KATC
KATC is an ABC-affiliated television station serving Lafayette and the Acadiana region of Louisiana.
Last updated August 31, 2026
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Overview
KATC is a television station broadcasting on virtual channel 3 from Lafayette, Louisiana. It has been affiliated with the ABC network since it began broadcasting on September 19, 1962, and is one of the principal local television news outlets serving Lafayette and the wider Acadiana region. The station's studios are on Eraste Landry Road in Lafayette, while its high-power transmitter is located near Branch, Louisiana. The station was created by Acadian Television Corporation, which was formed in 1957 after the Federal Communications Commission authorized channel 3 as one of several new television assignments in Louisiana. The corporation's principal early backers were Lafayette physician Paul Kurzweg Jr. and Edward E. Wilson, whose father was former United States Secretary of Defense Charles Erwin Wilson. After a contested licensing process, the FCC selected Acadian Television Corporation over several competing applicants. Technical approval followed in early 1962, and KATC entered service later that year as Lafayette's second television station, following KLFY-TV. KATC has long associated itself with the regional identity of Acadiana. Station history recounts that a typographical error in correspondence addressed to Acadian Television resulted in the accidental use of the word “Acadiana.” Station personnel Bob Hamm and Bill Patton reportedly adopted the term, which subsequently became a widely used name for southern Louisiana's culturally distinctive region. The claim is part of KATC's institutional identity, although the station's role in popularizing the term is a historical attribution rather than a formally established naming authority. Ownership changed several times. Acadian Television Corporation sold the station in 1981 to Loyola University, which used Abellor Corporation, a subsidiary, to complete the transaction. Loyola later decided to concentrate on its New Orleans media properties. A proposed sale to Adams Communications did not close, and ML Media Partners instead acquired KATC in 1986. ML Media, associated with former ABC executives Elton Rule and I. Martin Pompadur and investment firm Merrill Lynch, placed the station on the market in 1995. Cordillera Communications, a subsidiary of the Evening Post Publishing Company, then purchased it. KATC invested in a high-power digital transmission facility in 2007. Rather than continue relying on its older tower near Kaplan, close to the Gulf Coast, the station built a new approximately 1,800-foot mast near Branch. The project improved service across the Lafayette and Lake Charles area while reducing exposure to coastal hurricane risks and related insurance costs. KATC ended analog broadcasting on June 12, 2009, retaining virtual channel 3 on a digital UHF facility. A KATC subchannel carried The CW beginning in 2010; that affiliation later moved to KLFY-TV in 2024 after the network ended its remaining Scripps affiliations. Cordillera announced the sale of KATC to The E. W. Scripps Company in 2018, with the transaction closing on May 1, 2019. In 2025, Scripps and Gray Media announced a station exchange involving KATC. The transaction was approved by the FCC in April 2026, after which KATC became part of Gray Media. Gray's subsequent acquisition of KADN-TV and KLAF-LD placed ABC, Fox, and NBC affiliates serving the Lafayette market under common ownership. KATC produces local news and other regional programming. Historically, it was generally behind KLFY-TV in full-market news ratings, although it performed more strongly in the immediate Lafayette area. The station recruited several prominent journalists from KLFY during the 2000s. In 2023, Scripps introduced a new evening-news production model combining live and prerecorded elements. Long-serving evening anchors Marcelle Fontenot and Jim Hummel left together after more than a decade as an on-air team and subsequently joined KADN-TV. As of June 2025, KATC was producing approximately 25 hours of local news each week.
