KESQ-TV

KESQ-TV
Palm Springs, California United States

Branding	NewsChannel 3 HD CBS Local 2 (on DT2) FOX 11 (on DT4) Telemundo 15 (on DT7) Palm Springs CW 5 (on DT8)
Slogan	The Desert's News Leader
Channels	Digital: 42 (UHF) Virtual: 42 (PSIP)
Subchannels	42.1 ABC 42.2 CBS 33.2 (42.4) FOX 15.1 (42.7) Telemundo 2.3 (42.8) The CW
Translators	K15FC 15 and K27DS 27 Yucca Valley
Owner	News-Press & Gazette Company (Gulf-California Broadcast Company)
First air date	October 5, 1968
Call letters' meaning	ESQuire Magazine (former owner)
Sister station(s)	KDFX-CD, KCWQ-LP/LD, KUNA-LP/LD, KPSP-CD, KUNA-FM, KESQ-AM, KECY-TV, KEYT-TV
Former callsigns	KPLM-TV (1968-1980)
Former channel number(s)	42 (UHF analog, 1968-2009) 52 (UHF digital)
Former affiliations	AccuWeather
Transmitter power	42 kW
Height	227 m
Class	DT
Facility ID	25577
Transmitter coordinates	33°52′0″N 116°26′5.5″W / 33.86667°N 116.434861°W / 33.86667; -116.434861
Website	kesq.com

KESQ-TV is the ABC-affiliated television station for the Coachella Valley licensed to Palm Springs. It broadcasts a high definition digital signal on UHF Channel 42 from a transmitter on Edom Hill in Cathedral City. The station can also be seen on Time Warner Cable Channel 3 (hence its "NewsChannel 3" branding) both in standard definition and in high definition. Owned by the News-Press and Gazette Company, it is partner of Class A CBS affiliate CBS Local 2, Class A FOX affiliate KDFX-CD, low-powered CW affiliate KCWQ, and low-powered Telemundo affiliate KUNA.

Overview

All five stations broadcast from studios located on Dunham Way in Thousand Palms. Syndicated programming on KESQ includes Access Hollywood, Extra, Inside Edition and The Ellen DeGeneres Show.

The station can be seen over-the-air on analog translators K27DS and K15FC. K27DS Channel 27 licensed to Yucca Valley is a translator west of Morongo Valley in the San Bernardino National Forest along the San Bernardino and Riverside County line. K15FC Channel 15 licensed to Joshua Tree extends coverage of KESQ in Twentynine Palms to the east.

Along with other major Coachella Valley television stations, KESQ identifies itself on-air using its cable designation (News Channel 3) rather than its over-the-air channel position. The unusual practice stems in part from the area's exceptionally high cable penetration rate of 80.5% which is one of the highest in the United States.^[1]

Digital channels

Channel	Video	Aspect	PSIP Short Name	Programming
42.1	720p	16:9	KESQ-DT	Main KESQ-TV programming / ABC
42.2	480i	4:3	KESQ-DT	Simulcast of KPSP-CD / CBS
33.2			KDFX-DT	Simulcast of KDFX-CD / FOX
15.1			KUNA-DT	Simulcast of KUNA-LP / Telemundo
2.3			KCWQ-DT	Simulcast of KCWQ-LD / The CW

Since KDFX, KUNA and KCWQ are low-powered stations, they did not originally offer digital signals of their own. Therefore, KESQ added them as subchannels to serve as that purpose. Unlike most other broadcasters, this station does not number a digital signal equivalent to the analog signal as minor channel 1 and label other subchannels with higher minor channel numbers. KDFX, KUNA and KCWQ have since signed-on low-powered digital signals of their own.

History

The station signed on in October 5, 1968 and was the market's first station. However, it would hold the distinction of being the only station in the Coachella Valley for just three weeks, as NBC affiliate KMIR started up at that time on channel 36. Airing an analog signal on UHF channel 42, it used the KPLM-TV call sign named for the "Palm" as in "Palm Springs". In 1980, the station changed its calls to the current KESQ-TV while under the ownership of Esquire Communications whom acquired them in 1979. At this point, KESQ-AM 1400 was combined with the television station into a studio complex at Melanie Place in Palm Desert where KESQ-TV remains today. In the mid-1980s, its call sign was featured in a logo above a tri-color "red-blue-yellow" rainbow until being replaced by a golden "3" in 1994 that is still in use.

