KEVN-TV
Encyclopedia
KEVN-TV, channel 7, is a Fox
television station affiliate based in Rapid City, South Dakota
. It also operates a satellite in Lead, South Dakota
, KIVV-TV (channel 5), which can also be seen over the air in Rapid City. Both stations are owned by Mission TV (an independent private company led by California attorney William Reyner, unrelated to the holding company of the same name
that is controlled by Nexstar Broadcasting Group
). KEVN's transmitter is located in Rapid City.
KEVN's current slogan is "Real People. Real News."
KEVN arose out of the Federal Communications Commission
's (FCC) concern over duplication of CBS
service in the Scottsbluff, Nebraska
area, which is considered part of the Cheyenne, Wyoming
market. KOTA-TV
operates a satellite station in Scottsbluff, KDUH. Cheyenne's KYCU-TV (now KGWN-TV
) had its own satellite in Scottsbluff, KSTF. Both KYCU/KSTF and KOTA/KDUH held unusual "joint primary" affiliation with both ABC and CBS; KYCU/KSTF slightly favored ABC, while KOTA/KDUH slightly favored CBS. Needless to say, this was causing a lot of confusion in Scottsbluff, especially when both satellites were carrying the same CBS program and the only other choice non-cable viewers had was KTNE-TV
on the Nebraska ETV network.
So when the FCC awarded the license to KEVN, the intention was to end the duplication problem and to lighten KOTA/KDUH's network load. KEVN started operations on July 11, 1976, as did KIVV. Both were primary CBS affiliates that also carried secondary affiliations with NBC, which had been without a station in Rapid City since KRSD left the air.
In 1988, KELO-TV
in Sioux Falls signed on a Rapid City satellite, KCLO-TV, which took the CBS affiliation. KEVN then became a sole NBC affiliate. In July 1996, KEVN dropped NBC to join Fox, leaving the Black Hills region with no full-power NBC affiliate until KNBN
signed on in 2000. During that period, KUSA-TV
in Denver was piped in on cable. The station was known as "KEVN Fox 7" in its first 11 years as a Fox affiliate, becoming "Black Hills FOX" in early 2007. This rebranding removed the channel number from KEVN's identity.
KEVN and KIVV are among a handful of stations that still sign-off
, doing so at 2:00 each morning.
transmitter was not yet operating at full power due to financial problems; in submissions to the FCC the station's owners indicated that KEVN-DT Rapid City was the subject of a current bankruptcy proceeding and to expend the funds necessary to complete construction of its full power DTV facility "could be fatal." The station asked to defer further DTV construction until the end of the DTV transition.
SkyView Forecast Team
Sports Team
Reporters
Fox Broadcasting Company
Fox Broadcasting Company, commonly referred to as Fox Network or simply Fox , is an American commercial broadcasting television network owned by Fox Entertainment Group, part of Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation. Launched on October 9, 1986, Fox was the highest-rated broadcast network in the...
television station affiliate based in Rapid City, South Dakota
Rapid City, South Dakota
Rapid City is the second-largest city in the U.S. state of South Dakota, and the county seat of Pennington County. Named after Rapid Creek on which the city is established, it is set against the eastern slope of the Black Hills mountain range. The population was 67,956 as of the 2010 Census. Rapid...
. It also operates a satellite in Lead, South Dakota
Lead, South Dakota
Lead is a city in Lawrence County, South Dakota, United States. The population was 3,124 at the 2010 census. Lead is located in western South Dakota, in the Black Hills near the Wyoming state line.-History:...
, KIVV-TV (channel 5), which can also be seen over the air in Rapid City. Both stations are owned by Mission TV (an independent private company led by California attorney William Reyner, unrelated to the holding company of the same name
Mission Broadcasting
Mission Broadcasting, Inc. is a television station group that owns 15 television stations operated by Nexstar Broadcasting. The group's president is David S. Smith, who founded the company in 1998. In most areas where Mission owns a station, its arrangements allow Nexstar to control two of the top...
that is controlled by Nexstar Broadcasting Group
Nexstar Broadcasting Group
Nexstar Broadcasting Group, Inc., is an entity of broadcast television stations headquartered in Irving, Texas. The company consists of 50 television stations across the U.S., ranging from market sizes 9 to 201 . 43 of the stations are broadcasting at full power, with the other 4 broadcasting at...
