WLKY

WLKY is a television station serving Louisville, Kentucky, and nearby communities in southern Indiana and central Kentucky. Broadcasting on virtual channel 32, the station is affiliated with CBS and is owned by Hearst Television, the broadcasting subsidiary of Hearst Communications. Its studios are located on Mellwood Avenue in Louisville's Clifton Heights area, while its transmitter is in northeastern Floyd County, Indiana. WLKY began broadcasting on September 16, 1961, as a full-time ABC affiliate. Its launch expanded network television service in a market where ABC programming had previously been carried mainly through off-hours arrangements on existing VHF stations. The station operated from its original facilities in Shively and was established by Kentuckiana Television, a local investor group headed by aluminum executive Archibald Cochran. The station's UHF position presented technical and commercial challenges, but Louisville's growing population, stronger ABC programming, and the federal All-Channel Receiver Act helped improve the prospects for UHF broadcasters. Ownership changed several times during WLKY's first decades. Kentuckiana Television sold the station to Sonderling Broadcasting in 1967, after which WLKY moved to its present Mellwood Avenue facilities in 1968. Sonderling sold its television interests to Combined Communications in 1973, and Combined's television properties became part of Gannett in 1979. Gannett later sold WLKY to Pulitzer Publishing in 1983 as part of a portfolio restructuring prompted by federal station-ownership limits. Pulitzer retained the station until 1998, when its broadcasting division was acquired by Hearst-Argyle Television, now known as Hearst Television. The pivotal event in WLKY's history was its September 1990 affiliation exchange with WHAS-TV. WLKY moved from ABC to CBS, while WHAS became the Louisville market's ABC affiliate. Although WLKY had historically been one of ABC's weaker local affiliates, the CBS affiliation gave it access to highly valuable network programming, including the NCAA men's basketball tournament. The tournament has particular importance in the region because of the strong following of the University of Kentucky, University of Louisville, Indiana University, and Purdue University. The affiliation change, combined with increased cable and satellite penetration that reduced the traditional disadvantage of a UHF station, substantially improved WLKY's competitive position. Local news is the station's principal original offering. WLKY produces extensive weekday and weekend newscasts, along with the sports discussion program Sports Saturday. Its schedule has included an unusually long weekday midday newscast and additional news programming on its digital subchannel. The station has also carried CBS's national schedule, occasionally adjusting daytime programming to accommodate local news or special sports coverage. WLKY's local identity has evolved from the former 32 Alive branding to WLKY NewsChannel 32 and, later, WLKY News. The station has experienced notable technical and distribution changes. A lightning strike forced it off the air for three days in February 1979, prompting temporary use of airtime on independent station WDRB for local news and selected ABC programming. WLKY converted from analog to digital broadcasting in 2009 and began carrying MeTV on digital subchannel 32.2 in 2011. A carriage dispute with Time Warner Cable in 2012 temporarily replaced the station with Rochester CBS affiliate WROC-TV before a new agreement restored WLKY's signal. WLKY remains an active local broadcast brand, combining CBS network programming, regional news, weather, sports, syndicated content, and digital distribution.

