KCDO-TV
An independent television station licensed to Sterling, Colorado, serving the Denver region under the The Spot – Denver 3 brand.
Last updated August 31, 2026
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Overview
KCDO-TV is a full-power television station licensed to Sterling, Colorado, and serving viewers across the Denver television market and northeastern Colorado. The station is branded The Spot – Denver 3 and operates as an independent outlet, although it has an important relationship with Denver ABC affiliate KMGH-TV. KCDO-TV is owned by The E. W. Scripps Company alongside KMGH-TV, and the two stations share studio facilities on Delgany Street in Denver’s River North Art District. KCDO’s transmitter is located in rural southwestern Morgan County, east of Frederick, a location that allows the station to reach a substantially larger audience than its original Sterling-centered service area. The station began broadcasting on December 28, 1963, as KTVS. Its original ownership was associated with the McCracken family, which also owned KFBC-TV in Cheyenne, Wyoming, now known as KGWN-TV. KTVS initially operated as a satellite of the Cheyenne station. This arrangement reflected the economics of serving a relatively small northeastern Colorado community: the Sterling outlet could extend the parent station’s reach without maintaining a fully separate programming operation. Ownership and affiliation arrangements changed substantially during the late 1990s and 2000s. Newsweb Corporation acquired KTVS in 1999 through its Channel 20 TV Company licensee, with plans to use it as a satellite of Denver station KTVD. The station adopted the call sign KUPN in 2002, reflecting the United Paramount Network affiliation associated with its parent operation at that time. After Newsweb sold KTVD to Gannett in 2006, the company retained KUPN and later operated the station as an America One affiliate. The call sign changed to KCDO in July 2008. Around the same period, the station pursued a new, more powerful transmitter site southwest of Fort Morgan. The facility was completed in January 2010 and expanded KCDO’s effective reach into much of the Denver metropolitan area, as well as communities including Fort Collins, Greeley, Longmont and Loveland. Satellite distribution also broadened its market presence: Dish Network added KCDO to Denver-market lineups in December 2008, followed by DirecTV in January 2009. KCDO briefly affiliated with the Retro Television Network in 2009. It also carried or simulcast news programming associated with KGWN-TV for the Colorado portion of the Cheyenne market, using the Northern Colorado 5 News identity. In November 2010, KCDO ended its Retro TV affiliation and became an independent station focused on locally produced programming. Its independent status gives the station flexibility to carry syndicated, locally produced and special-event content rather than relying on a single national network schedule. Scripps announced its acquisition of KCDO-TV and KSBS-CD in September 2020. The transaction required Federal Communications Commission approval and was completed on November 20, 2020, making KCDO a sister station to KMGH-TV. KCDO can carry ABC programming when KMGH preempts network content for severe-weather coverage, extended breaking news, special programming or certain Denver Broncos Thursday Night Football broadcasts. A dedicated subchannel also relays KMGH’s main channel, extending ABC coverage through KCDO’s translator network into northeastern Colorado and portions of western Nebraska. In late 2025, KCDO announced a multiyear agreement to serve as the local broadcast partner for Denver Summit FC of the National Women’s Soccer League beginning with the club’s inaugural 2026 season. This agreement represents a further expansion from conventional station programming into locally relevant sports content. KCDO remains an active regional broadcast brand whose identity combines independent programming, expanded over-the-air reach, Scripps ownership and a supporting role within the broader KMGH-TV operation.
History
KCDO-TV traces its history to an application filed in February 1962 for a television station on VHF channel 3 in Sterling, Colorado. The application was submitted by the McCracken family, owners of Cheyenne, Wyoming, CBS affiliate KFBC-TV. A construction permit was granted the following year, and the station began broadcasting on December 28, 1963, as KTVS. It initially functioned as a satellite of KFBC-TV, reflecting the limited economics of independent local television operations in northeastern Colorado. In September 1999, Newsweb Corporation acquired KTVS through its Channel 20 TV Company licensee from Benedek Broadcasting, then associated with KGWN-TV. Newsweb intended to make the station a satellite of Denver station KTVD. The arrangement was unusual because the satellite station had gone on the air decades before the Denver station it was intended to relay; KTVD itself began broadcasting in 1988. On January 8, 2002, the licensee changed the station’s call letters to KUPN, corresponding to the UPN affiliation held by the wider operation at that time. Newsweb sold KTVD to Gannett in June 2006 but retained KUPN. The Sterling station subsequently became an America One affiliate. On July 21, 2008, the station adopted the KCDO call sign. To improve service to the Denver market and other population centers, it applied for a new transmitter facility southwest of Fort Morgan. Construction was completed in January 2010, increasing the station’s coverage across much of the Denver metropolitan area and into Fort Collins, Greeley, Longmont and Loveland. Dish Network began carrying the station for Denver-market subscribers on December 31, 2008, and DirecTV added it on January 28, 2009. KCDO joined the Retro Television Network in 2009. The network had previously been available in Denver through KQDK-CA before its relationship with Equity Media Holdings ended. KCDO also carried a simulcast of KGWN-TV newscasts aimed at the Colorado side of the Cheyenne market. The programming was branded Northern Colorado 5 News and was co-produced by KGWN and the Independent News Network. On November 1, 2010, KCDO ended its Retro Television Network affiliation and converted to an independent format emphasizing locally produced programming. The station’s independent operation allowed it to combine local material with syndicated and special-event programming. KCDO completed the United States full-power analog-to-digital transition on June 12, 2009, shutting down its analog VHF channel 3 signal while retaining channel 23 for its digital transmission and using virtual channel 3. The E. W. Scripps Company announced in September 2020 that it would acquire KCDO-TV and KSBS-CD. After Federal Communications Commission approval, the transaction closed on November 20, 2020. KCDO thereby became part of the same ownership group as Denver ABC affiliate KMGH-TV. The stations share Denver studio facilities, while KCDO continues to transmit from its Morgan County-area site. Under the Scripps arrangement, KCDO may carry ABC programming when KMGH is occupied with extended breaking-news or severe-weather coverage, special programming or certain Denver Broncos Thursday Night Football broadcasts. KCDO also operates a dedicated subchannel that relays KMGH’s primary signal, using the station and associated translators to improve service in northeastern Colorado and parts of western Nebraska. In late 2025, KCDO announced a multiyear agreement to broadcast Denver Summit FC matches locally beginning with the team’s inaugural 2026 NWSL season.
