Fox/MyNetworkTV affiliate in Lafayette, Louisiana
KADN-TV
(channel 15) is a
television station
licensed to
Lafayette, Louisiana
, United States, affiliated with
Fox
and
MyNetworkTV
. It is owned by
Allen Media Group
alongside
low-power
NBC
affiliate
KLAF-LD
(channel 14). The two stations share studios on Eraste Landry Road in Lafayette; KADN-TV's transmitter is located south of
Church Point
, in rural
Acadia Parish
.
History
[
edit
]
Prior use of channel 15 in Lafayette
[
edit
]
Channel 15 in Lafayette was originally home to
KLNI-TV
(licensed to Lafayette and
New Iberia
), which operated as an NBC affiliate beginning on September 16, 1968. It was owned by Southwestern Louisiana Communications, Inc., and it was the first TV station built in southwestern Louisiana to broadcast in full color. Like other NBC affiliates in the region, it temporarily brought
PBS
programming, specifically
Sesame Street
, to the Acadiana area from 1970 until 1972. However, Lafayette was just barely large enough at the time to support three full network affiliates. KLNI-TV, a UHF station, found it difficult to compete against longer-established
KATC-TV
(channel 3) and
KLFY-TV
(channel 10). It did not help matters that
WBRZ-TV
in
Baton Rouge
and
KPLC-TV
in
Lake Charles
both provided strong grade B coverage to most of the market after relocating their transmission towers and increasing their respective heights. After suffering financial difficulties for most of its existence, KLNI discontinued operations on February 21, 1975. This left WBRZ (and later WRBT, now
WVLA
) and KPLC as the region's
de facto
NBC affiliates; the latter was carried by most cable providers in south-central Louisiana. The allocation for channel 15 in Lafayette as a commercial TV station remained after the demise of KLNI-TV, but the frequency stayed dark for the next five years.
Early years
[
edit
]
KADN-TV, the current incarnation of channel 15, began broadcasting on March 1, 1980, as an
independent station
, offering mainly
movies
, old
sitcoms
, children's programming, and local
sports
. It was owned by Charles Chatelain and his company, Delta Media Corporation. The station used the on-air slogan "Acadiana's Alternative", and also called itself "The Movie Station".
Unusually for an independent station in what, then as now, was a fairly small market, KADN was innovative in creating its own original programming. It gained particular notice for its music programming. Shows such as
The Larry Brasso Show
(
country music
),
Cypress with Warren Storm
(
swamp pop
) and the long-running
Laissez les Bon Temps Rouler
(
Cajun French music
) were Saturday mainstays during the station's early years. The latter program also aired in reruns aired weekday mornings under the title
Bon Temps Rouler Encore
. A
music video
hour aired daily called
Acadiana Music Box
around the same time
MTV
was catching on.
Also in the early years, KADN had its own news department, first with five-minute newsbreaks and then its own 5 p.m. daily newscast called
Acadiana in Review
. After just a couple of years, station management realized that it was not financially feasible to compete with KLFY and KATC in news, so the news department was eliminated.
Shortly after KADN signed on the air, KLFY preempted an episode of the popular prime time drama series
Dallas
to run a
Billy Graham
televangelism
special. Chatelain persuaded CBS to let KADN clear the episode. At that time, an arrangement was made for channel 15 to officially become a CBS secondary affiliate, picking up a microwave relay of
WAFB
in Baton Rouge for network programming. KADN then began airing any CBS programming that KLFY preempted for one reason or another, especially the morning daytime offerings from 9 to 10 a.m. (KADN would re-air those shows in the afternoon.) The arrangement lasted until 2005, with preempted CBS programming running in the later years on sister station
KLAF-LP
.
KADN-TV is a charter member of Fox, having joined the network upon its debut in October 1986.
From the late 1980s to 1997, KADN operated a low-powered
semi-satellite
in
Alexandria
, K47DW, to bring Fox programming to central Louisiana. It aired separate commercials for the Alexandria market, identifying as "Fox 47". In 1991, when Delta Media bought
WNTZ
in
Natchez
, the Fox affiliation moved to channel 48. The channel 47 translator then simulcast WNTZ to serve portions of Alexandria where channel 48's signal was weak.