WLKY signed on September 16, 1961, as a full-time ABC affiliate on UHF channel 32. Its launch addressed a longstanding gap in Louisville television: ABC had previously been available mainly through limited clearances on the market's existing network stations. The station was created by Kentuckiana Television, a locally backed ownership group led by aluminum magnate Archibald Cochran, and initially operated from studios in Shively. The UHF allocation was considered commercially risky because viewers and receivers had historically favored VHF stations, and an earlier Louisville UHF venture, WKLO-TV, had failed after a short operating period. WLKY nevertheless benefited from Louisville's growing market, improving ABC programming, and the federal All-Channel Receiver Act, which required new television sets to receive both VHF and UHF channels. In 1967, Kentuckiana Television sold WLKY to Sonderling Broadcasting. The station moved from Shively to its current Mellwood Avenue facility in 1968. Sonderling later sold its television properties to Combined Communications in 1973. Combined's television operations were absorbed by Gannett in 1979. That same year, WLKY suffered a major operational interruption when lightning struck its transmission facility in February. The station was off the air for three days and arranged temporary carriage on independent station WDRB so that it could continue airing local newscasts and the final two episodes of the ABC miniseries Roots: The Next Generations. Gannett sold WLKY to Pulitzer Publishing in 1983. The transaction was part of Gannett's response to federal ownership restrictions after the company acquired additional stations and exceeded the then-applicable limit. Pulitzer retained WLKY until 1998, when Hearst-Argyle Television purchased Pulitzer's entire broadcasting division. Hearst's marketing and operating support helped strengthen WLKY's position in Louisville. By the early 2000s, the station was competing more effectively with WAVE for second place behind the historically dominant WHAS-TV. The station's most important strategic change occurred in 1990. On September 8, WLKY exchanged affiliations with WHAS-TV, becoming Louisville's CBS affiliate while WHAS took the ABC affiliation. WLKY had generally been a weaker ABC station, while WHAS had long been the market leader. The CBS affiliation gave WLKY access to a stronger schedule in the local market and, especially, to the NCAA men's basketball tournament. College basketball's importance in Kentucky and neighboring states made tournament broadcasts particularly valuable, with regional teams such as Kentucky and Louisville contributing substantial audience interest. Cable and satellite penetration also reduced the historic disadvantage of WLKY's UHF channel position by making the station widely available through low-numbered cable carriage. WLKY's current identity is built around local news, weather, sports, and CBS programming. The station produces multiple daily newscasts and the sports program Sports Saturday. It has also used its digital multicast capacity to extend news coverage and carry MeTV, with Shop LC later added to the over-the-air lineup. In 2008, the station simplified its branding from WLKY NewsChannel 32 to WLKY News and renamed its news helicopter from NewsChopper 32 to the WLKY NewsChopper. Local news began airing in a 16:9 widescreen format in 2010, initially using upconverted standard definition. Distribution negotiations have periodically affected the station's reach. In July 2012, a retransmission-consent dispute with Time Warner Cable led to a temporary blackout, during which WROC-TV substituted for WLKY. Service was restored after the parties reached an agreement on July 19. WLKY has also negotiated carriage with satellite providers, including DirecTV. The station completed the United States digital transition in 2009, ending regular analog programming on channel 32 while retaining digital channel 26 with virtual channel 32. It remains an active Hearst Television station serving Louisville, southern Indiana, and portions of central Kentucky.

1. 2021Adds Shop LC

   Shop LC joins WLKY's over-the-air digital lineup.

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2. 2012Expands digital-subchannel news programming

   WLKY adds extended morning and late-evening news programming to its digital multicast service.

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3. 2011Launches MeTV subchannel

   MeTV begins airing on digital subchannel 32.2.

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4. 2009Completes digital television transition

   WLKY ends regular analog transmission and continues digital service using virtual channel 32.

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5. 2008Adopts WLKY News branding

   The station changes its principal news identity from WLKY NewsChannel 32 to WLKY News.

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6. 1998Acquired by Hearst-Argyle Television

   Hearst-Argyle purchases Pulitzer's broadcasting division, including WLKY.

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7. 1990Changes affiliation from ABC to CBS

   WLKY and WHAS-TV exchange network affiliations, making WLKY the Louisville CBS affiliate.

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8. 1983Sold to Pulitzer Publishing

   Gannett sells WLKY to Pulitzer as part of a station-portfolio restructuring.

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9. 1979Becomes part of Gannett television operations

   Combined Communications merges its television properties with Gannett.

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10. 1973Acquired by Combined Communications

    Sonderling sells WLKY to Combined Communications.

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11. 1968Move to Mellwood Avenue

    WLKY relocates its studios to the Mellwood Avenue site it uses today.

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12. 1967Sale to Sonderling Broadcasting

    Kentuckiana Television sells the station to Sonderling Broadcasting.

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13. 1961WLKY signs on

    WLKY begins broadcasting on September 16 as a full-time ABC affiliate on UHF channel 32.

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Local CBS affiliate and news-centered broadcast station serving the Louisville metropolitan area and the broader Kentuckiana region.

