WKAQ-TV
Encyclopedia
WKAQ-TV is a full-power television station located in San Juan, Puerto Rico
transmitting over digital 2.1. The station is owned and operated by NBCUniversal and is branded simply as Telemundo.
WKAQ-TV has one full-power repeater station: WOLE-TV
, channel 12.1 in Aguadilla
. WOLE-TV repeats over 95% of WKAQ-TV's programing under an affiliation agreement. In the past they had used WORA-TV
, channel 5 in Mayagüez
. The station also has three low-power translator facilities: W09AT in Fajardo, W68BU in Adjuntas and W32AJ in Utuado.
(The World) and Puerto Rico's first radio station (and third licensed radio station in the world), WKAQ
. Ramos wanted to maintain a consistent branding between its properties using the "mundo" theme, and thus named WKAQ-TV Telemundo (Tele World). He had tried to obtain a TV license as early as the mid 1940s, but due to an FCC licensing freeze for all new American TV stations, Ramos had to wait until 1954 to obtain the license. WKAQ began broadcasting in color on NTSC
in 1968.
During the station's history, WKAQ-TV battled fiercely with WAPA-TV
to obtain the top position of Puerto Rican viewership, thanks, in great part, to none other than Ramón Rivero
(better known as Diplo), the most famous and influential actor/comedian in the history of Puerto Rico, who was under an exclusive contract with Angel Ramos, and who, in 1954 produced the first comedy/variety show for WKAQ-TV, La Taberna India, followed by La Farándula Corona.
During the 1970s and 1980s, WKAQ-TV (then branded as Telemundo Canal 2), was a major producer of Puerto Rican Spanish soap operas
. The channel was also known by its "fingers" logo (a bold number 2 with the silhouette of two upright fingers inside the number), calling itself "El canal de los dedos" (The channel of the fingers).
WKAQ-TV has produced and broadcast recognized local shows such as El Show de las 12, La Gente Joven de Menudo, En Casa de Juanma y Wiwi, Los Kakucomicos, Teatrimundo
, Musicomedia, El Show de Chucho, Noche de Gala
, Estudio Alegre, La Pension de Doña Tere, El Show de Nydia Caro, No te Duermas
, Marcano El Show, "Con lo que Cuenta este País", "Videoteces", Super Sabados, Fantastico, El Tio Nobel, Telecómicas, Al Grano con Zervigón, Ahora Podemos Hablar, and Dame un Break, among others. It also produced famous telenovelas such as El Hijo de Angela Maria, Tomiko, Cristina Bazan
, El Idolo, Viernes Social, La Verdadera Eva, Rojo Verano, Modelos S.A., Coralito
, Tanairi, and others.
With the creation of the Telemundo
network in 1987, the station started branding itself as "Telemundo Puerto Rico". (Before, WKAQ-TV had branded itself as either Telemundo or just "Canal 2".) Since then, WKAQ-TV has since then become one of Telemundo's flagship stations, as well as the recognized original "Telemundo". It has been highly critiziced that because of the station's affiliation to the Telemundo network, locally produced programming has been traded for "enlatados", or foreign Spanish programming such as Mexican and Venezuelan telenovelas. To avoid this criticism, in 2006, WKAQ-TV aired the first Puerto Rican written and produced telenovela in 15 years: Dueña y Señora
. To the general population, WKAQ-TV is still known simply as "Telemundo", and it is branded as such to this day.
WKAQ-TV's main slogans have been: Y como el dos no hay dos! (There's no two like channel two and Telemundo: tu canal, siempre (Telemundo: your channel, always). At the end of 2006, Telemundo's slogan in 2006 to 2008 is: Eres Tú (It's You) and now come back slogan Telemundo: tu canal (Telemundo: your channel) the Telemundo Network used this slogan.
In 2005, WKAQ-TV became a superstation
when NBC Universal
created the Telemundo Puerto Rico cable channel. The channel aired programs created by WKAQ-TV such as No te Duermas and TVO, as well as the station's news program, Telenoticias. Telemundo Puerto Rico was aimed at Puerto Ricans and other Caribbean
communities living in the mainland United States
. The superstation feed, however, was discontinued in early 2008.
