operated (O&O)
    5. Fort Worth-Dallas KTXA
    KTXA
    KTXA, channel 21, is an independent television station based in Fort Worth, Texas, and serving the Dallas/Fort Worth designated market area. With its transmitter in Cedar Hill, KTXA is owned by the CBS Corporation and is the sister station of CBS outlet KTVT .The station will pre-empt its...

     21
    1984-87 Independent
    Independent station
    An independent station is television terminology used to describe a television station broadcasting in the United States or Canada that is not affiliated with any network...

    owned by CBS Corporation
    CBS Corporation
    CBS Corporation is an American media conglomerate focused on broadcasting, publishing, billboards, and television production, with most of its operations in the United States. The President and CEO of the company is Leslie Moonves. Sumner Redstone, owner of National Amusements, is CBS's majority...

    9. Washington, D.C.
    Washington, D.C.
    Washington, D.C. , formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, the District, or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States, founded on July 16, 1790...

    WDCA-TV
    WDCA
    WDCA, channel 20, is a television station in Washington, D.C.. Owned by Fox Television Stations, a division of the News Corporation, WDCA is a sister station to Fox network outlet WTTG , and is affiliated with the co-owned MyNetworkTV programming service...

     20
    1979-87 My Network TV affiliate owned by Fox
    Fox Television Stations Group
    The Fox Television Stations are a group of television stations located within the United States which are owned-and-operated by the Fox Broadcasting Company, a subsidiary of the Fox Entertainment Group, part of the News Corporation...

    10. Houston KTXH
    KTXH
    KTXH, channel 20, is a MyNetworkTV-affiliated television station in Houston, Texas. It is owned by the Fox Television Stations, a division of the News Corporation, and is one-half of a duopoly with Fox network station KRIV ....

     20
    1984-87 My Network TV affiliate owned by Fox
    12. Phoenix
    Phoenix, Arizona
    Phoenix is the capital and largest city of the U.S. state of Arizona, as well as the fifth most populous city in the United States...

    KTSP-TV 10
    (now KSAZ-TV
    KSAZ-TV
    KSAZ-TV is the owned-and-operated Fox station in Phoenix, Arizona. It is co-owned with sister KUTP. The station broadcasts in digital on VHF Channel 10 in Phoenix and on numerous translators throughout Northern Arizona...

    )
    1984-94 Fox owned-and-operated (O&O)
    14. St. Petersburg
    St. Petersburg, Florida
    St. Petersburg is a city in Pinellas County, Florida, United States. The city is known as a vacation destination for North American and European vacationers. As of the 2000 census, the city population was 248,232. As of 2006, the population estimate by the U.S. Census Bureau is 248,098. The 2007...

    -Tampa
    Tâmpa
    Tâmpa may refer to several villages in Romania:* Tâmpa, a village in Băcia Commune, Hunedoara County* Tâmpa, a village in Miercurea Nirajului, Mureş County* Tâmpa, a mountain in Braşov city....

    WTSP
    WTSP
    WTSP is a CBS-affiliated television station in St. Petersburg, Florida . It broadcasts its digital signal on VHF channel 10....

     10
    1984-96 CBS
    CBS
    CBS Broadcasting Inc. is an American television network, one of television's original "big three", which also include NBC and ABC. Like NBC, CBS started out as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System...

    affiliate owned by Gannett Company
    Gannett Company
    Gannett Company, Inc. is a publicly-traded media holding company based in the United States. It is the largest U.S. newspaper publisher as measured by total daily circulation. Its assets include the national newspaper USA Today and the weekly USA Weekend. Its largest non-national newspaper is The...

    17. Miami
    Miami, Florida
    Miami is a major coastal city in southeastern Florida, in the United States. Miami is the county seat of Miami-Dade County, the most populous county in Florida. With an estimated population of 424,662 in 2007, Miami is the largest city within the Miami metropolitan area, which is the...

    -Fort Lauderdale
    Fort Lauderdale, Florida
    Fort Lauderdale is a city in the U.S. state of Florida, along the Atlantic Ocean. It is the county seat of Broward County. According to 2007 U.S. Census Bureau estimates, the city had a population of 183,606...

