KCWO-TV

KCWO-TV is a full-power television station licensed to Big Spring, Texas, and serving the Odessa–Midland and wider Permian Basin television market. The station broadcasts on virtual channel 4 and operates as an affiliate of The CW Plus. Its principal facilities are located in Odessa, inside Music City Mall alongside the studios of Gray Media sister stations KOSA-TV, KWWT, KTLE-LD, and KMDF-LD. KCWO-TV also has a secondary studio and news bureau in downtown Midland, while its transmitter is located north of Big Spring along U.S. Route 87. Although Big Spring is the station’s city of license, the station does not maintain a separate substantial local facility there beyond its transmission infrastructure. The station began broadcasting in January 1956 as KBST-TV, an affiliate and companion to KBST radio owned by the Big Spring Herald. In its early years it carried programming associated with all three major U.S. television networks, but its prospects were constrained by established stations in nearby Midland and Odessa. KMID-TV in Midland carried NBC and some ABC programming, while KOSA-TV in Odessa carried CBS, limiting the amount of attractive network programming available to the new Big Spring outlet. The station consequently struggled to develop a strong independent programming identity. Ownership and affiliation arrangements changed repeatedly during the station’s first two decades. After ownership interests were transferred to Texas Telecasting, associated with Dub Rogers, the station adopted the KEDY-TV call sign and operated largely as a semi-satellite of KDUB-TV in Lubbock. Following Grayson Enterprises’ acquisition of the station, it became KWAB-TV, a call sign associated with Webb Air Force Base, and its programming relationship shifted to KPAR-TV in Sweetwater. Because those stations were principally affiliated with CBS, KWAB sometimes duplicated programming carried by KOSA-TV. After Grayson acquired KVKM-TV, the predecessor of today’s KWES-TV, KWAB became a simulcast of that station, a role it retained for many years. KWAB’s long period as a satellite station reflected the economics and geography of the market. Its signal helped reach eastern portions of the Odessa–Midland area where KWES-TV’s over-the-air signal was weak or unavailable, although the stations’ coverage areas substantially overlapped. The station generally carried the KWES feed, with only limited local references beyond legally required station identifications. Some Big Spring-oriented programming was produced over the years, including the program Today in Big Spring, which was recorded locally and transmitted to the Midland studios through a company microwave system. That link also helped KWES provide live visual coverage after the February 2008 explosion at the Alon USA refinery. In the 2010s the station’s programming role began to change. KWES and KWAB lost their LATV affiliation in December 2013 but acquired The CW affiliation from KWWT. The CW service became available to local Dish Network subscribers in June 2014. A major ownership transition followed: Raycom Media acquired Drewry Communications in 2015, and Gray Television agreed to merge with Raycom in 2018. Because federal ownership rules required a divestiture in the Odessa–Midland market, Gray retained KOSA-TV and arranged for KWES-TV to be sold to Tegna. Gray retained KWAB and converted it from a largely transparent KWES satellite into a stand-alone CW Plus affiliate. The station’s main service was also placed on KOSA-TV’s second digital subchannel to extend its reach. The transaction closed on January 2, 2019. At that point KWAB-TV adopted the KCWO call letters, with the -TV suffix added in February 2019. KCWO-TV now functions as a Gray-owned CW Plus outlet serving the Permian Basin, with its broadcast identity, programming, and distribution integrated into Gray’s West Texas station cluster. Like other modern U.S. television stations, it completed the federally mandated analog-to-di…