ComCorp operating agreement
[
edit
]
In 1997,
Communications Corporation of America
(ComCorp) began operating KADN in 1997 through a leased marketing agreement with original owner Charles Chatelain until purchasing the station outright in late 2004. After being located on cable channel 8 since sign-on, KADN moved to channel 6 on August 15, 2006, as part of a lineup restructuring of the Cox Communications Greater Lafayette system.
[1]
In June 2006, owner ComCorp filed for
Chapter 11 bankruptcy
protection. ComCorp said in a press release viewers and staff would see no changes at the station. ComCorp emerged from bankruptcy in October 2007.
[2]
The programming of sister station KLAF-LP was added to KADN-DT's signal on channel 15.2 in August 2007. This began a period of transition in which all four
translators
that made up KLAF were shut off.
In early 2008, KADN became the first station in the Lafayette market to air
high-definition
programming outside of network-provided offerings with syndicated reruns of
Two and a Half Men
airing in
720p
HD. Further, on February 29, 2008, KADN began airing promotional materials throughout the day in 720p HD and identifying on the HD signal as "Fox 15 HD".
KADN-TV shut down its analog signal, over
UHF
channel 15, on June 12, 2009, the official date on which full-power television stations in the United States
transitioned from analog to digital broadcasts
under federal mandate. The station's digital signal remained on its pre-transition UHF channel 16,
[3]
using
virtual channel
15.
Three sales in six years
[
edit
]
On April 24, 2013, ComCorp announced the sale of its entire group (including flagship KADN and sister station KLAF-LD) to
Nexstar Broadcasting Group
.
[4]
The sale was completed on January 1, 2015.
[5]
On May 7, 2015, Nexstar Broadcasting announced that KLAF-LD, which simulcasts on KADN-TV's DT2 channel, would be the new NBC affiliate for the Lafayette market effective July 1, 2015. They also announced that on that same date, KADN-TV would launch a third subchannel and move KLAF-LD's former
MyNetworkTV
affiliation there.
On January 27, 2016, Nexstar announced it would acquire
Media General
for $4.6 billion. Since Media General already owned CBS affiliate KLFY-TV, and since the Lafayette market is too small to allow duopolies in any case, in order to comply with FCC ownership rules as well as planned changes to rules regarding same-market television stations which would prohibit future
joint sales agreements
, the company was required to sell either KLFY or KADN to another company. KLAF-LD was the only station involved in the deal that could be legally acquired, since FCC rules allow for the common ownership of full-power and low-power stations in the same market, regardless of the number of stations in that market.
[6]
[7]
On May 27, 2016, Nexstar announced that it would keep KLFY-TV and sell KADN-TV and KLAF-LD to
Bayou City Broadcasting
for $40 million. The sale was finalized January 17, 2017.
[8]
Upon completion of the sale, it reunited KADN and KLAF-LD with
WEVV-TV
in
Evansville, Indiana
, which Bayou City bought from Nexstar when it acquired ComCorp in January 2015.
On May 6, 2019, it was announced that
Entertainment Studios
through its Allen Media Broadcasting would purchase the Bayou City stations (including KADN-TV) for $165 million.
[9]
The sale was completed on July 31, 2019.
[10]
On January 11, 2024, KADN-TV reached an agreement with
New Orleans Pelicans
over-the-air rightsholder
Gray Television
to air 10 games on the station during the
2023?24 NBA season
.
[11]
Newscasts
[
edit
]
On March 26, 2007, KADN began running on-air promos teasing a 9 p.m. newscast with the tagline "At 9 it's news, by 10 it's history."
Fox News Louisiana
was produced by Baton Rouge Fox affiliate
WGMB
. Originally, the first 20 minutes of the program were taped earlier and geared specifically towards the Acadiana audience, with stories by Lafayette-based reporters, plus a local forecast. KADN then joined WGMB's live broadcast for the final two segments, which included generic national and world news, plus a statewide sportscast. In 2008, the newscast was retitled
Fox News Lafayette
, although the former branding (
Fox News Louisiana
) was not removed from the set.
