KMYT-TV
A Tulsa, Oklahoma television station that operates primarily as an independent broadcaster and carries MyNetworkTV programming as a secondary affiliation.
Last updated August 31, 2026
AI crawler reads
No AI crawler has read this profile since Oct 28, 2026.
Overview
KMYT-TV is a television station serving Tulsa, Oklahoma, on virtual and digital channel 41. The station operates mainly as an independent broadcaster while maintaining a secondary affiliation with MyNetworkTV. It is owned by Sinclair Broadcast Group, which also owns Tulsa ABC affiliate KTUL-TV, and is co-managed with Fox affiliate KOKI-TV. KMYT-TV, KOKI-TV and KTUL share studio facilities on East 27th Street and South Memorial Drive in Tulsa’s Audubon neighborhood. KMYT-TV’s transmitter is located near Coweta, southeast of Tulsa. The station began broadcasting on March 18, 1981, under the call sign KGCT-TV. Its initial business model combined conventional free-to-air programming with a subscription television service called In-Home Theater, or IT. During the day, the station briefly presented a substantial block of locally produced programming under the title 41 Live!, including news, cooking, sports, business and audience-participation segments. Hosts and contributors included John Erling, Glenda Silvey, Beth Rengel and Karen Keith. The local format was short-lived because the station failed to attract sufficient viewership and became expensive to operate. By mid-1981, the live block had been cancelled and replaced with lower-cost syndicated programming. KGCT-TV also experimented with religious programming and continued its subscription television operation into the middle of the decade. IT reached approximately 11,000 subscribers in the Tulsa area at its 1982 peak, but cable television competition reduced the subscriber base substantially. The service ended in October 1984, after which the station moved toward a fully advertising-supported schedule. The station’s prospects were further damaged when Tulsa Cable Television removed it from its lineup in 1986, following the collapse of federal must-carry protections and citing weak ratings. The loss of cable distribution made it difficult for KGCT-TV to compete for syndicated programming, network affiliations and advertising. Financial pressure culminated in a shutdown on February 1, 1989, while the owners evaluated possible buyers. KGCT-TV eventually returned to the air in 1991 under RDS Broadcasting with the call sign KTFO. It initially operated as an independent station and gradually regained cable carriage, first through a limited arrangement and then on a full-time basis in 1993. The station also carried locally produced public-affairs and sports-related programs, including Oklahoma Forum, Open Line and Out of Left Field. In November 1993, RDS entered into a local marketing agreement with Clear Channel Television, which owned KOKI-TV. Clear Channel assumed programming and operational responsibilities and refreshed KTFO’s schedule with syndicated series and movies. KTFO became a charter affiliate of UPN when that network launched in January 1995. Clear Channel later acquired the station outright after federal rules permitted television duopolies in the same market. When UPN and The WB were replaced by The CW and MyNetworkTV in 2006, KTFO was selected for MyNetworkTV. The station adopted the KMYT-TV call sign on August 21, 2006, and began branding itself as My41. It later passed through several ownership groups as broadcasting consolidation reshaped the Tulsa market: Newport Television, Cox Media Group, Imagicomm Communications and Rincon Broadcasting Group. Sinclair Broadcast Group subsequently acquired KMYT-TV, alongside arrangements affecting Tulsa’s Fox affiliation and Sinclair’s ownership of KTUL. KMYT-TV remains a local broadcast outlet whose schedule combines syndicated entertainment, local or regional programming and MyNetworkTV content.
