KOTV-DT

KOTV-DT is a television station on channel 6 serving Tulsa, Oklahoma, and the surrounding northeastern Oklahoma region. It is affiliated with CBS and is owned by Griffin Media, an Oklahoma-based broadcasting company. The station operates alongside CW affiliate KQCW-DT, licensed to Muskogee, from the Griffin Media Center in Tulsa’s Arts District. KOTV-DT’s primary transmitter is located in Broken Arrow, southeast of Tulsa. The station traces its origins to a March 1948 application by Cameron Television Corporation for a construction permit on VHF channel 6. The company was associated with oil producer George E. Cameron Jr., broadcasting executive Maria Helen Alvarez, and salesman John B. Hill. Alvarez had studied the feasibility of television in Tulsa while working at KTUL radio and became central to the station’s creation and early operation. The FCC approved the application in June 1948. A call-sign error initially produced KOVB, but the designation was corrected to KOTV, representing “Oklahoma Television.” KOTV began test transmissions on October 15, 1949, and regular broadcasting on October 22. It was the first television station to sign on in the Tulsa market and one of the earliest in Oklahoma. At launch, it carried CBS programming as its principal affiliation while also presenting selected programs from NBC, ABC, DuMont, and Paramount. As Tulsa’s television market developed and competing stations appeared, KOTV gradually became an exclusive CBS affiliate. The station also produced a substantial amount of local programming during its early years. Its technical development was notable for a pioneering market role. KOTV installed color transmission equipment in 1954 and became the first Oklahoma television station to install videotape equipment in 1958. Local film programming was upgraded to color in 1959, while locally produced programming began broadcasting in color in 1966. Transmission improvements, including major tower projects and higher effective power, expanded coverage across a large portion of northeastern Oklahoma. Ownership changed several times. In 1952, Jack D. Wrather Jr. and Maizie Wrather acquired a controlling interest, retaining Alvarez as general manager and shareholder. KOTV was sold to J. H. Whitney & Company in 1954 and became part of the Corinthian Broadcasting group in 1957. Dun & Bradstreet acquired Corinthian in 1971, and A. H. Belo Corporation purchased the group in 1983. Belo sold KOTV to Griffin Communications in 2001, returning the station to Oklahoma ownership. Griffin subsequently developed shared resources and content relationships among its Oklahoma news operations. Today, KOTV-DT combines CBS network programming with locally produced news, weather, sports, investigative reporting, public-affairs content, and digital publishing under the News on 6 identity. Its principal competitive role is that of a legacy network affiliate and local-news provider in the Tulsa market. The station’s brand is closely associated with Tulsa-area news coverage, weather information, and community service rather than with a standalone consumer product line.

KOTV-DT originated with Cameron Television Corporation, which applied to the Federal Communications Commission in March 1948 for a Tulsa VHF television station on channel 6. The application was approved on June 2, 1948. The proposed call sign was mistakenly entered as KOVB, but the FCC corrected it to KOTV in March 1949. The call letters were associated with the station’s intended Oklahoma-focused identity. The station built its first facilities in a former International Harvester dealership in downtown Tulsa. Its early development faced skepticism because television was still a new and expensive medium, and Tulsa had no established television audience. Maria Helen Alvarez, who had researched the viability of Tulsa television and helped organize the application, played a major role in the project. She became the station’s first general manager and one of the earliest women to hold that position at an American television station. KOTV tested its signal beginning October 15, 1949, and commenced regular broadcasts on October 22. A formal dedication program followed on November 30, featuring Oklahoma and Tulsa civic figures and musical entertainment. During its initial years, the station carried CBS as its principal network affiliation while also transmitting selected programming from several other networks. A large proportion of its schedule consisted of locally produced material. The installation of a microwave link in 1952 enabled the station to receive live network programs rather than delayed feeds. In May 1952, George E. Cameron Jr. and John B. Hill sold an 85 percent interest to Jack D. Wrather Jr. and Maizie Wrather. Alvarez retained 15 percent and continued as general manager. The station changed ownership again in 1954, when J. H. Whitney & Company acquired it. Whitney later organized its broadcast assets under Corinthian Broadcasting Corporation. KOTV’s programming became increasingly concentrated around CBS as Tulsa gained additional stations and its former secondary network arrangements ended. Technical expansion was a recurring feature of the station’s history. KOTV introduced color transmission in 1954, videotape facilities in 1958, color film presentation in 1959, and color local programming in 1966. It also participated in major transmitter-tower developments, including facilities that increased signal coverage and supported transmission arrangements involving educational broadcaster KOED and other stations. Corinthian Broadcasting was acquired by Dun & Bradstreet in a transaction approved in 1971. A. H. Belo Corporation then acquired the Corinthian television properties in the early 1980s, including KOTV. During the Belo period, KOTV participated in a consortium with KJRH-TV to develop a taller transmission tower completed in 1985. Belo announced the sale of KOTV to Griffin Communications in October 2000, and the transaction closed in January 2001. Griffin, later known as Griffin Media, integrated KOTV into an Oklahoma-centered broadcast group and pursued resource sharing with its Oklahoma City station, KWTV. Griffin also operated or developed related news-distribution services, including a Tulsa cable news feed carrying KOTV newscasts. KOTV remains a CBS affiliate under Griffin ownership, with television, streaming, web, and social-media output organized around the News on 6 brand.

