KUVS-DT
Channel 19 in Modesto was founded by country and western performer Chester Smith and began broadcasting as KLOC-TV on August 26, 1966. It was an English-language independent station but struggled to obtain programming once distributors raised their rate. As a result, the station simulcast co-owned KLOC radio during the day and began airing Spanish-language shows at night. By the 1970s, it was specializing in daytime Christian programming and evening Spanish-language programming. Its coverage area expanded to include Sacramento in 1975; the call sign changed to KCSO-TV in 1981 when Smith sold KLOC radio. Over the course of the 1980s, Smith built several additional television stations in central California and Nevada broadcasting Spanish-language programming.
Chester Smith sold KCSO to Univision in 1997; Smith retained the call sign, so the station was renamed KUVS-TV. The station moved most of its operations from Modesto to Sacramento after the sale. It produces local Spanish-language newscasts for the market as well as a weekly public affairs program seen on other Univision stations in California.
All of KUVS-DT's subchannels are rebroadcast in the immediate Sacramento area on KEZT-CD (channel 23), and KTFK-DT also rebroadcasts the Univision subchannel of KUVS-DT to provide improved coverage.
History
Chester Smith ownership
On March 3, 1964, Corbett Pierce and country and western performer Chester Smith, owner of KLOC (920 AM) in Ceres, applied to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) for permission to build a new television station on channel 17 in Modesto, one of two channels allocated to the city. The FCC approved the application on November 12, 1964; after a national overhaul of ultra high frequency (UHF) channel allocations finalized in early 1966 shifted Modesto's channel allocation to channel 19, the station began broadcasting as independent station KLOC-TV on August 26, 1966.
Initially, KLOC maintained a general-entertainment format and was one of the stations that carried programming from the United Network during its one month of operation in May 1967. About a year after its sign-on, the syndicators providing KLOC's programming raised their prices to the levels closer to a Sacramento-licensed station (the station's owners had been acquired programming at lower rates closer to that of an unrated television market); KLOC-TV alleged that Stockton's KOVR had pressured syndicators not to do business with the Modesto station. Smith resorted to simulcasting KLOC radio's programming during the daytime hours, including a camera in the radio station's studios showing the disc jockeys live, and ran Spanish-language telenovelas in the evening, when the radio station signed off. Advertising revenue from the radio station helped keep channel 19 afloat. In 1972, the station joined the Spanish International Network (SIN), predecessor to Univision; soon after came an affiliation with the Christian Broadcasting Network (CBN) to air religious programs. SIN and CBN provided steady income and turned the struggling station's fortunes around.
In 1975, the station increased its power and finally began broadcasting in color; the technical improvements also resulted in Sacramento being able to receive the station for the first time. Smith sought to expand the reach of his station's programming. In 1976, he proposed to build a satellite station on channel 42 in Concord, which had lay fallow for a decade following the short-lived existence of KCFT-TV a decade prior, with a transmitter to be built atop Mount Diablo. The move was roundly opposed by citizens' groups that felt that Concord's channel 42 would be better used by a station that proposed more local programming. Two television stations that broadcast Spanish-language programming, KEMO-TV (channel 20) in San Francisco and KMUV-TV (channel 31) in Sacramento, also objected. As a result, KLOC abandoned the Concord proposal in December 1976. In 1979, KLOC won the rights to build channel 35 in Salinas, to repeat much of its Modesto programming to the Monterey Bay area; as a result, the KLOC radio station was sold off as a condition of obtaining the construction permit, and the television station changed its call sign to KCSO ("Chester Smith Organization") in 1981. KCBA started broadcasting on November 1, 1981, becoming an English-language independent station several years later. In 1986, KREN-TV went on the air as an SIN-affiliated sister station in Reno, Nevada. Later in the decade, K07TA and K09UF, predecessors to today's KTAS (channel 33), went on air in the Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo area, and in 1991, plans were revealed for further stations in Merced and Eureka.