    WCIX 6
    (now WFOR-TV
    WFOR-TV
    WFOR-TV, , is the CBS owned-and-operated station in Miami, Florida. WFOR shares its studio facilities with sister station WBFS-TV in Doral, Florida; west of Miami...

     4)
    1983-87 CBS owned-and-operated (O&O)
    32. Kansas City, Missouri
    Kansas City, Missouri
    Kansas City is the largest city in the U.S. state of Missouri. It encompasses in parts of Jackson, Clay, Cass, and Platte counties. It is one of two county seats of Jackson County, the other being Independence, just to the city's east...

    WDAF-TV
    WDAF-TV
    WDAF-TV is the Fox affiliated television station serving the Kansas City, Missouri-Kansas designated market area. The station is owned by Local TV LLC, the media arm of private equity firm Oak Hill Capital Partners. Its studios and transmitter are located in the Signal Hill neighborhood of Kansas...

     4
    1964-94 Fox affiliate owned by Local TV
    Local TV
    Local TV LLC is a limited liability corporation, owned by Oak Hill Capital Partners, which operates 18 local network-affiliated television stations in the United States.-History:...

    33. Cincinnati WKRC-TV
    WKRC-TV
    WKRC-TV, branded Local 12, is the CBS affiliate serving Cincinnati, Ohio. Its transmitter is located in the Mount Auburn area of Cincinnati...

     11/12
    1949-96 CBS affiliate owned by Newport Television
    Newport Television
    Newport Television, LLC is a television station holding company founded by Providence Equity Partners and Sandy DiPasquale in 2007 to acquire the television stations owned by Clear Channel Communications. In September 2007, Newport agreed to sell KFTY and KVOS-TV to LK Station Group LLC for $26.6...

    34. Columbus, Ohio
    Columbus, Ohio
    Columbus is the capital and the largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio. It is the county seat of Franklin County, although parts of the city also extend into Delaware and Fairfield counties...

    WTVN-TV 6
    (now WSYX
    WSYX
    WSYX, channel 6, is the ABC television affiliate in Columbus, Ohio. WSYX is owned by the Sinclair Broadcast Group and is the sister station to Fox affiliate WTTE . The two stations share a studio in suburban Grandview Heights, which shares a post office with Columbus...

    )
    1953-87 ABC
    American Broadcasting Company
    The American Broadcasting Company is an American television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. It first broadcast on television in 1948...

    affiliate owned by Sinclair Broadcast Group
    Sinclair Broadcast Group
    The Sinclair Broadcast Group is the operator of the largest number of local television stations in the United States with a total of 57 stations across the country in 35 primarily small and medium markets, many of which are located in the South and the Midwest. Broadcasts by SBG stations can be...

    40. Birmingham, Alabama
    Birmingham, Alabama
    Birmingham is the largest city in the state of Alabama in the United States. It is the county seat of Jefferson County and includes part of Shelby County. According to a 2007 estimate, the city had a population of 229,800 The Birmingham-Hoover Metropolitan Area, as of the 2008 census estimates,...

    WBRC-TV
    WBRC
    WBRC channel 6 is the Fox-affiliated television station serving the Birmingham, Alabama designated market area. The station is owned by Raycom Media, and its transmitter is located atop Red Mountain in Birmingham. The station broadcasts on digital channel 50, although through the use of PSIP...

     6
    1957-95 Fox affiliate owned by Raycom Media
    Raycom Media
    Raycom Media is a broadcasting company based in Montgomery, Alabama.- History :Although Raycom Media dates its birth to 1996, the core of the company was formed in 1992 when Atlanta native Bert Ellis formed Ellis Communications. He eventually controlled 13 television stations and two radio...

    46. High Point
    High Point, North Carolina
    High Point is a city located in the Piedmont Triad region of North Carolina. As of July 2006 the city had a total population of 97,796 according to the US Census Bureau. July 2008 estimates place the city's population at around 101,835, making High Point the eighth-largest municipality in North...

     - Greensboro
    Greensboro, North Carolina
    Greensboro is a city in the U.S. state of North Carolina. It is the third-largest city, by population, in North Carolina and the largest city in Guilford County and the surrounding Piedmont Triad metropolitan region. As of the 2000 census, Greensboro was home to 223,891 residents...

