Mission Broadcasting

Last updated

Mission Broadcasting, Inc.
Company type Private
Industry Broadcasting
Founded1996;28 years ago (1996) [1]
FounderDavid S. Smith
Headquarters
Wichita Falls, Texas
,
U.S. [2]
Key people
Revenue$51.9 million[ when? ]
Number of employees
39
Website missionbroadcastinginc.com

Mission Broadcasting, Inc. is a television station group that owns 29 full-power television stations in 26 markets in the United States. The group's chair is Nancie Smith, the widow of David S. Smith, who founded the company in 1996 [3] and died in 2011. All but one of Mission's stations are located in markets where Nexstar Media Group also owns a station, and all of Mission's stations (including its lone stand-alone station) are managed by Nexstar through shared services and local marketing agreements —effectively creating duopolies between the top two stations in a market or in markets with too few stations or unique station owners to legally allow duopolies. [4] The company moved its headquarters from Westlake, Ohio, to Wichita Falls, Texas, in 2018. The company's stations are based in markets as large as New York City and as small as Grand Junction, Colorado.

Contents

History

In 1996, Mission Broadcasting was started with its first stations were WUPN in Greensboro and WUXP in Nashville. Both of these were owned by ABRY shareholders, and operated through an SSA by Sullivan Broadcasting, a company affiliated with ABRY Broadcast Partners, which was absorbed into Sinclair Broadcast Group in 1998. [5] In 2001, Sinclair bought these two stations outright. [6] Another related ABRY-affiliated company Bastet Broadcasting, was absorbed into Mission Broadcasting by 2002. [7]

On December 19, 2013, Mission Broadcasting announced it was acquiring KFQX, a Fox affiliate in Grand Junction, Colorado, for $4 million. [8] The sale was approved on February 27, 2017 [9] and finalized on March 31. [10]

During 2020, Mission acquired several more television stations, starting that March with Fox affiliates KMSS-TV in Shreveport, Louisiana, KPEJ-TV in Odessa, Texas, and KLJB in Davenport, Iowa, from Marshall Broadcasting Group for $49 million. [11] The sale was completed on September 1, 2020. [12]

They were followed up on July 13 by Nexstar transferring its option to purchase WPIX in New York City, a CW affiliate from The E. W. Scripps Company to Mission Broadcasting. Mission exercised the option and announced it was acquiring WPIX for $75 million. Once the transaction closed on December 30, WPIX became Mission's first station in a market without an accompanied Nexstar station, as an outright acquisition of WPIX (which broadcasts on virtual and VHF digital channel 11, and is thus not eligible for a UHF discount) by Nexstar would have caused Nexstar to well exceed the 39 percent market reach cap. [13] [14]

Then that August alone, Mission announced the acquisition of five more stations. On August 7, Mission announced the purchases of CW affiliate KWBQ in Santa Fe, New Mexico, and its satellites and its MyNetworkTV sister KASY-TV in Albuquerque from Tamer Media LLC. [15] This was followed up by acquisitions of dual ABC and CW+ affiliate WLAJ in Lansing, Michigan, and Fox affiliate WXXA-TV in Albany, New York, from Shield Media. [16] These sales were finalized and completed in November of that year. [17] [18] [19]

Then on August 31, it was announced that Nexstar executed an option to purchase dual Fox and CW affiliate WNAC-TV in Providence, Rhode Island, for $64,000. The option had been in place since 2003 when LIN TV owned sister station, then and now CBS affiliate WPRI-TV with Nexstar assigning the WNAC license to Mission. [20] The sale was completed on June 16, 2021. [21]

On May 17, 2023, Mission announced a deal to acquire MyNetworkTV affiliate WADL in Detroit (licensed to Mount Clemens) from founder Adell Broadcasting for $75 million. [22] Mission will once again contract with Nexstar to operate the station much like Mission's other stations, [23] effectively ending 34 years of local ownership. If approved and finalized, WADL would be the 30th station in Mission's portfolio and only its second station in Michigan alongside affiliate WLAJ [24] and only the second station without a companion Nexstar station alongside WPIX. The sale was called off on May 22, 2024, after Mission filed a non-consummation notice with the FCC. [25] [26]

On March 21, 2024, the FCC ruled Mission's ownership of WPIX to be an illegal circumvention of its ownership limits, due to Nexstar treating the station like its own, and ordered Nexstar to either sell it to an independent third party or sell off some of its other stations to buy WPIX outright. The decision came as local marketing agreements and similar licensing deals came under increased scrutiny by the FCC. Nexstar stated its intent to dispute the ruling, claiming that it had always complied with FCC regulations. [27]

Television stations

Stations are arranged alphabetically by state and by city of license.

