KRQE-TV

RQE, digital channel 13, is the CBS-affiliated television station serving the Albuquerque, New Mexico television market; the station is owned by LIN TV Corporation and is sister station to Fox affiliate KASA-TV (channel 2). Its transmitter is located on Sandia Crest, east of Albuquerque.

History
Channel 13 began operation in October 1953 as KGGM-TV, owned by the Hebenstreit family's New Mexico Broadcasting Company along with KGGM radio. In the late 1960s, the Hebenstreits sold a minority share to Chicago's Harriscope Broadcasting, which at one point owned Telemundo's WSNS Chicago. Many early Westerns were filmed, at least partially, at KGGM. The large studio that it used is now KRQE's "Newsplex," a combination newsroom and news studio.[citation needed] KGGM talent Earnest "Stretch" Scherer, known as Captain Billy, hosted a children's show called Captain Billy's Clubhouse. The format was a kids peanut gallery on bleachers holding about 50 seats with games and banter between cartoons, à la Bozo's Circus. Captain Billy was a sea captain with a dutch boy white haircut sticking out from under a sea Captain's hat and big brush moustache. Scherer was shot in the station's lobby after a misunderstanding involving a jealous husband. He died later at a hospital. [2] Among many alumni at KGGM/KRQE is Ray Rayner, formerly a children's television personality at WGN-TV in Chicago. He spent the last several years at KRQE before going into retirement.[citation needed]

The Hebenstreits sold KGGM-TV to Lee Enterprises in 1991, and at that time the call letters were changed to KRQE. However, the name "New Mexico Broadcasting Company" continued on the station's license well into the 21st century.

In January 1995, KRQE became a secondary UPN and WB affiliate running their programming on weekend overnights initially. It still continued as a primary CBS affiliate. In October 1995 KASY (which was owned by Ramar Communications at the time) signed on channel 50. At that time, KRQE bought the entire broadcast day on KASY in the form of a local marketing agreement. KRQE moved the UPN and WB shows to Channel 50 along with second runs of a few talk shows airing on Channel 13 as well. It also ran cartoons and sitcoms on Channel 50. Channel 13 remained a CBS affiliate.

In 1999, Ramar sold KASY to Acme TV which also owns KWBQ (which signed on the previous year). As a result, the local market agreement with KRQE was terminated and KASY was then programmed by KWBQ.

Lee would eventually exit broadcasting and sold KRQE to Emmis Communications in 2000. In 2005, Emmis sold the station to LIN Television (the station's current owner) in a group deal. In 2006, LIN announced its purchase of Raycom Media-owned Fox affiliate KASA-TV, which KRQE took control of on September 15. LIN's acquisition of KASA was finalized on February 22, 2007. [1] The acquisition earned LIN TV criticism from area newspapers for the resulting layoffs, as well as what the Albuquerque Objectivist newspaper in October 2006 referred to as the creation of a local "news empire" in KRQE.[citation needed]

KBIM-TV (channel 10) in Roswell, New Mexico signed on in February 1966 as the CBS affiliate for Southeastern New Mexico, replacing former CBS affiliate KAVE-TV in Carlsbad, New Mexico, which became an ABC affiliate. KBIM became a KRQE satellite in 1990. KREZ-TV, channel 6 in Durango, Colorado, also a CBS affiliate since its inception, began operations in 1963 as a free-standing local TV station for two years before becoming a satellite of CBS affiliate KREX-TV (channel 5) in Grand Junction, Colorado in the fall of 1965 and operating as such for nearly 30 years (with many attempts at regional news along the way) before becoming a KRQE satellite in 1995.

On May 18, 2007, LIN TV announced that it was exploring strategic alternatives that could result in the sale of the company.[2]

Satellite stations
These stations rebroadcast KRQE's signal and add local content for other parts of the broadcast market: Notes: In addition, there are several low-powered repeaters that carry KRQE's programming throughout New Mexico.
 * 1. The Broadcasting and Cable Yearbook says KBIM-TV signed on February 26, while the Television and Cable Factbook says it signed on February 23.
 * 2. KREZ was a satellite station of KREX-TV in Grand Junction, Colorado until February 28, 1995.

Programming
KRQE is one of few CBS affiliates not to air daytime network programming in pattern. As The World Turns airs at 10 a.m. (most CBS affiliates air at 1 p.m. as the third soap), The Price Is Right airs at 11 a.m. (most CBS affiliates generally air at 10 a.m.), The Young and The Restless airs at 1 p.m. (most CBS affiliates air it at 11 a.m. as the first soap opera of the CBS Daytime lineup) and CBS Evening News airs at 5 p.m. (other CBS affiliates in the Central and Mountain time zones typically air it at 5:30 p.m.).[citation needed]

During the 1980s, Albuquerque was one of the very few markets to carry Jeopardy! and Wheel of Fortune on separate stations, with Jeopardy! being on channel 13 and Wheel of Fortune being on channel 4. Since the mid-1990s, however, both shows air on channel 13, respectively.

News operation
Ordinarily, KRQE produces four and a half hours of local news on weekdays and about an hour each weekend day. The station and its newscasts identify themselves as "KRQE News 13".

