KDSM-TV

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KDSM-TV
Des Moines, Iowa
Branding	FOX17
Slogan	"You're Set on Fox 17"
Channels	17 (UHF) analog, 16 (UHF) digital
Affiliations	Fox
Owner	Sinclair Broadcast Group
Founded	March 7, 1983[1]
Call letters meaning	K Des Moines
Former callsigns	KCBR (1983-1986)
Former affiliations	independent (until 1986)
Website	www.kdsm.com

KDSM-TV is a television station that broadcasts on channel 17 in Des Moines, Iowa. It is an affiliate of the Fox Broadcasting Company and serves most of central Iowa. Its transmitter is located near Alleman, Iowa.

Contents 1 History 2 Personalities and programming 3 References 4 External links

[edit] History

Des Moines' first television station, KGTV, signed on channel 17 in 1953. (WOI-TV in Ames was the only television station serving central Iowa at that point, as WHO-TV and KRNT-TV, now KCCI, had yet to sign on.) Financial problems, coupled with the fact that very few television sets were able to get UHF signals at the time, forced KGTV off the air after less than a year.^[2] The KGTV calls now reside on the ABC affiliate in San Diego, California, broadcasting on channel 10.

Channel 17 remained silent for nearly 30 years until KCBR, "The Great Entertainer," signed on in March 1983 as Iowa's first independent television station. KCBR's call letters were changed to KDSM ("DSM" is the IATA airport code for the Des Moines International Airport) on January 17, 1986^[3], and later that year KDSM became one of the charter affiliates of the Fox Network.

KDSM came under the ownership of River City Broadcasting in 1991. In 1996, Sinclair acquired the station as part of its purchase of River City.

Sinclair and Fox cut a six-year affiliation contract extension for Sinclair's 19 Fox affiliates; thus, Fox will remain on KDSM at least through March 2012.

At midnight on January 6, 2007, Sinclair pulled KDSM from Mediacom cable systems in central Iowa, including those in Des Moines and Ames, as part of Mediacom's ongoing retransmission dispute with Sinclair. KDSM began offering $150 rebates (payable as $10 monthly bill credits) for Mediacom subscribers to switch to DirecTV during that time period. Mediacom offered free dipole antennas to subscribers and aired programming from other cable networks in KDSM's place during the impasse. ^[4] The impasse, which attracted attention from lawmakers in Iowa and in Washington, D.C., ended on February 2 when Mediacom announced that it had signed a retransmission consent agreement with Sinclair. KDSM was restored to Mediacom systems shortly after the announcement.^[5]

[edit] Personalities and programming

KDSM carries all Fox Network programs, including the 4Kids TV children's lineup. Syndicated programs on KDSM's current schedule include Maury, The Jerry Springer Show, and reruns of The Simpsons, Seinfeld, Frasier, and Everybody Loves Raymond. KDSM also bills itself as "Iowa's Sports Superstation," as it carries University of Iowa and other Big Ten Conference football and men's basketball games in addition to Fox Sports programming.

On March 4, 2001, KDSM debuted Fox 17 News at Nine. The newscast is produced by KGAN-TV in Cedar Rapids, and uses KGAN's anchors along with local reporters in Des Moines. (Both stations are owned by the Sinclair Broadcast Group.) It is transmitted through fiber optic connections from Cedar Rapids to Des Moines. The newscast is now known as Fox News at Nine after KFXA in Cedar Rapids began simulcasting it in late 2002.

Linsey Grams anchors Fox News at Nine weekdays, with Kevin Hall with sports and Mark Anthony with weather. Jennifer Stagg anchors Fox News at Nine weekends, with Jared Aarons doing sports and Dave Towne with weather.

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• KDSM website
• Query the FCC's TV station database for KDSM-TV