KWKB

KWKB is a full-power television station licensed to Iowa City, Iowa, and identified with virtual channel 20. Its broadcast coverage serves viewers in Eastern Iowa and extends into the Quad Cities television market. The station's transmitter is located on Baker Avenue in West Branch, Iowa. KWKB currently operates under the ownership of Total Christian Television (TCT), a religious television broadcaster. The station began broadcasting on August 30, 1999, originally as an affiliate of The WB. At launch, it carried the network's complete schedule, including the Kids' WB children's programming block. Its early identity was therefore that of a conventional network-affiliated entertainment station rather than a religious outlet. KWKB later became notable for its unusual combination of affiliations. From September 2006 through September 2011, it carried The CW as its primary network and MyNetworkTV as a secondary service. KWKB broadcast the full CW schedule and then aired MyNetworkTV programming on a delayed basis, generally from 9:00 to 11:00 p.m. This arrangement allowed the station to carry both networks despite their satellite feeds being distributed at the same time. It also carried The CW's Saturday morning children's block, then known as Toonzai. The dual-network arrangement ended in September 2011, when KWKB dropped MyNetworkTV and substituted syndicated programming. The CW affiliation continued until September 2016, when the affiliation agreement reached its end and KWWL moved The CW to a digital subchannel. KWKB then became an affiliate of This TV, taking that service from KWWL's former secondary channel. During this phase, the station combined network programming with syndicated content. KWKB also used its digital multiplex for additional services. Antenna TV was carried on digital subchannel 20.2 beginning in February 2011 and remained there until January 2015, when the network moved to KCRG-TV's digital subchannel 9.3. KWKB subsequently carried The Works on 20.2 beginning in August 2015; after that service ended, the subchannel was replaced by Light TV. Ownership changed several times in the late 2010s and early 2020s. KM Communications announced a proposed sale to HC2 Holdings in 2018, with the transaction closing in January 2019. In February 2019, KWKB dropped This TV and briefly became an Azteca América owned-and-operated station. That arrangement was short-lived: by May 2019, the station had affiliated with Escape, the female-oriented network later renamed Ion Mystery. In March 2021, HC2 announced the sale of KWKB and sister station KPNZ in Utah to Total Christian Television. The transaction was completed on August 2, 2021. KWKB's principal function is local over-the-air distribution of network and syndicated television services, supplemented by digital multicast channels. Under TCT ownership, the station's current identity is associated with religious broadcasting rather than the general-entertainment and commercial-network affiliations that characterized much of its earlier history.

KWKB signed on the air on August 30, 1999, as a television station licensed to Iowa City, Iowa. Its original affiliation was with The WB, and the station carried the network's complete schedule, including Kids' WB. The launch gave the Cedar Rapids–Iowa City area another source of nationally distributed entertainment programming and established channel 20 as a commercial network outlet. A major programming change came on September 5, 2006, when KWKB became a primary affiliate of The CW and a secondary affiliate of MyNetworkTV. Because the two services distributed their programming feeds at the same time, KWKB recorded and delayed the MyNetworkTV schedule. MyNetworkTV was generally shown after the CW programming block, from 9:00 to 11:00 p.m. This made KWKB unusual among American television stations: it carried the full lineups of both services, including The CW's Saturday-morning children's block, Toonzai. The arrangement continued until September 16, 2011, with the station formally replacing MyNetworkTV with syndicated programming beginning September 19. KWKB's digital operations also developed during this period. In February 2011, digital subchannel 20.2 began carrying Antenna TV. That service moved to KCRG-TV's digital channel 9.3 in January 2015. KWKB then used 20.2 for The Works beginning in August 2015, and after The Works ceased operation, the subchannel was replaced by Light TV. The station's principal network affiliation changed again in September 2016. The CW affiliation agreement ended, and KWWL obtained The CW for a second digital subchannel. KWKB concurrently adopted This TV, taking the affiliation from KWWL's former secondary service. KWKB combined This TV programs with syndicated programming during this phase. Ownership and programming shifted repeatedly after 2018. Chicago-based KM Communications announced the sale of KWKB to HC2 Holdings in June 2018. The transaction, reported at a stated purchase price of $1.85 million, closed on January 29, 2019. Soon afterward, in February 2019, KWKB dropped This TV and became an Azteca América owned-and-operated station. That affiliation did not last long; by May 2019, KWKB had joined Escape, a network aimed primarily at female viewers and later renamed Ion Mystery. On March 18, 2021, Total Christian Television announced an agreement to acquire KWKB and sister station KPNZ, licensed to Ogden, Utah. The sale closed on August 2, 2021, placing KWKB under the ownership of a religious broadcaster. The station's present identity is consequently tied to TCT programming and religious television, while its technical role remains that of a channel 20 broadcast outlet serving Eastern Iowa and the Quad Cities market. Its transmitter is located on Baker Avenue in West Branch, Iowa.