KCSO's primary local program was its 6 p.m. local newscast, which was produced on a "dental floss budget", in the words of Xóchitl Arellano, who worked at the station when it was still located in Modesto. However, the number of news personnel slowly increased throughout the 1990s.
Univision ownership
In late 1996, Smith announced the sale of KCSO to Univision for $40 million (equivalent to $71.8 million in 2023 dollars); once the sale closed, the station's morning Christian programs would be discontinued to make way for broadcasting all of Univision's Spanish-language output. (The KCSO call letters were retained by Smith, who started KCSO-LP, a Telemundo affiliate, in 1999.) Smith was paid in Univision stock, which quadrupled in value between 1997 and 1999.
![A one-story office building with "Univision 19" and "KUVS" signage](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/33/KUVS-TV_Univision_19_KUVS_in_Sacramento%2C_CA.jpg/220px-KUVS-TV_Univision_19_KUVS_in_Sacramento%2C_CA.jpg)
Univision changed the call letters to KUVS, relocated operations from Modesto to Sacramento, and added an 11 p.m. local newscast to the station's longstanding 6 p.m. local news, which also began to cover news in Sacramento. It was the first time a network had placed an owned-and-operated TV station in Sacramento. Univision purchased a former bank building across from the Arden Fair Mall to house its Sacramento operation, leaving only sales and news personnel in Modesto.
Newscasts and other local programming
The KUVS newsroom in Sacramento airs half-hour local early and late evening newscasts seven days a week and A Primera Hora ("First Thing in the Morning"), a one-hour-long morning newscast at 6 a.m. In 2017, Univision debuted a statewide Edición Digital (Digital Edition) newscast, aired at 12:30 p.m. The station began producing local newscasts in the early 1970s, though the station's resources were limited. The news set consisted of a table and chairs until anchor Xóchitl Arellano persuaded San Francisco's KGO-TV to sell its previous news set to KCSO for $2,000.
KUVS also produces Voz y Voto, a weekly political roundtable program distributed to Univision's California stations. When it debuted in 1999, the program was co-produced with KMEX-TV in Los Angeles and was originally hosted by Rosa Maria Villalpando; Armando Botello, state political columnist for Los Angeles newspaper La Opinión; and Arellano, among others. In 2005, the program featured an exclusive interview with governor Arnold Schwarzenegger. Arellano continued to serve as one of the program's anchors until she left the station in 2007.
Technical information
Subchannels
The station's signal is multiplexed:
Channel | Res. | Aspect | Short name | Programming |
---|---|---|---|---|
19.1 | 720p | 16:9 | KUVS-DT | Univision |
19.3 | 480i | BOUNCE | Bounce TV | |
19.4 | Mystery | Ion Mystery | ||
64.2 | 720p | KTFK-HD | UniMás (KTFK-DT) |
There is no 19.2 on this multiplex, as it is broadcast from KTFK-DT. KEZT-CD broadcasts the subchannels on this multiplex using major channel 23.
KUVS-DT is part of Sacramento's ATSC 3.0 (NextGen TV) deployment on KQCA, which began operating in July 2021.
Analog-to-digital conversion
KUVS-TV shut down its analog signal, over UHF channel 19, on June 12, 2009, as part of the federally mandated transition from analog to digital television. The station's digital signal remained on its pre-transition UHF channel 18.
References
- ^ "Facility Technical Data for KUVS-DT". Licensing and Management System. Federal Communications Commission.
- ^ "FCC History Cards for KUVS-DT". Federal Communications Commission. Retrieved August 23, 2022.
- ^ "Modesto Television Channel Is Changed". The Modesto Bee. Modesto, California. March 30, 1962. p. A-4. Archived from the original on August 23, 2022. Retrieved August 23, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Where the FCC would put TV stations". Broadcasting. February 14, 1966. pp. 70–72. ProQuest 1014497628.
