KTUU-TV
Encyclopedia
KTUU-TV is an NBC
affiliated television station serving Anchorage, Alaska
. The station is owned by Schurz Communications
of South Bend, Indiana
.
The station is broadcast over the air on digital
channel 10; on the local cable TV system, GCI on standard cable channel 2 and high-definition cable channel 652. KTUU is also available on DIRECTV
and DISH Network
for the Anchorage television market.
Its over-the-air transmitter is located in Knik, Alaska
.
's first two TV stations to sign on in the state (KTVA
is the other), signing on in October 1953 as KFIA. It became KENI-TV in 1955, and then KTUU in 1981.
On September 19, 1966, channel 2 became the first station in Alaska to transmit in color (NTSC) when it aired the premiere episode of the ABC situation comedy That Girl
(entitled "Don't Just Do Something, Stand There!"). The station had joint primary affiliation with NBC and ABC (with KTVA picking up some of the slack) until October 1, 1967 when it switched to ABC primary and NBC secondary, primarily because ABC had more programs on film. Channel 2 became a full-time ABC affiliate in 1970 when KHAR (now KYUR) took the NBC affiliation. The two stations switched networks in October 1971, at which time KHAR became KIMO. Channel 2 also carried a few PBS programs (particularly The Electric Company
) until KAKM
signed on in 1975. Until KTVF
in Fairbanks switched networks from CBS
to NBC in April 1996, KTUU was the only full-time NBC affiliate in Alaska.
In August 2010, KTUU became the third Schurz-owned television station (after KWCH-DT and KSCW-DT in Wichita, Kansas
and WDBJ
in Roanoke, Virginia
) to relaunch its Web site through a new partnership with the Tribune Company
's Tribune Interactive division. Previously, the Web address was operated by the local media division of World Now. The other Schurz television station Web sites, which are currently operated by Broadcast Interactive Media, will follow suit when their CMS contract with BIM runs out.
KTUU has been number one in the Anchorage, AK market for decades. The Channel 2 News team routinely wins regional and national awards and in 1999, became the first and only television station in Alaska with their own satellite uplink truck (NewsStar 2). The National Press Photographers Association named KTUU the Small Market Television News Photography Station of the Year in 2006, 2008 and 2010.
Former Alaska governor and Vice Presidential candidate Sarah Palin
(née Heath) was a fill-in weekend sports anchor for KTUU shortly after college.
Digital channels>
Channel
(PSIP)
Programming
Freq
(MHz)
Video
PID
Audio
PID
2.1
KTUU-HD
195
49
52
2.2
KTUU-SD
195
65
68
KTUU is one of only two NBC stations in Alaska to broadcast its programming in High Definition. The other is KATH in Juneau, which airs all of KTUU's newscasts. KTVF Channel 11 in Fairbanks is the only station not carrying HD programming from NBC.
. A video is broadcast on the channel that informs viewers on how to obtain and use a digital converter box. The video alternates in English and Spanish and is played throughout the day.
Reporters
2 Weather Team
Sports Team
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...
affiliated television station serving Anchorage, Alaska
Anchorage, Alaska
Anchorage is a unified home rule municipality in the southcentral part of the U.S. state of Alaska. It is the northernmost major city in the United States...
. The station is owned by Schurz Communications
Schurz Communications
Schurz Communications is a South Bend, Indiana-based radio, television, cable tv and newspaper media group.-Cable Television Systems:*Antietam Cable, Hagerstown, Maryland *Advanced Cable Communications, Coral Springs, Florida...
of South Bend, Indiana
South Bend, Indiana
The city of South Bend is the county seat of St. Joseph County, Indiana, United States, on the St. Joseph River near its southernmost bend, from which it derives its name. As of the 2010 Census, the city had a total of 101,168 residents; its Metropolitan Statistical Area had a population of 316,663...
.
The station is broadcast over the air on digital
ATSC
ATSC standards are a set of standards developed by the Advanced Television Systems Committee for digital television transmission over terrestrial, cable, and satellite networks....
channel 10; on the local cable TV system, GCI on standard cable channel 2 and high-definition cable channel 652. KTUU is also available on DIRECTV
DirecTV
DirecTV is an American direct broadcast satellite service provider and broadcaster based in El Segundo, California. Its satellite service, launched on June 17, 1994, transmits digital satellite television and audio to households in the United States, Latin America, and the Anglophone Caribbean. ...
and DISH Network
Dish Network
Dish Network Corporation is the second largest pay TV provider in the United States, providing direct broadcast satellite service—including satellite television, audio programming, and interactive television services—to 14.337 million commercial and residential customers in the United States. Dish...
for the Anchorage television market.
Its over-the-air transmitter is located in Knik, Alaska
Knik TV Mast
Knik TV Mast, located near Knik, Alaska, is a tall guyed mast used for FM radio and television broadcasting. The mast is operated by Alaska Public Telecommunications, Inc...
.
