KMYS
Encyclopedia
KMYS, channel 35, is the CW
affiliate in San Antonio, Texas
. The station is owned by Sinclair Broadcast Group
. It is licensed to the nearby city of Kerrville
. Its transmitter is located near Lakehills, Texas
.
. The station would be the first independent general entertainment station in the San Antonio market, as well as San Antonio's first new English-language commercial station in 28 years. Prior to 1985, San Antonio was the largest market without an independent station. While San Antonio was large enough on paper to support an independent station, the market is a fairly large one geographically. Additionally, despite the city proper's large size (it had almost a million people at the time channel 35 signed on), San Antonio has always been a medium-size market because the surrounding rural and suburban areas, then as now, were not much larger than San Antonio itself.
, and along with its TVX stablemates became a charter affiliate of the Fox Broadcasting Company
in 1987. Paramount Pictures
bought a minority ownership interest in TVX in 1989 and would acquire the rest in 1991, changing its name to the Paramount Stations Group
(at the time, it was Paramount's smallest-market station). Paramount ended KRRT's Fox affiliation in 1995, and made the station a charter affiliate of UPN
, which it operated as a joint venture
with Chris-Craft Industries
.
Later that year, Paramount sold the station to Jet Broadcasting, who began a local marketing agreement
(LMA) with cross-town KABB
(which had picked up the Fox affiliation abandoned by KRRT), owned by River City Broadcasting; the arrangement was inherited by Sinclair upon its purchase of River City the following year. Jet Broadcasting then sold the station to Glencairn, Ltd. (now Cunningham Broadcasting
) in 1997.
With the purchase by Glencairn, KRRT became effectively owned by Sinclair since the Smith family (owners of Sinclair) controlled more than 90 percent of Glencairn's stock. By all accounts, Glencairn/Cunningham has been serving as a shell corporation for Sinclair to circumvent Federal Communications Commission
ownership rules, which at the time did not permit duopolies
.
in 1998, as part of a larger affiliation agreement between the network and Sinclair (prior to the switch The WB had been shown only on cable through Superstation WGN (now WGN America)). From that point KMOL-TV (now WOAI-TV
) aired UPN during the overnight hours (in part due to it being owned at the time by Chris-Craft) until KBEJ, which at that time served both Austin
and San Antonio, signed on in 2000.
In the following years, KRRT moved away from classic sitcoms and movies and toward more talk/reality and court shows. It also gradually cut back on cartoons, leaving only the network-provided Kids WB programming.
Sinclair bought KRRT outright in 2001 as part of a group deal with four other Glencairn stations after it was slapped with a $40,000 fine earlier that year for illegally controlling Glencairn.
upon the closure of The WB and UPN in 2006, since KBEJ has a rimshot signal over San Antonio and Austin. However, on March 2, 2006, Sinclair announced that most of its WB and UPN affiliates, including KRRT, would instead join MyNetworkTV; the CW affiliation ultimately went to the renamed KCWX
, which soon pulled out of the Austin market due to KNVA
serving as its CW affiliate. To reflect the new affiliation, the call letters were changed to KMYS on June 19, 2006.
In late 2006, Sinclair moved the 4Kids TV
line-up from KABB back to KMYS (which had shown the predecessor Fox Kids
block as a Fox affiliate). Fox's current Saturday morning infomercial
block, Weekend Marketplace
, is likewise aired on KMYS.
As such, it is one of a handful of CW affiliates which do not air The CW's children's programming block in pattern, and one of the few network affiliates in the country which air network children's programming at a time when young viewers would likely require the use of a DVR
to watch (WISN-TV
in Milwaukee aired ABC's non-E/I programming on early Monday mornings before World News Now
in 2005 before receiving network permission to not air it at all).
, USA.
to display KMYS' virtual channel
as 35.
, The Wendy Williams Show
, The People's Court
, and Jerry Springer
as well as other programming.
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...
affiliate in San Antonio, Texas
San Antonio, Texas
San Antonio is the seventh-largest city in the United States of America and the second-largest city within the state of Texas, with a population of 1.33 million. Located in the American Southwest and the south–central part of Texas, the city serves as the seat of Bexar County. In 2011,...