History
KMYT-TV originated in a late-1970s competition for additional Tulsa television licenses. The David Livingstone Missionary Foundation, Green Country Television and Satellite Television Systems were among the applicants for a new station on channel 41. In July 1980, the Federal Communications Commission awarded a construction permit to Tulsa TV 41, a joint venture involving Satellite Television Systems and Green Country Television. Satellite Television Systems was subsequently renamed Satellite Syndicated Systems. KGCT-TV began broadcasting on March 18, 1981, from studios in Tulsa’s Old Lerner’s Building. The station initially pursued an ambitious hybrid format. Weekday mornings featured movies and westerns, followed by a seven-hour locally produced block called 41 Live!. The show included news, cooking, sports, business and audience-participation segments. During evening hours and portions of the weekend, the station offered In-Home Theater, a subscription television service carrying first-run films and selected sports events. The service was part of a broader attempt to use UHF broadcasting infrastructure to provide pay television before cable became dominant. The local programming strategy quickly proved unsustainable. KGCT-TV was unable to match the audience attracted by the established independent KOKI-TV, which had launched in 1980 with a more conventional schedule of movies, syndicated programs and sports. KGCT cancelled 41 Live! on June 25, 1981, dismissing 15 employees, including its entire news staff. The station replaced the local block with less expensive syndicated material. In 1982 it added hosted movie programs and a teen dance show, while also trying to educate viewers that antennas capable of receiving channel 23 could generally receive channel 41. KGCT also leased daytime airtime for religious programming. Jack Rehberg Ministries supplied local and national religious content, including The 700 Club and programs associated with Jerry Falwell. The station was promoted with a religiously themed interpretation of its call letters. After Rehberg acquired another Tulsa station and stopped paying for the airtime, Green Country Television maintained a broadly similar schedule. In-Home Theater reached about 11,000 Tulsa-area subscribers in 1982, but the rise of cable television steadily eroded the service. By September 1984, the subscriber count had fallen to about 3,700 and the operation was losing money. Satellite Syndicated Systems ended IT in Tulsa on October 31, 1984, and KGCT expanded its advertising-supported schedule. Later ownership and financing problems became more serious after SSS, renamed Tempo Enterprises in 1986, was acquired by Tele-Communications Inc. Tempo divested its stake in channel 41, leaving Green Country Television responsible for expenses that had previously been supported by the larger company. The station’s distribution problems intensified in 1986 when Tulsa Cable Television removed KGCT-TV from its lineup. The decision followed the invalidation of federal must-carry rules and was publicly attributed to weak ratings. Without cable carriage, KGCT could not reach many Tulsa viewers and was also disadvantaged when Fox considered its first Tulsa affiliate. Fox ultimately selected KOKI-TV. KGCT remained especially competitive in some sports programming, including professional sports packages and network telecasts that other local affiliates declined, but its general entertainment offering continued to struggle. After several prospective sales failed to close, KGCT-TV ceased broadcasting on February 1, 1989. The station was expected to remain off the air for approximately 30 days while owners considered offers, but financing difficulties prolonged the process. Green Country eventually sold the license and station assets to RDS Broadcasting for $157,500. The station returned during 1991 as KTFO. It initially lacked full cable carriage, but a revised agreement made it available to Tulsa cable customers during evening and overnight hours and throughout weekends beginning March 30, 1992. Full-time cable carriage followed in 1993. KTFO developed a conventional independent schedule and added local programs such as the Texas Rangers pregame show Out of Left Field and the public-affairs programs Oklahoma Forum and Open Line. On November 3, 1993, RDS signed a local marketing agreement with Clear Channel Television, owner of KOKI-TV. Clear Channel assumed programming and operational control, added syndicated series and movies, and later committed KTFO to the newly announced UPN network. The UPN affiliation began in January 1995. Clear Channel acquired KTFO outright after the FCC permitted television duopolies in 1999. The station’s next major programming transition followed the 2006 replacement of UPN and The WB by The CW and MyNetworkTV. Tulsa’s WB affiliate received the CW affiliation, while KTFO joined MyNetworkTV. It changed its call sign to KMYT-TV on August 21, 2006, and adopted My41 branding. Clear Channel sold its television portfolio to Newport Television in a transaction announced in 2007 and completed in 2008. Newport later sold its Tulsa stations to Cox Media Group in 2012. Cox Media Group was acquired by Apollo Global Management in 2019. In 2022, KMYT-TV and KOKI-TV were sold to Imagicomm Communications. Imagicomm later sold both stations to Rincon Broadcasting Group in 2025. Sinclair Broadcast Group, which owned Tulsa station KTUL, entered agreements with Rincon in February 2026 and exercised an option to purchase KMYT-TV. The reported completion of that transaction was April 14, after which KMYT-TV became part of Sinclair’s Tulsa station group.
- 2026
Sinclair acquisition
[1]Sinclair exercised an option to acquire KMYT-TV from Rincon, with the transaction reported as completed on April 14.
- 2025
Rincon Broadcasting Group acquisition
[1]Rincon Broadcasting Group acquired KMYT-TV and KOKI-TV from Imagicomm.
- 2022
Imagicomm acquisition
[1]Imagicomm Communications acquired KMYT-TV and KOKI-TV among a larger group of stations.
- 2012
Cox Media Group acquisition
[1]Cox acquired Newport’s Tulsa stations, including KMYT-TV.
- 2008
Newport ownership completed
[1]Newport Television completed its acquisition of Clear Channel’s television portfolio.
- 2006
MyNetworkTV affiliation and rebranding
[1]KTFO became KMYT-TV and adopted the My41 identity as a MyNetworkTV affiliate.
- 1995
UPN affiliation begins
[1]KTFO became a UPN affiliate when the network launched.
- 1993
Clear Channel assumes operations
[1]A local marketing agreement brought KTFO under Clear Channel Television’s programming and operational control.
- 1991
Station returns as KTFO
[1]RDS Broadcasting restored channel 41 to the air under the KTFO call sign.