On August 20, 2007, KADN debuted
Fox News Louisiana AM
, a 7 to 9 a.m. newscast. Like the evening news, certain segments were taped and included stories by the Lafayette-based reporting staff, while other segments were aired live. In December 2008,
Fox News Louisiana AM
was canceled.
In April 2009, KADN canceled its 30-minute evening newscast and let go of its local news staff.
[12]
KADN then aired
Fox News Now
at 9 p.m., a five-minute newscast featuring local headlines and a weather forecast. This was expanded to a full half-hour and renamed
Fox15 News Lafayette
when KADN's DT2 signal, simulcasting KLAF-LD, launched its news department on April 1, 2016.
[13]
[14]
Until that time, KLAF-LD simulcast newscasts from Baton Rouge-based NBC affiliate
WVLA-TV
, which Nexstar operates under a
shared services
agreement (SSA) with White Knight Broadcasting.
On April 3, 2017, KADN/KLAF unveiled a refurbished news set, adopted the current
News 15
branding, and dropped the "Acadiana's KLAF" branding for KLAF and KADN 15.2. KADN 15.1 airs newscasts from 5 to 9 a.m. daily (except on weekends) and 9 p.m. nightly seven days a week. NBC 15.2 airs newscasts at noon, 5, 6, and 10 p.m. on weekdays, and 10 p.m. only on weekends. KADN 15.2 continues to be a simulcast of KLAF 14.1.
[15]
Subchannels
[
edit
]
The station's signal is
multiplexed
:
Simulcast of subchannels of another station
References
[
edit
]
- ^
"Facility Technical Data for KADN-TV"
.
Licensing and Management System
.
Federal Communications Commission
.
- ^
2theadvocate.com | Business | Stations’ owners OK plan to exit bankruptcy ? Baton Rouge, LA
- ^
"DTV Tentative Channel Designations for the First and the Second Rounds"
(PDF)
. Archived from
the original
(PDF)
on August 29, 2013
. Retrieved
March 24,
2012
.
- ^
https://licensing.fcc.gov/cdbs/CDBS_Attachment/getattachment.jsp?appn=101552312&qnum=5040©num=1&exhcnum=1
[
bare URL
]
- ^
Consummation Notice
,
CDBS Public Access
,
Federal Communications Commission
, Retrieved January 6, 2015.
- ^
"Nexstar-Media General: It's A Done Deal"
.
TVNewsCheck
. Retrieved
January 27,
2016
.
- ^
Picker, Leslie (January 27, 2016).
"Nexstar Clinches Deal to Acquire Media General"
.
The New York Times
.
ISSN
0362-4331
. Retrieved
January 27,
2016
.
- ^
Miller, Mark K. (May 27, 2016).
"Nexstar Selling Five Stations in Four Markets"
.
TVNewsCheck
. Retrieved
May 27,
2016
.
- ^
Miller, Mark K. (May 6, 2019).
"Byron Allen Buying Bayou City TVs for $165M"
.
TVNewsCheck
. Retrieved
May 6,
2019
.
- ^
Mills, Wes (July 31, 2019).
"FCC Approves Evansville TV Station Sale"
.
Inside Indiana Business
. Grow INdiana Media Ventures, LLC
. Retrieved
August 8,
2019
.
- ^
"WVUE, New Orleans Pelicans will also broadcast 10 games in Lafayette, bringing games to all Louisiana markets"
.
WVUE
. January 11, 2024
. Retrieved
January 11,
2024
.
- ^
"KADN Cuts Local News - The Independent (04/30/09)"
.
- ^
"KLAF-KADN Set To Intro Local Newscasts"
.
- ^
"KLFY.com"
.
KLFY.com
. October 24, 2023.
- ^
Hill, Michael P. (April 6, 2017).
"Lafayette stations get new set, name"
.
NewscastStudio
. Retrieved
September 26,
2019
.
- ^
"Digital TV Market Listing for KADN"
.