According to Nielsen Media Research, the station was long the number three station in the market in terms of local viewership, primarily because of CBS' ratings problems in markets that serve vast areas such as Albuquerque-Santa Fe, especially since the 1970s. However, it is now competing for the number one spot in a tight three-way race with the two other major network affiliates, KOB and KOAT. Since September 15, 2006, KRQE also produces an hour-long, 9 p.m. newscast for co-owned Fox affiliate KASA-TV.

KBIM-TV offered local newscasts at 5:30 p.m. and 10 p.m. on Monday thru Fridays. However due to budget cuts the newscast was eliminated in December 2008, KBIM was southeast New Mexico's only source of local news with local news offices in Roswell, Carlsbad and Hobbs for many years. KREZ-TV's local newscasts from Durango were eliminated several years earlier by KRQE, also due to budget cuts by the parent company, a move that also eliminated a primary local news source for the Four Corners Region.

On August 8, 2010, KRQE became the first and only station in New Mexico to broadcast their newscasts in true high definition (KRQE newscasts on KASA-TV are also in high definition).

[edit] Newscast titles

 * Newsroom 13 (1950s and 1970s)
 * News 13 (1950s and 1970s)
 * New Mexico News 13 (1960s and 1980s)
 * Your News New Mexico (1980s)
 * Your News 13 (1980s)
 * 13 News (1970s-early 1990s)
 * Q-13 News (early-mid 1990s)
 * CBS Southwest News (late 1990s)
 * KRQE News 13 (2000–present)

[edit] KBIM newscast titles

 * Active 10 News (1970s-1980s)
 * The News on Ten (1980s-1990s)
 * CBS Southwest News (late 1990s)
 * 10 News (1998–2000)
 * KBIM News 10 (2000–present)

[edit] Station slogans
This film, television or video-related list is incomplete; you can help by expanding it with reliably sourced additions.===On-air staff===
 * KGGM/KRQE
 * Reach For the Stars on TV-13 (1981–1982; localized version of CBS ad campaign)
 * Great Moments on TV-13 (1982–1983; local version of CBS campaign)
 * We've Got the Touch, You and TV-13 (1983–1984; local version of CBS campaign)
 * You and TV-13, We've Got the Touch (1984–1985; local version of CBS campaign)
 * We've Got the Touch on TV-13 (1985–1986; local version of CBS campaign)
 * Sign of the Spirit (1987–1989)
 * Spirit of the Southwest (ca. 1989)
 * The Look is Channel 13 (1990–1991; localized version of CBS ad campaign)
 * On Your Side (2000–2003)
 * Balanced News. Earning Your Trust. (2003–present)
 * KBIM-TV
 * Reach For the Stars on TV-10 (1981–1982; local version of CBS campaign)
 * Great Moments on TV-10 (1982–1983; local version of CBS campaign)
 * We've Got the Touch, You and TV-10 (1983–1984; local version of CBS campaign)
 * You and TV-10, We've Got the Touch (1984–1985; local version of CBS campaign)
 * We've Got the Touch on TV-10 (1985–1986; local version of CBS campaign)
 * Share the Spirit of TV-10 (1986–1987; local version of CBS campaign)
 * TV-10 Spirit, Oh Yes! (1987–1988; local version of CBS campaign)
 * You Can Feel It On TV-10 (1988–1989; local version of CBS campaign)
 * Get Ready for TV-10 (1989–1990 and 1990–1991; local version of CBS campaign)

[edit] Current on-air staff
Anchors Weather Team Sports team Reporters
 * Dianne Anderson - weeknights at 10 p.m.
 * Jessica Garate - weeknights at 5:30 and 9 p.m. (on KASA)
 * Dick Knipfing - weeknights at 5:30 and 10 p.m.
 * Tim Maestas - weekends at 5:30 and 10 p.m.; also special assignment reporter
 * Mike Powers - weekday mornings and noon
 * Deanna Sauceda - weekday mornings
 * Kim Vallez - weekdays at 4 p.m.
 * Mark Ronchetti (AMS Seal of Approval) - chief meteorologist; weekdays at 4, weeknights at 5:30, 9 p.m. (on KASA) and 10 p.m.
 * Kristen Van Dyke (AMS Seal of Approval) - meteorologist; weekday mornings
 * Ian Schwartz - weather anchor; weekends at 5:30 and 10 p.m., also weeknight reporter
 * Van Tate - sports director; weeknights at 5:30, 9 p.m. (on KASA) and 10 p.m.
 * Lawrence Gilligan - sports reporter
 * Larry Barker - investigative reporter
 * Johnny Chandler - "Johnny On The Spot" feature reporter
 * Crystal Gutierrez - general assignment reporter
 * Kim Holland - special assignment reporter
 * Bob Martin - "Skyranger" pilot reporter
 * Maria Medina - general assignment reporter
 * David Romero - general assignment reporter
 * Jeff Todd - general assignment reporter
 * Alex Tomlin - general assignment reporter
 * Jim Winchester - general assignment reporter

[edit] Former on-air staff
This film, television or video-related list is incomplete; you can help by expanding it with reliably sourced additions.==References==
 * Kaitlin McCarthy - reporter
 * Michael Herzenberg - reporter/KASA 9 p.m. anchor
 * 1) ^ The Broadcasting and Cable Yearbook says October 3, while the Television and Cable Factbook says October 4.
 * 2) ^ Hollis, Tim (2001). Hi there, boys and girls!: America's local children's TV shows. University Press of Mississippi. ISBN 1578063965.