     -
    Winston-Salem
    Winston-Salem, North Carolina
    Winston-Salem is a city in the U.S. state of North Carolina. Winston-Salem is the county seat and largest city of Forsyth County and the fourth-largest city in the state. Winston-Salem is the second largest municipality in the Piedmont Triad region and is home to the tallest office buildings in the...

    WGHP
    WGHP
    WGHP, channel 8, is the Fox-affiliated television station serving the Greensboro/High Point/Winston-Salem, North Carolina designated market area...

     8
    1984-87
    1992-95
    Fox affiliate owned by Local TV
    52. Buffalo, New York
    Buffalo, New York
    Buffalo is the second most populous city in the state of New York, second only to New York City. Located in Western New York on the eastern shores of Lake Erie and at the head of the Niagara River, Buffalo is the principal city of the Buffalo-Niagara Falls metropolitan area and the seat of Erie...

    WGR-TV 2
    (now WGRZ)
    1964-83 NBC
    NBC
    The National Broadcasting Company is an American television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices in Burbank,California...

    affiliate owned by Gannett Company
    54. Scranton
    Scranton, Pennsylvania
    Scranton is a city in the northeastern part of Pennsylvania, United States. It is the county seat of Lackawanna County and the largest principal city in the Scranton-Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania Metropolitan Statistical Area. According to figures released by the United States Census Bureau in 2000,...

     - Wilkes-Barre, PA
    Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania
    Wilkes-Barre is a city in Northeastern Pennsylvania, United States. It is the county seat of Luzerne County and the central city of the Wyoming Valley. Founded in 1769 and formally incorporated in 1806, the city has an estimated population of 43,123, according to the 2000 census...

    WNEP-TV
    WNEP-TV
    WNEP-TV is the ABC-affiliated television station for northeastern Pennsylvania that is licensed to Scranton. It broadcasts a high definition digital signal on UHF channel 49 from a transmitter on Penobscot Knob in Mountaintop...

     16
    1964-69 ABC affiliate owned by Local TV
    62. Lexington, Kentucky
    Lexington, Kentucky
    Lexington is the second-largest city in Kentucky and the 65th largest in the United States. Known as the "Thoroughbred City" and the "Horse Capital of the World", it is located in the heart of Kentucky's Bluegrass region...

    WKYT-TV
    WKYT-TV
    WKYT-TV is the CBS & CW affiliate in Lexington, Kentucky, serving the east-central part of Kentucky. Through cable, the station also reaches much of eastern, southern & northern Kentucky...

     27
    1958-67 CBS affiliate owned by Gray Television
    Gray Television
    Gray Television, Inc. is a communications company headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, with administrative offices in Albany, Georgia.Gray Television currently owns 36 television stations serving 30 mainly mid-size and small-size media markets...


  • WKRC-TV was the only television or radio station built and signed-on by Taft.

Radio stations


(a partial listing)
AM Stations FM Stations

DMA# Market Station Current owner
24. Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Pittsburgh is a city in and the county seat of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, United States, and the second largest city in the state. Its population was 334,563 at the 2000 census; by 2006, it was estimated to have fallen to 312,819. The population of the seven-county metropolitan area is...

KQV
KQV
KQV is a radio station in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The station, which is owned by Calvary, Inc., broadcasts at 1410 kHz, with 5000 watts of power day and night. KQV's call letters reportedly stand for King of the Quaker Valley. The station is one of two in the market that use call letters starting...

-1410
Calvary, Inc.
WDVE
WDVE
WDVE is a Classic rock music formatted radio station in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA at 102.5 MHz. It is often referred to by Pittsburghers as simply "DVE" WDVE's transmitter is located on Pittsburgh's North Side...

-102.5
Clear Channel Communications
Clear Channel Communications
Clear Channel Communications is an American media conglomerate company headquartered at 200 East Basse Road in San Antonio, Texas. It was founded in 1972 by Lowry Mays and Red McCombs, who wields considerable influence in radio broadcasting, concert promotion and hosting, and fixed advertising in...

29. Cincinnati WKRC
WKRC (AM)
WKRC is a radio station based in Cincinnati, Ohio that is owned by Clear Channel Communications and broadcasts at 550 kHz. Broadcasting under the branding of 55KRC, the station is a news/talk outlet featuring a local morning show and national hosts like Glenn Beck, Rush Limbaugh, Sean Hannity,...

