KAUT-TV
KAUT-TV is a Nexstar-owned television station serving the Oklahoma City market as the local affiliate of The CW.
Last updated November 4, 2026
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Overview
KAUT-TV is television station channel 43 in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, and serves as the market's affiliate of The CW. It is owned by Nexstar Media Group and operated alongside NBC affiliate KFOR-TV. The stations share studios in the McCourry Heights area of Oklahoma City, while KAUT-TV's transmitter is located in the northeastern part of the city. The station began broadcasting on October 15, 1980, under the KAUT call sign. Golden West Broadcasters, a company associated with entertainer and Oklahoma-born performer Gene Autry, developed the station as a hybrid outlet. Its principal evening service was VEU, a subscription-television operation that offered feature films and entertainment specials to paying customers. During the day, KAUT initially carried a locally produced news service and syndicated programming. The news operation proved difficult to sustain and was discontinued in 1981. VEU also struggled against expanding cable systems and competing subscription services; after reaching approximately 22,000 subscribers, it was closed in October 1982. KAUT then became a conventional, advertising-supported independent station. During the 1980s, KAUT built a schedule around syndicated entertainment and local and regional sports. Its sports programming included college basketball involving Oklahoma and Oklahoma State, Oklahoma City 89ers minor-league baseball, and selected professional baseball and basketball games. In 1985, Rollins Communications acquired the station, and Heritage Media subsequently became its controlling corporate owner. KAUT joined the Fox network in 1986, at a time when Fox was still developing its national schedule. The affiliation improved the station's competitive position and helped it move ahead of at least one of Oklahoma City's other independent stations. A proposed consolidation of Oklahoma City's independent television market in 1988 and 1989 would have moved programming and the Fox affiliation to another station and transferred KAUT to the Oklahoma Educational Television Authority. That transaction collapsed after political, financial, and regulatory opposition. Heritage later acquired KOKH-TV and completed a different arrangement in 1991: Fox programming, much of KAUT's staff, and selected programming moved to channel 25, while channel 43 was donated to OETA. Under OETA, channel 43 relaunched in August 1991 as The Literacy Channel and later used the KTLC call sign. Its mission was educational rather than commercial. The schedule featured telecourses, adult literacy instruction, GED-related programming, and rebroadcasts of PBS children's programs during evening hours. The service was developed as an educational demonstration project involving OETA, its foundation, PBS-related organizations, and educational producers. Because it received no direct state operating funding, it depended on private donations and support from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. Budget reductions led to schedule cuts and fundraising drives during the 1990s. OETA placed KTLC on the market in 1997 to help finance the conversion of its statewide television network to digital broadcasting. Paramount Stations Group acquired the station, returned it to commercial operation, and launched it as UPN affiliate KPSG on June 20, 1998. After Gene Autry died later that year, the station restored the KAUT call sign in his memory. The station subsequently passed to The New York Times Company, which already owned KFOR-TV, in 2005. When UPN and The WB were replaced by The CW in 2006, KAUT became an affiliate of MyNetworkTV and added locally produced programming supplied by KFOR-TV, including morning and prime-time newscasts. In 2023, KAUT replaced KOCB as Oklahoma City's CW affiliate. The change returned the station to a major network role and made channel 43 the local home of CW programming in the market. Today, KAUT-TV combines network programming with syndicated and locally produced content, with operations integrated into Nexstar's Oklahoma City station group.
History
KAUT-TV originated with a construction permit obtained by the Christian Broadcasting Company of Oklahoma for a commercial station on Oklahoma City's channel 43. The permit was transferred to Golden West Broadcasters, associated with Gene and Ina Autry and The Signal Companies, and the FCC approved the transaction in January 1980. Golden West selected the KAUT call letters in recognition of Gene Autry. The station was built on North Eastern Avenue and began broadcasting on October 15, 1980. Its original concept combined subscription television with local programming. VEU supplied first-run films and entertainment specials to subscribers who paid a monthly charge and installation fee. The service later added sports packages, including Dallas Mavericks basketball and Oklahoma State athletics. During daytime hours, KAUT attempted to operate an extended local news format called Newswatch 43. The news department employed approximately two dozen people at its peak, but audience response was weak and the department was dissolved in August 1981. VEU faced competition from cable expansion and another microwave-delivered movie service. Although its subscriber base reached roughly 22,000, the service did not reach the level Golden West considered necessary for profitability and ended in October 1982. KAUT converted to a conventional commercial independent station, emphasizing syndicated series, movies, and sports. The station carried college sports and local baseball, along with selected professional sports from nearby markets. Golden West sold its broadcast interests during a period of corporate restructuring, and Rollins Communications acquired KAUT in 1985. Heritage Broadcasting obtained control of Rollins Communications in 1986, creating the broader Heritage Media organization. That same year, KAUT joined Fox. The affiliation improved the station's competitive standing as Fox developed a more substantial prime-time schedule. An attempted consolidation of Oklahoma City's independent stations created uncertainty around KAUT in 1988 and 1989. Pappas Telecasting proposed acquiring several stations, consolidating programming on KOKH-TV, and transferring KAUT to OETA. The proposal encountered opposition from state officials, legislators, broadcasters, and others concerned about the cost and public financing implications of a second educational station. The transaction ultimately failed, and employee departures and weaker advertising followed temporarily. Heritage Media later pursued a different solution. In 1991 it acquired KOKH-TV and moved the Fox affiliation, selected programs, and staff from KAUT to channel 25. KAUT's facilities and transmitter were donated to OETA, which relaunched channel 43 as The Literacy Channel. The station adopted the KTLC call sign in January 1992. OETA used the service for literacy instruction, telecourses, GED preparation, and educational programming. PBS children's programs were repeated during evening hours, making the station both an adult-learning resource and a supplementary public-television service. The project was designed as a potential model for educational broadcasting, but its finances remained fragile because it did not receive state operating funds. It relied on private donations and Corporation for Public Broadcasting support, and budget reductions led to schedule reductions and on-air fundraising. OETA decided in 1997 to sell KTLC to help pay for the conversion of its statewide network to digital technology. Paramount Stations Group won the sale and returned channel 43 to commercial operation as UPN affiliate KPSG on June 20, 1998. After Gene Autry died in October of that year, the station restored the KAUT call sign. The New York Times Company acquired KAUT in 2005 as part of its ownership of KFOR-TV. Following the 2006 replacement of UPN and The WB by The CW, KAUT affiliated with MyNetworkTV and became closely integrated with KFOR's news operation, carrying locally produced morning and prime-time newscasts. Nexstar Media Group later became the station's owner. In 2023, KAUT took over the CW affiliation from KOCB. This change established the station as the Oklahoma City market's CW outlet and marked another major transition in its long history, which has included subscription television, independent broadcasting, Fox, educational public television, UPN, MyNetworkTV, and The CW.
