KJNE-LD
A low-power television translator serving Jonesboro and Northeast Arkansas as a satellite of KJNB-CD.
Last updated August 31, 2026
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Overview
KJNE-LD was a low-power television station serving Jonesboro and the surrounding Northeast Arkansas market as a satellite and translator of KJNB-CD. Its history combines several distinct phases: an earlier existence as a Trinity Broadcasting Network repeater, an unsuccessful attempt to turn it into an independent local NBC affiliate, and its later role in expanding the coverage of Waypoint Media's Fox- and CBS-affiliated KJNB operation. The station operated from the Jonesboro market, while its associated transmitter served areas around Jonesboro and Lawrence County. The station began under earlier call signs, including K54ER and K42GX, as a TBN-owned-and-operated translator. Its programming was retransmitted from TBN's satellite feed rather than produced locally. TBN later discontinued many low-power repeaters during a period of financial difficulty and donated a number of licenses to the Minority Media and Television Council, which sought to preserve media ownership opportunities and local broadcast facilities. The MMTC subsequently sold K42GX to New Moon Communications. New Moon changed the call sign to KJNE-LP in June 2011 and proposed converting the station into a local NBC affiliate. At the time, NBC programming reached Jonesboro through distant stations available over the air or on cable, including WMC-TV in Memphis, KYTV in Springfield, and KARK-TV in Little Rock. The proposed KJNE NBC service did not materialize. New Moon placed its stations on the market in 2012, and KJNE remained silent while the company pursued a sale. The later launch of NBC programming on a KAIT subchannel further reduced the likelihood that KJNE would become a standalone NBC affiliate. Waypoint Media announced in 2015 that it would acquire KJNE-LP and use it as a satellite of KJNB-LD. KJNB had signed on that year as a new commercial television operation for the Jonesboro area, carrying Fox programming and later CBS programming on a separate digital subchannel. The translator arrangement allowed the KJNB service to reach viewers in and around Jonesboro more effectively than the primary low-power facility alone. KJNE received authorization for digital operation in September 2017 and adopted the KJNE-LD call sign. As a translator, KJNE carried the principal KJNB programming services, including Fox and CBS, and was also associated with the station's MeTV and MyNetworkTV programming arrangements. The service was part of a broader local broadcast offering that introduced locally based Fox and CBS options to a market historically dependent on signals from Memphis, Little Rock, Springfield, and other nearby cities. Local news was supplied through KJNB's Northeast Arkansas News operation, launched in 2017, rather than through a wholly separate KJNE newsroom. In July 2021, Waypoint announced the sale of KJNB-LD and KJNE-LD among a group of nine television stations to Coastal Television. The transaction closed on January 4, 2022. Coastal therefore became the station's owner and continued the translator's relationship with the KJNB operation. In March 2026, the Federal Communications Commission changed the call sign from KJNE-LD to K22PF-D as part of a rule change requiring translators to use standardized translator call signs. Accordingly, KJNE-LD is best understood as the station's former call-sign identity and historical brand, while K22PF-D is the later call sign referenced for the same translator facility.
History
KJNE-LD developed from a low-power translator facility whose earliest identified call signs were K54ER and K42GX. During that period it retransmitted Trinity Broadcasting Network programming as a TBN-owned-and-operated repeater. TBN later shut down many low-power repeaters because of financial pressures and transferred a number of facilities to the Minority Media and Television Council. The MMTC sold K42GX to New Moon Communications, which changed the call sign to KJNE-LP on June 14, 2011. New Moon intended to use KJNE-LP as an NBC affiliate for Jonesboro. NBC service in the market had historically come from stations in Memphis, Springfield, or Little Rock rather than from a Jonesboro-based commercial station. The plan was not completed. New Moon placed its stations on the market in 2012, and KJNE remained silent while the ownership and affiliation situation developed. In late 2014, KAIT announced that it would add NBC programming to a subchannel, making a new KJNE NBC service even less likely. Waypoint Media announced in June 2015 that it would acquire KJNE-LP. In July of that year, the company said the facility would operate as a satellite and translator of KJNB-LD, a new Jonesboro-area commercial station affiliated with Fox and later CBS. KJNB had signed on June 1, 2015, and added CBS programming on a second digital subchannel on August 1. The translator arrangement extended the reach of those services into Jonesboro and nearby communities. KJNE received its digital authorization on September 6, 2017, and changed its call sign to KJNE-LD. The KJNB/KJNE operation later added MeTV and MyNetworkTV programming through a digital subchannel arrangement, with MyNetworkTV filling selected weekday evening slots and MeTV providing programming outside that schedule. The associated local news service, branded Northeast Arkansas News, launched on July 17, 2017. It produced weekday newscasts for the CBS and Fox services, using a centralized Waypoint news structure supported by Jonesboro-based reporters. Waypoint announced in July 2021 that it would sell KJNE-LD and eight other television stations to Coastal Television Broadcasting Company LLC. The sale closed on January 4, 2022, making Coastal the station's owner. In March 2026, the FCC changed the facility's call sign to K22PF-D in connection with a regulatory requirement that translators use standard translator call signs. KJNE-LD therefore remains important as the facility's former identity and historical service name, while K22PF-D is the later call sign associated with the translator.