On October 9, 2007, NBC Universal announced that they had put WKAQ-TV up for sale, following its acquisition of Oxygen Media. (http://www.nbcumv.com/release_detail.nbc/corporate-20071009000000-nbcuniversaltoacq.html) However, NBC Universal took the station off the market on December 21.
On August 25, 2008, WKAQ-TV, in co-production with the Telemundo network, launched the new morning show Levantate from its San Juan studios. The station also began to air a local teen drama
, Zona Y, which achieved success in the Puerto Rican teen market in Puerto Rico and is presently airing its third season.
Some of the famous telenovelas which WKAQ-TV has produced include:
program in Puerto Rico. It was first anchored by Evelio Otero. In the 1960s, a renewed edition of Telenoticias started with different anchors.
Over the years, many people have worked on Telenoticas including: Bobby Anglero, Charito Fraticelli, Silvia Gómez, Aníbal González Irizarry
, Ramón Enrique Torres, Jorge Rivera Nieves, Grenda Rivera, Ivonne Solla, Ramón Enrique Torres, Bruni Velez, Hector Vazquez Muniz, Luis Guardiola, Johanna Rosaly
, Ivette Sosa, Zoraida Nelly Torres,Miguel Ramos,Siverio Pérez, Raúl Camilo Torres, Junior Abrams, Jose Esteves
, Raul Quiñones, Roberto Cortes, and Madelyn Vega.
For more than twenty years, Telenoticias only had 2 editions: the 5 o'clock edition and the 11 o'clock edition. However, in 2002, a weekend edition was introduced, which (like its weekday counterparts) aired at 5 and 11 o'clock. In 2003, Telemundo por la Mañana started with Charito Fraticelli, Silverio Perez, Lourdes Collazo,Miguel Ramos and panel experts.
In the 1990s, Telenoticias used Telemundo 1992 News Theme as the main theme music for its newscasts. This was replaced later by Telemundo News Theme. In 2005, the newscasts began to use the production theme
Raw Power from Network Music
. Currently, Telenoticias uses an original theme from Manolo Mongil.
In 2006, as part of the NBC Universal 2.0 restructuring, WKAQ-TV cut 60 to 80 staffers, including some Telenoticias anchors and reporters. In addition, the morning, midday, and weekend editions of Telenoticias were canceled.
On January 8, 2007, Telenoticias debuted a new set, new graphics and new music.
On April 23, 2009, WKAQ-TV one became the first commercial station in transmitting programming in High Definition
in Puerto Rico
with Billboard Latin Music Awards
.
September 2011, Announce that by 2012 Telenoticias retransmitted weekend editions as an agreement to approve the sale of this station to their new co-owners Comcast.
WKAQ's problems began during the early 2000s, when its ratings declined significantly, mostly due to the entrance of Univision
into the Puerto Rican market through WLII
. Since then, local shows produced by WKAQ, such as El Gran Bejuco and Dame Un Break, that competed against Univision network offerings have slipped in the ratings, as viewers turned away in favor of Univision.
As WKAQ's numbers continued to decline, the station began laying off staff, including Paquito Cordero, one of the most prominent producers on Puerto Rican television. His layoff led to the cancellation of El Show de las Doce, the oldest program in Puerto Rican television outside of the local news. Many other local programs have also been canceled since then, replaced with Telemundo network programing.
Currently, WKAQ has very few non-news local programming remaining. The most recent local program to be canceled was No te Duermas, the second longest-running local program after El Show de las Doce. The few attempts made at new, locally-produced programming have achieved little success, often being canceled after only a few months. The newest batch of local programs such as El Resuelve, Dia a Dia, and Esto Esta K-non, are all rumored to be canceled in 2009. The 11:00 p.m. edition of Telenoticias is also expected to be canceled, leaving the 5:00 news as the sole remaining edition. Nevertheless, the station has recently returned to leading the ratings against WLII and WAPA, with its soap opera block dominating in the 7 to 10 p.m. time period. Additionally, since January 2009, WKAQ has aired Lost
on weeknights at 10:00 p.m., leading that time slot. Also, Dia a Dia has seen an increase in viewership in its 11:00 a.m. time slot and a local teen drama
Zona Y that has been a great suscess in the teen market in Puerto Rico.