- ^ Perry, Gerald (September 14, 1980). "KLOC chief almost tried Opry". The Modesto Bee. Modesto, California. p. F-1. Archived from the original on August 23, 2022. Retrieved August 23, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Hey U" (PDF). Broadcasting. April 3, 1967. pp. 106B–C. ProQuest 1014504276. Archived (PDF) from the original on November 8, 2021. Retrieved August 26, 2022 – via World Radio History.
- ^ Kane, William D. (June 11, 1978). "Smith shapes 'new look' for Channel 19". The Modesto Bee. pp. F-8, F-9. Retrieved August 26, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "KLOC-TV backs up FCC on program diversity" (PDF). Broadcasting. September 30, 1968. ProQuest 1016849033. Archived (PDF) from the original on November 8, 2021. Retrieved August 26, 2022.
- ^ "TV, Radio Stations Simulcast". The Modesto Bee. Modesto, California. October 26, 1969. p. TV-5. Archived from the original on August 23, 2022. Retrieved August 23, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "KLOC Joins Spanish International Net". The Modesto Bee. Modesto, California. July 23, 1972. p. TV-6. Archived from the original on August 23, 2022. Retrieved August 23, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "There's Something Clean in The Air! Daily on KLOC-TV Channel 19". The Modesto Bee. Modesto, California. January 29, 1973. p. A-12. Archived from the original on August 26, 2022. Retrieved August 23, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Hurst, John V. (March 4, 1975). "On The Air: Good News For Spanish, Religious". The Sacramento Bee. Sacramento, California. p. A12. Archived from the original on August 26, 2022. Retrieved August 23, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "KLOC-TV Asks Site on Mt. Diablo". Contra Costa Times. Walnut Creek, California. October 3, 1976. p. 1, 2. Archived from the original on August 26, 2022. Retrieved August 26, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Seek Local Programming for Channel 42: Citizens Protest KLOC-TV Move to County". Contra Costa Times. Walnut Creek, California. October 5, 1976. p. 12. Archived from the original on August 26, 2022. Retrieved August 26, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Yarrow, Russ (November 19, 1976). "Modesto Station Wants Local Channel: Opposition to KLOC-TV Grows". Contra Costa Times. Walnut Creek, California. p. 3. Retrieved August 26, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Yarrow, Russ (December 10, 1976). "KLOC-TV Reportedly Drops Plans to Acquire Channel 42". Contra Costa Times. Walnut Creek, California. p. 3. Archived from the original on August 26, 2022. Retrieved August 26, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Jardine, Jeff (November 10, 1999). "Spanish TV station debuts today". The Modesto Bee. Modesto, California. p. D-1. Archived from the original on August 26, 2022. Retrieved August 26, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Compromise clears channels for Spanish television station". The Californian. Salinas, California. June 21, 1979. p. 5. Archived from the original on March 10, 2022. Retrieved August 26, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Salinas TV plans: KLOC will sell radio station". The Modesto Bee. Modesto, California. December 27, 1979. p. D-6. Archived from the original on March 10, 2022. Retrieved August 26, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "KCBA" (PDF). Television Factbook. 1984. p. 114. Archived (PDF) from the original on January 30, 2022. Retrieved March 9, 2022 – via World Radio History.