- 2026
Translator call sign standardized
[1]The FCC changed KJNE-LD's call sign to K22PF-D under a translator call-sign rule.
- 2022
Ownership transfers to Coastal Television
[1]Coastal Television completed its acquisition of KJNE-LD and related Waypoint stations.
- 2017
Digital operation authorized
[1]The facility received its digital operating license and adopted the KJNE-LD call sign.
- 2017
Local news service begins
[1]Northeast Arkansas News launched as the local news operation associated with the KJNB/KJNE services.
- 2015
Waypoint announces translator plan
[1]Waypoint Media announced that KJNE-LP would become a satellite and translator of KJNB-LD.
- 2011
K42GX becomes KJNE-LP
[1]After its sale from the Minority Media and Television Council to New Moon Communications, the facility changed its call sign to KJNE-LP.
Products and positioning
A local low-power broadcast extension of the Jonesboro television operation KJNB-CD, intended to broaden over-the-air access to Fox, CBS, entertainment, and local news programming across Northeast Arkansas.
Television network retransmission · 2015
Fox programming service
KJNE-LD retransmitted the Fox programming carried by KJNB-LD, helping provide a Jonesboro-area over-the-air outlet for national Fox entertainment, sports, and news programming. The service formed one of the principal components of the translator's post-2015 role.
Television network retransmission · 2015
CBS programming service
The translator also carried the CBS service associated with KJNB-LD. Its addition gave the Jonesboro market a locally based CBS outlet rather than relying solely on distant stations from surrounding markets.
Multicast television programming · 2018
MeTV and MyNetworkTV service
KJNE-LD was associated with the KJNB digital multiplex's MeTV and MyNetworkTV offering. MeTV supplied classic television programming, while MyNetworkTV programming occupied designated weekday evening slots, with MeTV filling other periods.
Local television news · 2017
Northeast Arkansas News
This weekday local-news operation launched in 2017 for the KJNB/KJNE service. Newscasts were produced through Waypoint's centralized news structure and included reporting from Jonesboro-based personnel.
Brand decisions
2021
Sale to Coastal Television announcedM&ABackground
Waypoint Media decided to sell a group of nine television stations, including KJNE-LD and KJNB-LD.
Action taken
Waypoint entered into an agreement to transfer the stations to Coastal Television Broadcasting Company LLC.
Aftermath
The transaction closed in January 2022 and moved ownership of the translator and its related station to Coastal Television.
reported transaction value for nine stations. (announced July 2021; closed January 4, 2022)
2017
Launch of Northeast Arkansas NewsProduct launchBackground
Before 2017, the Fox and CBS services generally relied on syndicated programming instead of locally produced newscasts.
Action taken
The KJNB operation launched weekday local newscasts under the Northeast Arkansas News brand, with the service also reaching viewers through KJNE.
Aftermath
The operation added locally produced news to the station group and supplied newscasts at multiple evening time slots.
2015
Convert KJNE into a KJNB satelliteStrategyBackground
Waypoint Media acquired the facility after the earlier NBC-affiliation proposal had failed and after KJNB-LD began building a new commercial television service for Jonesboro.
Action taken
Waypoint designated KJNE-LP as a satellite and translator of KJNB-LD, carrying the parent operation's Fox and CBS services.
Aftermath
The facility returned to the air as part of the KJNB network rather than becoming a standalone NBC affiliate.
Recent events
- 2026
KJNE-LD call sign changed to K22PF-D[1]
Regulation
The FCC changed the translator's call sign to K22PF-D under a rule requiring translators to use standardized translator call signs.
- 2022
Coastal Television completes acquisition[1]
M&A
The transaction transferring KJNE-LD and KJNB-LD from Waypoint Media to Coastal Television closed on January 4.
- 2021
Waypoint Media agrees to sell KJNE-LD to Coastal Television[1]
M&A
Waypoint announced the sale of nine television stations, including KJNE-LD, to Coastal Television Broadcasting Company LLC.
- 2017
KJNE-LD receives authorization for digital operation[1]
Other
The station received its digital operating authorization and adopted the KJNE-LD call sign, formalizing its role in the KJNB broadcast system.
- 2017
Northeast Arkansas News launches[1]
Product launch
KJNB's local news department began operations, providing weekday newscasts for the Fox and CBS services carried by the KJNB/KJNE operation.
- 2015
KJNE-LP selected to serve as a satellite of KJNB-LD[1]
Other
Waypoint Media announced that KJNE-LP would return to service as a satellite and translator of KJNB-LD, carrying the Jonesboro operation's Fox and CBS services.
Sources1 sources
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