RabbitEars.Info
. Retrieved
August 8,
2019
.
External links
[
edit
]
|
---|
Reception may vary by location and some stations may only be viewable with
cable television
|
Full power
|
- KATC
(3.1
ABC
, 3.2
CW+
→
Dabl
, 3.3
Grit
, 3.4
Court
, 3.5
Bounce
, 3.6
QVC
)
- KLFY-TV
(10.1
CBS
, 10.2
Dabl
→
CW+
, 10.3
Ion
, 10.4
Laff
)
- KADN-TV
(15.1
Fox
,
15.2
NBC
, 15.3
MNTV
)
- KLPB-TV
(24.1
PBS
/
LPB
, 24.2
PBS Kids
, 24.3
Create
)
- KLWB
(50.1
MeTV
,
50.2
H&I
, 50.3
TMD
, 50.4
Start
, 50.5
Cozi
, 50.6
Story
)
|
---|
Low-power
|
- KLAF-LD
(14.1
NBC
)
- K21OM-D
(20.1
Mystery
, 20.2
Law and Crime Network
, 20.3
Defy
, 20.4
SMPTE Color Bars
, 20.5
Ion
, 20.6
Scripps News
)
- KDCG-CD
(22.1
H&I
, 22.2
Get
, 22.3
Buzzr
, 22.4
Movies!
)
- KXKW-LD
(32.1
NewsNet
, 32.2
ANT
, 32.3 Sports News Highlights, 32.4
Crime
, 32.5
Quest
)
|
---|
Cable
channels
| |
---|
|
|
---|
Local stations
|
- KPLC
(7.1
NBC
, 7.2
CW+
, 7.3
Bounce
, 7.4
Grit
, 7.5
Dabl
, 7.6
Mystery
)
- KSWL-LD
(17.1
CBS
, 17.2
Court
, 17.3
Laff
, 17.4
QVC
, 17.5
Scripps News
)
- KLTL-TV
(18.1
PBS
/
LPB
, 18.2
PBS Kids
, 18.3
Create
)
- KWWE-LD
(19.1
MNTV
/
MeTV
, 19.2
TMD
, 19.3
Sonlife
, 19.4
HSN
, 19.5
JTV
)
- KFAM-CD 24 (
Ind.
)
- KVHP
(29.1
Fox
, 29.2
ABC
, 29.3 Blank, 29.4
Ion
, 29.5
Defy
, 29.6
Laff
)
- KITU-TV
(34.1
TBN
, 34.2
Inspire
, 34.3
Smile
, 34.4
Enlace
)
- K21OB-D
(45.1
Ind.
)
|
---|
Distant
stations
|
- Lafayette
- KATC
(3.1
ABC
, 3.2
CW+
, 3.3
Grit
, 3.4
Court
, 3.5
Bounce
, 3.6
QVC
)
- KLFY-TV
(10.1
CBS
, 10.2
Dabl
, 10.3
Ion
, 10.4
Laff
)
- KLAF-LD
(14.1
NBC
)
- KADN-TV
(15.1
Fox
,
15.2
NBC
, 15.3
MNTV
)
- KDCG-CD
(22.1
H&I
, 22.2
Get
, 22.3
Buzzr
, 22.4
Movies!
)
- KXKW-LD
(32.1
NewsNet
, 32.2
ANT
, 32.3
NewsNet
, 32.4
Crime
, 32.5
Quest
)
- KLWB
(50.1
MeTV
,
50.2
H&I
, 50.3
TMD
, 50.4
Start
, 50.5
Cozi
, 50.6
Story
)
- Beaumont
- KBTV-TV
(4.1
Dabl
, 4.2
TBD
, 4.3
Comet
, 4.4
Nest
, 4.5
Charge!
)
- KFDM
(6.1
CBS
, 6.2
CW+
, 6.3
Fox
)
- KBMT
(12.1
ABC
, 12.2
NBC
, 12.3
Cozi
, 12.4
MeTV
, 12.7
Crime
, 12.8
Quest
, 12.16
Crime
)
|
---|
Defunct
| |
---|
|