City of license / Market Station
  • Owned
  • since
Current affiliationNexstar sister station(s)
Little Rock, Arkansas KLRT-TV 16 (30)2013
KASN 38 (34)2013The CW
Grand Junction, Colorado KFQX 4 (15)2017
Rockford, Illinois WTVO 17 (16)2004 WQRF-TV
Evansville, Indiana WTVW 7 (22)2011The CW WEHT
Terre Haute, Indiana WAWV-TV 38 (18)2003ABC WTWO
Davenport, Iowa KLJB 18 (30)2020Fox
Monroe, Louisiana–El Dorado, Arkansas KTVE 10 (27)2007
 KARD
Shreveport, Louisiana KMSS-TV 33 (34)2020Fox
Lansing, Michigan WLAJ 53 (25)2020
  • ABC
  • The CW
 WLNS-TV
Joplin, Missouri–Pittsburg, Kansas KODE-TV 12 (23)2002ABC KSNF
Springfield–Branson, Missouri KOLR 10 (10)2003 CBS
Hardin–Billings, Montana KHMT 4 (22)2004Fox KSVI
Albuquerque–Santa Fe, New Mexico KWBQ 19 (29)2020The CW KRQE
KASY-TV 50 (36)2020MyNetworkTV
Roswell, New Mexico KRWB-TV [lower-alpha 1] 21 (21)2020The CW
Albany, New York WXXA-TV 23 (7)2020Fox WTEN
New York City, New York WPIX 11 (11)2020The CWNone
Utica–Rome, New York WUTR 20 (30)2004
  • ABC
  • MyNetworkTV
Erie, Pennsylvania WFXP 66 (26)1998Fox WJET-TV
Wilkes-Barre–Scranton, Pennsylvania WYOU 22 (13)1998CBS WBRE-TV
Providence, Rhode Island WNAC-TV 64 (12)2021Fox WPRI-TV
Abilene–Sweetwater, Texas KRBC-TV 9 (29)2003NBC KTAB-TV
Amarillo, Texas KCIT 14 (15)1999Fox KAMR-TV
Lubbock, Texas KAMC 28 (27)2003ABC KLBK-TV
Odessa–Midland, Texas KPEJ-TV 24 (23)2020Fox KMID
San Angelo, Texas KSAN-TV 3 (16)2003NBC KLST
Wichita Falls, Texas–Lawton, Oklahoma KJTL 18 (15)1999Fox KFDX-TV
Burlington, Vermont–Plattsburgh, New York WVNY 22 (13)2013ABC WFFF-TV
  1. ↑ Satellite of KWBQ.

Former stations

City of license / Market Station
  • Years
  • owned
Current status
Greensboro–Winston-Salem–High Point, North Carolina WUPN-TV48 (28)1996–2001 MyNetworkTV affiliate WMYV, owned by Sinclair Broadcast Group
Nashville, Tennessee WUXP-TV 30 (21)1996–2001MyNetworkTV affiliate owned by Sinclair Broadcast Group
Amarillo, Texas KCPN-LD 33 (33)1999–2021MyNetworkTV affiliate owned by Nexstar Media Group
Harlingen–Brownsville, Texas KGBT-TV 4 (18)2021 MyNetworkTV/Antenna TV affiliate owned by Nexstar Media Group
Wichita Falls, Texas KJBO-LD 35 (35)1999–2021MyNetworkTV affiliate owned by Nexstar Media Group

See also

Related Research Articles

In North American broadcasting, a local marketing agreement (LMA), or local management agreement, is a contract in which one company agrees to operate a radio or television station owned by another party. In essence, it is a sort of lease or time-buy.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">KXNW</span> MyNetworkTV affiliate in Eureka Springs, Arkansas

KXNW is a television station licensed to Eureka Springs, Arkansas, United States, serving Northwest Arkansas and the Arkansas River Valley as an affiliate of MyNetworkTV. The station is owned by Nexstar Media Group alongside Rogers-licensed NBC affiliate KNWA-TV and Fort Smith–licensed Fox affiliate KFTA-TV. The three stations share studios on Dickson Street in downtown Fayetteville, with a satellite studio in Rogers and a news bureau and sales office on Kelley Highway in Fort Smith. KXNW's transmitter is located on Humphrey Mountain near Garfield.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nexstar Media Group</span> American media company

