KNAZ-TV

Infobox_Broadcast
call_letters = KNAZ-TV
(satellite of KPNX, Mesa, Arizona)
city =
station_
station_slogan = The Leader in HD
station_branding = Channel 12 (general)
12 News (newscasts)
analog = 2 (VHF)
digital = 22 (UHF)
other_chs =
affiliations = NBC
network =
founded =
airdate = May 2, 1970
location = Flagstaff, Arizona
callsign_meaning = Northern AriZona
former_callsigns = KOAI-TV (1970-1981)
former_channel_numbers =
owner = Gannett Company, Inc.
licensee = Multimedia Holdings Corporation
sister_stations =
former_affiliations =
effective_radiated_power = 100 kW (analog)
283 kW (digital)
HAAT = 488 m (analog)
465 m (digital)
class =
facility_id = 24749
coordinates = coord|34|58|7.6|N|111|30|30.6|W|type:landmark
homepage = [http://www.azcentral.com/12news/ 12 News]

KNAZ-TV is a full-power television station serving Flagstaff, Arizona and surrounding areas. It is a satellite station of NBC affiliate KPNX in Phoenix, and is owned by Gannett. KNAZ-TV broadcasts over-the-air in analog on VHF channel 2, in digital HDTV on UHF channel 22, and is carried on the local cable system. It is the only full-power television station in northern Arizona that broadcasts programming from a major English-language television network, but as a full satellite station, it originates no programming.

History

The station was founded by Wendell Elliott, Sr. as KOAI-TVcite web |url=http://svartifoss2.fcc.gov/cgi-bin/ws.exe/prod/cdbs/pubacc/prod/call_hist.pl?Facility_id=24749&Callsign=KNAZ-TV |title=KNAZ callsign history |publisher=Federal Communications Commission |accessdate=2007-03-23] and began operations on May 2 1970. Elliott had managed a television station in Dodge City, Kansas in the 1950s, had founded a station in Ensign, Kansas, and was a founder of the Kansas Association of Broadcasters in 1951.cite web |author=S. Elliott and M. Beaver |url=http://www.kab.net/KABAdditionalInformation/AdditionalDownloads/Downloads_GetFile.aspx?id=4095 |title=History of the Kansas Association of Broadcasters |accessdate=2007-03-19 |format=PDF] Elliott died in 1974, and control of the station passed to a group headed by his son, Wendell Elliott, Jr. Little is known about the early operations of the station, but Northern Arizona University maintains an archive of KOAI-TV material from 1975 and later.cite web |url=http://library.nau.edu/speccoll/manuscripts.htm |title=NAU Cline Library Manuscript Collections Inventory |publisher=Northern Arizona University |accessmonthday=March 19 |accessyear=2007] The group headed by the younger Elliott sold the station to Capitol Broadcasting Company (not related to Raleigh, North Carolina-based Capitol Broadcasting) in January 1981cite web |url=http://svartifoss2.fcc.gov/cgi-bin/ws.exe/prod/cdbs/pubacc/prod/app_det.pl?Application_id=23409 |title=Sale to Capitol Broadcasting |publisher=Federal Communications Commission |accessyear=2007 |accessmonthday=March 23] and shortly afterward, the station adopted the call letters KNAZ-TV, which had been briefly used at what is now KAZT-TV in Prescott.cite web |url=http://svartifoss2.fcc.gov/cgi-bin/ws.exe/prod/cdbs/pubacc/prod/call_hist.pl?Facility_id=35811&Callsign=KAZT-TV |title=KAZT callsign history |publisher=Federal Communications Commission |accessyear=2007 |accessmonthday=March 23] Also in 1981, KNAZ maximized its signal strength to the full 100 kW allowed for a low-band VHF station.cite web |url=http://svartifoss2.fcc.gov/cgi-bin/ws.exe/prod/cdbs/pubacc/prod/comment.pl?Application_id=28743&File_number=BPCT-19810317KH |title=100 kW construction permit |publisher=Federal Communications Commission |accessyear=2007 |accessmonthday=March 23] cite web |url=http://svartifoss2.fcc.gov/cgi-bin/ws.exe/prod/cdbs/pubacc/prod/app_det.pl?Application_id=34969 |title=100 kW license |publisher=Federal Communications Commission |accessyear=2007 |accessmonthday=March 23]

The 1980s and 1990s saw a succession of sales and transfers of control involving KNAZ-TV. In 1984, the station was transferred from Capitol Broadcasting Company to Standard Life Insurance Company, then to Grand Canyon Television in 1988.cite web |url=http://svartifoss2.fcc.gov/cgi-bin/ws.exe/prod/cdbs/pubacc/prod/app_det.pl?Application_id=64834 |title=Sale to Standard Life Insurance |publisher=Federal Communications Commission |accessyear=2007 |accessmonthday=March 23] cite web |url=http://svartifoss2.fcc.gov/cgi-bin/ws.exe/prod/cdbs/pubacc/prod/app_det.pl?Application_id=115557 |title=Sale to Grand Canyon Television |publisher=Federal Communications Commission |accessyear=2007 |accessmonthday=March 23] Grand Canyon Television was placed into receivership in 1991, then transferred to W.A. Franke in 1992.cite web |url=http://svartifoss2.fcc.gov/cgi-bin/ws.exe/prod/cdbs/pubacc/prod/app_det.pl?Application_id=162571 |title=Grand Canyon Television receivership |publisher=Federal Communications Commission |accessyear=2007 |accessmonthday=March 23] cite web |url=http://svartifoss2.fcc.gov/cgi-bin/ws.exe/prod/cdbs/pubacc/prod/app_det.pl?Application_id=171352 |title=Sale to Franke |publisher=Federal Communications Commission |accessyear=2007 |accessmonthday=March 23] Finally, in May 1997, Multimedia, Inc., a subsidiary of Gannett, acquired KNAZ-TV from Grand Canyon Television, along with KMOH-TV of Kingman.cite news |url=http://www.bizjournals.com/phoenix/stories/1997/05/26/daily1.html |title=Gannett acquires Arizona stations |work=The Business Journal of Phoenix |date=1997-05-27 |accessdate=2007-03-23] Already an NBC affiliate, KNAZ was made a partial satellite station of KPNX.