Alan Tacher, the host of Levantate, has told El Nuevo Día
that he is proposing a variety show, to also be broadcast on the Telemundo network, to air in the second half of this year. Also, a Puerto Rican culture-variety program, Tenderete has been promoted to begin soon, probably to be broadcast on the Telemundo network. Also WKAQ regained the right's to the local Miss Universe pageant, after the Miss Universe organization, dismiss Magaly Febles as the owner to the Puerto Rico Franshaidese. They named Luisito Vigoreaux, Desiree Lowry and Telemundo Puerto Rico, the one in charge with the pageant. Telemundo kept some of the elements of the reality concept, but a more direct approach is gained.
On January 12, 2010, begin a new gossip show named Dando Candela, with some of former's Univision Puerto Rico Anda Pal cara section "El Avispero". Alexandra Fuentes, Saudi, Papo Brenes and Harold Rivera along with the Producer Soraya Sanchéz moved to Telemundo after being fired by Univision. In the premier show Pedro Juan Figueroa, from former Hector Marcano's Que Suerte join the show. It has some controversy, but finally Telemudo has the show to face to face Wapa Tv La Comay, another gossip show and former Telemundo talent Kobbo Santarosa. They made two road tours in Ponce and Hatillo, very successful.
Digital channels>
Channel
Name
Video
Aspect
Programming
2.1
WKAQ-TV
1080i
16:9
Main WKAQ programming / Telemundo HD
2.2
WKAQ .2
480i
4:3
Punto 2
2.3
WKAQ .3
480i
4:3
WKAQ-TV Off AIR
San Juan, Puerto Rico
San Juan , officially Municipio de la Ciudad Capital San Juan Bautista , is the capital and most populous municipality in Puerto Rico, an unincorporated territory of the United States. As of the 2010 census, it had a population of 395,326 making it the 46th-largest city under the jurisdiction of...
transmitting over digital 2.1. The station is owned and operated by NBCUniversal and is branded simply as Telemundo.
WKAQ-TV has one full-power repeater station: WOLE-TV
WOLE-TV
WOLE-DT is a full-power television station licensed to Aguadilla, Puerto Rico transmitting over digital channel 12. The station has its studios in Aguadilla and its main offices are located in the Westernbank Building in downtown Mayagüez....
, channel 12.1 in Aguadilla
Aguadilla, Puerto Rico
Aguadilla , founded in 1775 by Luis de Córdova, is a city located in the northwestern tip of Puerto Rico bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, north of Aguada, and Moca and west of Isabela. Aguadilla is spread over 15 wards and Aguadilla Pueblo...
. WOLE-TV repeats over 95% of WKAQ-TV's programing under an affiliation agreement. In the past they had used WORA-TV
WORA-TV
WORA-TV is a full-power television station in Mayagüez, Puerto Rico transmitting over analog channel 5, digital 29. The station rebroadcasts over 95% of WLII's programing under an affiliation agreement. WORA-TV produces some programming of its own, mostly airing on Sunday afternoons. During local...
, channel 5 in Mayagüez
Mayagüez, Puerto Rico
Mayagüez is the eighth-largest municipality of Puerto Rico. Originally founded as "Nuestra Señora de la Candelaria" it is also known as "La Sultana del Oeste" , "Ciudad de las Aguas Puras" , or "Ciudad del Mangó"...
. The station also has three low-power translator facilities: W09AT in Fajardo, W68BU in Adjuntas and W32AJ in Utuado.
History
WKAQ-TV became the first Puerto Rican TV station on March 28, 1954. The station was founded by Angel Ramos, founder of Puerto Rico's main newspaper at the time, El MundoEl Mundo (Puerto Rico)
-History:El Mundo was founded in 1919 by Romualdo Real.In 1929, former corrector-turned-administrator Angel Ramos and journalist José Coll Vidal, bought the newspaper when Real retired. In 1946 Ramos was the sole owner of the newspaper.-Acquisitions:...
