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| City | La Crescent, Minnesota |
| Channels | |
| Branding | see WKBT-DT infobox |
| Programming | |
| Affiliations |
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| Ownership | |
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| History | |
| Founded | July 15, 1992 |
First air date | July 18, 1994; 31 years ago (1994-07-18) |
Former call signs |
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Former channel numbers |
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Call sign meaning | White Eagle Partnership (former owner) |
| Technical information[2] | |
Licensing authority | FCC |
| Facility ID | 72207 |
| Class | CD |
| ERP | 15kW |
| HAAT | 225 m (738 ft) |
| Transmitter coordinates | 43°44′53″N91°17′51″W / 43.74806°N 91.29750°W /43.74806; -91.29750 |
| Translator(s) | |
| Links | |
Public license information | |
| Website | www |
KQEG-CD (channel 23) is alow-power,Class A television station licensed toLa Crescent, Minnesota, United States. It is atranslator ofLa Crosse, Wisconsin–licensedCBS affiliateWKBT-DT (channel 8) which is owned byMorgan Murphy Media. KQEG-CD's transmitter is located nearHokah, Minnesota; its parent station maintains studios on South 6th Street in downtown La Crosse.
KQEG-CD has two translators of its own:WPDR-LD (channel 35, formerlyWEZY-LP), located inTomah, Wisconsin; andWBDL-LD (channel 18, formerlyWBOO-LP), licensed toElk Mound, Wisconsin. WBDL-LP wassilent due to the station's former frequency (UHF 45) placement in the 600 MHz band that was cleared during the2016 FCC spectrum auction.[5] Also, equipment delays resulting from theCOVID-19 outbreak contributed to the outlet remaining off air.[6][7][8]
KQEG was started by White Eagle Partnership (Eleanor St. John, Perry St. John, and Richard Wilson) in 1994 as K50DK (channel 50). The original construction permit was dated July 15, 1992.[9]
The call letters K50DK were changed to KQEG-LP on February 5, 1996. The channel was changed from 50 to 23 in February 2001.[10] The station's license changed from low power to Class A, thus changing the callsign to KQEG-CA on August 28, 2001.[9]
In June 2002, White Eagle Partnership purchased the construction permit for W45CF (channel 45) ofChippewa Falls, Wisconsin, from Inspiration Television.[11] (The construction permit had been granted to Inspiration Television in October 2001.[12]) W45CF would operate as a translator station of KQEG-CA.
In September 2004, the community of license for W45CF was changed from Chippewa Falls toElk Mound, Wisconsin.[13]
For some years, KQEG's primary network affiliation had been withUPN, and the station maintained a secondary affiliation withFamilyNet. Following the January 24, 2006, announcement that UPN andThe WB would merge into a new network calledThe CW to launch fall 2006, KQEG gained a bit of national notoriety when it was apparently the first station to its affiliation due to the merger on January 27, 2006.[14][15]CBS affiliateWKBT-TV would swiftly launchUPN La Crosse/Eau Claire on their second subchannel on January 30, 2006, later affiliating withMyNetworkTV upon UPN's demise.[16]
On January 30, 2006, KQEG began airing a rebroadcast ofWXOW's 6 p.m. newscast at 7 p.m. weekday evenings.[16]
KQEG-CA and W45CF were purchased by Magnum Radio Inc. (David R. Magnumet al.) from White Eagle Partnership (Eleanor St. John) on January 19, 2009.[17][18] Magnum Radio Inc. already owned WIBU-LP channel 51 of Tomah, Wisconsin.
In May 2009, KQEG's programming was revamped as the station began a part-time affiliation withIon Television; this included the discontinuation of the 7 p.m. airing of WXOW's 6 p.m. newscast. Also, WIBU-LP began broadcasting as a translator station of KQEG-CA.
On September 16, 2010, the call letters for W45CF were changed to WROE-LP; WMBZ-LP on July 18, 2014; WBWI-LP on February 18, 2015; WMKQ-LP on June 12, 2015; WZRK-LP on February 22, 2017; and then to WBOO-LP on July 3, 2017.[19]
In 2013, KQEG dropped its part-time affiliation with FamilyNet; it would maintain a part-time affiliation with AMGTV.
On January 13, 2015, WIBU-LP changed its call letters to WEZY-LP;[20] the WEZY call letters were previously used byWVTY inRacine, a radio station also owned by Magnum.
By fall of 2015, KQEG dropped its part-time affiliation with Ion; its part-time affiliation with AMGTV continued.
In 2021, Magnum filed to sell the stations toMorgan Murphy Media, allowing WKBT to address its signal issues with its physical VHF channel 8 within La Crosse by repeating the station on UHF within the city. Magnum retained the WBOO call letters by swapping them with its radio station inReedsburg, which becameWBOO; WBOO-LP became WBDL-LP. The sale was completed on November 30, 2021.[21] Its now-duplicative channel position was dropped byCharter Spectrum across the La Crosse–Eau Claire andRochester service territories soon after.[22]
On November 18, 2021, WEZY-LP was licensed for digital operations as WPDR-LD.
KQEG featured much of the main programming schedule (non paid-programming) of AMGTV. Times when AMG programming was seen generally included weekdays from 1 to 6 a.m. and from 10 to 11:30 a.m., Saturdays from 1 to 10 a.m., and Sundays from 1 to 8 a.m. The above network programming blocks were regularly preempted with syndicated home shopping or KQEG original programs.
Original local programming produced by KQEG included local high school sports,Knights of Thunder (La Crosse Fairgrounds Speedway coverage),Seven Rivers Sports,Seven Rivers Racing,Seven Rivers Health,Seven Rivers Spotlight, selected parades,Little Britches Rodeo,La Crosse County government meetings, and in conjunction withUW-La Crosse, the annualCoulee Region Humane Society Telethon.[23]
This station rebroadcasts the subchannels of WKBT-DT:[24][25][26]
| Channel | Res. | Aspect | Short name | Programming |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 8.1 | 1080i | 16:9 | WKBT-HD | CBS |
| 8.2 | 720p | WKBT-DT | News8+/MyNetworkTV | |
| 8.3 | 480i | ION | Ion Television | |
| 8.4 | Dabl | |||
| 8.5 | 4:3 | QVC | ||
| 8.6 | HSN |
On September 25, 2009, Magnum Radio was granted a construction permit by the FCC for a digital flash cut of KQEG-CA channel 23 (UHF analog) to KQEG-CD channel 23 (UHF digital).[28] The station carried out its digital flash cut over a period of several weeks beginning in May 2015.[29]
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