- 1989
Broadcast operations suspended
[1]KGCT-TV left the air on February 1 during prolonged sale negotiations.
Products and positioning
A local Tulsa broadcast television station positioned primarily as an independent entertainment outlet, with a secondary MyNetworkTV affiliation and shared operational resources with related Sinclair-owned stations.
Television broadcasting · 1981
Local broadcast television
KMYT-TV provides a Tulsa-market over-the-air television signal from its transmitter near Coweta. Its broadcast schedule is primarily independent, combining syndicated entertainment, movies, sports and locally relevant programming. The station’s reach is supplemented by cable, satellite and digital distribution where available.
Television network affiliation · 2006
MyNetworkTV programming
Since 2006, KMYT-TV has carried MyNetworkTV programming as a secondary affiliation. The affiliation followed the closure of UPN and the creation of The CW and MyNetworkTV, with KMYT serving viewers not reached by the market’s CW outlet.
Local television program · 1981
41 Live!
41 Live! was the station’s original weekday daytime local-programming block. It combined news, cooking, sports, business and audience-participation segments and used the station’s downtown Tulsa studio. The format ended within months of the 1981 launch because of weak audience performance and high operating costs.
Subscription television service · 1981
In-Home Theater
In-Home Theater was a pay-television service carried by KGCT-TV during evening and weekend hours. It offered first-run movies and selected sports events to paying subscribers. The service briefly attracted thousands of customers but declined as cable television expanded and ended in 1984.
Marketing campaigns
- 1982Channel 41 antenna awareness campaign
Tulsa, Oklahoma
KGCT-TV promoted the idea that viewers who had installed UHF antennas for channel 23 could also receive channel 41. The effort attempted to overcome limited awareness and improve the station’s weak audience position against KOKI-TV.
Outcome. The station continued to face low ratings and later lost Tulsa cable carriage.
Brand decisions
2026
Sinclair exercises option to purchase KMYT-TVM&ABackground
Sinclair already owned KTUL in Tulsa and entered agreements with Rincon Broadcasting Group concerning KMYT-TV and related affiliation arrangements.
Action taken
Sinclair exercised an option reported at $4.125 million to acquire KMYT-TV, with the transaction reported as completed on April 14.
Aftermath
KMYT-TV became part of Sinclair’s Tulsa broadcasting operations, while the Fox affiliation moved to a KTUL subchannel under the related agreements.
Reported purchase price. 4.125 million USD (2026)
2022
Sell the Tulsa station group to ImagicommM&ABackground
Cox Media Group’s television assets were being repositioned after the company’s acquisition by Apollo Global Management.
Action taken
KMYT-TV and KOKI-TV were sold to Imagicomm Communications as part of a larger station transaction reported at $488 million.
Aftermath
The Tulsa stations left Cox ownership and entered the Imagicomm portfolio.
Reported transaction value. 488 million USD (2022)
2006
Transition from UPN to MyNetworkTVGeneration changeBackground
UPN and The WB were being replaced by The CW and MyNetworkTV, and Tulsa’s CW affiliation went to another station.
Action taken
KTFO changed its call sign to KMYT-TV on August 21 and adopted My41 branding as a MyNetworkTV affiliate.
Aftermath
KMYT-TV continued operating with a primarily independent schedule supplemented by MyNetworkTV programming.
1995
Join UPNProduct launchBackground
Clear Channel sought a national network affiliation for KTFO after assuming programming control.
Action taken
KTFO became an affiliate of UPN at the network’s January 1995 launch.
Aftermath
The affiliation gave the previously independent station a network schedule for more than a decade.
1989
Suspend broadcasting during sale negotiationsStrategyBackground
The station faced financing problems, weak ratings and the loss of cable distribution after its ownership structure changed.
Action taken
KGCT-TV left the air on February 1 while prospective buyers and relaunch proposals were evaluated.
Aftermath
The station remained off the air until its eventual return under RDS Broadcasting in 1991.
1984
Discontinue In-Home TheaterStrategyBackground
The subscription service had declined from its 1982 peak as cable television became more competitive and the operation lost money.
Action taken
Satellite Syndicated Systems ended In-Home Theater in Tulsa on October 31 and expanded KGCT-TV’s advertising-supported schedule.
Aftermath
Channel 41 became more dependent on conventional syndicated and local programming.
1981
End the live local daytime formatStrategyBackground
The original 41 Live! block generated insufficient audience and imposed substantial production costs on the new station.
Action taken
KGCT-TV cancelled the program, dismissed 15 employees and replaced the schedule with less expensive syndicated programming.
Aftermath
The change reduced the station’s local-production footprint but did not resolve its broader ratings and distribution problems.
Sources2 sources
Cite this profile: Cite the canonical profile. /brand-wiki/kmyt-tv · Editorial policy · How profiles are compiled