(The World) and Puerto Rico's first radio station (and third licensed radio station in the world), WKAQ
WKAQ (AM)
WKAQ is a radio station in San Juan, Puerto Rico that broadcasts on 580 kHz with a Spanish language talk radio format. The station is currently owned by Univision Radio. Its programming is repeated on WUKQ, which broadcasts on 1420 kHz in Ponce, and WYEL which broadcasts on 600 kHz in Mayagüez...
. Ramos wanted to maintain a consistent branding between its properties using the "mundo" theme, and thus named WKAQ-TV Telemundo (Tele World). He had tried to obtain a TV license as early as the mid 1940s, but due to an FCC licensing freeze for all new American TV stations, Ramos had to wait until 1954 to obtain the license. WKAQ began broadcasting in color on NTSC
NTSC
NTSC, named for the National Television System Committee, is the analog television system that is used in most of North America, most of South America , Burma, South Korea, Taiwan, Japan, the Philippines, and some Pacific island nations and territories .Most countries using the NTSC standard, as...
in 1968.
During the station's history, WKAQ-TV battled fiercely with WAPA-TV
WAPA-TV
WAPA-TV is an independent television station located in San Juan, Puerto Rico transmitting over digital channel 27, virtual channel 4. The station is owned by InterMedia Partners and is branded as WAPA Television....
to obtain the top position of Puerto Rican viewership, thanks, in great part, to none other than Ramón Rivero
Ramón Rivero (Diplo)
Ramón Rivero — known as Diplo — was a comedian, actor, composer and a pioneer in Puerto Rico's television and cinema industries...
(better known as Diplo), the most famous and influential actor/comedian in the history of Puerto Rico, who was under an exclusive contract with Angel Ramos, and who, in 1954 produced the first comedy/variety show for WKAQ-TV, La Taberna India, followed by La Farándula Corona.
Telenovela
A telenovela is a limited-run serial dramatic programming popular in Latin American, Portuguese, and Spanish television programming. The word combines tele, short for televisión or televisão , and novela, a Spanish or Portuguese word for "novel"...
. The channel was also known by its "fingers" logo (a bold number 2 with the silhouette of two upright fingers inside the number), calling itself "El canal de los dedos" (The channel of the fingers).
Teatrimundo
Teatrimundo was a children's television series broadcast by WKAQ-TV in Puerto Rico in the late 1980s, in the form of edutainment. It was loosely inspired by The Muppet Show...
, Musicomedia, El Show de Chucho, Noche de Gala
Noche de Gala
Noche de Gala , was a television variety show produced by Paquito Cordero, originated in San Juan, Puerto Rico, broadcast by WKAQ-TV Telemundo, Channel 2 for as long as 25 years....
, Estudio Alegre, La Pension de Doña Tere, El Show de Nydia Caro, No te Duermas
No te Duermas
No te Duermas is a Spanish-language television program, a late-night talk and variety show from Puerto Rico. It started airing in 1990 as a late night show with comedian Antonio Sanchez El Gangster in WSTE-TV SuperSiete...
, Marcano El Show, "Con lo que Cuenta este País", "Videoteces", Super Sabados, Fantastico, El Tio Nobel, Telecómicas, Al Grano con Zervigón, Ahora Podemos Hablar, and Dame un Break, among others. It also produced famous telenovelas such as El Hijo de Angela Maria, Tomiko, Cristina Bazan
Cristina Bazán
Cristina Bazán is the name of a highly-famous and successful 1978 Puerto Rican telenovela starring Puerto Rican actress and singer Johanna Rosaly, and the Venezuelan singer/idol José Luis Rodríguez El Puma...
, El Idolo, Viernes Social, La Verdadera Eva, Rojo Verano, Modelos S.A., Coralito
Coralito
Coralito , is a Puerto Rican telenovela produced by Telemundo. The main characters were played by Sully Díaz and Salvador Pineda. Díaz played the character of Coralito. The telenovela played in 1983. Ednita Nazario performed the theme song of the telenovela titled Mi Pequeño Amor, , by Argentine...
, Tanairi, and others.