. The station is owned by Sinclair Broadcast Group
Sinclair Broadcast Group
The Sinclair Broadcast Group is an American telecommunications company that operates the largest number of local television stations in the United States. Headquartered in Hunt Valley, Maryland, it owns a total of 57 stations across the country in 35 primarily small and medium markets, many of...
. It is licensed to the nearby city of Kerrville
Kerrville, Texas
Kerrville is a city in Kerr County, Texas, United States. The population was 20,425 at the 2000 census. In 2009, the population was 22,826...
. Its transmitter is located near Lakehills, Texas
Lakehills, Texas
Lakehills is a census-designated place in Bandera County, Texas, United States. The population was 4,668 at the 2000 census, making it the most populous place in Bandera county. It is part of the San Antonio Metropolitan Statistical Area.-Geography:...
.
Founding
KMYS first hit the airwaves on November 6, 1985, as KRRT, an independent stationIndependent station
An independent station is in the category of television terminology used to describe a television station broadcasting in the United States or Canada that is not affiliated with any television network....
. The station would be the first independent general entertainment station in the San Antonio market, as well as San Antonio's first new English-language commercial station in 28 years. Prior to 1985, San Antonio was the largest market without an independent station. While San Antonio was large enough on paper to support an independent station, the market is a fairly large one geographically. Additionally, despite the city proper's large size (it had almost a million people at the time channel 35 signed on), San Antonio has always been a medium-size market because the surrounding rural and suburban areas, then as now, were not much larger than San Antonio itself.
Fox and UPN
The station was founded by the TVX Broadcast GroupTVX Broadcast Group
The TVX Broadcast Group was an American media 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...
, and along with its TVX stablemates became a charter affiliate of the Fox Broadcasting Company
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...
in 1987. Paramount Pictures
Paramount Pictures
Paramount Pictures Corporation is an American film production and distribution company, located at 5555 Melrose Avenue in Hollywood. Founded in 1912 and currently owned by media conglomerate Viacom, it is America's oldest existing film studio; it is also the last major film studio still...
bought a minority ownership interest in TVX in 1989 and would acquire the rest in 1991, changing its name to the Paramount Stations Group
Paramount Stations Group
Paramount Stations Group was a television broadcasting company that was renamed from the TVX Broadcast Group in 1991 after Paramount Pictures gained full ownership of the group. At the time, it owned several Fox affiliates and independent stations...
(at the time, it was Paramount's smallest-market station). Paramount ended KRRT's Fox affiliation in 1995, and made the station a charter affiliate of UPN
UPN
United Paramount Network was a television network that was broadcast in over 200 markets in the United States from 1995 to 2006. UPN was originally owned by Viacom/Paramount and Chris-Craft Industries, the former of which, through the Paramount Television Group, produced most of the network's...
, which it operated as a joint venture
Joint venture
A joint venture is a business agreement in which parties agree to develop, for a finite time, a new entity and new assets by contributing equity. They exercise control over the enterprise and consequently share revenues, expenses and assets...
with Chris-Craft Industries
Chris-Craft Industries
Chris-Craft Industries, Inc., formerly National Automotive Fibers, Inc., was a publicly-held American corporation traded on the New York and Pacific Stock Exchanges. It later took on the name of one of its acquisitions, Chris-Craft Boats...
.
Later that year, Paramount sold the station to Jet Broadcasting, who began a 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...
(LMA) with cross-town KABB
KABB
KABB is the Fox Network affiliate television station in San Antonio, Texas. It is co-owned with The CW Television Network affiliate KMYS by the Sinclair Broadcast Group...
(which had picked up the Fox affiliation abandoned by KRRT), owned by River City Broadcasting; the arrangement was inherited by Sinclair upon its purchase of River City the following year. Jet Broadcasting then sold the station to Glencairn, Ltd. (now Cunningham Broadcasting
Cunningham Broadcasting
Cunningham Broadcasting Corporation is an owner of television stations in the United States. The company currently owns six stations—four affiliated with Fox Broadcasting Company , one affiliated with MyNetworkTV and one affiliated with The CW Television Network.Cunningham has very close ties to...