History
The Federal Communications Commission authorized channel 3 for assignment in Louisiana in 1957, creating an opportunity for a new television station in either Lafayette or Lake Charles. Acadian Television Corporation was established on April 8, 1957, with Paul Kurzweg Jr. and Edward E. Wilson among its principal shareholders. The proposed station faced competition from Evangeline Broadcasting Company, the owner of Lafayette radio station KVOL; KTAG-TV of Lake Charles, which sought to move from UHF channel 25; and other applicants. KLFY-TV, Lafayette's existing station, also participated for a period because a transmitter-site change could have affected interference considerations. In June 1961, an FCC hearing examiner recommended Acadian Television Corporation for the channel. KTAG-TV's proposal was rejected in part because of concerns about the strength and distribution of its proposed signal, while Evangeline's application scored less favorably on factors including business-interest diversity and media-ownership diversification. Following final technical authorization in January 1962, Acadian built the station and secured an ABC affiliation. KATC began broadcasting on September 19, 1962, becoming Lafayette's second television station. The station's name and regional identity became connected with the term Acadiana. According to KATC's institutional history, correspondence sent to Acadian Television was mistakenly addressed to “Acadiana Television.” Station personnel Bob Hamm and Bill Patton adopted the expression, and it gained currency as a name for the culturally distinctive southern Louisiana region. KATC subsequently used Acadiana as a central part of its coverage and community identity. Paul Kurzweg died in 1964, and his widow Frances became company president the following year. In 1981, Acadian Television Corporation sold KATC to Loyola University, which completed the purchase through Abellor Corporation, a subsidiary associated with Loyola's New Orleans media holdings. Although the station was regarded by Loyola leadership as a valuable investment, the university's trustees later chose to focus on its New Orleans properties. A proposed $31 million sale to Adams Communications failed to close, and ML Media Partners acquired KATC for $28 million in 1986. ML Media was one of several ventures connected with former ABC executives Elton Rule and I. Martin Pomadur and New York investment firm Merrill Lynch. ML Media began divesting most of its television stations in the mid-1990s. Cordillera Communications, owned by the Evening Post Publishing Company, purchased KATC in 1995, citing the station's improving local-news position. During the Cordillera era, KATC continued to compete with KLFY-TV and recruited several figures from KLFY's news operation, including anchors Hoyt Harris and Darla Montgomery and meteorologist Rob Perillo. A major technical transition occurred in 2007, when KATC built a high-power digital transmission facility. The station did not use its existing tower near Kaplan because of coastal exposure, hurricane concerns, and higher insurance costs south of Interstate 10. Instead, it constructed an approximately 1,800-foot mast near Branch, designed to provide stronger service across Lafayette and toward Lake Charles. KATC shut down its analog VHF signal on June 12, 2009, as part of the United States digital-television transition. Its digital signal operated on UHF channel 28 while continuing to identify virtually as channel 3. KATC added The CW to a digital subchannel in June 2010. The affiliation remained until 2024, when The CW ended its remaining Scripps relationships and moved its Lafayette-market service to a KLFY-TV subchannel. In October 2018, Cordillera announced the sale of KATC to The E. W. Scripps Company. The deal closed on May 1, 2019, making KATC part of Scripps's local television portfolio. In 2023, Scripps introduced a revised approach to evening-news production using a mixture of live and prerecorded material. Marcelle Fontenot and Jim Hummel, who had presented KATC's main evening newscasts together for more than ten years, departed at the same time and later joined KADN-TV. Station management said the new structure was intended to release resources for additional reporting and local content. By June 2025, KATC was producing about 25 hours of local news programming each week. On July 7, 2025, Scripps announced that KATC would be transferred to Gray Media in a multi-station exchange. The FCC approved the exchange on April 28, 2026. Gray completed the related KADN-TV and KLAF-LD acquisition on May 1, 2026, giving Gray ownership of Lafayette-market ABC, NBC, and Fox affiliates and expanding its presence across Louisiana.
- 2026
Gray Media ownership is approved
[1]The FCC approved the Scripps–Gray exchange that transferred KATC to Gray Media.
- 2024
The CW affiliation moves away from KATC
[1]The Lafayette CW service moved to a KLFY-TV subchannel after the network ended its remaining Scripps affiliations.
- 2023
Evening-news production model changes
[1]Scripps introduced a revised production model combining live and prerecorded components.
- 2019
Scripps ownership begins
[1]The E. W. Scripps Company's acquisition of KATC from Cordillera closed on May 1.
- 2010
The CW launches on a KATC subchannel
[1]A digital subchannel began carrying The CW in the Lafayette market.
- 2009
Analog broadcasting ends
[1]KATC discontinued its analog transmission on June 12 during the federally mandated digital transition.
- 2007
High-power digital facility is constructed
[1]KATC built a new high-power digital transmission facility near Branch, Louisiana.
- 1995
Cordillera Communications becomes owner
[1]Cordillera Communications acquired KATC during ML Media Partners' television-station divestiture.
