View source for KTVK

{{Short description|Television station in Phoenix, Arizona}}
{{Redirect|3TV||Channel 3 (disambiguation){{!}}Channel 3}}
{{for multi|the television station in Osaka, Japan|Kansai Television|the television station in Yokohama, Japan|Television Kanagawa}}
{{good article}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=February 2024}}
{{Infobox television station
| callsign = KTVK
| logo = KTVK logo.svg
| logo_size = 150px
| logo_alt = A white sans serif 3 on a red circle atop a yellow rounded rectangle, viewed in perspective and rendered in 3D.
| image = Gray Arizona's Family logo.svg
| image_size = 200px
| image_alt = In an orange box, from top left: The white lettering "Arizona's Family" in a sans serif. Beneath, six yellow rays. To the right is a white line separating it from three symbols: the 3TV logo, the CBS 5 logo, and a black rounded rectangle with the uppercase white lettering "A Z F" and orange lettering "S" on two lines.
| branding = 3TV; Arizona's Family
| digital = 24 ([[UHF]])
| virtual = 3
| translators = ''see {{section link||Translators}}''
| affiliations = {{ubl|'''3.1:''' [[Independent station|Independent]]|''for others, see {{section link||Subchannels}}''}}
| owner = [[Gray Media]]
| licensee = Gray Television Licensee, [[LLC]]
| location = [[Phoenix, Arizona]]
| country = United States
| airdate = {{start date and age|1955|02|28|p=y}}
| callsign_meaning = "Because TV will be our middle name" —[[Ernest McFarland]]<ref>{{Cite web |title=NewsChannel 3 History |url=http://www.azfamily.com/3tv/history.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070202063143/http://www.azfamily.com/3tv/history.html |archive-date=February 2, 2007 |access-date=February 15, 2007 |website=azfamily.com}}</ref>
| sister_stations = [[KPHO-TV]], [[KPHE-LD]]
| former_channel_numbers = {{ubl|'''Analog:''' 3 ([[VHF]], 1955–2009)}}
| former_affiliations = {{ubl|[[American Broadcasting Company|ABC]] (1955–1995)|[[Fox Kids]] (secondary, 1994–1995)|[[The WB]] (January–September 1995)}}
| erp = 1,000 kW
| haat = {{convert|501|m|ft|0|abbr=on}}
| facility_id = 40993
| coordinates = {{Coord|33|20|1|N|112|3|48|W|type:landmark_scale:2000}}
| licensing_authority = [[FCC]]
| website = {{URL|www.azfamily.com/}}
}}

'''KTVK''' (channel 3) is an [[independent television station]] in [[Phoenix, Arizona]], United States. It is owned by [[Gray Media]] alongside [[CBS]] affiliate [[KPHO-TV]] (channel 5) and low-power station [[KPHE-LD]] (channel 44), a grouping known as "Arizona's Family". The three stations share studios on North Seventh Avenue in [[Encanto, Phoenix, Arizona|Uptown Phoenix]]; KTVK's transmitter is located on [[South Mountains (Arizona)|South Mountain]] on the city's south side. The station's signal is relayed across [[northern Arizona]] on a network of [[Broadcast relay station#Broadcast translators|translator stations]].

KTVK signed on in 1955 as the fourth and last commercial [[VHF]] station in Phoenix. Owned by a syndicate fronted by former [[United States Senate|U.S. senator]] and newly elected [[Governor of Arizona|governor]] [[Ernest McFarland]], it took over as Phoenix's [[American Broadcasting Company|ABC]] affiliate. After spending its first three decades as an also-ran, it poached several employees from then-dominant [[KTSP-TV]] in 1985, beginning a surge that made it the market leader by 1990. It lost its ABC affiliation as part of a shuffle of networks in 1994 and 1995 but has since prospered as an independent. It was one of the last family-owned major-market TV stations, being owned in part or whole by the McFarland-Lewis family from its inception until 1999.

The [[Belo Corporation]] acquired KTVK in 1999 and also took over [[KASW]] (channel 61), which KTVK had been programming since it began broadcasting four years prior. After Belo merged with [[Gannett]], owner of [[KPNX]] and ''[[The Arizona Republic]]'', the station was briefly owned by former general manager Jack Sander but was sold to the [[Meredith Corporation]], separating it from KASW and merging it with KPHO-TV. KPHO-TV moved into the newer, larger KTVK studios; the "Arizona's Family" brand associated with channel 3 was extended to cover both stations, which began sharing news resources. In 2023, Gray Television's Phoenix stations became the new television home of the [[Phoenix Suns]] of the [[NBA]].

==History==
===Early years===
Channel 3 was the last commercial VHF allocation in Phoenix to be awarded. Prior to the [[Freeze of 1948|1948 freeze on new TV applications]], there had been one application made, from radio station [[KTAR (AM)|KTAR]], one of the state's largest. In February 1953, however, after the freeze was lifted, a second applicant filed for the channel: the Arizona Television Company. That put the plans of KTAR—which already had television equipment on order—on hold.<ref>{{Cite news |date=February 19, 1953 |title=KTYL Given Okay to Build TV Station |page=1 |work=The Arizona Republic |via=Newspapers.com |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/63263933/ktyl-given-okay-to-build-tv-station/ |url-status=live |access-date=November 14, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210715150544/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/63263933/ktyl-given-okay-to-build-tv-station/ |archive-date=July 15, 2021}}</ref> Originally owned by [[Buckeye, Arizona|Buckeye]] rancher and car dealer Ralph Watkins as well as two other principals, a new stockholder was added to the company in May: former senator [[Ernest McFarland]], who bought a 40 percent interest.<ref>{{Cite news |date=May 31, 1953 |title=McFarland Joins in TV Station |newspaper=Arizona Republic |page=3 |via=Newspapers.com |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/63264150/ |url-status=live |access-date=November 14, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210630063733/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/63264150/mcfarland-joins-in-tv-station/ |archive-date=June 30, 2021}}</ref> Also seeking channel 3 was Herb Askins, a local businessman,<ref>{{Cite news |date=June 13, 1953 |title=McFarland Group To File Soon |page=11 |work=The Arizona Republic |via=Newspapers.com |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/63264252/ |url-status=live |access-date=November 14, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210630063717/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/63264252/mcfarland-group-to-file-soon/ |archive-date=June 30, 2021}}</ref> but his Desert Advertising Co. dropped out late in the year, setting up a high-stakes showdown between Phoenix's NBC radio affiliate and the McFarland group in hearings in February 1954.<ref>{{Cite news |date=February 25, 1954 |title=TV Hearings Open Tomorrow |page=35 |work=The Arizona Republic |via=Newspapers.com |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/63264365/ |url-status=live |access-date=November 14, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210630063808/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/63264365/tv-hearings-open-tomorrow/ |archive-date=June 30, 2021}}</ref>

The staring contest, however, ended two months later. KTAR owner John J. Louis was unwilling to go through a hearing process to get a television sister for his radio station. Instead, in late April, he announced that KTAR would purchase [[Mesa, Arizona|Mesa]]-based [[NBC]] affiliate [[KTYL-TV]] channel 12,<ref>{{Cite news |date=April 30, 1954 |title=Purchase Of KTYL-TV By KTAR Announced |page=1 |work=The Arizona Republic |via=Newspapers.com |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/44184548/ |url-status=live |access-date=November 14, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210630063709/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/44184548/purchase-of-ktyl-tv-by-ktar-announced/ |archive-date=June 30, 2021}}</ref> for $250,000, effectively awarding the channel 3 allocation to the Arizona Television Company.<ref>{{Cite news |date=May 5, 1954 |title=KTYL-TV Tag $250,000 |page=22 |work=The Arizona Republic |via=Newspapers.com |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/63264666/ |url-status=live |access-date=November 14, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210630063718/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/63264666/ktyl-tv-tag-250000/ |archive-date=June 30, 2021}}</ref> With no other applications to consider, a [[Federal Communications Commission]] hearing examiner recommended the company be granted a construction permit weeks later.<ref>{{Cite news |date=May 27, 1954 |title=McFarland TV Bid Gets FCC Support |page=52 |work=The Arizona Republic |via=Newspapers.com |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/63264739/ |url-status=live |access-date=November 14, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210630063738/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/63264739/mcfarland-tv-bid-gets-fcc-support/ |archive-date=June 30, 2021}}</ref> The permit was duly granted on June 11.<ref>{{Cite news |date=June 12, 1954 |title=FCC Approves Channel 3 Permit For McFarland Television Station |page=17 |work=The Arizona Republic |via=Newspapers.com |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/59816958/ |url-status=live |access-date=November 14, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210630063739/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/59816958/fcc-approves-channel-3-permit-for/ |archive-date=June 30, 2021}}</ref>

