The Desk reports: A deal is being finalized to bring CW Network programming to KONG (Channel 16), currently an independent station owned by TEGNA (KING 5 NBC). The switch from CW 11 KSTW to KONG 16 is set to happen on September 1st.
See update: https://qzvx.com/2023/08/31/kong-cw-deal-fails-sinclair-cuts-cw-deal/
Not sure having the CW as a sub channel is a win for anyone, but hey if the balance sheet works…………………….lol
Well, looks like Tegna and Nexstar couldn’t work out a deal after all. A just-posted news release from Nexstar announced that KOMO will be the new CW affiliate! It obviously would have to be on a KOMO subchannel, though… I don’t see the CW replacing ABC on Channel 4.1 !! 🙂
I also do not see KONG on Hulu Plus Live TV…
YOUTUBE tv subscribers in many areas, will not find KONG in the channel lineup.
Also … a look ahead online on KSTW’s schedule next week shows that Channel 11 is apparently dropping the “Seattle Now News” at 10 pm that CBS has been producing out of KPIX in San Francisco.
Dang. I can’t believe KSTW is leaving the newscast business again.
Just looked at the KSTW website and under the “About Us” section they show their new logo and their new ID as an independent station, “Seattle 11.”
CBS renewed affiliation agreements with several Cox Media stations, including KIRO-TV, in 2020. I just looked at a news story from back then about it, and it didn’t specify the length of the renewed contracts, but simply called them “multi-year.” But I have a vague memory of reading another article back then that said the KIRO agreement was for 10 years. At any rate, I agree with the writer above, that it seems like it would make sense for CBS-owned KSTW to eventually become a CBS affiliate yet again, considering the big size of the Seattle market. I say “yet again” because if it happened, it would be the FOURTH time that KSTW has carried CBS programming (the previous three times being 1953–1958; 1960–1962 and 1995–1997).
This: https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/seattle-kraken/news/krakens-long-term-tv-picture-not-yet-in-focus
Combined with this: https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/tv/tv-news/cbs-owned-cw-stations-will-go-independent-fall-2023-1235480730/
Makes me wonder if CBS’ play for now is to get their paws into airing Seattle Kraken games. The Kraken sort of ended up on ROOT Sports by default; this will be year 3 of 5 of the original contract. I can’t imagine their viewership numbers are great and with AT&T exiting the RSN business, I wonder if the Mariners are truly interested in throwing more money into ROOT Sports.
Of the CBS owned networks that are losing CW affiliation, only three are in markets without an O&O CBS affiliate – Atlanta, Tampa, and Seattle. DMA ranks are #6, #13, and #12 respectively.
I sort of wonder why CBS wouldn’t want these networks O&O. They are all NFL cities and all top DMAs. CBS has been trying to push into local news in these markets, in Seattle’s case KPIX is producing the newscasts. I have no idea when KIRO’s affiliation is up between CBS and CMG, but I do wonder if CBS’ thinking here is to eventually move these three networks to CBS as O&Os.