Telemundo
Telemundo is an American television network that broadcasts in Spanish. The network is the second-largest Spanish-language content producer in the world, and the second-largest Spanish-language network in the United States, behind Univision....
network in 1987, the station started branding itself as "Telemundo Puerto Rico". (Before, WKAQ-TV had branded itself as either Telemundo or just "Canal 2".) Since then, WKAQ-TV has since then become one of Telemundo's flagship stations, as well as the recognized original "Telemundo". It has been highly critiziced that because of the station's affiliation to the Telemundo network, locally produced programming has been traded for "enlatados", or foreign Spanish programming such as Mexican and Venezuelan telenovelas. To avoid this criticism, in 2006, WKAQ-TV aired the first Puerto Rican written and produced telenovela in 15 years: Dueña y Señora
Dueña y Señora
Dueña y Señora is a Puerto Rican telenovela based on La Dueña . It is produced by Telemundo Puerto Rico and Puerto Rico Vibra Inc., which intends to market it to the United States' Spanish-speaking residents as well.-History making:Dueña y Señora , made Puerto Rican television history when...
. To the general population, WKAQ-TV is still known simply as "Telemundo", and it is branded as such to this day.
Superstation
Superstation in United States television can have several meanings. In its most precise meaning, a superstation is defined by the Federal Communications Commission as "A television broadcast station, other than a network station, licensed by the FCC that is secondarily transmitted by a satellite...
when NBC Universal
NBC Universal
NBCUniversal Media, LLC is a media and entertainment company engaged in the production and marketing of entertainment, news, and information products and services to a global customer base...
created the Telemundo Puerto Rico cable channel. The channel aired programs created by WKAQ-TV such as No te Duermas and TVO, as well as the station's news program, Telenoticias. Telemundo Puerto Rico was aimed at Puerto Ricans and other Caribbean
Caribbean
The Caribbean is a crescent-shaped group of islands more than 2,000 miles long separating the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea, to the west and south, from the Atlantic Ocean, to the east and north...
communities living in the mainland United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. The superstation feed, however, was discontinued in early 2008.
On October 9, 2007, NBC Universal announced that they had put WKAQ-TV up for sale, following its acquisition of Oxygen Media. (http://www.nbcumv.com/release_detail.nbc/corporate-20071009000000-nbcuniversaltoacq.html) However, NBC Universal took the station off the market on December 21.
On August 25, 2008, WKAQ-TV, in co-production with the Telemundo network, launched the new morning show Levantate from its San Juan studios. The station also began to air a local teen drama
Drama
Drama is the specific mode of fiction represented in performance. The term comes from a Greek word meaning "action" , which is derived from "to do","to act" . The enactment of drama in theatre, performed by actors on a stage before an audience, presupposes collaborative modes of production and a...
, Zona Y, which achieved success in the Puerto Rican teen market in Puerto Rico and is presently airing its third season.
Programming
Some of the local shows which WKAQ-TV has produced and broadcasted include:- "Viva Vegas" Starring: Daniel Celario, Mario Celario, Julieta Rosen, Ludo Vika, Mike Robelo, and Jossara Jinaro
- "El Show de las Doce"
- "La Gente Joven de Menudo"
- "En Casa de Juanma y Wiwi"
- "Los Kakucomicos"
- "Noche de GalaNoche de GalaNoche de Gala , was a television variety show produced by Paquito Cordero, originated in San Juan, Puerto Rico, broadcast by WKAQ-TV Telemundo, Channel 2 for as long as 25 years....
" - "Teatrimundo"
- "Estudio Alegre"
- "La Pension de Dona Tere"
- "El Show de Chucho"
- "No te Duermas"
- "Al Grano con Zervigón"
- "Marcano el Show"
- "Con lo que Cuenta este País"
- "Videoteces" Spanish version of America's Funniest Videos
- "Super Sábados"
- "Fantástico"
- "Musicomedia"
- "El Tío Nobel"
- "Telecómicas"
- "Dame un Break"
Some of the famous telenovelas which WKAQ-TV has produced include:
- "El Hijo de Angela Maria"
- "Tomiko"
- "Cristina BazanCristina BazánCristina Bazán is the name of a highly-famous and successful 1978 Puerto Rican telenovela starring Puerto Rican actress and singer Johanna Rosaly, and the Venezuelan singer/idol José Luis Rodríguez El Puma...