In the late 1980s, the station produced three newscasts a day at 5:00 (branded as "News at Five"), 6:00 and 10:00 (branded as "News Tonite"), as well as "Northland Outlook," a local community affairs talk show and "From the Bleachers," a Sunday evening sports wrap-up show featuring local high school and college sports. Shortly after the station was placed into receivership, all in-house production was cancelled.

In December 2005, Gannett announced its intention to sell KNAZ, but as of September 2008, no suitable buyer had surfaced.cite news |author=R. Cordova |url=http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/arizonaliving/articles/1210media1210.html |title=Flagstaff station for sale |work=The Arizona Republic |date=2005-12-10 |accessdate=2007-03-19] . KNAZ ceased production of local newscasts and became a full satellite of KPNX on August 15, 2008, citing inadequate advertising revenues and a lack of satellite carriage as factors in the decision. A Flagstaff bureau was established to cover Northern Arizona news. [cite web |url=http://www.azcentral.com/phpAPP/multimedia/flash.php?path=rtmp://azcentral.com%2Fknaz%2F080608knazclose |title=End of KNAZ newscasts announced (Flash video) |work=12News website |date=2008-08-06 |accessdate=2008-08-07]

Programming

As a satellite station, KNAZ-TV rebroadcasts all primary network programming of KPNX, but does not offer NBC Weather Plus or any other service as a digital subchannel. Its only digital signal is a simulcast of the analog programming. [cite web |url=http://tvlistings.zap2it.com/tvlistings/ZCGrid.do?method=decideFwdForLineup&zipcode=86003&setMyPreference=false&lineupId=PC:86003 |title=KNAZ-TV Listings |work=Zap2It.com |accessdate=2007-09-15]

Before becoming a full satellite, the station had simulcast the 6:00 AM, 4:30 PM, and 5:00 PM weekday news and all of the weekend news from KPNX, and broadcast the same network and syndicated programming as KPNX, but aired its own local commercials, retained a separate news staff and produced its own weekday newscasts at 6:30 AM, 6:00 PM, and 10:00 PM. KNAZ had produced its own weekend news, but ended it as part of cost-cutting intended to make the station more attractive to a buyer.cite news |author=J. Ferguson |url=http://www.azdailysun.com/articles/2006/09/03/news/business/20060903_business_pulse_12.txt |title=Gannett Scales Back |work=The Arizona Daily Sun |date=2006-09-03 |accessdate=2007-03-23] There was significant cooperation and sharing of news staff among KNAZ and KPNX. Often, KNAZ acted as a Northern Arizona news bureau for KPNX, as KNAZ reporters would also file reports for KPNX using their logo. Some KPNX personnel, especially those in weather and sports, also filed reports for KNAZ, and KNAZ staff often filled in for KPNX staff when they were absent.

Digital television

In its DTV allotment plan of April 3 1997, the FCC assigned channel 22 for KNAZ-DT, and on February 22 2001, granted to Gannett a construction permit to build the digital facilities. [cite web |url=http://www.fcc.gov/Bureaus/Engineering_Technology/Orders/1997/fc97115a.pdf |title=DTV Table of Allotments] |publisher=Federal Communications Commission |work=FCC Sixth Report and Order, Appendix B |date=1997-04-03 |accessdate=2007-03-19 |format=PDF] [cite web |url=http://svartifoss2.fcc.gov/cgi-bin/ws.exe/prod/cdbs/pubacc/prod/app_det.pl?Application_id=420640 |title=DTV construction permit |publisher=Federal Communications Commission |accessdate=2007-03-23] KNAZ-DT went on air at reduced power after receiving a Special Temporary Authorization (STA), and after several extensions of the STA and a modification to the construction permit, applied for a license to cover their full-power DTV facilities on January 27 2007. The station was granted a license May 22 2007.

The DTV transition plan allowed a station to elect to use either its analog channel or its transitional DTV channel for use after the end of the transition period, February 17 2009, if both channels were within the core television frequencies, channels 2 - 51. Well-known problems with interference on low-VHF (channels 2 - 6) DTV stations made it likely that KNAZ would elect to remain on its transitional channel, 22, but the station elected to go back to its analog channel instead, making it one of a very small number of stations to choose a low-VHF channel for its final DTV facilities. Those plans were altered in 2008, when storms so badly damaged KNAZ's antenna, it was rendered unsuited for DTV broadcast. KNAZ was forced to file a docket with the FCC requesting to remain on channel 22 as its DTV channel. [cite web |url=http://fjallfoss.fcc.gov/prod/ecfs/retrieve.cgi?native_or_pdf=pdf&id_document=6520031592 |title=Petition for Rulemaking |work=FCC ECFS database |date=2008-06-20 |accessdate=2008-09-12]

Notable former news personalities

*Steve Bunin -- former sports director/anchor (1997-2000). Now sports anchor at ESPN.
*Dina Ruiz Eastwood -- former anchor/reporter and one-time co-host of Candid Camera. Currently married to director Clint Eastwood.
*Emme Aronson -- former reporter/morning anchor and current plus size model

References

External links

* [http://www.azcentral.com/12news/ KPNX website]
* [http://www.azcentral.com/2news/ Former KNAZ website]
*TVQ|KNAZ
*BIA|KNAZ|TV|TV
*TitanTV|KNAZ