The transmitter was built atop South Mountain, and a $500,000 studio building was constructed at 16th Street and Osborn Road.<ref>{{Cite news |date=October 11, 1954 |title=TV Channel 3 Ready Dec. 15 |page=13 |work=The Arizona Republic |via=Newspapers.com |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/59816882/tv-channel-3-ready-dec-15/ |url-status=live |access-date=November 14, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210630063718/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/59816882/tv-channel-3-ready-dec-15/ |archive-date=June 30, 2021}}</ref> The station affiliated with [[American Broadcasting Company|ABC]], filling a void that would have been created when existing ABC outlet [[KOOL-TV]] announced plans to change to CBS.<ref>{{Cite news |date=January 14, 1955 |title=Soon To Be Seen Channel 3 KTVK Will Carry ABC-TV Network Shows |page=13 |work=The Arizona Republic |via=Newspapers.com |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/59816870/soon-to-be-seen-channel-3-ktvk-will/ |url-status=live |access-date=November 14, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201117024803/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/59816870/soon-to-be-seen-channel-3-ktvk-will/ |archive-date=November 17, 2020}}</ref> By the time KTVK began broadcasting on February 28, 1955, McFarland had been elected [[Governor of Arizona]].<ref>{{Cite news |date=February 25, 1955 |title=Governor Not To Be Active in TV Station |page=1 |work=Arizona Daily Sun |agency=Associated Press |via=Newspapers.com |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/63265333/ |url-status=live |access-date=November 14, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210630063724/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/63265333/governor-not-to-be-active-in-tv-station/ |archive-date=June 30, 2021}}</ref> Channel 3 boasted the first color-equipped studios in Phoenix and the largest in the state.<ref>{{Cite news |date=February 27, 1955 |title=Nine Years Planning Pays Off |page=12, Section 3 |work=The Arizona Republic |via=Newspapers.com |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/59808776/ |url-status=live |access-date=November 14, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210630063714/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/59808776/nine-years-planning-pays-off/ |archive-date=June 30, 2021}}</ref>

{{Quote box
| quote = I've been an officer since the outset and the first ten years we saw nothing but red ink.
| author = Delbert Lewis
| source = on the station's early years<ref name="coolidge">{{Cite news |date=April 2, 1978 |title='Coolidge weather on Channel Three |page=38 |work=Arizona |via=Newspapers.com |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/59817824/coolidge-weather-on-channel-three/ |url-status=live |access-date=December 15, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210630063711/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/59817824/coolidge-weather-on-channel-three/ |archive-date=June 30, 2021}}</ref>
| align = left
| width = 250px
| quoted = yes
| salign = left
}}

Channel 3 lost money in its early years.{{r|coolidge}} Unlike its three competitors, it did not have a long-established radio sister on which to draw revenue.<ref name="picture">{{Cite news |last=Joseph |first=Greg |date=July 8, 1990 |title=Coming into the Picture: Family-run Channel 3, once the 'black sheep' of local TV, has bloomed |pages=E1, [https://www.newspapers.com/clip/34063311/ E4] |work=The Arizona Republic |via=Newspapers.com |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/34063376/ |url-status=live |access-date=November 14, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210630063741/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/34063376/coming-into-the-picture-family-run/ |archive-date=June 30, 2021}}</ref> According to a 1990 interview, in the early 1960s, [[Walter Cronkite]] sought to buy a stake in the Arizona Television Company. He would have become KTVK's main anchor, with a salary of $25,000 a year. However, Arizona Television Company could not afford to meet Cronkite's salary demands.{{r|picture}}

McFarland bought out the remaining partners in the Arizona Television Company in 1977.{{r|picture}} Long before then, McFarland had intended for KTVK to be a locally focused station. As Delbert Lewis, husband of McFarland's adopted daughter, Jewell, put it in a 1978 interview with ''[[The Arizona Republic]],'' his father-in-law wanted channel 3 to be "a family corporation. All Arizonans. To keep it local." In an era when the television industry was already dominated by large station groups, Lewis said that his family took pride in the fact that major decisions were made in Phoenix, not in New York.{{r|coolidge}}

The socially laudatory aims of the McFarland-Lewis family initially did not translate into ratings success. Channel 3 spent most of its first 30 years stubbornly in third place.{{r|picture}} In January 1985, ''[[Arizona Republic]]'' television columnist Bud Wilkinson referred to the station as a "blot on [ABC]'s affiliate ledger" and claimed, citing a conversation with a top network executive, that the network had occasionally tried to move to another station and still was interested in the idea.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Wilkinson |first=Bud |date=January 10, 1985 |title=Shifts in Phoenix TV scene signal possibility of more changes |page=E13 |work=The Arizona Republic |via=Newspapers.com |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/33915487/ |url-status=live |access-date=December 15, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210630063741/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/33915487/shifts-in-phoenix-tv-scene-signal/ |archive-date=June 30, 2021}}</ref>

===The rise===
In March 1984, Delbert Lewis and Jewell McFarland Lewis were named the conservators of McFarland's estate, just three months before the former governor and senator died. In the preceding decade, Delbert Lewis had taken the reins of the station; he was named president of the Arizona Television Company in 1975 and assumed the role of general manager in 1980. McFarland ceded day-to-day control of the station to his relatives after undergoing brain surgery in 1977, shortly after buying out his partners.{{r|picture|texas}} Upon McFarland's death, the Lewises inherited full control of KTVK. Eventually, Jewell and Delbert held a 60 percent controlling interest in the Arizona Television Company, with the remaining 40 percent divided between their four children.{{r|picture|texas}} In 1986, Lewis made the most consequential hires in channel 3's history when he poached a dozen employees from long-dominant KTSP-TV. Included in the raid were KTSP's news director, Bill Miller, and his assistant news director, Phil Alvidrez. Miller became KTVK's station manager, while Alvidrez became KTVK's news director.{{r|picture}}

Under Miller and Alvidrez, the station relaunched its news department as ''NewsChannel 3'' and began a climb to the top of the ratings.{{r|picture}} The station dismissed its existing weeknight news anchor team and rolled out a new lineup, led by new hire Cameron Harper and former weekend anchor Heidi Foglesong.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Wilkinson |first=Bud |date=June 17, 1986 |title=Channel 3 news unveils name change, fresh set design |page=C6 |work=The Arizona Republic |via=Newspapers.com |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/34061913/ |url-status=live |access-date=December 15, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210630063721/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/34061913/channel-3-news-unveils-name-change/ |archive-date=June 30, 2021}}</ref> Lewis bankrolled major investments in people, syndicated programming and equipment and dramatically boosted KTVK's promotional budget. He had no qualms about spending what he believed it would take to increase KTVK's profile; in 1990, he told ''The Republic'' that if Miller and others showed that they needed something, he would ensure that they would get it. As a "one-man board of directors", he was able to make decisions in mere minutes that took years at KTVK's corporate-owned competitors. For example, when Miller sought a new $500,000 satellite truck, Lewis greenlighted it in only 15 minutes.{{r|picture}} Improvement started slowly but was noticeable by 1988.<ref name="underdog">{{Cite news |last=Wilkinson |first=Bud |date=May 26, 1988 |title='NewsChannel 3' eats up role as local underdog |page=F6 |work=The Arizona Republic |via=Newspapers.com |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/34063076/newschannel-3-eats-up-role-as-local/ |url-status=live |access-date=December 15, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210630063725/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/34063076/newschannel-3-eats-up-role-as-local/ |archive-date=June 30, 2021}}</ref> Even those changes almost came too slowly for ABC; as late as 1989, ABC executives were in negotiations to move from KTVK to KTSP-TV.<ref>{{Cite news |date=January 30, 1989 |title=The ABC's of television in the Valley |page=D3 |work=Phoenix Gazette}}</ref>

The changes finally began to pay off by the November 1990 [[sweeps]] period. KTVK's 10&nbsp;p.m. newscast surged to first place, and its early evening newscasts were posting the strongest numbers in their history. Channel 3 also was the most-watched station in the Valley in prime time, even as NBC won its 11th consecutive sweeps period nationally.<ref name="sweepscloud">{{Cite news |last=Joseph |first=Greg |date=December 4, 1990 |title=Nielsen 'sweeps' cloud ratings picture |page=D6 |work=The Arizona Republic |via=Newspapers.com |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/34063708/ |url-status=live |access-date=December 15, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210630063804/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/34063708/nielsen-sweeps-cloud-ratings-picture/ |archive-date=June 30, 2021}}</ref> A year later, it tied KTSP-TV in the early evening timeslot and took the lead in the morning.<ref name="tie91">{{Cite news |date=May 24, 1991 |title=Channel 3 leads local newscasts in latest ratings |page=D17 |work=The Arizona Republic |via=Newspapers.com |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/34063807/channel-3-leads-local-newscasts-in/ |url-status=live |access-date=December 15, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210630063736/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/34063807/channel-3-leads-local-newscasts-in/ |archive-date=June 30, 2021}}</ref> By February 1992, channel 3 had pulled ahead of channel 10 at 6&nbsp;pm; it was the first time on record that channel 10 had lost that timeslot.<ref name="Ariz920307">{{Cite news |date=March 7, 1992 |title=February ratings reveal new trends in local market |page=D8 |work=Arizona Republic |location=Phoenix, Arizona |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/34063954/february-ratings-reveal-new-trends-in/ |access-date=December 17, 2021 |via=Newspapers.com |archive-date=December 17, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211217030842/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/34063954/february-ratings-reveal-new-trends-in/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