In the 1980s, the station operated three other translators in order to cover a wide area of the market including K82BQ in Hemet, K33BL in Banning, and K71AB in Blythe. The television station currently owns the license for KESQ-AM which is simulast of KUNA-FM. The station shut down its analog signal on June 12, 2009 as part of the DTV transition. On January 31, 2012, KESQ bought rival KPSP, the local CBS affiliate. KPSP's transmitter on 38.1 went silent at midnight on March 1, 2012. CBS programming is now broadcast on 42.2 on the KESQ-DT digital tier and the lineup has not changed.^[2] On June 20, 2013 it was announced that KESQ, with all their sister channels, will be moving into a new state-of-the-art studio. KESQ is moving into their new studio on June 26, 2013 along with KPSP. The new studio is located in Thousand Palms, California in the old KPSP studio.

News operation

The station established a local news department in the mid-1980s and became a ratings powerhouse regularly earning more viewership than all of its competitors combined.^[3] After acquiring KPSP, that station had its operations merged into KESQ's facility. Currently, KESQ offers the most broadcasts while CBS Local 2 airs separate news programs on weekday mornings as well as weeknights at 5:30 and 6:30. In addition to these newscasts, KESQ produces a two-hour extension of its weekday morning newscast seen from 7:00-9:00 a.m. on KDFX-CD. The FOX affiliate also airs a nightly prime time broadcast at 10:00 p.m. that features the CBS outlet's branding and anchors. These offerings competed with now defunct low-powered MyNetworkTV KPSG-LP, which had local news produced by rival NBC affiliate KMIR-TV. The Telemundo newscasts can be seen weeknights at 6:00 and 11:00 p.m. on KUNA. Like all CW Plus outlets in the Pacific Time Zone, KCWQ-LP airs the nationally syndicated morning show The Daily Buzz on weekday mornings from 6:00-9:00 a.m.

References

External links

Television stations in Palm Springs, California and the Coachella Valley of the Inland Empire

Local stations	KCWQ-LP/LD (2.3 The CW) KAKZ-LD 4 (Azteca) KEVC-CD 5 (UniMás) KPOM-LP 6 (Spanish-language religious) KVPS-LP 8 (Vida) KLPS 10 (IND)^[1] KYAV-LD 12 (AccuWeather) KUNA-LP/LD (15.1 TMD) KODG-LP (17.1 PBS-HD, 17.2 OC, 17.3 DS, 17.4 World) KJHP-LP 18/ K09XW (24.1 PBS) KVCR-TV San Bernardino, 24.2 FNX, 24.3 PBS Desert Cities, 24.4 Create) K20HZ 20 "KMXX" (HSN) K21DO-D 21 "KNDO" (3ABN) KSHT-LD (22.1 IND / MundoMax) KVMD (23.1 IND / A1) KPDC 25 (A1) KRET-CD (31.1 Me-TV, 31.2 This TV, 31.3 Estrella TV, 31.4 Antenna TV) KDFX-CD (33.2 Fox) KMIR (36.1 NBC, 36.2 Movies!) KPSP-CD (38.1 CBS) KVER-CA 40 / KVES-LP 28 (UNI) KESQ (42.1 ABC, 42.2 CBS, 42.4 Fox, 42.7 TMD, 42.8 The CW, 42.9 AccuWX) KDUO-LP 43 (Evine Live) KIJR-LP 47 (IND / Religious) K49HV 49 (SBN) KPSE-LD (50.1 MNTV)

Translator stations	K27DS / K15FC (KESQ ABC)

