Branding K2TV
KTWO News Translators see below | Slogan Wyoming's News Leader | |
Channels Digital: 17 (UHF)
Virtual: 2 (PSIP) Affiliations ABC (1978–1984, 2004–present; secondary, 1957–1978) Owner Silverton Broadcasting Company, LLC | ||
KTWO-TV is the ABC affiliate television station for most of the state of Wyoming. It is licensed to Casper, owned by Silverton Broadcasting. The station broadcasts on digital channel 17, which redirects to former analog channel 2 via PSIP. It is also available on channels 6 on Charter Cable in Casper, as well as on the digital subcarrier of Cheyenne Fox affiliate KLWY and a network of UHF and VHF translators across the state. It had also been available on a free-to-air satellite uplink (as with all of Equity's stations, hubbed out of Little Rock, Arkansas and sent to the transmitter via FTA satellite) until Equity went bankrupt and the satellite was sold.
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History
KTWO signed on the air on March 1, 1957 as Wyoming's second television station. It was owned by Harriscope Broadcasting with Wyoming's oldest radio station, KTWO (1030 AM). As the only station in Casper, it aired programming from all three major networks, but was a primary CBS affiliate owing to its radio sister's long affiliation with CBS Radio. In 1978, KTWO-TV became a primary ABC affiliate; this was around the same time that ABC became the nation's highest rated network. In 1980, the CBS affiliation went to KGWC-TV, and KTWO became an ABC affiliate with a secondary NBC affiliation. In 1984, KFNB (now a satellite of KLWY) began carrying ABC, leaving KTWO with NBC. Harriscope Broadcasting sold KTWO along with sister station KULR-TV in Billings, Montana to Dix Communications in 1986. On August 28, 1987, KKTU signed on channel 33 as KTWO's satellite station in Cheyenne. In 1994, Dix sold KTWO and KAAL-TV in Austin, Minnesota to Eastern Broadcasting. For a time starting in 1995, KTWO and KKTU had a secondary affiliation with The WB. Eastern sold KTWO along with two of its stations (KAAL-TV in Austin, Minnesota and KODE-TV in Joplin, Missouri) to Grapevine Communications in 1997. Equity Broadcasting bought the station in March 2001.
In July 2005, KTWO was added to the Dish Network line up of channels for customers in the Casper/Riverton designated market area. On January 1, 2012 KTWO as well as the Casper/Riverton DMA FOX-KFNB and CBS-KGWC stations were dropped from the Dish Network Local into Local feed after failing to come to an agreement on a new contract. Dish claimed Wyo-Media asked for far more than fair market rates and that Wyo-Media is making a Monopoly against Dish, Wyo-Media claimed Dish refused to pay 1% of an average Dish bill for re-transmission rights. The signals were restored by Dish Network on May 1, 2012. KCWY-DT the NBC affiliate and PBS were unaffected by this dispute.
From inception, KTWO's programming originated from a studio on East Second Street in Casper. Its lone presence on the east side of Casper continued for many years until major retail development occurred in the early 1980s. Its present location shares operations with KFNB, KWYF, and KGWC on Skyview Drive.
Affiliation transition from NBC to ABC
On September 1, 2003, NBC moved its affiliation from KTWO to KCWY. KTWO was planning on becoming an ABC affiliate before a change of ownership, but it had to wait until ABC's affiliation with KFNB expired in June 2004. During the interim period, KTWO operated as an independent station, but carried programming from Pax TV (now ION Television).
KKTU', the Cheyenne satellite of KTWO, immediately switched from NBC to ABC and began branding itself as "ABC 8", after its position on the Cheyenne cable system. After reaching an agreement with KTWO, KFNB agreed to end its ABC affiliation early. In March 2004, KTWO officially became an ABC affiliate, KFNB obtained the Fox affiliation from K26ES and K26ES became an affiliate of UPN. KKTU changed its call sign to KDEV in 2005.
On May 31, 2006, KTWO was sold by Equity Broadcasting Company to Silverton Media, headed by Barry Silverton. Equity retained ownership of KDEV and allowed KTWO to continue to operate it.
KTWO later moved its ABC programming in Cheyenne to a low-powered repeater, KKTU-LP channel 40, after KDEV dropped ABC in favor of programming from RTN. On June 24, 2008, KKTU-LP changed its call letters to KDEV-LP, after KDEV changed its call sign to KQCK.
In September 2009, KDEV dropped all ABC programming, and KTWO-TV was picked up on KLWY's digital subcarrier in early September, 2010.