The growth of the company fueled additional media acquisitions. In the span of a year, the Arizona Television Company bought ''Phoenix Magazine'' and radio station [[KESZ]] (99.9 FM), as well as a production studio.{{r|picture}} Reorganizing as Media America Corp. (and later MAC America Communications), the group also handled programming responsibilities for the new [[KLNZ|KTWC]] (103.5 FM) when it signed on in 1994.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Newberg |first=Julie |date=June 5, 1993 |title=Emergencies thrust stations into important role for communities |page=D6 |work=The Arizona Republic |via=Newspapers.com |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/31382797/ |url-status=live |access-date=March 16, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210630063738/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/31382797/emergencies-thrust-stations-into/ |archive-date=June 30, 2021}}</ref>

===Going independent===
{{see|1994–1996 United States broadcast television realignment}}
On May 23, 1994, [[New World Communications]] and Fox announced a pact that would see KSAZ-TV leave its longtime affiliation with CBS to join Fox. The landmark deal also left CBS looking for new affiliates in several other markets, including Detroit, [[Cleveland]], and [[Tampa]], and set off a mad dash to secure network affiliations. KTVK was at a distinct disadvantage in the ensuing affiliate shuffle even though it was now one of the strongest ABC affiliates in the country. By this time, it had firmly established itself as the Valley's news leader, and its overall ratings were 20 points ahead of the runner-up.<ref name="Ariz940616">{{Cite news |last=Walker |first=Dave |date=June 16, 1994 |title=ABC drops Ch. 3 after 40 years |page=A1, [https://www.newspapers.com/clip/33050880/abc-to-drop-ch-3-after-40-years/ A15] |work=Arizona Republic |location=Phoenix, Arizona |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/33050851/abc-drops-ch-3-after-40-years/ |url-status=live |access-date=December 25, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211226034726/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/33050851/abc-drops-ch-3-after-40-years/ |archive-date=December 26, 2021 |via=Newspapers.com}}</ref> However, even though channel 3 had left its ratings-challenged past far behind, its gains over the previous decade meant little in the affiliate shuffle. It took place in an environment which favored station groups with presences in multiple cities, not KTVK—by this time, one of the last family-owned major-market stations in the country.<ref name="outmuscled">{{Cite news |last=Muller |first=Bill |date=June 30, 1994 |title=Family-owned Ch. 3 outmuscled for prize |pages=A1, [https://www.newspapers.com/clip/33051088/no-ones-ready-to-panic-at-channel-3/ A7] |work=The Arizona Republic |via=Newspapers.com |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/33050928/eye-say-channel-5-called-up-to-majors/ |url-status=live |access-date=March 16, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210630063726/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/33050928/eye-say-channel-5-called-up-to-majors/ |archive-date=June 30, 2021}}</ref>

{{Quote box
| quote = I hope they [ABC] don't have to pull [the affiliation] on you guys but Scripps has a gun to their head. It would cost us half a rating point on [[ABC World News Tonight|Jennings]] if we lose Cleveland and Detroit.
| author = ABC vice president Bryce Rathbone to KTVK general manager Bill Miller, June 7, 1994{{r|millerdec|page=16}}
| align = left
| width = 250px
| quoted = yes
| salign = left
}}

In this environment, [[E. W. Scripps Company|Scripps-Howard Broadcasting]], owner of displaced Fox affiliate [[KNXV-TV]], found itself in a strong position. Scripps owned two powerful bargaining chips in its successful and longstanding ABC affiliates [[WXYZ-TV|in Detroit]] and [[WEWS-TV|in Cleveland]]. Both stations were being heavily pursued by CBS, which was about to lose its longstanding New World-owned affiliates to Fox. KTVK was already in talks for a new affiliation agreement with ABC that would have more than doubled its hourly compensation rate, but it would still have been less than the network was offering to stations in markets much smaller than Phoenix.<ref name="millerdec">{{Cite web |last=Miller |first=William |date=October 29, 1995 |title=Declaration of William Miller |url=https://www.fcc.gov/ecfs/filing/151886 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210630063726/https://www.fcc.gov/ecfs/filing/151886 |archive-date=June 30, 2021 |access-date=March 16, 2021 |website=Comments of Southern Broadcast Corporation of Sarasota |publisher=Federal Communications Commission}}</ref>{{rp|5}} However, ABC pulled the offer off the table on the advice of its lawyers; a call with ABC network president [[Bob Iger]] revealed that Scripps-Howard—a longtime partner of the network—had threatened to flip its Detroit and Cleveland ABC affiliates to CBS unless ABC moved its Phoenix affiliation to KNXV-TV.{{r|millerdec|page=7}} Iger wanted to keep KTVK, but [[Thomas Murphy (broadcasting)|Tom Murphy]], the CEO of Capital Cities/ABC, felt that he had to be able to offer the ABC affiliation in Phoenix to Scripps if necessary to avoid potential long-term damage to the ABC television network.{{r|millerdec|page=9}} Specifically, ABC officials feared losing as much as half a ratings point on ''[[ABC World News Tonight]]'' if Scripps made good on its threat to flip its Detroit and Cleveland stations to CBS.{{r|millerdec|page=16}}

{{Quote box
| quote = I asked [Murphy] if there was anything we could do. He suggested that "you should light some candles".
| author = Bill Miller{{r|millerdec|page=15}}
| align = right
| width = 250px
| quoted = yes
| salign = left
}}

Scripps-Howard would not relent from demanding the ABC affiliation for Phoenix and even refused $25&nbsp;million from the network to "take Phoenix off the table".{{r|millerdec|page=18}} Ultimately, ABC gave in and awarded its affiliations in Phoenix, [[WFTS-TV|Tampa]], and [[WMAR-TV|Baltimore]] to Scripps; in informing KTVK, Iger explained that they "had to" do so.{{r|millerdec|p=24}} The Lewises then sought to affiliate with CBS, which was about to be displaced from KSAZ. However, despite Tom Murphy's support and channel 3's stronger ratings, CBS ultimately chose a deal with group owner [[Meredith Corporation]] and its [[KPHO-TV]]. Meredith also provided CBS security in [[Kansas City, Missouri|Kansas City]], where the New World switches had dislodged the NBC affiliation, and an upgrade in the [[Flint, Michigan]], market. Miller told ''The Republic'' that CBS gave its Phoenix affiliation to KPHO rather than face having to search for a new affiliate in Kansas City, though CBS officials denied this. According to Miller, KTVK would have been the obvious choice to take the CBS affiliation if CBS only had to consider "which two stations it wanted in Phoenix".<ref>{{Cite news |last=Mattern |first=Hal |date=June 30, 1994 |title=Eye say! Channel 5 called up to majors: Homeless CBS picks longtime independent |pages=A1, [https://www.newspapers.com/clip/33051073/cbs-calls-up-channel-5-to-televisions/ A7] |work=The Arizona Republic |via=Newspapers.com |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/33050928/eye-say-channel-5-called-up-to-majors/ |url-status=live |access-date=March 16, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210630063710/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/33050928/eye-say-channel-5-called-up-to-majors/ |archive-date=June 30, 2021}}</ref><ref name="outmuscled"/>

Over the second half of 1994, KTVK relinquished ABC programming to KNXV in stages. ''[[Good Morning America]]'' was the first ABC program to move to KNXV after KTVK displaced it with a new local morning newscast, ''Good Morning Arizona''. KNXV then picked up ''World News Tonight'' and ''[[Nightline]]'' on December 12, the day after Fox programming moved to KSAZ.<ref name="Ariz941202">{{Cite news |last=Walker |first=Dave |date=December 2, 1994 |title=Channel 15 receives good news: Jennings, Koppel moving in early |page=E17 |work=Arizona Republic |location=Phoenix, Arizona |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/80525574/channel-15-receives-good-news/ |url-status=live |access-date=December 25, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210630063736/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/80525574/channel-15-receives-good-news/ |archive-date=June 30, 2021 |via=Newspapers.com}}</ref><!-- Fri --> KTVK's nearly 40-year affiliation with ABC officially ended on January 9, 1995, when ABC's remaining non-news programming moved to KNXV.<ref name="Ariz950107">{{Cite news |last=Bravo |first=Al |date=January 7, 1995 |title=Channel-switching ends soon |page=3 |work=Arizona Daily Sun |agency=Associated Press |location=Flagstaff, Arizona |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/91143692/channel-switching-ends-soon/ |access-date=December 25, 2021 |via=Newspapers.com}}</ref><!-- Sat --><ref name="Ariz950108">{{Cite news |last=Walker |first=Dave |date=January 8, 1995 |title=Channel hopping takes final turn for Valley viewers |page=A1, [https://www.newspapers.com/clip/91143772/channel-changes-end-at-last/ A19], [https://www.newspapers.com/clip/91143787/ A20] |work=Arizona Republic |location=Phoenix, Arizona |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/91143734/channel-hopping-takes-final-turn-for/ |access-date=December 25, 2021 |via=Newspapers.com}}</ref><!-- Sun -->