Nexstar Media Group, Inc. is an American publicly traded media company with headquarters in Irving, Texas, Midtown Manhattan, and Chicago. The company is the largest television station owner in the United States, owning 197 television stations across the U.S., most of which are affiliated with the four "major" U.S. television networks and MyNetworkTV in markets as large as New York City and as small as San Angelo, Texas. It also operates all of the stations owned by affiliated companies, such as Mission Broadcasting and Vaughan Media, under local marketing agreements to satisfy existing regulations set in place by the Federal Communications Commission. In addition, Nexstar owns one radio station, WGN in Chicago, and operates major TV network the CW through a 75-percent majority stake where all CW affiliates are directly owned-and-operated stations (O&O), two terrestrial television networks airing classic shows, Antenna TV and Rewind TV, one FAST streaming channel airing sports programming, SportsGrid, and has full or partial ownership stakes in three pay television networks.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">KMID (TV)</span> ABC affiliate in Midland, Texas

KMID is a television station licensed to Midland, Texas, United States, serving as the ABC affiliate for the Permian Basin area. It is owned by Nexstar Media Group, which provides certain services to Odessa-licensed Fox affiliate KPEJ-TV under a shared services agreement (SSA) with Mission Broadcasting. The two stations share studios on Windview Street in southwestern Odessa; KMID's transmitter is located on FM 1788 in rural southeastern Andrews County.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">KWBQ</span> CW TV station in Santa Fe, New Mexico

KWBQ is a television station licensed to Santa Fe, New Mexico, United States, serving the Albuquerque area as a de facto owned-and-operated station of The CW. The station's transmitter is located atop Sandia Crest. KWBQ is owned by Mission Broadcasting alongside MyNetworkTV affiliate KASY-TV. The two stations share studios with dual CBS/Fox affiliate KRQE on Broadcast Plaza in Albuquerque. Nexstar Media Group, which owns KRQE and holds a majority stake in The CW, provides master control, technical, engineering and accounting services for KWBQ and KASY-TV through a shared services agreement (SSA), though the two stations are otherwise operated separately from KRQE as Mission handles programming, advertising sales and retransmission consent negotiations.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">KASY-TV</span> MyNetworkTV affiliate in Albuquerque, New Mexico

KASY-TV is a television station in Albuquerque, New Mexico, United States, affiliated with MyNetworkTV. It is owned by Mission Broadcasting alongside Santa Fe–licensed CW outlet KWBQ and its Roswell-based satellite, KRWB-TV. The two stations share studios with dual CBS/Fox affiliate KRQE on Broadcast Plaza in Albuquerque; KASY-TV's transmitter is located atop Sandia Crest.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WFFF-TV</span> Fox affiliate in Burlington, Vermont

WFFF-TV is a television station licensed to Burlington, Vermont, United States, serving as the Fox affiliate for the Burlington, Vermont–Plattsburgh, New York market. It is owned by Nexstar Media Group, which provides certain services to ABC affiliate WVNY under a shared services agreement (SSA) with Mission Broadcasting. The two stations share studios on Mountain View Drive in Colchester, Vermont; WFFF-TV's transmitter is located on Vermont's highest peak, Mount Mansfield.

WLWC is a television station licensed to New Bedford, Massachusetts, United States, serving the Providence, Rhode Island, area as an affiliate of Court TV. Owned by Inyo Broadcast Holdings, the station shares transmitter facilities with former sister WPXQ-TV on Champlin Hill in Ashaway, Rhode Island.

WYZZ-TV is a television station licensed to Bloomington, Illinois, United States, serving as the Fox affiliate for the Peoria area. It is owned by Cunningham Broadcasting, which maintains a local marketing agreement (LMA) with Nexstar Media Group, owner of CBS affiliate WMBD-TV, for the provision of certain services. The two stations share studios on North University Street in Peoria, with a secondary studio and news bureau on East Lincoln Street in Bloomington. WYZZ-TV's transmitter is located near Congerville, a village of Montgomery Township, Woodford County.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WLAJ</span> ABC/CW affiliate in Lansing, Michigan

