KTVZ


KTVZ, virtual and UHF digital channel 21, is a dual NBC/CW+-affiliated television station licensed to Bend, Oregon, United States and serving Central Oregon. Owned by the News-Press & Gazette Company, it is sister to two low-powered stations: Class A Fox affiliate KFXO-CD and low-powered Telemundo affiliate KQRE-LD. The three stations share studios on Northwest O.B. Riley Road in Bend; KTVZ's transmitter is located on Awbrey Butte west of US 97.

History

KTVZ went on-the-air November 6, 1977. It was started by former owners Ray Johnson of KMED-AM-TV in Medford and C. Howard Lane from KOIN-TV in Portland who formed Ponderosa Broadcasting, Inc. The station has always been an NBC affiliate but also began to carry CBS programming on a secondary basis. Efforts to carve out Deschutes County from the Portland television market began in 1980. By fall 1981, Nielsen formed the newly created Bend DMA. Sierra Cascade Communications sold the station to Stainless Broadcasting Company in 1986 which later became known as Northwest Broadcasting in 1997 based in Spokane, Washington.
By 1997, KTVZ discontinued CBS programing since KOIN in Portland already had full translator and cable coverage in the Bend area. Later in 2002, Northwest Broadcasting sold KTVZ to the News-Press & Gazette Company. By 2006, they added more network affiliations to the growing Central Oregon area when The CW was added as a second digital channel. In late 2006, it was announced that Meredith would sell KFXO to the News-Press & Gazette Company which occurred on May 24, 2007. BendBroadband filed a petition with Federal Communications Commission to block the proposed sale but it still went through. KQRE-LP was originally a repeater of KTVZ. In January 2007, that station completed a transmitter move that brought it closer to Bend making the rebroadcast redundant. The station then began airing Telemundo's schedule.

Digital television

Digital channels

The station's digital signal is multiplexed:
ChannelVideoAspectPSIP Short NameProgramming
21.11080iKTVZ-TVMain KTVZ programming / NBC
21.2480iNTVZ-DTBend CW
21.3480iKFXO-LPSD simulcast of KFXO-CD / Fox
21.4480iQTVZIon Television
21.5480iBTVZ-DTBounce TV

Analog-to-digital conversion

KTVZ shut down its analog signal, over UHF channel 21, on June 12, 2009, the official date in which full-power television stations in the United States transitioned from analog to digital broadcasts under federal mandate. The station's digital signal relocated from its pre-transition UHF channel 18 to channel 21.

Translators

KTVZ is rebroadcast on the following translator stations:
Call signChannelCity of licenseTransmitter location
K05JV5La Pinesoutheast of city
K22IL-D22PrinevilleGrizzly Mountain
K38DT-D38North La Pinewest of Sunriver

Low-power analog translators in Burns, Chemult and Madras have been discontinued.

Programming

programming on KTVZ includes Live with Kelly and Ryan, Wheel of Fortune, Jeopardy!, Dr. Oz, and Dr. Phil.

Newscasts

On June 22, 2007, KFXO's own prime time news at 10 p.m. was replaced by one produced by KTVZ. In September of that year, this station began to air its newscasts in widescreen format. It broadcasts five hours of local news every weekday. It produces a two-hour weekday morning show and nightly hour-long newscast for KFXO.

Notable former staff