KTVA
Encyclopedia
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.
KTVA is broadcast on over-the-air on digital channel 28 and on the local cable TV system, GCI.
affiliate in the early 1950s . During the late 1950s, the station was also briefly affiliated with the NTA Film Network
.
KTVA even carried Sesame Street
from 1970 until KAKM signed on in May 1975.
Digital channels>
Channel
(PSIP)
Programming
Freq
(MHz)
Video
PID
Audio
PID
11.1
KTVA (CBS)
557
49
52
Reporters
Skytracker Weather Team
Sports team
responded to the controversy by calling them "corrupt bastards".
After an internal investigation, the station terminated two producers involved with the voicemail discussion. The station manager stated that "The recorded conversation in question specifically involved how that evening's Miller rally might be promoted and the ensuing dialogue went down hill from there. These particular comments were not in line with KTVA standards."
On November 10, 2010, KTVA cancelled its 5PM and 6PM newscasts that night, replacing those newscasts with repeats of The New Adventures of Old Christine
; station officials said via Twitter
that the night's newscasts were cancelled "in order to address an internal matter." The 10PM newscast was not affected.
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 the only television station owned by the MediaNews Group
MediaNews Group
MediaNews Group, based in Denver, Colorado, is one of the largest newspaper companies in the United States. It is privately owned and operates 56 daily newspapers in 12 states, with combined daily and Sunday circulation of approximately 2.4 million and 2.7 million, respectively...
newspaper chain until a reorganization plan forced MediaNews to move the station to Affiliated Media, a holding company.
KTVA is broadcast on over-the-air on digital channel 28 and on the local cable TV system, GCI.
History
KTVA is Alaska's first TV station, having signed on the air on December 11, 1953. The station aired a few NBC programs in the late 1960s, until KHAR-TV (now KYUR) took the NBC affiliation in 1970. The station was a DuMontDuMont Television Network
The DuMont Television Network, also known as the DuMont Network, DuMont, Du Mont, or Dumont was one of the world's pioneer commercial television networks, rivalling NBC for the distinction of being first overall. It began operation in the United States in 1946. It was owned by DuMont...
affiliate in the early 1950s . During the late 1950s, the station was also briefly affiliated with the NTA Film Network
NTA Film Network
The NTA Film Network was an early American television network founded by Ely Landau in 1956. The network was not a full-time television network like CBS, NBC, or ABC. Rather, it operated on a part-time basis, broadcasting films and several first-run television programs from major Hollywood studios...
.
KTVA even carried Sesame Street
Sesame Street
Sesame Street has undergone significant changes in its history. According to writer Michael Davis, by the mid-1970s the show had become "an American institution". The cast and crew expanded during this time, including the hiring of women in the crew and additional minorities in the cast. The...
from 1970 until KAKM signed on in May 1975.
Digital television
The station currently has a single 1080i high definition feed.(PSIP)
(MHz)
PID
PID
Current on-air staff
Anchor- Dave Stroh - weeknights at 5 p.m.
- Andrea Gusty - weeknights at 5 and 10 p.m. (also "Eye Team" investigative reporter)
- Grace Jang - weeknights at 6 p.m. (also "Eye Team" investigative reporter)
- Lauren Maxwell - weekday mornings "CBS 11 News This Morning"
Reporters
- Corey Allen-Young - general assignment reporter
- Natalie Travis - general assignment reporter
- Alexis Fernandez - general assignment reporter
Skytracker Weather Team
- Brett Shepard - Chief Meteorologist; weeknights at 5, 6 and 10 p.m.
- Christina Campbell (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; weekends at 5, 6 and 10 p.m.
Sports team
- The station does not operate a sports department.
Former on-air staff
- Joylene Bunde, daughter of retiring State SenatorAlaska SenateThe Alaska Senate is the upper house in the Alaska Legislature, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Alaska. The Senate consists of twenty members, each of whom represents an equal amount of districts with populations of about 31,347 people . Senators serve four-year terms, without term...
Con Bunde. - Norma Goodman (1930-2007) hosted a live interview show called Hostess House, which debuted on the station on March 1, 1954. The show's title was later changed to The Norma Goodman Show. The 30-minute program was cancelled in 2001 and replaced by a 5-minute morning news segment, which she hosted until her death. She was also a fill-in news anchor on occasion over the years.
- Steve McDonald joined the station in 1982. He was news director and lead anchor before joining KTUU in 1996.
- Ron Moore first became known in Anchorage in the late 1950s as "The Royal Coachman," a teenage DJ who would broadcast his radio show from The Bun Drive-In on Northern Lights Boulevard, across from the present-day The Mall at Sears. Moore was news anchor for much of the 1970s and 1980s, later becoming general manager of the station.
- 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...
Controversy
In October 2010, a voice-mail accidentally left on the phone of Randy DeSoto, spokersperson for U.S. Senate candidate Joe Miller, included KTVA reporters allegedly talking about whether they could find a Miller campaign supporter who was a registered sex offender at one of the candidate's rallies, and about how they could publicize any potential violent incidents through social network alerts. Former Alaska Governor Sarah PalinSarah 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...
responded to the controversy by calling them "corrupt bastards".
After an internal investigation, the station terminated two producers involved with the voicemail discussion. The station manager stated that "The recorded conversation in question specifically involved how that evening's Miller rally might be promoted and the ensuing dialogue went down hill from there. These particular comments were not in line with KTVA standards."
On November 10, 2010, KTVA cancelled its 5PM and 6PM newscasts that night, replacing those newscasts with repeats of The New Adventures of Old Christine
The New Adventures of Old Christine
The New Adventures of Old Christine is an American comedy series starring Julia Louis-Dreyfus which ran for five seasons on CBS from March 13, 2006, to May 12, 2010...
; station officials said via Twitter
Twitter
Twitter is an online social networking and microblogging service that enables its users to send and read text-based posts of up to 140 characters, informally known as "tweets".Twitter was created in March 2006 by Jack Dorsey and launched that July...
that the night's newscasts were cancelled "in order to address an internal matter." The 10PM newscast was not affected.