WLAJ is a television station in Lansing, Michigan, United States, affiliated with ABC and The CW Plus. It is owned by Mission Broadcasting, which maintains a shared services agreement (SSA) with Nexstar Media Group, owner of CBS affiliate WLNS-TV, for the provision of certain services. WLAJ and WLNS-TV share studios on East Saginaw Street in Lansing's Eastside section; through a channel sharing agreement, the stations transmit using WLAJ's spectrum from a tower on Van Atta Road in Okemos, Michigan. There is no separate website for WLAJ; instead, it is integrated with that of sister station WLNS-TV.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">KSHV-TV</span> MyNetworkTV affiliate in Shreveport, Louisiana

KSHV-TV is a television station in Shreveport, Louisiana, United States, affiliated with MyNetworkTV. It is owned by Nexstar Media Group alongside Texarkana, Texas–licensed NBC affiliate KTAL-TV ; Nexstar also provides certain services to Fox affiliate KMSS-TV under a shared services agreement (SSA) with Mission Broadcasting. The stations share studios on North Market Street and Deer Park Road in northeast Shreveport, while KSHV-TV's transmitter is located southeast of Mooringsport.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WADL (TV)</span> MyNetworkTV affiliate in Mount Clemens, Michigan

WADL is a television station licensed to Mount Clemens, Michigan, United States, serving the Detroit area as an affiliate of MyNetworkTV. Locally owned by the Adell Broadcasting Corporation, the station maintains studios and transmitter facilities on Adell Drive in Clinton Township.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WVTX-CD</span> TV station in Bridgeport, Ohio (1998–2017)

WVTX-CD was a low-power, Class A television station licensed to Bridgeport, Ohio, United States, serving the Wheeling, West Virginia–Steubenville, Ohio market. WVTX-CD, along with its transmission facilities, were owned by OTA Broadcasting, LLC, a company owned by Michael Dell's MSD Capital, which also owned 11 other Class A television stations. WTRF's owner, Nexstar Media Group, programmed WVTX under a time brokerage agreement.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WHDF</span> CW TV station in Florence, Alabama

WHDF is a television station licensed to Florence, Alabama, United States, serving as the CW outlet for the Huntsville area. It is owned and operated by network majority owner Nexstar Media Group alongside CBS affiliate WHNT-TV. The two stations share studios on Holmes Avenue Northwest in downtown Huntsville; WHDF's transmitter is located southeast of Minor Hill, Tennessee.

Lockwood Broadcast Group is a television broadcasting company that owns stations in several markets.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">KZUP-CD</span> Independent TV station in Baton Rouge, Louisiana

KZUP-CD is a low-power, Class A independent television station in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, United States. It is owned by Nexstar Media Group alongside Fox affiliate WGMB-TV and CW owned-and-operated station WBRL-CD ; Nexstar also provides certain services to NBC affiliate WVLA-TV under joint sales and shared services agreements (JSA/SSA) with owner White Knight Broadcasting. The four stations share studios on Perkins Road in Baton Rouge; KZUP-CD's transmitter is located near Addis, Louisiana.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">KPEJ-TV</span> Fox affiliate in Odessa, Texas

KPEJ-TV is a television station licensed to Odessa, Texas, United States, serving as the Fox affiliate for the Permian Basin area. It is owned by Mission Broadcasting, which maintains a shared services agreement (SSA) with Nexstar Media Group, owner of Midland-licensed ABC affiliate KMID, for the provision of certain services. The two stations share studios on Windview Street in southwestern Odessa; KPEJ-TV's transmitter is located on FM 1788 in rural southeastern Andrews County.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cunningham Broadcasting</span> American media company

Cunningham Broadcasting Corporation is an owner of broadcast television stations in the United States. The company currently owns fifteen stations – eight affiliated with Fox, three affiliated with The CW, two affiliated with ABC, and two affiliated with MyNetworkTV.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">KTPN-LD</span> MyNetworkTV affiliate in Tyler, Texas

KTPN-LD is a low-power television station licensed to Tyler, Texas, United States, affiliated with MyNetworkTV. It is owned by Nexstar Media Group alongside Jacksonville-licensed NBC affiliate KETK-TV ; Nexstar also provides certain services to Longview-licensed Fox affiliate KFXK-TV under a shared services agreement (SSA) with White Knight Broadcasting. The stations share studios on Richmond Road in Tyler, while KTPN-LD's transmitter is located west of Texas Loop 323 northeast of the city.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Deerfield Media</span> American television broadcast company

Deerfield Media, Inc. is a broadcasting company and a shell corporation owned and operated by Stephen P. Mumblow. It was established on December 1, 2012, by the acquisition of several television stations connected to the Sinclair Broadcast Group. Most of its stations are part of duopolies with another Sinclair-owned station, and are operated under local marketing agreements or similar by Sinclair.