KCWO-TV traces its history to January 1956, when it began broadcasting as KBST-TV in Big Spring, Texas. The station was established by the Big Spring Herald, which also owned KBST radio. Its initial programming drew from all three major U.S. networks, but the station entered a difficult competitive environment. KMID-TV in Midland already carried NBC and portions of ABC programming, while Odessa’s KOSA-TV carried CBS. The resulting limitations on network programming contributed to KBST-TV’s weak early performance. The station subsequently passed through several ownership and programming arrangements. A half interest was transferred to Texas Telecasting, associated with Dub Rogers, and the station was renamed KEDY-TV. It became largely a semi-satellite of KDUB-TV in Lubbock, now KLBK-TV. In 1961, Rogers sold his stations to Grayson Enterprises. Grayson changed the station’s call letters to KWAB-TV and moved its programming relationship to KPAR-TV in Sweetwater. Because KPAR and KDUB were principally CBS outlets, KWAB periodically duplicated programs carried by KOSA-TV. After Grayson acquired KVKM-TV, the predecessor of KWES-TV, in 1969, KWAB began simulcasting the Odessa station. This arrangement addressed some of the market’s geographic coverage issues but left KWAB with little independent on-air identity. The station’s signal provided useful coverage for parts of the eastern market where KWES’s signal was marginal or absent, despite considerable overlap between their technical contours. For much of this period, the station’s only routine independent references were the legal identifications required by the FCC. Grayson’s broadcasting operations faced repeated license-renewal disputes in the late 1960s and 1970s. Authorities raised allegations involving billing practices, inaccurate program and transmitter logs, main-studio compliance, and technical testing. Renewals for affected stations were deferred and hearings were ordered. The matter ultimately contributed to a government-supervised breakup and so-called distress sale of Grayson stations. In 1980, KWES and KWAB were sold to Permian Basin Television Corporation, a minority-controlled purchaser under the policy framework then used for such transactions. KWES and KWAB changed network affiliations with KMID on September 5, 1982, becoming NBC affiliates. Permian Basin Television sold the pair to MSP Television in 1985, and Drewry Communications acquired them in 1991. Drewry later planned to sell its stations to London Broadcasting, but that proposed transaction had fallen apart by January 2009. During these years KWAB continued primarily as a satellite of KWES, although some programming tied to Big Spring was produced locally. Today in Big Spring was recorded in Big Spring and sent to the Midland facilities using a microwave link. The system also proved valuable during the February 2008 Alon USA refinery explosion, allowing the related station operation to transmit live images and skycam video soon after the incident. The station’s programming role shifted in the 2010s. On December 29, 2013, KWES and KWAB lost LATV carriage but obtained The CW affiliation from KWWT. The CW service was made available to local Dish Network subscribers in June 2014. Raycom Media announced its purchase of Drewry Communications in August 2015, and the transaction closed on December 1 of that year. In June 2018, Gray Television announced a merger with Raycom Media. The proposed combination would have placed both KOSA and KWES under common ownership in the same market, requiring a divestiture under FCC rules. Gray chose to retain KOSA and arranged for Tegna to purchase KWES. Announced in August 2018, the Tegna transaction included KWES and WTOL in Toledo for a reported $105 million, while KWAB remained with Gray. Gray planned to transform KWAB from a KWES satellite into a stand-alone CW Plus affiliate and to simulcast its main service on KOSA-TV’s second digital channel. The ownership transactions closed on January 2, 2019. KWAB adopted the KCWO call letters at that time, and the -TV suffix was added on February 26, 2019. KCWO-TV continues to serve the Permian Basin from Gray’s Odessa facilities, with its transmitter north of Big Spring and additional distribution through KOSA-TV’s digital subchannel. Its analog signal was discontinued on June 12, 2009, as part of the nationwide U.S. transition to digital television; its digital operation retained virtual channel 4.

1. 2019KWAB becomes KCWO-TV

   The station becomes a stand-alone CW Plus affiliate after the transactions close on January 2; the -TV suffix is added on February 26.

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2. 2018Gray announces the Raycom merger and market divestiture plan

   Gray announces its merger with Raycom and identifies KOSA as the station it will retain in the Odessa–Midland market, while KWES is slated for sale and KWAB for conversion.

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3. 2015Raycom Media acquires Drewry Communications

   Raycom’s purchase of Drewry closes on December 1, placing KWES and KWAB under Raycom ownership.

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4. 2013LATV affiliation ends

   KWES and KWAB discontinue LATV carriage on December 29 and subsequently gain The CW affiliation from KWWT.

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5. 2009Analog broadcasting ends

   The station shuts down its analog channel 4 signal on June 12 and continues with its digital transmission on UHF channel 33 while retaining virtual channel 4.

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6. 1991Drewry Communications acquires the stations

   Drewry Communications purchases KWES and KWAB from MSP Television.

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7. 1982KWES and KWAB become NBC affiliates

   The stations swap affiliations with KMID and join NBC on September 5.

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8. 1980Grayson stations are sold in a distress-sale transaction

   After license-renewal disputes, Grayson sells KWES and KWAB to Permian Basin Television Corporation.

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9. 1969KWAB begins simulcasting the predecessor of KWES-TV

   Following Grayson’s acquisition of KVKM-TV, KWAB shifts to a long-running satellite relationship with the Odessa station.

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10. 1961Grayson Enterprises acquires the station

    After Dub Rogers sells his stations, Grayson Enterprises becomes the relevant owner and the station later adopts the KWAB-TV call sign.

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11. 1956KBST-TV begins broadcasting

    The station launches in January as KBST-TV, owned alongside KBST radio by the Big Spring Herald.