- ^ "Hispanic TV in Reno broadcasts Sept. 15". Reno Gazette-Journal. Reno, Nevada. September 3, 1986. p. 1D. Archived from the original on August 26, 2022. Retrieved August 26, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Ferris, Stephen (August 29, 1991). "Spanish-language TV expanding: KCSO owner will build Merced, Eureka stations". The Modesto Bee. Modesto, California. p. A-1, A-16. Archived from the original on August 26, 2022. Retrieved August 26, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ McCray, Kerry (April 6, 1997). "Family First: News not real anchor in her life". The Modesto Bee. Modesto, California. p. F-1, F-3. Archived from the original on August 26, 2022. Retrieved August 26, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Lane, Libby (October 24, 1996). "Channel 19 sale means all-Spanish". The Modesto Bee. Modesto, California. p. C-1. Archived from the original on August 26, 2022. Retrieved August 26, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Hoskins, Roger W. (December 19, 1999). "Chester Reborn". The Modesto Bee. Modesto, California. p. D-1, D-3. Archived from the original on August 26, 2022. Retrieved August 26, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Vierria, Dan (April 11, 1998). "New kids show barely a blip on ratings". The Sacramento Bee. Sacramento, California. p. Scene 1, 9. Archived from the original on August 26, 2022. Retrieved August 26, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Vierria, Dan (April 8, 1997). "New vision for Channel 19: Spanish-language network buys—and revamps—Sacramento station". The Sacramento Bee. Sacramento, California. p. C1, C5. Archived from the original on August 26, 2022. Retrieved August 26, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Vierria, Dan (April 26, 1998). "Univision turns up the volume: Spanish language Channel 19 has a new message for Sacramento". The Sacramento Bee. Sacramento, California. p. Encore 16, 17, 18. Archived from the original on August 26, 2022. Retrieved August 26, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Walter, Bob (March 20, 1998). "TV firm moving staff to capital: Univision shifting headquarters here". The Sacramento Bee. Sacramento, California. p. E1, E2. Archived from the original on August 26, 2022. Retrieved August 26, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Gordon, Stuart (November 28, 1998). "Sacramento nabs station: Modesto to still have news bureau". The Modesto Bee. Modesto, California. p. C-1. Archived from the original on August 26, 2022. Retrieved August 26, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Villafañe, Veronica (April 12, 2017). "Univision adds "Edición Digital" noon news at local stations". Media Moves. Archived from the original on October 3, 2019. Retrieved August 26, 2022.
- ^ Sanchez, Edgar (May 7, 1994). "Spanish news with local focus: Modesto station aims broadcast at valley Latinos". The Sacramento Bee. pp. B1, B4. Archived from the original on August 26, 2023. Retrieved August 26, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Television: 'Voz y Voto'". Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles, California. March 27, 1999. p. F4. Archived from the original on August 26, 2022. Retrieved August 26, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Mañana comienza programa político 'Voz y Voto' en el Canal 34: Proyecto de 'La Opinión' y KMEX presentará a relevantes figuras publicas discutiendo sobre temas de actualidad" [Tomorrow, political program 'Voz y Voto' starts on Channel 34: Project from La Opinión and KMEX will present relevant public figures discussing current affairs]. La Opinión. March 26, 1999. p. 1B. ProQuest 368337444 – via ProQuest.
- ^ Martínez, Silvina (February 1, 2000). "Welcome to my world: Rather than work in mainstream media, Xochitl Arellano reports for the Latino community on Channel 19". The Sacramento Bee. pp. D1, D5. Archived from the original on August 26, 2023. Retrieved August 26, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ McManis, Sam (September 12, 2005). "Catching the wave: Radio and TV in Spanish have gained momentum, and Sacramento stations are riding high". The Sacramento Bee. Sacramento, California. p. E1, E5. Archived from the original on August 26, 2022. Retrieved August 26, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ McManis, Sam (February 6, 2007). "The Best of 21Q". The Sacramento Bee. p. E3. Retrieved August 26, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "RabbitEars TV Query for KUVS". RabbitEars. Archived from the original on March 14, 2016. Retrieved August 26, 2022.
- ^ "RabbitEars TV Query for KEZT-CD". RabbitEars. Archived from the original on September 26, 2020. Retrieved August 26, 2022.
- ^ Miller, Mark K. (July 8, 2021). "6 Sacramento Stations Launch NextGen TV". TVNewsCheck. Archived from the original on August 4, 2021. Retrieved August 13, 2022.
- ^ "DTV Tentative Channel Designations for the First and Second Rounds" (PDF). Federal Communications Commission. May 23, 2006. Archived from the original (PDF) on August 29, 2013. Retrieved August 29, 2021.