History
KTUU is one of AlaskaAlaska
Alaska is the largest state in the United States by area. It is situated in the northwest extremity of the North American continent, with Canada to the east, the Arctic Ocean to the north, and the Pacific Ocean to the west and south, with Russia further west across the Bering Strait...
's first two TV stations to sign on in the state (KTVA
KTVA
KTVA, channel 11, is a station in Anchorage, Alaska. The station is the only television station owned by the MediaNews Group newspaper chain until a reorganization plan forced MediaNews to move the station to Affiliated Media, a holding company....
is the other), signing on in October 1953 as KFIA. It became KENI-TV in 1955, and then KTUU in 1981.
On September 19, 1966, channel 2 became the first station in Alaska to transmit in color (NTSC) when it aired the premiere episode of the ABC situation comedy That Girl
That Girl
That Girl is an American television situation comedy that ran on ABC from 1966 to 1971. It stars Marlo Thomas as the title character, Ann Marie, an aspiring actress, who had moved from her hometown of Brewster, New York to make it big in New York City...
(entitled "Don't Just Do Something, Stand There!"). The station had joint primary affiliation with NBC and ABC (with KTVA picking up some of the slack) until October 1, 1967 when it switched to ABC primary and NBC secondary, primarily because ABC had more programs on film. Channel 2 became a full-time ABC affiliate in 1970 when KHAR (now KYUR) took the NBC affiliation. The two stations switched networks in October 1971, at which time KHAR became KIMO. Channel 2 also carried a few PBS programs (particularly The Electric Company
The Electric Company
The Electric Company is an educational American children's television series that was produced by the Children's Television Workshop for PBS in the United States. PBS broadcast 780 episodes over the course of its six seasons from October 25, 1971 to April 15, 1977...
) until KAKM
KAKM
KAKM is a Public television station in Anchorage, Alaska, broadcasting locally on digital channel 8 as a PBS member station. The station is owned by Alaska Public Telecommunications, Inc., and is the only PBS station in Alaska that is not part of AlaskaOne. Its program is transmitted from Knik TV...
signed on in 1975. Until KTVF
KTVF
-History:The station signed on the air in February 1955 as the first television station serving what at the time was the smallest television market in the United States...
in Fairbanks switched networks from 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...
to NBC in April 1996, KTUU was the only full-time NBC affiliate in Alaska.
In August 2010, KTUU became the third Schurz-owned television station (after KWCH-DT and KSCW-DT in Wichita, Kansas
Wichita, Kansas
Wichita is the largest city in the U.S. state of Kansas.As of the 2010 census, the city population was 382,368. Located in south-central Kansas on the Arkansas River, Wichita is the county seat of Sedgwick County and the principal city of the Wichita metropolitan area...
and WDBJ
WDBJ
WDBJ is the CBS television network affiliate station serving the Roanoke/Lynchburg television market. It transmits its digital signal on UHF channel 18. It is owned by Schurz Communications of South Bend, Indiana...
in Roanoke, Virginia
Roanoke, Virginia
Roanoke is an independent city in the Mid-Atlantic U.S. state of Virginia and is the tenth-largest city in the Commonwealth. It is located in the Roanoke Valley of the Roanoke Region of Virginia. The population within the city limits was 97,032 as of 2010...
) to relaunch its Web site through a new partnership with the Tribune Company
Tribune Company
The Tribune Company is a large American multimedia corporation based in Chicago, Illinois. It is the nation's second-largest newspaper publisher, with ten daily newspapers and commuter tabloids including Chicago Tribune, Los Angeles Times, Hartford Courant, Orlando Sentinel, South Florida...
's Tribune Interactive division. Previously, the Web address was operated by the local media division of World Now. The other Schurz television station Web sites, which are currently operated by Broadcast Interactive Media, will follow suit when their CMS contract with BIM runs out.
KTUU has been number one in the Anchorage, AK market for decades. The Channel 2 News team routinely wins regional and national awards and in 1999, became the first and only television station in Alaska with their own satellite uplink truck (NewsStar 2). The National Press Photographers Association named KTUU the Small Market Television News Photography Station of the Year in 2006, 2008 and 2010.
Former Alaska governor and Vice Presidential candidate Sarah Palin
Sarah Palin
Sarah Louise Palin is an American politician, commentator and author. As the Republican Party nominee for Vice President in the 2008 presidential election, she was the first Alaskan on the national ticket of a major party and first Republican woman nominated for the vice-presidency.She was...
(née Heath) was a fill-in weekend sports anchor for KTUU shortly after college.
Digital television
The station's digital channel has both High Definition and Standard Definition programming feeds:(PSIP)
(MHz)
PID
PID
KTUU is one of only two NBC stations in Alaska to broadcast its programming in High Definition. The other is KATH in Juneau, which airs all of KTUU's newscasts. KTVF Channel 11 in Fairbanks is the only station not carrying HD programming from NBC.