). KEVN's transmitter is located in Rapid City.
KEVN's current slogan is "Real People. Real News."
History
Channel 7 in Rapid City was originally the home of KRSD-TV, which was not associated in any way with KEVN. KRSD operated from 1958 until 1971.KEVN arose out of the Federal Communications Commission
Federal Communications Commission
The Federal Communications Commission is an independent agency of the United States government, created, Congressional statute , and with the majority of its commissioners appointed by the current President. The FCC works towards six goals in the areas of broadband, competition, the spectrum, the...
's (FCC) concern over duplication of CBS
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
service in the Scottsbluff, Nebraska
Scottsbluff, Nebraska
Scottsbluff is a city in Scotts Bluff County, Nebraska, United States. The population was 15,039 at the 2010 census. Scottsbluff is the largest city in the Nebraska Panhandle, and the 13th largest city in Nebraska....
area, which is considered part of the Cheyenne, Wyoming
Cheyenne, Wyoming
Cheyenne is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Wyoming and the county seat of Laramie County. It is the principal city of the Cheyenne, Wyoming, Metropolitan Statistical Area which encompasses all of Laramie County. The population is 59,466 at the 2010 census. Cheyenne is the...
market. KOTA-TV
KOTA-TV
KOTA-TV, channel 3, is an ABC television affiliate based in Rapid City, South Dakota, USA. The station is owned by the Duhamel family of Rapid City...
operates a satellite station in Scottsbluff, KDUH. Cheyenne's KYCU-TV (now KGWN-TV
KGWN-TV
KGWN-TV is the CBS-affiliated television station for Cheyenne, Wyoming. It broadcasts a high definition digital signal on UHF channel 30 from a transmitter in unincorporated Laramie County, west of Cheyenne, between I-80/US 30 and WYO 225. The station can also be seen on Bresnan Communications...
) had its own satellite in Scottsbluff, KSTF. Both KYCU/KSTF and KOTA/KDUH held unusual "joint primary" affiliation with both ABC and CBS; KYCU/KSTF slightly favored ABC, while KOTA/KDUH slightly favored CBS. Needless to say, this was causing a lot of confusion in Scottsbluff, especially when both satellites were carrying the same CBS program and the only other choice non-cable viewers had was KTNE-TV
Nebraska Educational Telecommunications
Nebraska Educational Telecommunications is a state network of non-commercial educational public broadcasting radio and television stations in Nebraska and is based in Lincoln. It is operated by the Nebraska Educational Telecommunications Commission...
on the Nebraska ETV network.
So when the FCC awarded the license to KEVN, the intention was to end the duplication problem and to lighten KOTA/KDUH's network load. KEVN started operations on July 11, 1976, as did KIVV. Both were primary CBS affiliates that also carried secondary affiliations with NBC, which had been without a station in Rapid City since KRSD left the air.
In 1988, KELO-TV
KELO-TV
KELO is the CBS affiliate television station in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, broadcasting on digital channel 11. South Dakotans pronounce its call letters as a homonym of "hello"...
in Sioux Falls signed on a Rapid City satellite, KCLO-TV, which took the CBS affiliation. KEVN then became a sole NBC affiliate. In July 1996, KEVN dropped NBC to join Fox, leaving the Black Hills region with no full-power NBC affiliate until KNBN
KNBN
KNBN, channel 21, is the NBC affiliate in Rapid City, South Dakota. It is owned by Rapid Broadcasting, and is also the sister station to KWBH-LP...
signed on in 2000. During that period, KUSA-TV
KUSA-TV
KUSA, channel 9, is an NBC-affiliated television station in Denver, Colorado. KUSA is owned by the Gannett Company, and is a sister station to MyNetworkTV affiliate KTVD...
in Denver was piped in on cable. The station was known as "KEVN Fox 7" in its first 11 years as a Fox affiliate, becoming "Black Hills FOX" in early 2007. This rebranding removed the channel number from KEVN's identity.