Despite the loss of ABC programming, the Lewises and station management committed to build KTVK into one of the nation's top independents.{{r|outmuscled}} The station spent some $100&nbsp;million on new syndicated programming, including ''[[Mad About You]]'' and ''[[Frasier]]'', as well as poaching the most popular shows in syndication at the time from KSAZ-TV—game shows ''[[Wheel of Fortune (American game show)|Wheel of Fortune]]'' and ''[[Jeopardy!]]''—and programming them in the prime time hour between 7 and 8&nbsp;pm.<ref name="Ariz941211">{{Cite news |last=Walker |first=Dave |date=December 11, 1994 |title=Fox leaping to Ch. 10 in latest network flip |page=A1, [https://www.newspapers.com/clip/90695775/fox-leaping-to-channel-10-in-latest/ A32], [https://www.newspapers.com/clip/90695868/ A33] |work=Arizona Republic |location=Phoenix, Arizona |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/90695807/fox-leaping-to-ch-10-in-latest-network/ |access-date=December 17, 2021 |via=Newspapers.com |archive-date=December 17, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211217030848/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/90695807/fox-leaping-to-ch-10-in-latest-network/ |url-status=live }}</ref><!-- Sun --> KTVK also broke ground on a new studio center to house its growing operations.<ref name="stronghold">{{Cite news |last=Walker |first=Dave |date=January 9, 1996 |title=Channel 3 maintains stronghold despite loss of network affiliation |page=C5 |work=The Arizona Republic |via=Newspapers.com |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/34044173/ |url-status=live |access-date=November 14, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210630063716/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/34044173/channel-3-maintains-stronghold-despite/ |archive-date=June 30, 2021}}</ref> The news department was expanded with 20 new staffers.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Holsopple |first=Barbara |date=September 5, 1994 |title=Dial shuffle creates good job news |page=G1 |work=Phoenix Gazette}}</ref> Media America struck a [[local marketing agreement]] to operate the new [[KASW]] (channel 61) with [[The WB]]—which would air on KTVK until KASW launched in September 1995—and children's programming,<ref>{{Cite news |last=Walker |first=Dave |date=December 6, 1994 |title='Power Rangers' to spawn new station for kids' shows |pages=A1, [https://www.newspapers.com/clip/33724262/power-rangers-to-find-temporary-home/ A4] |work=The Arizona Republic |via=Newspapers.com |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/33724260/power-rangers-to-spawn-new-station/ |url-status=live |access-date=December 16, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210630063730/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/33724260/power-rangers-to-spawn-new-station/ |archive-date=June 30, 2021}}</ref> and it launched the AZ News Channel, a cable offering on [[Cox Communications]] systems featuring breaking news and replays of KTVK newscasts{{r|stronghold}} that had been in the planning stages since 1993.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Carlile |first=William H. |date=October 15, 1993 |title=Channel 3 plans cable station with all-news format |pages=A1, [https://www.newspapers.com/clip/59817230/ A11] |work=The Arizona Republic |via=Newspapers.com |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/59817222/ |url-status=live |access-date=December 16, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210630063732/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/59817222/channel-3-plans-cable-station-with/ |archive-date=June 30, 2021}}</ref> Another large acquisition came in the form of sports rights to the expansion [[Arizona Diamondbacks]] baseball team, with channel 3 airing half of the team's games beginning in the 1998 season.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Cohn |first=Bob |title=D-Backs gets radio, TV outlets; KTAR, KTVK to carry games |page=C1 |work=The Arizona Republic |via=Newspapers.com |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/34043825/d-backs-get-radio-tv-outlets-ktar/ |url-status=live |access-date=December 16, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210630063738/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/34043825/d-backs-get-radio-tv-outlets-ktar/ |archive-date=June 30, 2021}}</ref> The station remained Phoenix's news leader in most time slots, with the exception of 10&nbsp;pm, when strong NBC programming gave KPNX the lead.{{r|texas}}<ref>{{Cite news |last=Schwirtz |first=Mira |date=June 7, 1999 |title=Market profile: Phoenix |pages=24–30 |work=Mediaweek}}</ref>

In the fall of 1998, KTVK briefly aired ''[[The Howard Stern Radio Show]]''; both KTVK (which aired the program after its 10 p.m. news) and [[Lubbock, Texas]], Fox affiliate [[KJTV-TV]] pulled the program from their schedules after two episodes.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Spring |first=Greg |date=September 7, 1998 |title=King of all media loses some subjects |pages=2, 3 |work=Electronic Media}}</ref>

===Belo ownership===
{{Quote box
| quote = We picked Belo because they were the most likely to leave the station alone.
| author = Bill Miller{{r|texas}}
| align =
| width = 250px
| quoted = yes
| salign = left
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In what Del Lewis described as "the most difficult decision our family has ever made", MAC America sold KTVK and its other remaining assets to the [[Belo Corporation]] of [[Dallas]], Texas, for $315&nbsp;million in July 1999–a handsome return on McFarland's investment 44 years earlier.<ref name="texas">{{Cite news |last=Clancy |first=Michael |date=July 3, 1999 |title=Texas firm purchases Channel 3 |pages=A1, [https://www.newspapers.com/clip/73668669/ A25] |work=The Arizona Republic |via=Newspapers.com |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/73668556/ |url-status=live |access-date=March 16, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210630063737/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/73668556/texas-firm-purchases-channel-3/ |archive-date=June 30, 2021}}</ref> The Lewises cited the costs of conversion to [[digital television]], economies of scale that station groups had in purchasing syndicated programming, and competition from cable and satellite TV in their decision to sell; the transaction capped two years of selling the rest of the company, including ''Phoenix Magazine'', the production facility, and the radio stations, which had suffered from the needed investments in programming and news expansion at KTVK.{{r|texas}} Later that year, Belo announced that it would purchase KASW from Gregory Brooks, forming the first television [[duopoly (broadcasting)|duopoly]] in the Phoenix market just as they were being legalized.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Clancy |first=Michael |date=October 2, 1999 |title=Top 50 bigwig list lacking in color |page=D5 |work=The Arizona Republic |via=Newspapers.com |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/34044267/ |url-status=live |access-date=March 16, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210630063727/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/34044267/top-50-bigwig-list-lacking-in-color/ |archive-date=June 30, 2021}}</ref> Bill Miller retired a year later.<ref>{{Cite news |date=August 9, 2000 |title=Miller retires as KTVK Channel 3 president, general manager |work=Phoenix Business Journal |url=https://www.bizjournals.com/phoenix/stories/2000/08/07/daily24.html |url-status=live |access-date=March 16, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050302195035/http://www.bizjournals.com/phoenix/stories/2000/08/07/daily24.html |archive-date=March 2, 2005}}</ref>

In 2000, Belo and Cox expanded their existing partnership with a new [[Spanish language in the United States|Spanish-language]] channel, ¡Más! Arizona, that launched on October 16 of that year.<ref name="spanish">{{Cite news |date=September 29, 2000 |title=Belo, Cox to launch Spanish channel |page=2D |work=Dallas Morning News}}</ref> KTVK lost the Diamondbacks after the [[2007 Arizona Diamondbacks season|2007 season]], when the team opted to move all of its regional telecasts to cable on [[regional sports network]] Fox Sports Arizona (later [[Bally Sports Arizona]]).<ref>{{Cite news |date=March 31, 2008 |title=FSN Arizona to broadcast every Diamondbacks home game, select road games in HD |work=[[Engadget]] |url=https://www.engadget.com/2008/03/31/fsn-arizona-to-broadcast-every-diamondbacks-home-game-select-ro/ |url-status=live |access-date=September 2, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171203224644/https://www.engadget.com/2008/03/31/fsn-arizona-to-broadcast-every-diamondbacks-home-game-select-ro/ |archive-date=December 3, 2017}}</ref>