1. 2001Griffin ownership begins

   Griffin Communications completed its purchase of KOTV, bringing the station back under Oklahoma ownership.

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2. 1985New transmission tower completed

   A new tower developed with KJRH-TV was completed between Broken Arrow and Oneta.

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3. 1983Belo acquisition announced

   A. H. Belo Corporation agreed to acquire the Corinthian television properties, including KOTV.

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4. 1971Dun & Bradstreet acquisition completed

   Dun & Bradstreet completed its acquisition of Corinthian Broadcasting after FCC review.

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5. 1958Videotape introduced

   KOTV became the first Oklahoma television station to install videotape equipment.

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6. 1957Joined Corinthian Broadcasting

   KOTV became part of the Corinthian Broadcasting group after J. H. Whitney organized its broadcast holdings.

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7. 1954Color transmission begins

   KOTV installed color equipment and carried its first network color broadcast.

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8. 1952Live network reception introduced

   A microwave connection allowed KOTV to receive live network programming from New York.

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9. 1952Controlling ownership changes

   Jack D. Wrather Jr. and Maizie Wrather acquired an 85 percent interest in the station.

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10. 1949Test transmissions begin

    KOTV began test transmissions on October 15.

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11. 1949Regular broadcasting begins

    KOTV began regular broadcasts on October 22 as Tulsa’s first television station.

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12. 1948FCC application submitted

    Cameron Television Corporation applied for authorization to build a Tulsa television station on VHF channel 6.

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13. 1948Construction permit approved

    The FCC approved the channel 6 application on June 2, establishing the foundation for KOTV.

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A legacy Tulsa-market CBS affiliate centered on local journalism, weather coverage, community information, and multiplatform news distribution.

• KOTV-DT channel 6Television station1949

  The station’s broadcast service is built around CBS network programming and locally produced content for Tulsa and northeastern Oklahoma. Its output includes scheduled network shows, local news, weather, sports, public-affairs programming, and community information distributed through over-the-air television and digital platforms.

• News on 6Local news brand

  News on 6 is KOTV’s local-news identity. It covers Tulsa-area breaking news, regional reporting, weather, sports, investigations, and public-interest stories, with material distributed through television newscasts and the station’s website and other digital channels.

• CBS programmingNetwork affiliation1949

  CBS has been KOTV’s principal network affiliation since the station signed on. The station originally carried selected programming from multiple networks, but later became an exclusive CBS affiliate as competing Tulsa stations assumed the remaining NBC and ABC programming.

• 2000Sale to Griffin CommunicationsM&A

  A. H. Belo decided to sell KOTV after owning the station since the Corinthian acquisition in the 1980s.

  What changed. Belo announced the sale to Griffin Communications in October 2000; the transaction closed in January 2001.

  Aftermath. KOTV returned to Oklahoma-based ownership and became part of Griffin’s state-focused television group.

  Purchase price. 82000000 (Announced October 2000; amount reported for the transaction)

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• 1954Introduced color transmissionProduct launch

  The growth of network television and NBC-produced color programs created a reason for KOTV to upgrade its technical facilities.

  What changed. KOTV installed color transmission equipment and aired a network color program in May 1954.

  Aftermath. The upgrade established an early technical milestone for Oklahoma television and supported later expansion of color presentation.

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1. KOTV-DT
2. KOTV-DT official website