Adjacent Locals (translators and cable service)	KCBS-TV 2/over-air 29 (CBS) Los Angeles KNBC 4/over-air 44 (NBC Los Angeles KTLA 5/over-air 01 (CW) Los Angeles KABC-TV 7/over-air 22 ABC) Los Angeles KCAL-TV 9/K16AA (IND) Los Angeles KECY 9 (FOX/ABC) El Centro CA-Yuma AZ KTTV 11/K14AB (FOX) Los Angeles KYMA 11 (NBC) El Centro-Yuma AZ KCOP 13/over-air 48 (My Network) Los Angeles KSWT 13 (CBS) El Centro-Yuma XHBM-TV 14 (Televisa) Mexicali KWHY 22 (MundoMax) Los Angeles XHAQ-TV 5/over-air 28 (Azteca) Mexicali XHMEE-TV 32 (Azteca-5/Canal 5 (Televisa Network) Mexicali KTBN 33 (TBN) Orange County XHBC-TV 3/over-air 34 (Televisa) Mexicali KOCE 50/K41CB (PBS) Orange County-Los Angeles

Cable channels	KCET Desert Cities / K35LA (Public Independent)

Defunct	KLPS-LP 19 (Spanish-language religious) KPSG-LP 50 (UPN/MNTV)

California television Bakersfield Chico–Redding Eureka Fresno Las Vegas NV Los Angeles Medford OR Monterey Inland Empire (Palm Springs) Reno NV Sacramento San Diego San Francisco Santa Barbara El Centro CA / Yuma AZ See also Phoenix TV

ABC Network affiliates in the state of California

KEYT 3 / KSBB 17 / K31KE-D (Santa Barbara / San Luis Obispo) KABC 7 (Los Angeles) KGO 7 (San Francisco/San Jose/Oakland) KRCR 7 / KAEF 23 (Redding / Chico / Eureka) KSBW 8.2 (Salinas/Monterey/Santa Cruz) KECY-DT 9.2 (El Centro) KGTV 10 (San Diego) KXTV 10 (Sacramento) KERO 23 (Bakersfield) KFSN 30 (Fresno) KESQ 42 (Palm Springs) Defunct ABC stations/gone dark: KFWU 8 Fort Bragg (1990-97) substation of KRCR 7 Redding, KNTV 11 San Jose (1965-99), KHDT 38/64 Barstow/Victorville (1965-87) substation of KABC 7 Los Angeles.

See also ABC CBS CW Fox Ion MyNetworkTV NBC PBS Other stations in California

News-Press & Gazette Company

Newspapers

Television
stations

ABC network affiliates	KECY-DT2 KESQ-TV KEYT-TV KIFI-TV KMIZ KRDO-TV KVIA-TV

CBS network affiliates	KCOY-TV ¹ KIDK ¹ KION-TV KPSP-CD KSWT ²

CW network affiliates	KBJO-LD ³ KCWQ-LP KECY-DT3 KIFI-DT3 KION-DT2 KTVZ-DT2

Fox network affiliates	KDFX-CD KECY-TV KFXO-LD KKFX-CD KNPN-LD ³ KQFX-LD KXPI-LD ¹

MyNetworkTV affiliates	KECY-TV ⁴ KEYT-DT2 ⁵ KMIZ-DT2 ⁴ KXPI-LD ^{1, 4}

Telemundo affiliates	KECY-DT4/KESE-LP KIFI-DT2 KMUV-LP KQRE-LP KNPG-LD/KNPN-LD4 ³ KUNA-LP

Other affiliations	AZA K42DJ ⁶ NBC KTVZ KYMA-DT ² Cable News-Press 3 NOW ⁷

Radio stations

¹ Owned by VistaWest Media, LLC, NPG operates this station under a SSA.
² Owned by Northwest Broadcasting, NPG operates this station under an SSA.
³ This station was built and signed on by NPG.
⁴ This station carries a secondary MyNetworkTV affiliation on its primary channel.
⁵ This station carries a secondary Retro Television Network affiliation on its second digital subchannel.
⁶ This station is owned by Hubbard Broadcasting, but is operated by NPG.
⁷ Originally operating as a cable-only channel, News-Press 3 NOW is also relayed on a second digital subchannel of KNPN-LD.
⁸ This station is owned by Optima Communications, but is operated by NPG.

↑ http://www.stationindex.com/tv/markets/Palm+Springs

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