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A regional CW Plus broadcast outlet using Gray Media’s West Texas infrastructure to provide network entertainment and syndicated television programming across the Odessa–Midland and Permian Basin market.

• KCWO-TV Channel 4Broadcast television station2019

  KCWO-TV’s primary broadcast service is transmitted under virtual channel 4 from a facility north of Big Spring. The full-power signal serves the Odessa–Midland market and surrounding Permian Basin communities. The station’s programming identity is built around The CW Plus rather than a separately branded local general-entertainment schedule.

• CW Plus programming serviceNetwork affiliation2019

  KCWO-TV carries programming supplied through The CW Plus, the network’s service for smaller and mid-sized U.S. television markets. This replaced the station’s earlier role as a largely direct simulcast of KWES-TV and gave the Big Spring-licensed outlet a distinct network affiliation.

• KOSA-TV subchannel simulcastDigital multicast service2019

  KCWO-TV’s main service is also simulcast on KOSA-TV’s second digital subchannel. The arrangement expands the practical broadcast reach of the CW service and integrates KCWO into Gray Media’s broader West Texas station infrastructure.

• 2019Convert KWAB-TV into KCWO-TVGeneration change

  The sale of KWES to Tegna and Gray’s retention of KWAB created the opportunity to end the station’s long-standing satellite role.

  What changed. KWAB adopted the KCWO call letters and operated as a stand-alone CW Plus affiliate, with its service simulcast on KOSA-TV’s second digital subchannel.

  Aftermath. KCWO-TV became the station’s primary public identity and remains part of Gray Media’s West Texas cluster.

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• 2018Retain KWAB and divest KWES during the Gray–Raycom mergerM&A

  The proposed Gray–Raycom combination would have created a regulated common-ownership issue involving KOSA and KWES in the Odessa–Midland market.

  What changed. Gray retained KOSA and KWAB, arranged for Tegna to acquire KWES, and selected KWAB for conversion into a stand-alone CW Plus affiliate.

  Aftermath. The strategy preserved Gray’s presence in the market while giving KWAB a distinct station identity and an additional KOSA-TV subchannel distribution path.

  Reported purchase price for KWES-TV and WTOL. $105 million (Announced in 2018)

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• 2013Adopt The CW affiliationStrategy

  KWES and KWAB lost their LATV affiliation while The CW affiliation became available through KWWT.

  What changed. The station group acquired The CW affiliation for the KWES/KWAB operation.

  Aftermath. The CW service later became available to local Dish Network subscribers, broadening paid distribution in the market.

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• 1982Switch to NBC affiliationStrategy

  KWES and KWAB exchanged affiliations with KMID in a market where network coverage and signal reach were central competitive concerns.

  What changed. The stations joined NBC on September 5, 1982.

  Aftermath. KWAB continued to operate primarily as a satellite of the related Odessa station rather than as a fully independent local broadcaster.

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• 1968Grayson Enterprises license-renewal disputesControversy

  Grayson-owned stations, including the operation associated with KWAB, faced repeated license-renewal difficulties beginning in 1968. Allegations described in the station’s historical record included fraudulent billing, fabricated program and transmitter logs, main-studio violations, and failures to complete required technical tests. Renewals were deferred and hearings were ordered; the matter ultimately led to the breakup and distress sale of Grayson’s stations.

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• 2019KWAB-TV becomes KCWO-TV

  Following completion of the Raycom–Gray and Tegna transactions, KWAB-TV adopted the KCWO call letters and began operating as a stand-alone CW Plus affiliate. The -TV suffix was added later in February 2019.

  Leadership changeProduct generation
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• 2018Gray Television and Raycom announce broadcasting merger

  Gray Television announced a cash-and-stock merger with Raycom Media valued at approximately $3.6 billion. The combination required a divestiture in the Odessa–Midland market under Federal Communications Commission ownership rules.

  M&ARegulation
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• 2018Tegna to acquire KWES-TV while Gray retains KWAB

  Tegna was selected to acquire KWES-TV and Gray retained KWAB-TV. The retained station was designated for conversion into a stand-alone CW Plus affiliate with a simulcast on KOSA-TV’s second digital subchannel.

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• 2015Raycom Media agrees to acquire Drewry Communications

  Raycom Media announced a $160 million agreement to purchase Drewry Communications, bringing KWES-TV and satellite station KWAB-TV into Raycom’s portfolio. The transaction closed on December 1, 2015.

  M&A
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1. KCWO-TV
2. KCWO-TV official partner page