) in 1997.
With the purchase by Glencairn, KRRT became effectively owned by Sinclair since the Smith family (owners of Sinclair) controlled more than 90 percent of Glencairn's stock. By all accounts, Glencairn/Cunningham has been serving as a shell corporation for Sinclair to circumvent Federal Communications Commission
Federal Communications Commission
The Federal Communications Commission is an independent agency of the United States government, created, Congressional statute , and with the majority of its commissioners appointed by the current President. The FCC works towards six goals in the areas of broadband, competition, the spectrum, the...
ownership rules, which at the time did not permit duopolies
Duopoly (broadcasting)
In United States broadcast television and radio, duopoly is a term used to describe a single company which owns two or more stations in the same city or community....
.
The WB affiliation
The UPN affiliation was dropped in favor of The WBThe WB Television Network
The WB Television Network is a former television network in the United States that was launched on January 11, 1995 as a joint venture between Warner Bros. and Tribune Broadcasting. On January 24, 2006, CBS Corporation and Warner Bros...
in 1998, as part of a larger affiliation agreement between the network and Sinclair (prior to the switch The WB had been shown only on cable through Superstation WGN (now WGN America)). From that point KMOL-TV (now WOAI-TV
WOAI-TV
WOAI-TV, virtual channel 4 , is the NBC affiliate television station serving the San Antonio, Texas metropolitan area. Its transmitter is located in Elmendorf, Texas, with its studios located in downtown San Antonio....
) aired UPN during the overnight hours (in part due to it being owned at the time by Chris-Craft) until KBEJ, which at that time served both Austin
Austin, Texas
Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of :Texas and the seat of Travis County. Located in Central Texas on the eastern edge of the American Southwest, it is the fourth-largest city in Texas and the 14th most populous city in the United States. It was the third-fastest-growing large city in...
and San Antonio, signed on in 2000.
In the following years, KRRT moved away from classic sitcoms and movies and toward more talk/reality and court shows. It also gradually cut back on cartoons, leaving only the network-provided Kids WB programming.
Sinclair bought KRRT outright in 2001 as part of a group deal with four other Glencairn stations after it was slapped with a $40,000 fine earlier that year for illegally controlling Glencairn.
MyNetworkTV
KRRT seemed likely to become an affiliate of The CWThe 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...
upon the closure of The WB and UPN in 2006, since KBEJ has a rimshot signal over San Antonio and Austin. However, on March 2, 2006, Sinclair announced that most of its WB and UPN affiliates, including KRRT, would instead join MyNetworkTV; the CW affiliation ultimately went to the renamed KCWX
KCWX
KCWX is the MyNetworkTV affiliate for San Antonio, Texas, broadcasting on PSIP virtual channel 2 over their digital channel 5. The station is licensed to Fredricksburg, with the transmitter located in Albert, north of San Antonio...
, which soon pulled out of the Austin market due to KNVA
KNVA
KNVA is the CW-affiliated television station for Austin, Texas. It broadcasts a high definition digital signal on UHF channel 49 from a transmitter in the West Austin Antenna Farm north of West Lake Hills. Owned by 54 Broadcasting, the station is operated by the LIN TV Corporation through a local...
serving as its CW affiliate. To reflect the new affiliation, the call letters were changed to KMYS on June 19, 2006.
In late 2006, Sinclair moved the 4Kids TV
4Kids TV
4Kids TV was a Saturday morning television programming block on the Fox Broadcasting Company. The block was part of the Fox Network schedule...
line-up from KABB back to KMYS (which had shown the predecessor Fox Kids
Fox Kids
Fox Kids was the Fox Broadcasting Company's American children's programming division and brand name from September 8, 1990 until September 7, 2002. It was owned by Fox Television Entertainment airing programming on Monday–Friday afternoons and Saturday mornings.Depending on the show, the...
block as a Fox affiliate). Fox's current Saturday morning infomercial
Infomercial
Infomercials are direct response television commercials which generally include a phone number or website. There are long-form infomercials, which are typically between 15 and 30 minutes in length, and short-form infomercials, which are typically 30 seconds to 120 seconds in length. Infomercials...
block, Weekend Marketplace
Weekend Marketplace
Weekend Marketplace is a two hour Saturday morning block of paid programming airing on Fox that began airing on January 3, 2009, replacing the 4Kids TV Saturday morning cartoon block that aired using time leased by 4Kids from Fox from 2002 until the last Saturday of 2008...