Analog feed
Following the digital transition, which took place on June 12, 2009, KTUU maintains analog programming on Channel 2 under the Short-term Analog Flash and Emergency Readiness ActShort-term Analog Flash and Emergency Readiness Act
The Short-term Analog Flash and Emergency Readiness Act, or SAFER Act, is a U.S. law to require the Federal Communications Commission to allow the continuation of full-power analog TV transmissions in 2009 for 30 more days, for the purpose of broadcasting public service announcements regarding the...
. A video is broadcast on the channel that informs viewers on how to obtain and use a digital converter box. The video alternates in English and Spanish and is played throughout the day.
Current on-air staff
Anchors- Maria Downey - weeknights at 6 p.m.
- Sheila Balistreri - weekday mornings "Channel 2 News Morning Edition" (also producer)
- Mike Ross - weeknights at 5, 6 and 10 p.m.
- Todd Walker - weekday mornings "Channel 2 News Morning Edition" (also reporter)
- Lori Tipton - weekends at 5 and 10 p.m. (also reporter)
Reporters
- Ashton Goodell - general assignment reporter
- Jason Lamb - general assignment reporter
- Jackie Bartz - general assignment reporter
- Christine Kim - general assignment reporter
- Ted Land - general assignment reporter
- Rhonda McBride-general assignment reporter
- Rebecca Palsha - general assignment reporter
2 Weather Team
- Jackie Purcell (AMSAmerican Meteorological SocietyThe American Meteorological Society promotes the development and dissemination of information and education on the atmospheric and related oceanic and hydrologic sciences and the advancement of their professional applications. Founded in 1919, the American Meteorological Society has a membership...
Seal of Approval) - Chief Meteorologist; weeknights at 5, 6 and 10 p.m. - Mitch Sego (AMS Seal of Approval) - Meteorologist; weekday mornings "Channel 2 News Morning Edition"
- Tracy Sinclare (AMS Seal of Approval) - Meteorologist; weekends at 5 and 10PM
- Robert Forgit (AMS/NWANational Weather AssociationThe National Weather Association is an American professional association with a mission to support and promote excellence in operational meteorology and related activities...
Seal of Approval) - Meteorologist; fill-in
Sports Team
- Lauren Magiera - Sports Anchor/Reporter
- Charlie Sokaitis - Sports Anchor; weekends at 5 and 10 p.m. (also sports reporter)
- Kevin Wells - Sports Anchor; weeknights at 10 p.m. (also sports reporter)
Former on-air staff
- Theda Comstock hosted a morning public affairs program for many years, similar to Norma Goodman at KTVAKTVAKTVA, channel 11, is a station in Anchorage, Alaska. The station is the only television station owned by the MediaNews Group newspaper chain until a reorganization plan forced MediaNews to move the station to Affiliated Media, a holding company....
. - Dan Fagan was a news reporter for many years, prior to joining KFQDKFQDKFQD is a class A , AM radio station in Anchorage, Alaska, operating on 750 kHz. It is owned by Morris Communications and broadcasts in a news/talk format. KFQD was the first radio station in Alaska, signing on on May 17, 1924....
as the host of a radio talk show. - Steve MacDonald joined the station from KTVA in 1996, replacing John Tracy as news director in 2008. He was fired in early February 2009 by still-fairly-new General Manager Susan Lucas. He was rehired about 10 days later, but relegated to an off-air role, although he occasionally fills in.
- Sarah Heath (Sarah PalinSarah PalinSarah Louise Palin is an American politician, commentator and author. As the Republican Party nominee for Vice President in the 2008 presidential election, she was the first Alaskan on the national ticket of a major party and first Republican woman nominated for the vice-presidency.She was...
) - Intern Sports Anchor - John Tracy joined the station at roughly the same time as Downey in 1985. With the Tracy-Downey anchor team, KTUU quickly became the dominant news station in the market, a title held by KIMO for most of the previous decade. He became news director in 1987 and retired from the station in 2008 when Schurz Communications bought the company.
- John Carpenter became a sports reporter at KTUU in April of 1984. He established himself and remained a community favorite for the next 28 years largely because of his deft ability to combine sports, comedy and showmanship. For much of Carpenter's tenure, Channel 2 News featured his humor in a weekly segment called "The World According to Carp." In December of 2010, "Carp" answered his "higher calling" and left KTUU to become an associate pastor at Baxter Road Bible Church in East Anchorage.
Newscast titles
- World News (1953–1955)
- KENI-TV News (1955–1964)
- The Alaska Report (1964–1968)
- Newsnight (1968–1971)
- Newscope (1971–1975)
- TV-2 News (1975–1981)
- Newservice 2 (1981–1986)
- Channel 2 News (1986–present)
Station slogans
- Alaska's Color Station (1960s)
- Keep Your News on Your Scope, with Newscope! (early 1970s)
- TV-2 News, The News People (1977–1979)
- Alaska's 24-Hour News Channel (1990–1995)
- Alaska's News Source (1995–present)
External links
- KTUU's website
- YouTube - Al Bramstedt interviews Noel WienNoel WienNoel Wien was an American pioneer aviator. He was the founder of Wien Air Alaska, Alaska's first airline.-Biography:...
in the KENI-TV studios, 1972