• 2021

  Total Christian Television becomes owner

  [1]KWKBen.wikipedia.org

  The sale of KWKB and KPNZ to Total Christian Television closes on August 2.

• 2019

  KWKB changes ownership and network identity

  [1]KWKBen.wikipedia.org

  HC2 Holdings completes its acquisition, after which KWKB moves from This TV to Azteca América and then to Escape.

• 2016

  The station adopts This TV

  [1]KWKBen.wikipedia.org

  After the CW affiliation expires, KWKB takes the This TV affiliation from KWWL's second digital subchannel.

• 2011

  MyNetworkTV affiliation ends

  [1]KWKBen.wikipedia.org

  KWKB replaces MyNetworkTV with syndicated programming in September.

• 2006

  The CW and MyNetworkTV affiliation begins

  [1]KWKBen.wikipedia.org

  KWKB becomes a primary CW affiliate and a secondary MyNetworkTV affiliate, using a delayed schedule for MyNetworkTV.

• 1999

  KWKB signs on as a WB affiliate

  [1]KWKBen.wikipedia.org

  The station begins broadcasting on August 30, 1999, carrying The WB and Kids' WB schedules.

A locally licensed Iowa television station whose current identity is centered on religious broadcasting under Total Christian Television ownership, following earlier affiliations with The WB, The CW, MyNetworkTV, This TV, Azteca América, and Escape.

• Broadcast television station · 1999

  KWKB channel 20

  KWKB's primary over-the-air broadcast service, licensed to Iowa City and serving Eastern Iowa and the Quad Cities television market. The station has carried a succession of general-entertainment, Spanish-language, classic-television, and religious programming services during its history.

• Digital multicast television · 2011

  Digital subchannel 20.2

  KWKB's secondary digital service has hosted several multicast networks. It carried Antenna TV from 2011 to 2015, The Works beginning in 2015, and later Light TV after The Works ceased operation.

• Religious broadcasting · 2021

  Religious television programming

  Following its 2021 acquisition by Total Christian Television, KWKB became associated with TCT's religious broadcasting operation. This represents a shift from the station's earlier role as a general-entertainment network affiliate.

• 2021

  Sale from HC2 Holdings to Total Christian TelevisionM&A

  Background

  HC2 Holdings announced the sale of KWKB and sister station KPNZ as part of a transfer to a religious television operator.

  Action taken

  Total Christian Television agreed to acquire the stations for a reported combined price of $4 million; the sale closed on August 2, 2021.

  Aftermath

  KWKB became part of TCT's religious broadcasting group and adopted a religious-station identity.

  Reported combined purchase price for KWKB and KPNZ. $4,000,000 (Sale announced March 18, 2021; transaction closed August 2, 2021)

  Source

• 2019

  Sale from KM Communications to HC2 HoldingsM&A

  Background

  KM Communications agreed to sell the Iowa City station to HC2 Holdings in 2018.

  Action taken

  HC2 Holdings completed the acquisition on January 29, 2019.

  Aftermath

  KWKB changed from This TV to Azteca América and then to Escape later in the year.

  Reported purchase price. $1,850,000 (Sale announced June 2018; transaction closed January 29, 2019)

  Source

• 2016

  Switch from The CW to This TVStrategy

  Background

  The station's original ten-year CW affiliation agreement expired, and KWWL secured the CW service for a digital subchannel.

  Action taken

  KWKB adopted This TV and combined its programming with syndicated content.

  Aftermath

  The change ended KWKB's decade-long association with The CW and began a period of rapidly changing multicast and network affiliations.

  Source

• 2011

  Replace MyNetworkTV with syndicated programmingStrategy

  Background

  KWKB's combined CW and MyNetworkTV arrangement ended after several years of delayed secondary-network programming.

  Action taken

  The station dropped MyNetworkTV in September 2011 and substituted syndicated shows.

  Aftermath

  KWKB continued as a CW affiliate until 2016 while no longer carrying the MyNetworkTV schedule.

  Source

• 2006

  Carry The CW and MyNetworkTV togetherStrategy

  Background

  The station sought to maintain access to both newly formed network services even though their programming feeds were distributed simultaneously.

  Action taken

  KWKB made The CW its primary affiliation and recorded MyNetworkTV programming for broadcast later in the evening.

  Aftermath

  The arrangement continued until September 2011 and made KWKB an unusual dual-network outlet.

  Source

1. 1KWKBen.wikipedia.org
2. 2KWKB official websitekwkb.tv