===Helicopter crash===
[[File:N613TV Eurocopter AS.350 KTVK Tv (Cropped).jpg|right|220px|thumb|alt=A white, blue, purple, red, orange, and yellow helicopter taking off or about to land|The KTVK helicopter, "Newschopper 3", destroyed in the 2007 collision]]
{{Main|Phoenix news helicopter collision}}
On July 27, 2007, KTVK's news helicopter "News Chopper 3" was involved in a [[mid-air collision]] when another news helicopter, belonging to KNXV-TV, struck it from behind.<ref name="ntsb">{{Cite web |title=Aircraft Accident Report Midair Collision of Electronic News Gathering Helicopters KTVK-TV, Eurocopter AS350B2, N613TV, and U.S. Helicopters, Inc., Eurocopter AS350B2, N215TV |date=January 28, 2009 |url=https://www.ntsb.gov/doclib/reports/2009/AAR0902.pdf |publisher=[[NTSB]] |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090515021637/http://ntsb.gov/Publictn/2009/AAR0902.pdf |access-date=November 20, 2012 |archive-date=May 15, 2009 |url-status=dead}}</ref> The collision occurred above [[Steele Indian School Park]] (near Third Street and Indian School Road), while both aircraft were covering a police pursuit in [[downtown Phoenix]].<ref>{{Cite news |date=July 27, 2007 |title=4 Dead As 2 Helicopters Tracking Police Pursuit Collide |publisher=KPHO-TV |url=http://www.kpho.com/news/13770683/detail.html |url-status=dead |access-date=July 27, 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070927030213/http://www.kpho.com/news/13770683/detail.html |archive-date=September 27, 2007}}</ref> All four people aboard both helicopters were killed, including KTVK pilot Scott Bowerbank and photographer Jim Cox.<ref>{{Cite news |date=July 27, 2007 |title=Two helicopters crash while covering chase |work=AZFamily.com |url=http://www.azfamily.com/news/local/stories/KTVKLNews20070727_helicopter-crash.b85476c7.html |access-date=July 27, 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070928002344/http://www.azfamily.com/news/local/stories/KTVKLNews20070727_helicopter-crash.b85476c7.html <!-- Bot retrieved archive --> |archive-date=September 28, 2007}}</ref> An investigation conducted by the [[Federal Aviation Administration]] (FAA) and [[National Transportation Safety Board]] (NTSB) determined that the accident was caused by both pilots' [[pilot error|inability to see one another]] and avoid a collision with the other helicopter.<ref name=ntsb/>

The helicopter collision resulted in the establishment of shared news helicopters in the Phoenix market; while KTVK initially shared a helicopter with KPHO-TV and KPNX,<ref>{{Cite news |last1=Ye Hee Lee |first1=Michelle |last2=Beard |first2=Betty |date=July 28, 2014 |title=Remembering the 2007 Phoenix news-helicopter crash that killed 4 |work=The Arizona Republic |url=https://www.azcentral.com/story/news/local/phoenix/2014/07/28/phoenix-news-helicopter-crash-2007/13258413/ |url-status=live |access-date=March 16, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210630063747/https://www.azcentral.com/story/news/local/phoenix/2014/07/28/phoenix-news-helicopter-crash-2007/13258413/ |archive-date=June 30, 2021}}</ref> all four Phoenix news operations now share a single helicopter.<ref name="royale">{{Cite news |last=Malone |first=Michael |date=February 15, 2021 |title=Local News Battle Royale in Phoenix |language=en |work=Broadcasting & Cable |url=https://www.nexttv.com/features/local-news-battle-royale-in-phoenix |url-status=live |access-date=March 17, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210303190327/https://www.nexttv.com/features/local-news-battle-royale-in-phoenix |archive-date=March 3, 2021}}</ref>

===Sale to Meredith===
On June 13, 2013, the [[Gannett Company]], the owner of KPNX and the ''Arizona Republic'', acquired Belo. As FCC rules restrict one company from owning more than two television stations in the same market, Gannett announced that it would spin off KTVK and KASW to Sander Media, LLC, a company operated by former Belo executive Jack Sander. While Gannett intended to provide services to the stations through a [[shared services]] agreement, KTVK and KASW's operations would have remained largely separate from KPNX and the ''Republic''.<ref name="stlpd-saletosander">{{Cite news |last=Brown |first=Lisa |date=June 13, 2013 |title=Gannett to buy TV station owner Belo for $1.5&nbsp;billion |work=[[St. Louis Post-Dispatch]] |url=http://www.stltoday.com/business/local/gannett-to-buy-tv-station-owner-belo-for-billion/article_31e7fb91-676f-50cb-825f-9f9f6a6e6f8c.html |url-status=live |access-date=June 13, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200906170400/https://www.stltoday.com/business/local/gannett-to-buy-tv-station-owner-belo-for-billion/article_31e7fb91-676f-50cb-825f-9f9f6a6e6f8c.html |archive-date=September 6, 2020}}</ref> Despite objections to the Gannett-Belo merger by anti-consolidation groups (such as [[Free Press (advocacy group)|Free Press]]) and pay television providers (due to ownership conflicts involving television stations and newspapers both companies owned in other markets, the use of Sander as a third-party licensee to buy stations that would be operated by the owner of a same-market competitor, concerns over any future operational consolidation of the stations involved in the deal, and the Gannett and Sander stations colluding in [[retransmission consent]] negotiations),<ref>{{Cite news |date=July 24, 2013 |title=Free Press, Others Ask FCC To Deny Some Gannett/Belo Transfers |work=[[Broadcasting & Cable]] |url=http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/494671-Free_Press_Others_Ask_FCC_To_Deny_Some_Gannett_Belo_Transfers.php |url-status=live |access-date=September 8, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130909121633/http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/494671-Free_Press_Others_Ask_FCC_To_Deny_Some_Gannett_Belo_Transfers.php |archive-date=September 9, 2013}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |date=July 25, 2013 |title=Public Interest Groups, Cable Companies Oppose Gannett-Belo Merger |work=[[Adweek]] |url=http://www.adweek.com/news/television/public-interest-groups-cable-companies-oppose-gannett-belo-merger-151425 |url-status=live |access-date=September 18, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131005000652/http://www.adweek.com/news/television/public-interest-groups-cable-companies-oppose-gannett-belo-merger-151425 |archive-date=October 5, 2013}}</ref> the FCC granted approval of the deal on December 20.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Microsoft Word – 136364 |url=http://transition.fcc.gov/Daily_Releases/Daily_Business/2013/db1220/DA-13-2423A1.pdf |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170210102927/http://transition.fcc.gov/Daily_Releases/Daily_Business/2013/db1220/DA-13-2423A1.pdf |archive-date=February 10, 2017 |access-date=November 20, 2016 |website=Transition.fcc.gov }}</ref>

As the sale was completed on December 23, 2013,<ref>{{Cite news |date=December 23, 2013 |title=Gannett Completes Its Acquisition of Belo |work=TVNewsCheck |url=http://www.tvnewscheck.com/article/72893/gannett-completes-its-acquisition-of-belo |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140726162142/http://www.tvnewscheck.com/article/72893/gannett-completes-its-acquisition-of-belo |archive-date=July 26, 2014 |access-date=December 23, 2013}}</ref> Sander/Gannett then sold KTVK to the Meredith Corporation, owner of CBS affiliate KPHO-TV. The license assets of KASW were sold to [[SagamoreHill Broadcasting]], with Meredith to operate that station through a shared services agreement. However, as a voluntary condition of the transaction's approval, that station was instead sold off to the [[Nexstar Broadcasting Group]].<ref name="tvnc-nexstarkasw">{{Cite news |date=October 23, 2014 |title=Nexstar Buying KASW Phoenix For $68M |work=TVNewsCheck |url=http://www.tvnewscheck.com/article/80251/nexstar-buying-kasw-phoenix-for-68m?ref=search |url-status=live |access-date=October 26, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141027000120/http://www.tvnewscheck.com/article/80251/nexstar-buying-kasw-phoenix-for-68m?ref=search |archive-date=October 27, 2014}}</ref> The sale was approved on June 16, 2014, and completed on June 19.<ref>{{Cite news |date=June 19, 2014 |title=Gannett-Sander Complete Phoenix Sale |work=TVNewsCheck |url=http://www.tvnewscheck.com/article/77182/gannettsander-complete-phoenix-sale |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140714144038/http://www.tvnewscheck.com/article/77182/gannettsander-complete-phoenix-sale |archive-date=July 14, 2014 |access-date=June 19, 2014}}</ref> On August 7, 2014, Meredith bought the KTVK studios, with the intent of housing the combined operation at KTVK's larger and newer facility.<ref name="pbj-ktvkstudio">{{Cite web |date=August 7, 2014 |title=Channel 5 buys Channel 3's Phoenix studios for $9.9&nbsp;million |url=http://www.bizjournals.com/phoenix/news/2014/08/07/channel-5-buys-channel-3-s-phoenixstudios-for-9-9.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140811194837/http://www.bizjournals.com/phoenix/news/2014/08/07/channel-5-buys-channel-3-s-phoenixstudios-for-9-9.html |archive-date=August 11, 2014 |access-date=August 7, 2014 |website=Phoenix Business Journal}}</ref>