• WLKY NewsLocal news2008

  WLKY's primary local-news brand covers Louisville, southern Indiana, and nearby Kentucky communities through morning, midday, evening, and late-night broadcasts. Coverage includes breaking news, weather, traffic, public affairs, consumer topics, and regional reporting. The brand replaced the station's WLKY NewsChannel 32 identity in 2008.

• Sports SaturdaySports programming

  Sports Saturday is a locally produced weekend sports highlight and discussion program. Its relevance reflects Louisville's position within a college-sports-focused region and the station's broader CBS sports identity.

• CBS network programmingNetwork television1990

  Since 1990, WLKY has carried the CBS schedule for the Louisville market. The affiliation includes entertainment, news, sports, daytime, and special-event programming, with occasional local scheduling adjustments.

• MeTV on channel 32.2Digital multicast television2011

  WLKY's digital subchannel 32.2 carries MeTV, a classic television network. The service expands the station's free over-the-air offering and is also distributed through selected cable systems.

• 2012Resolve Time Warner Cable carriage disputeOther

  Hearst Television and Time Warner Cable disagreed over carriage terms following Time Warner's acquisition of Insight Communications.

  What changed. Time Warner temporarily replaced WLKY with WROC-TV, and the parties reached a new agreement on July 19, restoring WLKY.

  Aftermath. The dispute ended without a reported permanent loss of carriage in the affected system.

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• 2011Launch digital multicast serviceProduct launch

  Digital television enabled local stations to add programming services beyond their primary network channel.

  What changed. WLKY added MeTV to digital subchannel 32.2.

  Aftermath. The station broadened its free over-the-air programming and extended its distribution footprint.

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• 1990Exchange ABC affiliation for CBS affiliationStrategy

  WLKY had generally performed as one of the weaker ABC affiliates in Louisville, while CBS programming and sports rights offered a stronger opportunity. The affiliation exchange with WHAS-TV also occurred as ABC sought stronger local affiliates.

  What changed. WLKY became the market's CBS affiliate on September 8, 1990, while WHAS-TV moved to ABC.

  Aftermath. The change strengthened WLKY's competitive position, particularly through CBS sports programming such as the NCAA men's basketball tournament.

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• 2021WLKY adds Shop LC to its digital lineup

  Shop LC was added through a Hearst multicast arrangement, primarily providing an additional over-the-air service for viewers.

  Product launch
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• 2012Time Warner Cable temporarily removes WLKY

  A retransmission-consent dispute between Hearst Television and Time Warner Cable resulted in WLKY's temporary removal and replacement by WROC-TV. The station returned after the companies reached a new carriage agreement on July 19.

  PricingOther
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• 2012WLKY expands news programming on its digital subchannel

  The station introduced a weekday morning news extension and later a 10 p.m. newscast on its MeTV-associated digital subchannel.

  Product launch
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• 2011WLKY launches MeTV digital subchannel

  The station added MeTV to digital subchannel 32.2, expanding its over-the-air programming lineup.

  Product launch
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• 1998Pulitzer sells broadcasting division to Hearst-Argyle

  Hearst-Argyle Television acquired Pulitzer's broadcasting division, including WLKY. The station subsequently benefited from Hearst's marketing and station operating resources.

  M&A
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• 1990WLKY switches from ABC to CBS

  WLKY and WHAS-TV exchanged network affiliations on September 8. The CBS affiliation improved WLKY's programming profile and gave it local rights to major CBS sports programming, including the NCAA men's basketball tournament.

  Leadership change
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• 1979Lightning strike interrupts WLKY service

  A lightning strike directly hit the station's transmission facility and kept WLKY off the air for three days. The station used airtime on WDRB for local news and selected ABC programming during the interruption.

  Other
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• 1967WLKY changes ownership from Kentuckiana Television to Sonderling Broadcasting

  The local investor-owned station was sold to Sonderling Broadcasting, beginning a succession of ownership changes that later brought it to Hearst.

  M&A
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• 1961WLKY begins broadcasting as Louisville's full-time ABC affiliate

  The station signed on September 16 with a launch program titled Kickoff 32, establishing full-time ABC service in the Louisville market.

  Other
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1. WLKY
2. WLKY official website
3. Hearst Television