KEVN and KIVV are among a handful of stations that still sign-off
Sign-off (broadcast)
Sign-off is the sequence of operations involved when a radio or television station shuts down its transmitters and goes off the air for a predetermined period; generally this occurs during the overnight hours...
, doing so at 2:00 each morning.
Digital television
, KEVN-DT's digital televisionDigital television
Digital television is the transmission of audio and video by digital signals, in contrast to the analog signals used by analog TV...
transmitter was not yet operating at full power due to financial problems; in submissions to the FCC the station's owners indicated that KEVN-DT Rapid City was the subject of a current bankruptcy proceeding and to expend the funds necessary to complete construction of its full power DTV facility "could be fatal." The station asked to defer further DTV construction until the end of the DTV transition.
News operation
Currently, KEVN produces a total of 9½ hours of local newscasts each week (with 1½ hours on weekdays and one hour each on Saturdays and Sundays). The station is among the few Fox affiliates to carry a 6 p.m. newscast and one of the only Fox stations to offer a 6 p.m. newscast, but not have a 5 p.m. newscast as well; the station also does not carry morning or midday newscasts.Newscast titles
- (KEVN) Action NewsAction NewsAction News is a local television newscast format in the United States. It was conceived in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, at WFIL-TV by then-news director Mel Kampmann in 1970 as a response to the "Eyewitness News" format used on rival station KYW-TV...
(1976–1996) - KEVN Fox 7 News (1996–2007)
- Black Hills Fox News (2007–present)
Station slogans
- KEVN, Seven's the One (1976-1978)
- Turn to KEVN (1978-1979)
- We're Looking Good on KEVN-TV (1979-1980; localized version of CBS ad campaign)
- KEVN-TV, Proud As A Peacock! (1979-1981; localized version of secondary NBC ad campaign)
- Action NewsAction NewsAction News is a local television newscast format in the United States. It was conceived in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, at WFIL-TV by then-news director Mel Kampmann in 1970 as a response to the "Eyewitness News" format used on rival station KYW-TV...
: The News Specialists (early 1980s) - Looking Good Together, KEVN-TV (1980-1981; localized version of CBS ad campaign)
- Reach for the Stars on KEVN-TV (1981-1982; localized version of CBS ad campaign)
- KEVN-TV, Our Pride Is Showing (1981-1982; localized version of secondary NBC ad campaign)
- Keep Your Eyes on Us! (mid 1980s)
- The Black Hills' Best (early 1990s-1996)
- KEVN, The Place To Be! (1990-1992; localized version of NBC ad campaign)
- The Black Hills' News Leader (1996–2007)
- Real People, Real News (2007–present)
Newscast music
- Classical Gas by Telesound (1976-1978)
- Streets of... by Telesound (1978-1980)
- I Feel Love by Donna Summer (1980-1982)
- CBS News Ticker by unknown composer (1982-1984)
- KEVN 1984 News Theme by unknown composer (1984-1988)
- Production Music: Energy by Network Music (1988-19??)
- KEVN 1993 News Theme by unknown composer (19??-19??)
- Production Music: Last Frontiers by FirstCom (19??-19??)
- Overture by Stephen Arnold Music (2003-2006)
- FOX Affiliate News Theme by OSI Music (2007-present)
Current on-air staff
Anchors- Jack Caudill - weeknights at 6 p.m.; also news director
- Megan Palara - weekends at 9 p.m.; also weeknight reporter
- Julie Oberlander - weeknights at 6 and 9 p.m.
- Justin Pazera - weeknights at 9 p.m.; also 9 p.m. co–executive producer
SkyView Forecast Team
- Keith Gibson (AMS Certified Broadcast Meteorologist) - Chief Meteorologist; weeknights at 6 and 9 p.m.
- Jim Peterson - Meteorologist; weekends at 9 p.m.
Sports Team
- Jamie Zepp - Sports Director; weeknights at 6 and 9 p.m.
- Cory Coppock - Sports Anchor; weekends at 9 p.m., also sports reporter
Reporters
- Dave Kidd - video journalist
- Amanda Webber - general assignment reporter
- Al Van Zee - general assignment reporter