Family Group Broadcasting

Family Group Broadcasting, L.P. was a Delaware-incorporated,[1][2] Florida-based television and radio broadcasting company. A small company, based in and around Tampa Bay,[3] the company operated from the early 1980s to about 1997. Throughout its history, it owned and/or operated several different radio and television stations – all of its television stations independents (initially), on the UHF dial east of the Mississippi River. Also, the company operated under other names and aliases such as Family Broadcasting Company, Inc., Family Group Entertainment[4] and Family Group Ltd. III.

Family Group Broadcasting, L.P.
IndustryBroadcast television
FateDefunct
HeadquartersTampa, Florida,
United States
Area served
Midwest, Southeast and South Central United States and the U.S. Virgin Islands
Key people
Ian N. Wheeler (President/General Partner)

Many of the stations shared the same type of branding with their channel number in chrome silver inside a red-violet diamond and the station's call letters in white text inside a blue parallelogram underneath, along with a common imaging theme with the name of the group in the lyrics, 'TV that's fun! We bring you...Family fun!'.

Former stations

Television stations
  • 1 Stations built and/or signed-on by Family Group Broadcasting.
  • 2 Family Group Broadcasting had a 50 percent stake in the station. Also, Heritage Media, then-owners of ABC affiliate WEAR-TV, took control of the station under a Local marketing agreement beginning in 1995 and lasting until 1997, when both stations and the rest of Heritage Media's television stations division were acquired by and absorbed into Sinclair Broadcast Group.
  • 3 WLKT-TV was partially owned by Family Group Broadcasting in a "50–50" joint venture with a non-profit company, Way of the Cross, Inc. and was founded in 1983. However, the station didn't sign-on until 1988. Due to low viewership from a contract requiring Way of the Cross's religious programming to air in prime time slots, questionable reception and not being able to find a buyer, the two companies took the station off the air less than a year later and subsequently returned the license to the Federal Communications Commission. In 1999, a new low-power station took to the air on channel 62, WBLU-LP, but itself was troubled and taken off the air after being sold to Daystar in 2009.
MarketStation
PSIP (RF)		Years ownedSold toCurrent status
Mobile, AL – Pensacola –
Fort Walton Beach, FL		 WFGX 35 (50)1987–19971 2Sinclair Broadcast GroupStill owned by Sinclair as a MyNetworkTV affiliate
Fort Myers – Naples –
Cape Coral, FL		 WFTX-TV 36 (35)1985–1986Wabash Valley BroadcastingFox affiliate owned by The E.W. Scripps Company
Panama City, FLWFXD/WPGX[5] 28 (9)1988–1990Ashling Broadcasting Group[6]Fox affiliate owned by Lockwood Broadcast Group
Tampa – St. Petersburg, FLWFTS-TV 28 (17)1981–19841Capital Cities CommunicationsABC affiliate owned by The E.W. Scripps Company
Rockford, ILWQRF-TV 39 (36)1986–1989Petracom BroadcastingFox affiliate owned by Nexstar Media Group
Lexington – Fayette, KYWLKT-TV 621983–19893[7][8]Taken off the airDefunct in 1989, licensed cancelled and returned to the FCC
Roanoke – Lynchburg, VAWVFT 27 (36)1986–1991Roanoke–Lynchburg TV Acquisition CorporationFox affiliate, WFXR, owned by Nexstar Media Group
Green Bay – Appleton, WIWGBA-TV 26 (14)1985–1991[9]Aries TelecommunicationsNBC affiliate owned by The E.W. Scripps Company
La Crosse – Eau Claire, WIWLAX 25 (17)1986–19911[9]Aries TelecommunicationsFox affiliate owned by Nexstar Media Group

Radio stations
  • 1 The station today, operates as a simulcast of now-sister station, WANG 1490 AM, which in turn also operates a translator, W278CE on 103.5 FM.
  • 2 As of May 2020, the station is temporarily off the air as repairs are ongoing to its transmitter. As a result, its sports radio format is currently on WAVK 97.7 FM in the meantime.[10]
  • 3 The station today, operates as a simulcast of now-sister station, WFKZ 103.1 FM.

AM stations
MarketStationFrequencyCurrent Status
Key West, FLWKWF16002CBS Sports Radio and SB Nation Radio dual affiliate owned by Spottswood Partners II, LTD
Tampa – St. Petersburg, FLWQBN1300Spanish Variety owned by Crisbeto Enterprises Corp.
Biloxi – Gulfport – Pascagoula, MSWVMI570Classic country as WTNI1 on 1640 owned by Telesouth Communications
Beaumont – Port Arthur, TXKAYC1450CBS Sports Radio affiliate KIKR owned by Cumulus Media

FM stations
MarketStationFrequencyCurrent Status
Key West, FLWAIL99.5Classic rock owned by Florida Keys Media, LLC3
Biloxi – Gulfport – Pascagoula, MSWQID93.7Adult Contemporary as WMJY owned by iHeartMedia
Beaumont – Port Arthur, TXKAYD/KAYD-FM97.5ESPN Radio affiliate KFNC owned by GOW Media, LLC
Charlotte Amalie, USVIWVGN105.3Mainstream Urban, Reggae and Calypso as WVJZ owned by Ackley Media Group

References
  1. "Family Group Broadcasting L P SEC Registration". SEC.report. United States Securities and Exchange Commission. Retrieved May 24, 2020.
  2. "FAMILY GROUP BROADCASTING – Family Group Broadcasting, L.p. Trademark Registration". USPTO.report. United States Patent and Trademark Office. Retrieved May 24, 2020.
  3. "FAMILY GROUP BROADCASTING, INC. :: OpenCorporates". OpenCorporates. Retrieved May 24, 2020.
  4. "Broadcasting & Cable Yearbook 1980" (PDF). American Radio History. Broadcasting & Cable. 1980 [1980]. p. 501. Retrieved May 24, 2020.
  5. "Broadcasting & Cable Yearbook 1990" (PDF). American Radio History (PDF). Broadcasting & Cable. 1990 [1990]. pp. 60, 593, 677, 681, 755. Retrieved May 24, 2020.
  6. "Broadcasting & Cable Yearbook 1991" (PDF). American Radio History (PDF). Broadcasting & Cable. 1991 [1991]. p. 677. Retrieved May 24, 2020.
  7. Daykin, Tom (July 9, 1989). "WLKT'S DEMISE: THE DECLINE AND FALL OF CHANNEL 62". Lexington Herald-Leader. p. E1.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: date and year (link) (Archive restoration in progress as of May 2020)
  8. "FCCdata.org – powered by REC – DWKLT". FCCdata. Retrieved May 24, 2020.
  9. "Broadcasting & Cable Magazine" (PDF). American Radio History (PDF). Broadcasting & Cable (published August 12, 1991). 1991. p. 63. Retrieved May 24, 2020.
  10. Venta, Lance (March 30, 2020). "WKWF Moves Programming To WAVK As 97.7 The Zone – RadioInsight". RadioInsight. Retrieved May 24, 2020.
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