-550
Clear Channel Communications
WKRC-FM-101.9
(now WKRQ
WKRQ
WKRQ, known on-air as Q102, is a radio station located in the Cincinnati, Ohio, area and broadcasts at 101.9 FM. Its transmitter is located in Cincinnati. It carries an adult-oriented CHR format and was owned by CBS Radio until 2006, when it was sold to Entercom...

)
Bonneville International
Bonneville International
Bonneville International Corporation, managed by Deseret Management Corporation, is a broadcasting company wholly owned by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints...

32. Kansas City, Missouri
Kansas City, Missouri
Kansas City is the largest city in the U.S. state of Missouri. It encompasses in parts of Jackson, Clay, Cass, and Platte counties. It is one of two county seats of Jackson County, the other being Independence, just to the city's east...

WDAF-610
(now KCSP
KCSP (AM)
KCSP is a sports/talk radio station located in Kansas City, Missouri. The Entercom-owned station broadcasts on 610 kHz....

)
Entercom Communications
Entercom Communications
Entercom Communications Corporation is the fifth-largest broadcasting company in the United States. As of October 2008, Entercom operates 104 radio stations in 23 markets across the United States....

WDAF-FM-102.1
(now KCKC)
Wilks Broadcasting
37. Columbus, Ohio
Columbus, Ohio
Columbus is the capital and the largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio. It is the county seat of Franklin County, although parts of the city also extend into Delaware and Fairfield counties...

WTVN
WTVN
WTVN is a full-service AM radio station in Columbus, Ohio located at 610 kHz. It has news, talk, and sports programs, is the dominant AM station in the Columbus market and is consistently rated either #1 or #2 by Arbitron...

-610
Clear Channel Communications
WTVN-FM-96.3
(now WLVQ
WLVQ
WLVQ is an FM radio station in Columbus, Ohio, United States, broadcasting on 96.3 MHz. Its brand identifier is Ohio's Best Rock, QFM 96. WLVQ is currently owned by Wilks Broadcasting and plays classic rock.- History :...

)
Wilks Broadcasting
52. Buffalo, New York
Buffalo, New York
Buffalo is the second most populous city in the state of New York, second only to New York City. Located in Western New York on the eastern shores of Lake Erie and at the head of the Niagara River, Buffalo is the principal city of the Buffalo-Niagara Falls metropolitan area and the seat of Erie...

WGR
WGR
WGR, or WGR Sports Radio 550, is an all sports radio station in Buffalo, New York that broadcasts on 550 AM. It is the flagship station of the Buffalo Sabres and the Buffalo Bandits, and is currently the only full-time sports talk station in the city of Buffalo...

-550
Entercom Communications
WGR-FM-96.9
(now WGRF
WGRF
WGRF is a radio station in Buffalo, New York, USA. The station's on air branding is "97 Rock". The station mostly plays Classic rock from the 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s...

)
Citadel Broadcasting
Citadel Broadcasting
Citadel Broadcasting Corporation is a Las Vegas, Nevada-based broadcast holding company. Investment house Forstmann Little & Company owns 27% of Citadel and is its largest shareholder....

57. Birmingham, Alabama
Birmingham, Alabama
Birmingham is the largest city in the state of Alabama in the United States. It is the county seat of Jefferson County and includes part of Shelby County. According to a 2007 estimate, the city had a population of 229,800 The Birmingham-Hoover Metropolitan Area, as of the 2008 census estimates,...

WBRC-960
(now WERC)
Clear Channel Communications
WBRC-FM-106.9
(now WBPT
WBPT
WBPT is a classic hits music-formatted radio station licensed to Homewood, Alabama, that serves the Birmingham and central Alabama area. The station was assigned the WBPT call letters by the Federal Communications Commission on October 17, 2001. Since October 2005, it has used the branding "106.9...

)
Cox Radio
Cox Radio
Cox Radio, Inc. is a division of Cox Enterprises that holds a number of radio stations. Cox Radio is headquartered at 6205 Peachtree Dunwoody Road in Sandy Springs, Georgia....


External links