" - "El Idolo"
- "Viernes Social"
- "La Verdadera Eva"
- "CoralitoCoralitoCoralito , is a Puerto Rican telenovela produced by Telemundo. The main characters were played by Sully Díaz and Salvador Pineda. Díaz played the character of Coralito. The telenovela played in 1983. Ednita Nazario performed the theme song of the telenovela titled Mi Pequeño Amor, , by Argentine...
" - "Tanairi"
- "Dueña y Señora"
Telenoticias
Telenoticias is the name of WKAQ-TV's newscast created by Evelio Otero its first television news anchor and original voice when telemundo went on the air. Evelio Otero proposed the name to Angel Ramos who approved it on the spot The show was started in 1954 and it was the first local televisionTelevision
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
program in Puerto Rico. It was first anchored by Evelio Otero. In the 1960s, a renewed edition of Telenoticias started with different anchors.
Over the years, many people have worked on Telenoticas including: Bobby Anglero, Charito Fraticelli, Silvia Gómez, Aníbal González Irizarry
Aníbal González Irizarry
Aníbal González Irizarry - educator, journalist and news broadcaster.-Early years:Irizarry was born and raised in Sabana Grande, Puerto Rico, where he also received his primary and secondary education. He completed 3 years of high school at Sabana Grande High School before his family moved to...
, Ramón Enrique Torres, Jorge Rivera Nieves, Grenda Rivera, Ivonne Solla, Ramón Enrique Torres, Bruni Velez, Hector Vazquez Muniz, Luis Guardiola, Johanna Rosaly
Johanna Rosaly
Johanna Rosaly is an actress, singer, and television host.-Early years:Johanna Rosaly was born in an area known as Santurce, a district of San Juan. In 1956 at the age of eight, she started taking acting lessons with Argentinians Luis A. Negro and Elba Mania, and dancing lessons with Beatriz...
, Ivette Sosa, Zoraida Nelly Torres,Miguel Ramos,Siverio Pérez, Raúl Camilo Torres, Junior Abrams, Jose Esteves
Jose Esteves
Jose "Joe" Esteves is the mayor of Milpitas, California. He was born and raised in Dagupan City, Pangasinan in the Philippines and has been mayor since 2002.-External links:*...
, Raul Quiñones, Roberto Cortes, and Madelyn Vega.
For more than twenty years, Telenoticias only had 2 editions: the 5 o'clock edition and the 11 o'clock edition. However, in 2002, a weekend edition was introduced, which (like its weekday counterparts) aired at 5 and 11 o'clock. In 2003, Telemundo por la Mañana started with Charito Fraticelli, Silverio Perez, Lourdes Collazo,Miguel Ramos and panel experts.
In the 1990s, Telenoticias used Telemundo 1992 News Theme as the main theme music for its newscasts. This was replaced later by Telemundo News Theme. In 2005, the newscasts began to use the production theme
Production music
Production music is the name given to recorded music produced and owned by production music libraries and licensed to customers for use in film, television, radio and other media.-Introduction:...
Raw Power from Network Music
Killer Tracks
Killer Tracks is a company that provides production music for use in film, television, radio, advertising and interactive media. The company was founded in Hollywood, California in 1989 with an original catalog of 30 CDs. Today, Killer Tracks' catalog contains over 2,000 CDs of music from 21...
. Currently, Telenoticias uses an original theme from Manolo Mongil.
In 2006, as part of the NBC Universal 2.0 restructuring, WKAQ-TV cut 60 to 80 staffers, including some Telenoticias anchors and reporters. In addition, the morning, midday, and weekend editions of Telenoticias were canceled.
On January 8, 2007, Telenoticias debuted a new set, new graphics and new music.