References

  1. ↑ "Mission Broadcasting, Inc". missionbroadcastinginc.com.
  2. ↑ "Contact – Mission Broadcasting, Inc".
  3. ↑ "Yahoo Finance - Stock Market Live, Quotes, Business & Finance News". finance.yahoo.com. Archived from the original on August 8, 2007.
  4. ↑ "Virtual Duopolies Coming Under Fire". TVNewsCheck. June 9, 2010. Archived from the original on October 10, 2018. Retrieved May 30, 2012.
  5. ↑ "FCC Report: Sullivan Broadcasting". www.sec.gov. March 26, 1997.
  6. ↑ Schneider, Michael (November 18, 1999). "Sinclair files for duopolies". Variety. Retrieved December 9, 2021.
  7. ↑ "NEXSTAR BROADCASTING GROUP INC (Form: S-1/A, Received: 12/23/2002 08:05:42)". content.edgar-online.com. May 19, 1998. Retrieved December 9, 2021.
  8. ↑ Television Inc, Gray (December 19, 2013). "Gray To Divest Certain Hoak Markets To Nexstar". www.prnewswire.com. Retrieved February 28, 2024.
  9. ↑ Notice Archived February 28, 2017, at the Wayback Machine . CDBS Public Access, Federal Communications Commission, February 27, 2017, Retrieved February 28, 2017.
  10. ↑ "Consummation Notice, CDBS Public Access, Federal Communications Commission" . www.licensing.fcc.gov. Retrieved April 3, 2017.
  11. ↑ Aftab, Hassan (April 6, 2020). "Mission Broadcasting to buy certain assets of Marshall Broadcasting TV stations". S&P Global Market Intelligence. Retrieved July 22, 2020.
  12. ↑ "Consummation Notice", CDBS Public Access, Federal Communications Commission, September 7, 2020, Retrieved September 10, 2020.
  13. ↑ Gubagaras, Mark Anthony (July 13, 2020). "Mission Broadcasting to acquire The CW affiliate WPIX". S&P Global Market Intelligence. Retrieved July 22, 2020.
  14. ↑ McCarter, Rebecca (December 30, 2020). "Scripps completes sale of WPIX". Scripps. Retrieved February 28, 2024.
  15. ↑ Jacobson, Adam (August 18, 2020). "Mission Accomplished: A Nexstar Shared Services Partner Shift In Albuquerque". Radio & Television Business Report. Retrieved September 13, 2020.
  16. ↑ Jacobson, Adam (August 21, 2020). "Mission Consolidation Continues With Michigan, N.Y. Moves". Radio & Television Business Report. Retrieved September 13, 2020.
  17. ↑ "Consummation Notice". CDBS Public Access, Federal Communications Commission, November 17, 2020, Retrieved November 17, 2020.
  18. ↑ "Consummation Notice" (WLAJ), CDBS Public Access, Federal Communications Commission, November 25, 2020, Retrieved November 25, 2020.
  19. ↑ "Consummation Notice" (WXXA) [ permanent dead link ], CDBS Public Access, Federal Communications Commission, November 25, 2020, Retrieved November 25, 2020.
  20. ↑ Jacobson, Adam (August 31, 2020). "The Mission Consolidation Train Rolls Into Rhode Island". Radio & Television Business Report. Retrieved September 13, 2020.
  21. ↑ "Consummation Notice", CDBS Public Access, Federal Communications Commission, June 18, 2021, Retrieved June 21, 2021.
  22. ↑ "Assignments". Licensing and Management System. Federal Communications Commission. May 17, 2023. Retrieved May 17, 2023.
  23. ↑ Form of Station Services Agreement
  24. ↑ TVNewsCheck Staff (May 18, 2023). "Mission Broadcasting Buying WADL Detroit". TV News Check. Retrieved May 19, 2023.
  25. ↑ "Non-Consummation Notification". Licensing and Management System. Federal Communications Commission. May 22, 2024. Retrieved May 22, 2024.
  26. ↑ Keys, Matthew (May 22, 2024). "Mission Broadcasting terminates deal to acquire Detroit's WADL". TheDesk.net. Retrieved May 23, 2024.
  27. ↑ Hayes, Dade (March 21, 2024). "Nexstar Fined $1.2M By FCC & Could Lose Control Of CW Flagship WPIX-TV In New York; Company Vows To Fight Ruling "Vigorously"". Deadline Hollywood . Retrieved March 22, 2024.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.