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| |
|---|---|
| City | Sierra Vista, Arizona |
| Channels | |
| Branding | The Spot – Arizona 58 |
| Programming | |
| Affiliations |
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| Ownership | |
| Owner |
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| KGUN-TV | |
| History | |
First air date | December 31, 1998 (1998-12-31) |
Former channel numbers |
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Call sign meaning | "The WB Arizona", after prior affiliation |
| Technical information[1] | |
Licensing authority | FCC |
| Facility ID | 35095 |
| ERP | 525kW |
| HAAT | 332.3 m (1,090 ft) |
| Transmitter coordinates | 31°45′31.8″N110°48′5.5″W / 31.758833°N 110.801528°W /31.758833; -110.801528 |
| Links | |
Public license information | |
| Website | arizona58 |
KWBA-TV (channel 58), branded asThe Spot – Arizona 58, is anindependent television station licensed toSierra Vista, Arizona, United States, serving theTucson area. It is owned by theE. W. Scripps Company alongsideABC affiliateKGUN-TV (channel 9). The two stations share studios on East Rosewood Street in East Tucson; KWBA-TV's transmitter is located atop theSanta Rita Mountains southeast of the city.
The first attempt at putting a station on channel 58 in Sierra Vista was KCCA-TV (call sign standing forCochise County, Arizona). KCCA was owned by Sierra Vista Television, owned by Thomas Gramatikas.[2] The proposed station would have broadcast from a tower in the Sierra Vista area with a power of 2.38 millionwatts; however, the Tucson area would have been blocked by terrain from seeing it.[3] It may have desired to operate as a subscription television station, indicated by a 1982 filing where the FCC granted KCCA permission to install subscription television equipment. By 1985, the permittee was Manning Telecasting, who also held the construction permit forchannel 11 inYuma,[4] but the permit vanished the next year, and KCCA never made it to air.
The history of the current channel 58 began November 22, 1996, with a construction permit granted to KM Communications to serve Sierra Vista and Tucson onanalog channel 58. The call letters were originally KAUC, but in August 1997, the station changed their call letters to KWBA to reflect their affiliation deal withThe WB; theformer superstation feed ofChicago'sWGN-TV served as Tucson'sde facto affiliate of The WB until KWBA signed on. In 1997, the station announced its existence and that it was close to securing Tucson office space.[5] The station had now changed ownership, being held by a partnership of two companies: Sierra Television (a KM subsidiary[6]) and Tucson Communications. Its general manager was Ron Bergamo, an alumnus of theUniversity of Arizona returning to Tucson after a six-year stint as general manager ofKTSP-TV/KSAZ-TV in Phoenix.[5]
Delays in permitting for the tower site onU.S. Forest Service land[7] held up construction more than anticipated, but KWBA-TV began broadcasting on December 31, 1998.[8] WB programming was supplemented by short local features, syndicated programs, andArizona Diamondbacks baseball.[9] It proved a success: in 2001, it tied for the highest rating among all WB affiliates in non-metered television markets (those still measured by diaries).[10] That year, Tucson Communications changed its name to Cascade Broadcasting Group, having become the sole owner. In 2006, KWBA-TV affiliated withThe CW upon the merger of The WB withUPN.[11]
On March 18, 2008,Journal Broadcast Group announced it would purchase KWBA-TV, creating aduopoly with KGUN-TV. To make the $11.9 million purchase, Journal had to apply for a failing station waiver; even though Tucson had too few commercial station owners to normally permit another duopoly, it presented financial statements showing it had lost money for three years straight (with operating losses nearing $900,000 a year in 2006 and 2007[12]), a situation exacerbated by the loss of Diamondbacks baseball rights (the team moved all games toFox Sports Arizona after the 2007 season), and pledged to start a local newscast from KGUN-TV for air on KWBA-TV. The FCC permitted the acquisition in June.[13] Work was carried out that fall to move KWBA-TV into KGUN-TV's studios.[14]
On July 30, 2014, it was announced that theE. W. Scripps Company would acquire Journal Communications in an all-stock transaction. The combined firm would retain its broadcast properties, including KGUN, and spin off the print assets as Journal Media Group.[15] The FCC approved the deal on December 12, 2014, and shareholders followed suit on March 11, 2015; the merger was completed on April 1.[16][17]
On April 19, 2024, CW majority ownerNexstar Media Group announced that the network would not renew its affiliations with Scripps-owned stations, including KWBA-TV.[18] On July 31,Tegna announced that it had reached a deal with the network in which it will affiliate withMyNetworkTV stationKTTU-TV (channel 18).[19][20]
KWBA-TV rebranded to Arizona 58 on September 1, 2024. As part of the rebrand, the station will air selectVegas Golden Knights andUtah Mammoth games throughScripps Sports and acquire the syndication rights toGMFB: Overtime.[21]
In 2003, KWBA entered into an agreement with local CBS affiliateKOLD-TV (channel 13) and launched a 9 p.m. newscast in April of that year; Fox affiliateKMSB-TV soon followed with their own 9 p.m. newscast.[22] Within a year, KMSB's offering edged out KWBA's in the ratings.[23] The KOLD-produced newscast was short-lived, as it went off the air on December 15, 2005, after the contract with KOLD-TV expired and the two parties could not agree on a new direction for the newscast.[24]
In September 2008, KGUN began rebroadcasting its 6 p.m. newscast on KWBA at 9 p.m.[14] KGUN began producing a live weeknight-only 9 p.m. newscast for KWBA-TV on March 9, 2009.
In April 2014, KGUN began airing a one-hour extension of its weekday morning newscast on KWBA from 7 to 8 a.m., titledGood Morning Tucson Extra.[25]
The station's digital signal ismultiplexed:
| Channel | Res. | Aspect | Short name | Programming |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 58.1 | 1080i | 16:9 | KWBA-HD | Main KWBA-TV programming |
| 58.2 | 480i | CourtTV | Court TV | |
| 58.4 | Grit | Grit | ||
| 58.5 | DEFY | Ion Plus | ||
| 58.6 | Get TV | Game Show Central | ||
| 9.1 | 720p | KGUN-HD | ABC (KGUN-TV) |
KWBA-TV ended regular programming on its analog signal, overUHF channel 58, on June 12, 2009, as part of thefederally mandated transition from analog to digital television; the digital signal continued on UHF channel 44, usingvirtual channel 58.[27] The station was then moved to channel 21 in therepack.[26]
Includes English-language stations in out-of-state TV markets, but reaching a portion of Arizona | ||
| ABC | ||
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| Fox | ||
| NBC | ||
| The CW | ||
| Ion Television | ||
| Independent | ||
| PBS | ||
| Religious | ||
| Other | ||
| ATSC 3.0 | ||
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