- 2023
KAUT becomes the Oklahoma City CW affiliate
[1]The CW affiliation moved from KOCB to KAUT-TV.
- 2006
KAUT becomes a MyNetworkTV affiliate
[1]After the UPN and WB affiliation changes, KAUT joined MyNetworkTV and began carrying KFOR-produced newscasts.
- 2005
The New York Times Company acquires KAUT
[1]The owner of KFOR-TV purchased KAUT, creating a local television-station pairing.
- 1998
Commercial operation resumes as KPSG
[1]Paramount Stations Group relaunched the former Literacy Channel as a commercial UPN affiliate.
- 1998
KAUT call sign restored
[1]The station resumed the KAUT identity following Gene Autry's death.
- 1992
KTLC call sign adopted
[1]The Literacy Channel formally used the KTLC call sign.
- 1991
Station donated to OETA
[1]After Heritage acquired KOKH-TV, the Fox affiliation moved to channel 25 and channel 43 became an OETA educational station.
- 1986
KAUT affiliates with Fox
[1]Channel 43 joined Fox as the network expanded its programming presence.
- 1985
Rollins Communications acquires KAUT
[1]Ownership changed when Atlanta-based Rollins Communications purchased the station.
- 1982
VEU service ends
[1]The subscription service was discontinued and KAUT became a full-time advertising-supported independent station.
Products and positioning
A local over-the-air television outlet serving the Oklahoma City market, positioned through network affiliation, local news integration, syndicated entertainment, and regional programming.
Network television · 2023
The CW affiliation
KAUT's principal current programming proposition is its local carriage of The CW, which includes the network's entertainment, scripted, unscripted, and other scheduled programming for viewers in the Oklahoma City market. The affiliation began in 2023 after moving from KOCB and restored channel 43 to a major commercial network role.
Broadcast news · 2006
Local news programming
KAUT has carried locally produced news supplied by its sister station KFOR-TV, including morning and prime-time newscasts during its post-2006 MyNetworkTV period. The arrangement reflects the shared operations of the two Nexstar-owned stations in Oklahoma City.
Educational television · 1991
The Literacy Channel
From 1991 to 1998, channel 43 operated under OETA as The Literacy Channel and later used the KTLC call sign. Its schedule focused on adult literacy, telecourses, GED preparation, and evening repeats of PBS children's programming.
Subscription television · 1980
VEU subscription television
KAUT's initial commercial service carried Golden West's VEU subscription operation, offering first-run movies, entertainment specials, and later selected sports to paying subscribers. The service operated in Oklahoma City until October 1982.
Brand decisions
2023
Replace KOCB as the Oklahoma City CW affiliateStrategyBackground
The CW affiliation was reassigned within the Oklahoma City television market.
Action taken
KAUT began carrying The CW, replacing KOCB as the network's local affiliate.
Aftermath
Channel 43 regained a major network affiliation and became the principal local CW outlet for the market.
1997
Sell KTLC to finance digital conversionM&ABackground
OETA needed resources for the costly conversion of its statewide public television network to digital broadcasting.
Action taken
OETA placed KTLC on the market and accepted Paramount Stations Group's winning bid.
Aftermath
The station returned to commercial operation in 1998 as UPN affiliate KPSG.
1991
Move Fox programming to KOKH and donate channel 43 to OETAStrategyBackground
Heritage Media acquired competing independent KOKH-TV and sought to reduce duplication and competition among the market's independent stations.
Action taken
Heritage moved Fox programming, selected staff, and other programming from KAUT to KOKH and transferred channel 43 facilities and transmission assets to OETA.
Aftermath
Channel 43 became The Literacy Channel, later using the KTLC call sign, while KOKH became the market's Fox affiliate.
1982
Convert from subscription television to an independent commercial formatStrategyBackground
VEU subscriber growth remained below the level considered necessary for profitability, while cable and competing subscription services constrained the business.
Action taken
Golden West ended VEU service in Oklahoma City and converted KAUT to a full-time advertising-supported independent station.
Aftermath
KAUT expanded its syndicated entertainment and sports schedule and competed directly with Oklahoma City's other independent stations.
Sources2 sources
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