On April 23, 2009, WKAQ-TV one became the first commercial station in transmitting programming in High Definition
High-definition television
High-definition television is video that has resolution substantially higher than that of traditional television systems . HDTV has one or two million pixels per frame, roughly five times that of SD...
in Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico , officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico , is an unincorporated territory of the United States, located in the northeastern Caribbean, east of the Dominican Republic and west of both the United States Virgin Islands and the British Virgin Islands.Puerto Rico comprises an...
with Billboard Latin Music Awards
Billboard Latin Music Awards
The Billboard Latin Music Awards grew out of the Billboard Music Awards program from Billboard Magazine, an industry publication charting the sales and radio airplay success of musical recordings. The awards began in 1990...
.
September 2011, Announce that by 2012 Telenoticias retransmitted weekend editions as an agreement to approve the sale of this station to their new co-owners Comcast.
Problems and possible integration into the Telemundo network
Since the beginning of the Telemundo network, WKAQ had been operated semi-independently from the network. This allowed the station to continue to focus on local productions, with network programing utilized as filler. This had often led to Telemundo network programs not being on the same time as on the mainland, with soap operas often falling months behind. However, years of declining ratings and local cancellations have led to unconfirmed rumors and speculation that WKAQ may become a standard Telemundo station, dropping all local programing except for Telenoticias.WKAQ's problems began during the early 2000s, when its ratings declined significantly, mostly due to the entrance of Univision
Univision
Univision is a Spanish-language television network in the United States. It has the largest audience of Spanish language television viewers according to Nielsen ratings. Randy Falco, COO, has been in charge of the company since the departure of Univision Communications president and CEO Joe Uva...
into the Puerto Rican market through WLII
WLII
WLII-DT is a full-power television station licensed to Caguas, Puerto Rico. Transmitting its analog signal on channel 11 and digital signal on channel 56, the station is owned and operated by Univision and is branded as Univision Puerto Rico...
. Since then, local shows produced by WKAQ, such as El Gran Bejuco and Dame Un Break, that competed against Univision network offerings have slipped in the ratings, as viewers turned away in favor of Univision.
As WKAQ's numbers continued to decline, the station began laying off staff, including Paquito Cordero, one of the most prominent producers on Puerto Rican television. His layoff led to the cancellation of El Show de las Doce, the oldest program in Puerto Rican television outside of the local news. Many other local programs have also been canceled since then, replaced with Telemundo network programing.
Currently, WKAQ has very few non-news local programming remaining. The most recent local program to be canceled was No te Duermas, the second longest-running local program after El Show de las Doce. The few attempts made at new, locally-produced programming have achieved little success, often being canceled after only a few months. The newest batch of local programs such as El Resuelve, Dia a Dia, and Esto Esta K-non, are all rumored to be canceled in 2009. The 11:00 p.m. edition of Telenoticias is also expected to be canceled, leaving the 5:00 news as the sole remaining edition. Nevertheless, the station has recently returned to leading the ratings against WLII and WAPA, with its soap opera block dominating in the 7 to 10 p.m. time period. Additionally, since January 2009, WKAQ has aired Lost
Lost (TV series)
Lost is an American television series that originally aired on ABC from September 22, 2004 to May 23, 2010, consisting of six seasons. Lost is a drama series that follows the survivors of the crash of a commercial passenger jet flying between Sydney and Los Angeles, on a mysterious tropical island...
on weeknights at 10:00 p.m., leading that time slot. Also, Dia a Dia has seen an increase in viewership in its 11:00 a.m. time slot and a local teen drama
Drama
Drama is the specific mode of fiction represented in performance. The term comes from a Greek word meaning "action" , which is derived from "to do","to act" . The enactment of drama in theatre, performed by actors on a stage before an audience, presupposes collaborative modes of production and a...
Zona Y that has been a great suscess in the teen market in Puerto Rico.
Alan Tacher, the host of Levantate, has told El Nuevo Día
El Nuevo Día
El Nuevo Día is a Puerto Rican newspaper based in Guaynabo, Puerto Rico and distributed daily throughout Puerto Rico and some parts of the United States.- History :...
that he is proposing a variety show, to also be broadcast on the Telemundo network, to air in the second half of this year. Also, a Puerto Rican culture-variety program, Tenderete has been promoted to begin soon, probably to be broadcast on the Telemundo network. Also WKAQ regained the right's to the local Miss Universe pageant, after the Miss Universe organization, dismiss Magaly Febles as the owner to the Puerto Rico Franshaidese. They named Luisito Vigoreaux, Desiree Lowry and Telemundo Puerto Rico, the one in charge with the pageant. Telemundo kept some of the elements of the reality concept, but a more direct approach is gained.