- 1986
ML Media Partners purchases the station
[1]After a proposed Adams Communications transaction failed, ML Media Partners acquired KATC.
- 1981
Loyola University acquires KATC
[1]KATC was sold to Loyola University through the university's Abellor subsidiary.
Products and positioning
A regional broadcast and digital news outlet combining ABC network programming with local reporting, weather, emergency coverage, and community-oriented content for Lafayette and Acadiana.
Local television news · 1962
KATC News
KATC's local-news operation reports on Lafayette, Acadiana, and surrounding communities. Its output includes scheduled newscasts, breaking-news coverage, regional reporting, and digital video. The operation has historically competed with KLFY-TV and has undergone changes in staffing and production structure, including Scripps's 2023 evening-news model.
Network television service · 1962
ABC programming
KATC has carried ABC programming continuously since signing on in 1962. The network service forms the station's principal national programming offering alongside locally produced news, weather, and community content.
Digital media
KATC digital news and video
KATC extends its broadcast identity through online news, video, weather, and regional information. The digital operation supports the station's local-service role beyond scheduled over-the-air programming.
Digital multicast television · 2010
The CW subchannel
KATC carried The CW on a digital subchannel beginning in 2010. This service ended in 2024 when the Lafayette-market affiliation moved to a KLFY-TV subchannel.
Brand decisions
2025
Transfer KATC from Scripps to Gray MediaM&ABackground
Scripps and Gray Media arranged a multi-station exchange intended to reshape their local television portfolios.
Action taken
KATC was designated for transfer to Gray Media, subject to regulatory approval.
Aftermath
The FCC approved the exchange in April 2026, and KATC became a Gray Media station.
2023
Reconfigure evening-news productionStrategyBackground
Scripps introduced a new local-news production approach using both live and prerecorded segments.
Action taken
KATC changed its evening-news format and emphasized that the model would redirect resources toward reporting and additional local content.
Aftermath
Evening anchors Marcelle Fontenot and Jim Hummel departed together and later joined KADN-TV. KATC continued producing local news, reaching approximately 25 hours per week by June 2025.
2007
Build a new inland high-power digital transmission facilityStrategyBackground
KATC's older tower near Kaplan was close to the Gulf Coast, where hurricane exposure and higher insurance costs posed operational concerns.
Action taken
The station built an approximately 1,800-foot digital transmission mast near Branch to improve coverage toward Lafayette and Lake Charles.
Aftermath
The new facility supported stronger regional digital service and became the station's principal transmission site.
Recent events
- 2026
Gray receives approval for the KATC transaction[1]
M&A · Regulation
The FCC approved the multi-market Scripps–Gray exchange, after which KATC became part of Gray Media. Gray also completed its purchase of KADN-TV and KLAF-LD in the Lafayette market.
- 2025
KATC is included in a Scripps–Gray station exchange[1]
M&A
Scripps announced that KATC would be transferred to Gray Media as part of a broader exchange of television stations.
- 2024
KATC loses its CW affiliation[1]
Other
The CW ended its remaining affiliations with Scripps-owned stations, and the Lafayette CW service moved to a KLFY-TV subchannel.
- 2023
KATC's evening news team departs during production-format change[1]
Leadership change
Scripps introduced a revised evening-news production model. Long-serving anchors Marcelle Fontenot and Jim Hummel left KATC together and later joined KADN-TV.
- 2018
Scripps agrees to acquire KATC from Cordillera Communications[1]
M&A
The E. W. Scripps Company announced an agreement to purchase KATC and other Cordillera stations; the transaction closed in 2019.
- 2010
KATC launches a CW subchannel[1]
Product launch
A KATC subchannel began carrying The CW in the Lafayette market.
- 2007
KATC moves to a new high-power digital transmission facility[1]
Product generation
The station completed a new high-power digital transmission installation near Branch, improving regional coverage and replacing reliance on its older coastal-area tower.
- 1981
KATC changes ownership from Acadian Television to Loyola University[1]
M&A
Loyola University acquired KATC through its Abellor Corporation subsidiary in a transaction reported at $20 million.
- 1962
KATC begins broadcasting as Lafayette's ABC affiliate[1]
Other
KATC began operations on September 19, 1962, broadcasting on channel 3 and carrying ABC programming from its launch.
Sources3 sources
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