The union of KTVK and KPHO-TV's news operations, marketed under the "Arizona's Family" banner long associated with KTVK, came with the loss of 14 jobs across both stations.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Brown |first=Brandon |date=June 26, 2015 |title=TV merger leads to layoffs at Channel 3 and Channel 5 |work=Phoenix Business Journal |url=https://www.bizjournals.com/phoenix/news/2015/06/26/tv-merger-leads-to-layoffs-at-channel-3-and.html |url-status=live |access-date=March 16, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170418025741/http://www.bizjournals.com/phoenix/news/2015/06/26/tv-merger-leads-to-layoffs-at-channel-3-and.html |archive-date=April 18, 2017}}</ref> KPHO general manager Ed Munson headed the combined operation until his 2018 retirement.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Gallen |first=Tim |date=July 10, 2018 |title=Long-time Phoenix TV station executive to retire |work=Phoenix Business Journal |url=https://www.bizjournals.com/phoenix/news/2018/07/10/long-time-phoenix-tv-station-executive-to-retire.html |url-status=live |access-date=March 16, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210630063743/https://www.bizjournals.com/phoenix/news/2018/07/10/long-time-phoenix-tv-station-executive-to-retire.html |archive-date=June 30, 2021}}</ref>

===Sale to Gray Television===
On May 3, 2021, [[Gray Television]] announced its intent to purchase the Meredith Local Media division, including KTVK and KPHO, for $2.7&nbsp;billion. These would be Gray's second and third stations in Arizona, having already bought [[KOLD-TV]] in [[Tucson]]. The sale was completed on December 1.<ref name=meredithdone>{{cite press release |url=https://www.globenewswire.com/news-release/2021/12/01/2344524/0/en/GRAY-TELEVISION-CLOSES-ON-ACQUISITION-OF-MEREDITH-CORPORATION-S-LOCAL-MEDIA-GROUP.html |title=Gray Television Closes on Acquisition of Meredith Corporation's Local Media Group |agency=[[Globe Newswire]] |publisher=[[Gray Television]] |date=December 1, 2021}}</ref>

==Local programming==
===Newscasts===
{{Quote box
| quote = We were regularly fourth in a three-station market.
| author = Phil Alvidrez<ref>{{Cite news |last=Hernandez |first=Ruben |date=November 25, 2003 |title=Alvidrez steps down as Channel 3 news director |work=Phoenix Business Journal |url=https://www.bizjournals.com/phoenix/stories/2003/11/24/daily21.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050224093443/http://www.bizjournals.com/phoenix/stories/2003/11/24/daily21.html |archive-date=February 24, 2005 |access-date=June 29, 2021}}</ref>
| align =
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}}

From the beginning, KTVK placed a high premium on news. The McFarlands and Lewises saw themselves mostly as "newspeople, not TV people". Despite this, for most of its history, KTVK had been the third-rated local station for news and had "long been viewed as a loser" and "a joke" in the industry; the news programs had stints as ''Total News'' and later ''[[Eyewitness News]]''. While the station briefly had momentum under news director Cecil Tuck in the early 1980s, it was unable to escape the ratings basement.{{r|picture}} The station frequently attempted to lure personalities from competing stations, with mixed results: [[Mary Jo West]], the first female anchor in Phoenix at KOOL/KTSP, returned from a job at [[CBS News]] in 1983, but channel 3 was unsuccessful in hiring anchors from KPNX.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Wilkinson |first=Bud |date=January 1, 1984 |title=1983's sign-off: Heart operation stands out as year's highlight |page=TV 3 |work=The Arizona Republic |via=Newspapers.com |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/35594434/1983s-sign-off/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210630063730/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/35594434/1983s-sign-off/ |archive-date=June 30, 2021 |access-date=June 29, 2021}}</ref> West left in the summer of 1986.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Tabor |first=Gail |date=August 15, 1986 |title=Goodbye, again |page=E3 |work=The Arizona Republic |via=Newspapers.com |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/80524895/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210630063751/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/80524895/goodbye-again/ |archive-date=June 30, 2021 |access-date=June 29, 2021}}</ref>

The station managed to shed its third-place positioning and become the market leader after the hiring of Miller and Alvidrez in 1986.{{r|underdog|sweepscloud|tie91}} However, the loss of ABC affiliation led to major changes for KTVK's news department. Chief among them was the launch of a three-hour morning newscast, ''Good Morning Arizona''; the program was initially hosted by [[Jodi Applegate]],<ref>{{Cite news |last=Walker |first=Dave |date=August 29, 1994 |title=KTVK hopes show upsets the apple cart |page=C1 |work=The Arizona Republic |via=Newspapers.com |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/80525453/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210630063732/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/80525453/ktvk-hopes-show-upsets-apple-cart/ |archive-date=June 30, 2021 |access-date=June 29, 2021}}</ref> who would leave KTVK to host the weekend editions of [[Today (American TV program)|''The Today Show'']] in 1996.<ref name="newdawn">{{Cite news |last=Walker |first=Dave |date=April 3, 1996 |title=New dawn: KTVK's Jodi Applegate says goodbye Arizona, hello 'Today' |pages=A1, [https://www.newspapers.com/clip/80526400/ A18] |work=The Arizona Republic |via=Newspapers.com |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/80526348/new-dawn-ktvks-jodi-applegate-says-goo/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210630063745/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/80526348/new-dawn-ktvks-jodi-applegate-says/ |archive-date=June 30, 2021 |access-date=June 29, 2021}}</ref> By that time, ''Good Morning Arizona'' had beaten out all of its local and national competitors in the ratings.{{r|newdawn}} The station also transformed its 5 and 6 p.m. newscasts into the 90-minute ''Good Evening Arizona'',<ref>{{Cite news |last=Walker |first=Dave |date=December 2, 1994 |title=Channel 15 receives good news: Jennings, Koppel moving in early |page=E17 |work=The Arizona Republic |via=Newspapers.com |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/80525574/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210630063736/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/80525574/channel-15-receives-good-news/ |archive-date=June 30, 2021 |access-date=June 29, 2021}}</ref> and when KASW launched in 1995, KTVK produced a 9 p.m. newscast for the new station.<ref name="joins">{{Cite news |last=Walker |first=Dave |date=September 24, 1995 |title=At last! Channel 61 joins the airwaves |pages=B1, [https://www.newspapers.com/clip/34043901/ B2] |work=The Arizona Republic |via=Newspapers.com |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/34043953/ |access-date=February 24, 2021}}</ref><ref name="favorite">{{Cite news |last=Leonard |first=Susan |date=June 17, 1996 |title=Now he can watch favorite programs on his own TV station |page=Tempe Community 3 |work=The Arizona Republic |via=Newspapers.com |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/34044099/ |access-date=February 24, 2021}}</ref>

KTVK itself, however, was later to debut prime time news than many independent stations. In 1996, it instead relaunched its 10 p.m. newscast as ''Tonight Arizona'', which later became ''NewShow'' and ''The News Show''.<ref name="newshow">{{Cite news |last=Clancy |first=Mike |date=March 31, 2001 |title=Feature-laden 'NewShow' bites the dust at KTVK |page=E5 |work=The Arizona Republic |via=Newspapers.com |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/80525836/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210630063746/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/80525836/feature-leaden-newshow-bites-the-dust/ |archive-date=June 30, 2021 |access-date=June 29, 2021}}</ref> This changed in 2008, when the station replaced 8 p.m. and 10 p.m. broadcasts with a 9 p.m. newscast and expanded ''Good Morning Arizona'', bringing it to 52 hours a week of newscasts;<ref>{{Cite news |last=Malone |first=Michael |date=May 22, 2008 |title=More News For Phoenix's 'More News' Station |work=Broadcasting & Cable |url=https://www.nexttv.com/blog/more-news-phoenixs-more-news-station-67312 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210630063815/https://www.nexttv.com/blog/more-news-phoenixs-more-news-station-67312 |archive-date=June 30, 2021 |access-date=June 29, 2021}}</ref> a 10 p.m. broadcast was later reinstated in 2011.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Villafañe |first=Veronica |date=August 12, 2011 |title=Peña to anchor KTVK's new 10&nbsp;pm news |work=Media Moves |url=https://www.mediamoves.com/2011/08/pena-to-anchor-ktvks-new-10-pm-news.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200920113610/https://www.mediamoves.com/2011/08/pena-to-anchor-ktvks-new-10-pm-news.html |archive-date=September 20, 2020 |access-date=June 29, 2021}}</ref>

KTVK was also involved with news production and simulcasts for the Tucson market when Belo owned and operated [[KMSB]], Tucson's Fox affiliate. In 2003, KMSB began a 9 p.m. newscast, which originally was produced in Phoenix and used news reporting from KMSB-employed reporters and from Tucson NBC affiliate [[KVOA]]. Additionally, from 2003 to 2012, KMSB simulcast ''Good Morning Arizona''.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Abeyta |first=Oscar |date=May 14, 2003 |title=Networks sharing to expand newscasts |work=Tucson Citizen |via=Newspapers.com |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/80526013/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210630063759/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/80526013/networks-sharing-to-expand-newscasts/ |archive-date=June 30, 2021 |access-date=June 29, 2021}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Smith |first=Dylan |date=November 15, 2011 |title=Fox 11 to lay off news staff, cancel newscast in Feb. |work=Tucson Sentinel |url=http://www.tucsonsentinel.com/local/report/111511_kmsb_newscast/fox-11-lay-off-news-staff-cancel-newscast-feb/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201112021107/http://www.tucsonsentinel.com/local/report/111511_kmsb_newscast/fox-11-lay-off-news-staff-cancel-newscast-feb/ |archive-date=November 12, 2020 |access-date=June 29, 2021}}</ref>