, is likewise aired on KMYS.
The CW
Sinclair cut a deal with The CW on February 12, 2010 to move its San Antonio affiliation from KCWX to KMYS; as a result, the two stations swapped affiliations on August 30. KMYS retained Weekend Marketplace on Saturday mornings but has opted to air Toonzai over two shorter blocks: The first two hours of the block air from 3 a.m. to 5 a.m. on Sunday mornings while the last three hours air from 2 a.m. to 5 a.m. on Monday mornings.As such, it is one of a handful of CW affiliates which do not air The CW's children's programming block in pattern, and one of the few network affiliates in the country which air network children's programming at a time when young viewers would likely require the use of a DVR
Digital video recorder
A digital video recorder , sometimes referred to by the merchandising term personal video recorder , is a consumer electronics device or application software that records video in a digital format to a disk drive, USB flash drive, SD memory card or other local or networked mass storage device...
to watch (WISN-TV
WISN-TV
WISN-TV, virtual channel 12.1 , is a television station located in Milwaukee, Wisconsin serving as an affiliate of the ABC television network. Its signal covers most of southeastern Wisconsin and parts of northeastern Illinois, including Racine, Kenosha, Sheboygan and Waukesha...
in Milwaukee aired ABC's non-E/I programming on early Monday mornings before World News Now
World News Now
World News Now is an American overnight news program broadcast on American Broadcasting Company's television network. Its tone is often lighthearted, irreverent and humorous...
in 2005 before receiving network permission to not air it at all).
Transmission tower
KMYS broadcasts from a 473.3-meter-high, guy-wired aerial mast. The tower, built in 1985, is used for the transmission of FM radio and television programs in Lakehills, TexasLakehills, Texas
Lakehills is a census-designated place in Bandera County, Texas, United States. The population was 4,668 at the 2000 census, making it the most populous place in Bandera county. It is part of the San Antonio Metropolitan Statistical Area.-Geography:...
, USA.
Digital television
KMYS shut down its analog signal on February 17, 2009, continuing digital broadcasts on its pre-transition channel number, 32 using PSIPProgram and System Information Protocol
The Program and System Information Protocol is the protocol used in the ATSC digital television system for carrying metadata about each channel in the broadcast MPEG transport stream of a TV station and for publishing information about television programs so that viewers can select what to watch...
to display KMYS' virtual channel
Virtual channel
In telecommunications, a logical channel number , also known as virtual channel, is a channel designation which differs from that of the actual radio channel on which the signal travels....
as 35.
KMYS Programming
KMYS-TV is home to mainly syndicated programming that includes Access HollywoodAccess Hollywood
Access Hollywood is a weekday television entertainment news program covering events and celebrities in the entertainment industry. It was created by former Entertainment Tonight executive producer Jim Van Messel, and is currently directed by Robert Silverstein. In previous years, Doug Dougherty and...
, The Wendy Williams Show
The Wendy Williams Show
The Wendy Williams Show is a syndicated talk show hosted by Wendy Williams that premiered on July 14, 2008, as six-week sneak peek, in Detroit, Dallas, Los Angeles, and New York City. The test run was picked up for a full season that began its run on July 13, 2009 in over 70% of the country in...
, The People's Court
The People's Court
The People's Court is a US television court show in which small claims court cases are heard, though what is shown is actually a binding arbitration....
, and Jerry Springer
Jerry Springer
Gerald Norman "Jerry" Springer is a British-born American television presenter, best known as host of the tabloid talk show The Jerry Springer Show since its debut in 1991...
as well as other programming.