- 2025
Denver Summit FC broadcast agreement
[1]KCDO announced a multiyear local broadcast partnership with Denver Summit FC beginning with the club’s 2026 inaugural season.
- 2020
Acquired by The E. W. Scripps Company
[1]Scripps completed its purchase of KCDO-TV, making it a sister station to KMGH-TV.
- 2010
Becomes an independent station
[1]KCDO ended its Retro Television Network affiliation and adopted an independent format emphasizing locally produced content.
- 2009
Digital transition and expanded distribution
[1]KCDO expanded satellite availability, joined Retro Television Network and completed its transition from analog to digital broadcasting.
- 2008
Call sign changes to KCDO
[1]The station adopted its current KCDO call sign and pursued a higher-coverage transmitter facility.
- 2002
Call sign changes to KUPN
[1]The station adopted the KUPN call letters while associated with a UPN-affiliated operation.
- 1999
Acquired by Newsweb
[1]Newsweb Corporation acquired KTVS through the Channel 20 TV Company licensee.
- 1963
KTVS begins broadcasting
[1]The station began broadcasting on December 28 as KTVS, operating as a satellite of Cheyenne station KFBC-TV.
- 1962
Construction permit application filed
[1]The McCracken family applied to build a television station on channel 3 in Sterling, Colorado.
Products and positioning
A regional independent television station that combines broad over-the-air distribution, locally relevant programming and integration with Scripps-owned ABC affiliate KMGH-TV.
Independent television station
The Spot – Denver 3
KCDO-TV’s principal independent television service, branded The Spot – Denver 3. It serves the Denver market and northeastern Colorado through over-the-air transmission, translator facilities and multichannel distribution. The service can combine locally produced programming, syndicated entertainment, special events and programming supplied through its relationship with the Scripps-owned KMGH-TV.
Digital subchannel
KMGH-TV relay
A dedicated KCDO-TV digital subchannel relays KMGH-TV’s main ABC signal. The relay extends the reach of KMGH programming into northeastern Colorado and portions of western Nebraska through KCDO’s translator network.
Regional news simulcast
Northern Colorado 5 News
A former news programming arrangement in which KCDO carried KGWN-TV newscasts for the Colorado side of the Cheyenne market. The programming was co-produced by KGWN and the Independent News Network and is no longer identified as a current KCDO offering.
Sports broadcasting · 2026
Denver Summit FC local broadcasts
A planned local television sports offering arising from KCDO’s multiyear agreement with Denver Summit FC. The arrangement is scheduled to begin with the National Women’s Soccer League club’s inaugural 2026 season.
Marketing campaigns
- 2025Denver Summit FC broadcast partnership
Denver · Colorado
KCDO announced a multiyear partnership to serve as Denver Summit FC’s local broadcast partner for the club’s inaugural 2026 NWSL season.
Outcome. The broadcasts are scheduled to begin in 2026; longer-term audience or commercial outcomes are not yet established in the available material.
- 2010Independent programming repositioning
Denver · Northeastern Colorado
KCDO ended its Retro Television Network affiliation and repositioned itself as an independent station with greater emphasis on locally produced programming.
Outcome. The station continued operating as an independent outlet and later became part of the Scripps-owned KMGH-TV station group.
Brand decisions
2020
Join the Scripps station groupM&ABackground
The E. W. Scripps Company sought to acquire KCDO-TV and KSBS-CD, subject to Federal Communications Commission approval.
Action taken
Scripps announced the acquisition in September and completed it on November 20, making KCDO a sister station to KMGH-TV.
Aftermath
KCDO gained a common ownership relationship with Denver’s ABC affiliate and became part of a broader Scripps local television operation.
2010
Convert to independent programmingStrategyBackground
KCDO had been affiliated with the Retro Television Network since 2009.
Action taken
The station dropped the Retro Television Network affiliation on November 1 and adopted an independent format focused on locally produced programming.
Aftermath
KCDO continued operating as an independent station, later complementing that role with programming relationships involving KMGH-TV and other local content partners.
2008
Expand the transmitter footprintStrategyBackground
The station sought to reach more viewers beyond its original Sterling-centered coverage area.
Action taken
KCDO built a new, higher-power transmitter facility southwest of Fort Morgan, completed in January 2010.
Aftermath
The expanded signal reached much of the Denver metropolitan area and communities including Fort Collins, Greeley, Longmont and Loveland.
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