===Sports===
Gray announced in January 2023 that it would launch the Arizona's Family Sports and Entertainment Network (AZFSEN) over [[KPHE-LD]] on March 1, 2023, and that it had acquired the rights to [[Phoenix Rising FC]] soccer; KPHE will air all 34 matches, with five simulcasts on KTVK and one on KPHO-TV.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.azfamily.com/2023/01/25/arizonas-family-announces-broadcast-partnership-with-phoenix-rising-launch-new-network/|work=Arizona's Family|title=Arizona's Family announces broadcast partnership with Phoenix Rising, launch of new network|date=January 25, 2023}}</ref>

On April 28, 2023, Gray announced that the rights to the [[Phoenix Suns]] and [[Phoenix Mercury]] would move from [[Bally Sports Arizona]] to KTVK and KPHE-LD beginning with the [[2023 Phoenix Mercury season]] and [[2023–24 Phoenix Suns season]]. The two stations together will carry all non-nationally televised games, with KTVK to carry at least 40 Suns games per season and 13 Mercury games per season; the contract also includes provision for a streaming platform known as Kiswe to carry Suns and Mercury games. The parent company of Bally Sports Arizona, [[Diamond Sports Group]], responded by claiming that the Suns/Mercury deal represented a [[breach of contract]] by not allowing Diamond to exercise its contractual rights in violation of bankruptcy law.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.azcentral.com/story/sports/nba/suns/2023/04/28/suns-say-diamond-sports-group-totally-inaccurate-on-breach-of-contract-claims/70162949007/|first=Duane|last=Rankin|title=Diamond Sports Group accuses Phoenix Suns of breach of contract in leaving Bally Sports Arizona|work=The Arizona Republic|date=April 28, 2023|access-date=April 28, 2023}}</ref> The CEO of the Phoenix Suns and Mercury, [[Josh Bartelstein]], had previously cited a "goal of wide distribution" for the teams in the face of [[cord cutting]] affecting the availability of RSNs.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.bizjournals.com/phoenix/news/2023/04/20/q-a-suns-new-ceo-talks-sponsorships-broadcast-pa.html|date=April 20, 2023|first=Brandon|last=Brown|title=Q&A: Suns' new CEO wants to capitalize on NBA Playoffs, land big concerts and shore up TV broadcasts|work=Phoenix Business Journal}}</ref> While a bankruptcy judge blocked the Suns portion of the deal, the Mercury portion was allowed to proceed.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.azcentral.com/story/sports/wnba/mercury/2023/05/18/az-family-televising-phoenix-mercury-may-25-game-amid-judge-blocking-phoenix-suns-move-from-bally/70232202007/|work=The Arizona Republic|first=Duane|last=Rankin|date=May 18, 2023|title=AZ Family to televise Phoenix Mercury game after court order blocked Suns move to local stations|access-date=May 22, 2023}}</ref> On July 14, the Suns announced that the Gray deal would go ahead, as Diamond Sports Group declined to match the contract.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Ourand |first=John |date=July 14, 2023 |title=Gray Television wins Suns, Mercury media rights |url=https://www.sportsbusinessjournal.com/Daily/Closing-Bell/2023/07/14/phoenix-suns-phoenix-mercury-media-rights-gray-television.aspx |access-date=July 14, 2023 |work=Sports Business Journal |language=en}}</ref>

===Non-news programming===
KTVK also airs a limited amount of non-news local programming. One of the station's offerings, the local [[pet adoption]] encouragement program ''Pets on Parade'' with the Arizona Humane Society, is the longest-running local TV show in Arizona, having first been broadcast in December 1958.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Goodykoontz |first=Bill |date=December 5, 2018 |title=31,000 animals later, 'Pets on Parade' from Channel 3 turns 60 |work=The Arizona Republic |url=https://www.azcentral.com/story/entertainment/media/2018/12/05/31-000-animals-later-pets-parade-channel-3-ktvk-turns-60/2197564002/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210630063743/https://www.azcentral.com/story/entertainment/media/2018/12/05/31-000-animals-later-pets-parade-channel-3-ktvk-turns-60/2197564002/ |archive-date=June 30, 2021 |access-date=June 29, 2021}}</ref> In 2010, the station launched the weekly political program ''Politics Unplugged''.<ref>{{Cite news |date=January 6, 2010 |title=KTVK Launches Weekly Political Show |language=en |work=TVNewsCheck |url=https://tvnewscheck.com/uncategorized/article/ktvk-launches-weekly-political-show/ |access-date=July 10, 2021}}</ref>

===Notable former on-air staff===
* [[Wally Bruner]] – newscaster (1960s)<ref>{{Cite news |date=May 23, 1965 |title=Programs to Keep Informed |page=22-C |work=The Arizona Republic |via=Newspapers.com |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/80528606/programs-to-keep-informed/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210630063721/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/80528606/programs-to-keep-informed/ |archive-date=June 30, 2021 |access-date=June 29, 2021}}</ref>
* [[Jineane Ford]] – reporter<ref>{{Cite news |last=Cordova |first=Randy |date=December 28, 2006 |title=Signing off: Jineane Ford ending longtime stint on Valley TV |pages=E1, [https://www.newspapers.com/clip/80528533/ E2] |work=The Arizona Republic |via=Newspapers.com |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/80528512/signing-off-jineane-ford-ending-longtim/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210630063805/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/80528512/signing-off-jineane-ford-ending/ |archive-date=June 30, 2021 |access-date=June 29, 2021}}</ref>
* [[Daryn Kagan]] – anchor<ref>{{Cite news |last=Goodykoontz |first=Bill |date=August 6, 2023 |title=How former Phoenix reporter and CNN anchor Daryn Kagan moved up: 'None of this is forever' |language=en-US |work=The Arizona Republic |url=https://www.azcentral.com/story/entertainment/media/2023/08/06/daryn-kagan-former-channel-3-phoenix-reporter-cnn-anchor/70530206007/ |access-date=August 6, 2023}}</ref>
* [[Tony Kovaleski]] – reporter<ref>{{Cite news |date=October 15, 1994 |title=Who Are These People? |page=G5 |work=The Arizona Republic |via=Newspapers.com |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/80528644/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210630063803/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/80528644/who-are-these-people/ |archive-date=June 30, 2021 |access-date=June 29, 2021}}</ref>
* [[Samantha Mohr]] – meteorologist<ref>{{Cite news |last=Clancy |first=Mike |date=May 12, 2021 |title=Longtime weatherman Tracy retires |page=E4 |work=The Arizona Republic |via=Newspapers.com |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/80528674/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210630063824/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/80528674/longtime-weatherman-tracy-retires/ |archive-date=June 30, 2021 |access-date=June 29, 2021}}</ref>
* [[Christi Paul]] – anchor/consumer reporter<ref>{{Cite news |title=CNN Profiles – Christi Paul – CNN Anchor |publisher=CNN |url=http://www.cnn.com/profiles/christi-paul#about |url-status=live |access-date=June 29, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160629004754/http://www.cnn.com/profiles/christi-paul#about |archive-date=June 29, 2016}}</ref>
* [[Brandon Lee Rudat]] – anchor<ref>{{Cite news |last=Goodykoontz |first=Bill |date=September 16, 2019 |title=Brandon Lee back on Phoenix TV less than a year after departing |language=en-US |work=The Arizona Republic |url=https://www.azcentral.com/story/entertainment/media/2019/09/16/brandon-lee-returns-phoenix-tv-anchor-cbs-5-and-3-tv/2347840001/ |access-date=July 10, 2021}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Goodykoontz |first=Bill |date=November 4, 2021 |title=Why beloved news anchor Brandon Lee is leaving Arizona's Family TV stations |language=en-US |work=The Arizona Republic |url=https://www.azcentral.com/story/entertainment/media/2021/11/04/arizona-family-tv-brandon-lee-leaves/6284258001/ |access-date=November 26, 2021}}</ref>
* [[Lauren Sánchez]] – anchor/reporter<ref>{{Cite news |last=Goodykoontz |first=Bill |date=January 11, 2019 |title=Lauren Sanchez, linked to Jeff Bezos divorce, once worked at Channel 3 (KTVK) |language=en-US |work=The Arizona Republic |url=https://www.azcentral.com/story/entertainment/people/2019/01/11/jeff-bezos-lauren-sanchez-divorce-arizona-azfamily-tv-3/2553082002/ |url-status=live |access-date=June 29, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210630063750/https://www.azcentral.com/story/entertainment/people/2019/01/11/jeff-bezos-lauren-sanchez-divorce-arizona-azfamily-tv-3/2553082002/ |archive-date=June 30, 2021}}</ref>
* [[Ray Scott (sportscaster)|Ray Scott]] – sportscaster and television play-by-play voice of [[Arizona State Sun Devils football|ASU football]] in the 1980s<ref>{{Cite news |last=Egan |first=John |date=September 25, 1987 |title=Vince Lombardi, Bart Starr, Joe Paterno, Red Grange, Sandy Koufax, Harmon Killebrew and Bud Grant – the names trigger dozens of stories. |work=[[USA Today]]}}</ref>

