KWYB

KWYB

Butte, Montana
Branding	KWYB ABC 18/28 (general) ABC Montana News (newscasts) Fox 18/28 (DT2)
Channels	Digital: 19 (UHF)
Translators	KWYB-LD 28 Bozeman
Affiliations	ABC Fox (DT2)
Owner	Cowles Publishing Company (Cowles Montana Media Company)
First air date	September 27, 1996
Former channel number(s)	Analog: 18 (UHF, 1996-2009)
Transmitter power	110.7 kW
Height	585.2 m
Facility ID	14674
Transmitter coordinates	46°0′24″N 112°26′33″W / 46.00667°N 112.44250°W / 46.00667; -112.44250
Website	www.abcmontana.com

KWYB is a full-service television station in Butte, Montana, broadcasting locally in digital on UHF channel 19 as an affiliate of ABC. The station's signal is rebroadcast on KWYB-LD UHF channel 28 in Bozeman. The station is owned by Cowles Publishing Company.

History

On January 9, 1992, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) granted an original construction permit to Continental Television Network (CTN) for a full-service station on channel 18 to serve Butte. The station, at first known by its application identification number, 910225KE, soon took the call letters KWYB. The station signed on September 27, 1996.

In February 2001, CTN sold KWYB, along with KWYB-LP in Bozeman, KTMF in Missoula, KTMF-LP in Kalispell and KTGF in Great Falls, to Max Media of Montana. They were the first television station acquisitions in Montana for Max Media.

CTN aired no news on its stations, but soon after Max Media acquired the stations, they began to make plans for a regional newscast for KWYB and its other stations, to debut in early 2002. They launched the newscast, produced by Independent News Network of Davenport, Iowa and branded Big Sky News, in October 2002, but the newscast generated controversy, in part because it tried to simultaneously serve the needs of five communities over 200 miles (over 300 km) apart, and in part because the newscast did not actually originate in Montana, but rather, in a city approximately 1,050 miles (1700 km) away, with only one reporter actually assigned to and located in Butte.

Max Media launched another attempt at a regional newscast for KWYB and its other stations in February 2005, this time branded Montana News Network, produced in Great Falls at KFBB.

On September 30, 2013, the Cowles Publishing Company acquired Max Media's Montana television station cluster (KWYB, fellow ABC affiliates KFBB-TV/Great Falls, KHBB-LD/Helena and KTMF/Missoula and NBC affiliate KULR-TV/Helena) for $18 million.^[1][2] The sale was completed on November 29.^[3]

KWYB-LP history

On May 30, 1996, the FCC granted an original construction permit to Louise K. Corbin for a low-power station on channel 28 to serve Bozeman. The station was given callsign K28FB and was quickly built. K28FB was licensed on January 14, 1997. In May 1997, Continental Television Network purchased the station and six months later, changed its calls to KWYB-LP.

In February 2001, CTN sold the station to Max Media of Montana as part of the same transaction as KWYB and participated in the same newscasts as KWYB.

Digital television

On June 14, 2002, the FCC granted a construction permit to build KWYB-DT on UHF channel 19. The station received Special Temporary Authority (STA) on April 22, 2003 to broadcast at reduced power. As of August 2006, the station has not completed its final digital facilities and continues to broadcast per the STA. KWYB has elected to move to channel 19 once the transition to digital television is completed.

On August 11, 2006, the FCC granted "flash-cut" authorization to KWYB-LD, and on August 11, 2009, analog station KWYB-LP shut down and digital station KWYB-LD commenced broadcasting on channel 28.

As of July 13, 2009, a KWYB subchannel is now a Fox television affiliate. Fox is broadcast on digital channel 18-2, and, like 18-1, is available in 720p high definition. Formerly, Fox was available on KBTZ analog channel 24. Max Media obtained broadcast rights when Equity Media Holdings filed for bankruptcy.

News operation

As an ABC affiliate, KWYB airs most of the network schedule. ABC's 6:30 PM network newscast, World News with Diane Sawyer, airs at 4:30 PM on KWYB (Montana is in the Mountain Time Zone, two hours behind the East Coast.) KWYB airs Nightline one-half hour after the 10 PM local evening news ends and fills the overnight schedule with World News Now and ABC World News This Morning.

KWYB broadcasts very little local news. The Montana News Network regional newscast no longer airs on KWYB, so there is no early evening local newscast. The late local news, called 10@10, is a 10-minute newscast summarizing weather and sports.

KWYB functions very much like a satellite of KTMF, as both stations air nearly identical schedules, save for a few differences on Sunday mornings. KTMF and KWYB air the same 10@10 sportscasts but different weather segments.

Current personalities

News anchors

• Angela Marshall - weeknights at 5:30 p.m.; also producer and assignment reporter
• Sarah Gravlee - weeknights at 9:00 p.m. (KWYB-DT2); also news director

News Reporters

• Jackie Coffin - general assignment reporter
• Emily Foster - general assignment reporter
• Jamie Daniel - Kalispell reporter
• Rob Jesselson - general assignment reporter
• Ashley Sanchez - general assignment reporter

Weather

• Dave Cochran - chief meteorologist; weekdays at 9:00 p.m. (KWYB-DT2)

Sports

• Dominic Sheldon - sports director; weekdays at 9:00 p.m. (KWYB-DT2)
• Shaun Rainey - sports reporter
• Jeff Eberle - sports reporter

References

External links

• ABCMontana.com (Official Website)
• Query the FCC's TV station database for KWYB-TV
• Query the FCC's TV station database for KWYB-LD
• BIAfn's Media Web Database -- Information on KWYB-TV