On January 12, 2010, begin a new gossip show named Dando Candela, with some of former's Univision Puerto Rico Anda Pal cara section "El Avispero". Alexandra Fuentes, Saudi, Papo Brenes and Harold Rivera along with the Producer Soraya Sanchéz moved to Telemundo after being fired by Univision. In the premier show Pedro Juan Figueroa, from former Hector Marcano's Que Suerte join the show. It has some controversy, but finally Telemudo has the show to face to face Wapa Tv La Comay, another gossip show and former Telemundo talent Kobbo Santarosa. They made two road tours in Ponce and Hatillo, very successful.
High Definition Programming
Aspect ratio
The aspect ratio of a shape is the ratio of its longer dimension to its shorter dimension. It may be applied to two characteristic dimensions of a three-dimensional shape, such as the ratio of the longest and shortest axis, or for symmetrical objects that are described by just two measurements,...
1080i
1080i is the shorthand name for a high-definition television mode. The i means interlaced video; 1080i differs from 1080p, in which the p stands for progressive scan. The term 1080i assumes a widescreen aspect ratio of 16:9, implying a frame size of 1920×1080 pixels...
16:9
16:9 is an aspect ratio with a width of 16 units and height of 9. Since 2009, it has become the most common aspect ratio for sold televisions and computer monitors and is also the international standard format of HDTV, Full HD, non-HD digital television and analog widescreen television ...
480i
480i is the shorthand name for a video mode, namely the US NTSC television system or digital television systems with the same characteristics. The i, which is sometimes uppercase, stands for interlaced, the 480 for a vertical frame resolution of 480 lines containing picture information; while NTSC...
480i
480i is the shorthand name for a video mode, namely the US NTSC television system or digital television systems with the same characteristics. The i, which is sometimes uppercase, stands for interlaced, the 480 for a vertical frame resolution of 480 lines containing picture information; while NTSC...
Broadcasting
WKAQ-TV can be seen across Puerto Rico on the following stations:- W09AT 9 in FajardoFajardo, Puerto RicoFajardo is a small city in Puerto Rico located in the east region of the island, bordering the Atlantic Ocean, north of Ceiba and east of Luquillo.Fajardo is spread over 7 wards and Downtown Fajardo , which serves as the administrative center of the city...
- W32AJ 32 in UtuadoUtuado, Puerto RicoUtuado is a municipality of Puerto Rico located in the central-western mountainous region of the island known as La Cordillera Central. It is located north of Adjuntas and Ponce; south of Hatillo and Arecibo; east of Lares; and west of Ciales and Jayuya. In land area it is the third-largest...
- W68BU 68 in AdjuntasAdjuntas, Puerto RicoAdjuntas is a small mountainside municipality in Puerto Rico located central midwest of the island on the Central Mountain range , north of Yauco, Guayanilla and Peñuelas; southeast of Utuado; east of Lares and Yauco; and west of Ponce. Adjuntas is spread over 16 wards and Adjuntas Pueblo...
- WOLE-TVWOLE-TVWOLE-DT is a full-power television station licensed to Aguadilla, Puerto Rico transmitting over digital channel 12. The station has its studios in Aguadilla and its main offices are located in the Westernbank Building in downtown Mayagüez....
12 in AguadillaAguadilla, Puerto RicoAguadilla , founded in 1775 by Luis de Córdova, is a city located in the northwestern tip of Puerto Rico bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, north of Aguada, and Moca and west of Isabela. Aguadilla is spread over 15 wards and Aguadilla Pueblo...
- W34CI 34 in MayagüezMayagüez, Puerto RicoMayagüez is the eighth-largest municipality of Puerto Rico. Originally founded as "Nuestra Señora de la Candelaria" it is also known as "La Sultana del Oeste" , "Ciudad de las Aguas Puras" , or "Ciudad del Mangó"...
(translator for WOLE-TV)
- W34CI 34 in Mayagüez