==Technical information==
===Subchannels===
KTVK broadcasts from a transmitter facility on [[South Mountains (Arizona)|South Mountain]].{{r|FCC-LMS-40993}} The station's signal is [[Multiplex (TV)|multiplexed]]:
{| class="wikitable"
|+ Subchannels of KTVK<ref>{{Cite web |title= TV Query for KTVK |website=[[RabbitEars]] |url=http://www.rabbitears.info/market.php?request=station_search&callsign=KTVK#station |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304001932/http://www.rabbitears.info/market.php?request=station_search&callsign=KTVK#station |archive-date=March 4, 2016 |access-date=July 10, 2021}}</ref>
|-
! scope="col" | [[Digital subchannel#United States|Channel]]
! scope="col" | [[Display resolution|Video]]
! scope="col" | [[Aspect ratio (image)|Aspect]]
! scope="col" | Short name
! scope="col" | Programming
|-
! scope="row" | 3.1
| [[1080i]]
| rowspan="5" | [[16:9]]
| KTVK-HD
| Main KTVK programming
|-
! scope="row" | 3.2
| rowspan="3" | [[480i]]
| Comet
| [[Comet (TV network)|Comet]]
|-
! scope="row" | 3.3
| Outlaw
| [[Outlaw (TV network)|Outlaw]]
|-
! scope="row" | 3.4
| Paid Ad
| [[Infomercial]]s
|-
! scope="row" | 3.5
| [[1080i]]
| Weather
| Arizona's Family First Alert Weather NOW<br><small>● [[Arizona's Family Sports]] simulcast (live sporting events only)</small>
|- style="background-color:#DFEBF6; border-top: 2px solid #003399;"
! scope="row" | 61.3
| 480i || 16:9
| mystery
| [[Ion Mystery]] (KASW)
|}
{{legend|#DFEBF6|Broadcast on behalf of another station}}

On October 20, 2009, KTVK added [[This TV]] to its 3.2 [[digital subchannel]].<ref name="ThisTV">{{Cite news |title=Belo's WFAA, KTVK Add This TV |date=September 22, 2009 |url=http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/354972-Belo_s_WFAA_KTVK_Add_This_TV.php |work=Broadcasting & Cable |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090927090036/http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/354972-Belo_s_WFAA_KTVK_Add_This_TV.php |access-date=September 22, 2009 |archive-date=September 27, 2009 |url-status=live}}</ref> This TV was dropped on April 13, 2015, and replaced with a 24/7 loop of local news—the former Arizona NewsChannel. On the same day, sister station KPHO's former 24/7 weather service, moved to KTVK's 3.3 digital subchannel. It was dropped from KPHO in favor of [[Cozi TV]]. On August 1, 2017, the local news loop on 3.2 was replaced by the sci-fi network [[Comet (TV network)|Comet]].<ref name="Comet">{{Cite news |title=New sci-fi channel COMET takes over channel 3.2 |date=July 31, 2017 |url=http://www.azfamily.com/story/36016627/new-sci-fi-channel-comet-takes-over-channel-32 |work=azfamily.com |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170801050611/http://www.azfamily.com/story/36016627/new-sci-fi-channel-comet-takes-over-channel-32 |access-date=July 31, 2017 |archive-date=August 1, 2017 |url-status=dead}}</ref>

KTVK joined the Phoenix [[ATSC 3.0]] lineup on July 8, 2021, on the [[KFPH-CD]] multiplex. On that date, as part of rebalancing of its subchannels, the KASW subchannel of [[Ion Mystery]] was moved to the KTVK multiplex.<ref>{{Cite web |date=June 29, 2021 |title=Scripps KASW 3.0 Request for Modification of Special Temporary Authority (STA) |url=https://enterpriseefiling.fcc.gov/dataentry/public/tv/draftCopy.html?displayType=html&appKey=25076ff37a530461017a588ca4c70dd9&id=25076ff37a530461017a588ca4c70dd9&goBack=N |publisher=FCC Licensing and Management System |access-date=July 10, 2021}}</ref>

===Analog-to-digital conversion===
KTVK ended regular programming on its analog signal, over [[VHF]] channel 3, on June 12, 2009, the official date on which full-power television stations in the United States [[Digital television transition in the United States|transitioned from analog to digital broadcasts]] under federal mandate. The station's digital signal continued to broadcast on its pre-transition [[UHF]] channel 24, using [[virtual channel]] 3.<ref name="Analog to Digital">{{Cite web |date=May 23, 2006 |title=DTV Tentative Channel Designations for the First and Second Rounds |url=http://hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/DA-06-1082A2.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130829004251/http://hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/DA-06-1082A2.pdf |archive-date=August 29, 2013 |access-date=August 29, 2021 |publisher=Federal Communications Commission}}</ref>

As part of the [[SAFER Act]],<ref name="FCC Nightlight">{{Cite web |date=June 12, 2009 |title=UPDATED List of Participants in the Analog Nightlight Program |url=http://fjallfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/DOC-291375A1.pdf |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140201225603/http://www.nydailynews.com/entertainment/tv-movies/wnbc-ch-4-trims-promo-featuring-nypd-commissioner-ray-kelly-super-bowl-airing-article-1.1018204 |archive-date=February 1, 2014 |access-date=June 4, 2012 |publisher=Federal Communications Commission }}</ref> KTVK kept its analog signal on the air to inform viewers of the digital television transition through a loop of [[public service announcement]]s from the [[National Association of Broadcasters]]. KTVK's "nightlight" service was originally intended to last 30 days but was instead discontinued two weeks after the analog-to-digital transition, on June 26.<ref>{{Cite news|title=Phoenix TV goes digital, can you still see our signal? |url=http://www.abc15.com/content/news/investigators/consumeralerts/story/Phoenix-TV-goes-digital-can-you-still-see-our/6imDb0puuEii2w0JzIUg0w.cspx |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090612225137/http://www.abc15.com/content/news/investigators/consumeralerts/story/Phoenix-TV-goes-digital-can-you-still-see-our/6imDb0puuEii2w0JzIUg0w.cspx |publisher=KNXV-TV |access-date=June 12, 2009 |archive-date=June 12, 2009 |url-status=dead}}</ref>{{bcn|date=June 2024}}

===Translators===
KTVK is rebroadcast on the following [[Broadcast relay station#Broadcast translators|translator stations]]:<ref>{{Cite web|date=July 23, 2021|title=List of TV Translator Input Channels|url=https://www.fcc.gov/sites/default/files/tv-translator-input-channels-07232021.xlsx|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211209195336/https://www.fcc.gov/sites/default/files/tv-translator-input-channels-07232021.xlsx|archive-date=December 9, 2021|access-date=December 17, 2021|publisher=Federal Communications Commission}}</ref>
* [[Bullhead City]] (Katherine Landing): K12OF-D
* Bullhead City (Oatman–Goldroad Crest): K16EV-D
* [[Camp Verde, Arizona|Camp Verde]], etc.: K32ME-D
* [[Cottonwood, Arizona|Cottonwood]]: K28OA-D
* [[Flagstaff, Arizona|Flagstaff]]: K25MG-D
* [[Globe, Arizona|Globe]]–[[Miami, Arizona|Miami]]: K14NA-D
* [[Kingman, Arizona|Kingman]]: K23FV-D
* [[Lake Havasu City]]: K29FD-D
* [[Meadview]] (Patterson Slope): K25DH-D
* [[Prescott, Arizona|Prescott]]: K11LC-D
* [[Williams, Arizona|Williams]]–[[Ash Fork]]: K15HY-D

==See also==
* [[List of news aircraft crashes]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
* {{official|https://www.azfamily.com/ AZFamily.com}}
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20060923224528/http://co.pinal.az.us/mcfarland/az_ktvk_tv/ The McFarland Collection – KTVK-TV] (Photo gallery maintained by [[Pinal County, Arizona]])

{{PHX TV}}
{{Other Arizona Stations}}
{{Gray TV}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ktvk}}
[[Category:1955 establishments in Arizona]]
[[Category:Comet (TV network) affiliates]]
[[Category:Gray Media]]
[[Category:Independent television stations in the United States]]
[[Category:Television channels and stations established in 1955]]
[[Category:Television stations in Phoenix, Arizona|TVK]]