KCWK

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KCWK

Walla Walla/Richland/Pasco/Kennewick, Washington
Channels	Analog: 9 (VHF)
Translators	KCWK-LP 27 Yakima
Affiliations	defunct
Owner	Pappas Telecasting Companies (KCWK License, LLC)
First air date	2001
Call letters’ meaning	The CW
Former callsigns	KBKI (2001-2003) KAZW-TV (2003-2006)
Former affiliations	independent (2001-2003) Azteca America (2003-2006) The CW (2006-08)
Transmitter Power	316 kW
Height	436 m
Facility ID	84238
Transmitter Coordinates	45°59′21.9″N, 118°10′34.8″W
Website	www.kcwk9.com

KCWK was a television station which broadcast on analog channel 9 in Walla Walla, Washington and low-powered analog channel 27 (KCWK-LP) in Yakima, Washington. It was affiliated with The CW, and was owned by Pappas Telecasting. The station went off the air on May 30th, 2008. ^[1]

1 History
2 Digital television
3 References
4 External links

[edit] History

The station signed on in 2001 as KBKI. In 2003, it changed its callsign to KAZW-TV and affiliated with the Spanish-language Azteca America network. It targeted the large Hispanic community in central Washington.

On April 24, 2006, it was announced that KAZW would launch a CW affiliate on digital subchannel 9.2, with programming being provided by The CW Plus. However, the station subsequently changed its plans and chose to completely replace Azteca America with The CW, citing better marketing potential. Mike Angelos, vice president of corporate communications for Pappas Telecasting, stated that while the Hispanic population composes 40 percent of the Yakima Valley, the numbers weren't high enough to reach the level needed for Azteca America. The call letters were changed in August to KCWK to reflect the new affiliation.

On May 29, 2008, it was observed that the station's offices had been emptied, indicating that KCWK has ceased operations. This was the result of a Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing for some Pappas stations, including KCWK.^[2] As of May 30, 2008, the channel 9 cable slot remained vacant on Charter Communications' Tri-Cities systems. It is currently unknown if Charter will replace the channel position with another CW channel. Viewers of Dish Network will receive Los Angeles' KTLA as a temporary replacement. ^[3]

[edit] Digital television

Because it was granted an original construction permit after the FCC finalized the DTV allotment plan on April 21, 1997 [1], the station did not receive a companion channel for a digital television station. Instead, on or before February 17, 2009, which is the end of the digital TV conversion period for full-service stations, KCWK would have been required to turn off its analog signal and turn on its digital signal (called a "flash-cut").

However, its low-powered satellite, KCWK-LP, had filed for a digital "-LD" license on channel 36. It is currently unknown if that channel was to have complemented or replaced channel 27.