Hubbry Logo
KHOUKHOUMain
Open search
KHOU
Community hub
KHOU
logo
8 pages, 0 posts
0 subscribers
Be the first to start a discussion here.
Be the first to start a discussion here.
KHOU
KHOU
KHOU
View on Wikipedia
from Wikipedia

KHOU (channel 11) is a television station in Houston, Texas, United States, affiliated with CBS. It is owned by Tegna Inc. alongside Conroe-licensed Quest station KTBU (channel 55). The two stations share studios on Westheimer Road near Uptown Houston; KHOU's transmitter is located near Missouri City, in unincorporated northeastern Fort Bend County. Houston is the largest television market where the CBS station is not owned and operated by the network.

Key Information

History

[edit]

The station first signed on the air on March 22, 1953, as KGUL-TV (either Gulf of Mexico or seagull).[3][4] It was founded by Paul Taft of the Taft Broadcasting Co.[5] (no relation to the Cincinnati-based company of the same name nor its associated Taft family). Originally licensed to Galveston, it was the second television station to debut in the Houston market (after KPRC-TV, channel 2), taking the secondary CBS affiliation from KPRC-TV as the network's new primary affiliate, and has stayed aligned with the network ever since. One of the original investors in the station was actor James Stewart, along with a small group of other Galveston investors. The studio was located at 2002 45th Street in Galveston.

In 1956, the original owners sold the station to the Indianapolis-based Whitney Corporation (later Corinthian Broadcasting), which became a subsidiary of Dun & Bradstreet in 1971. In June 1959, the station changed its callsign to KHOU-TV (the "-TV" suffix was dropped from the call letters the week following the June 12, 2009, digital transition, as most Belo stations did at the time) and had its city of license relocated to Houston. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) license listed both the Houston and Galveston service areas for a time.[6] On April 24, 1960, the station moved to its first Houston facilities at 1945 Allen Parkway, along Buffalo Bayou in the Neartown neighborhood west of downtown Houston.[7]

KHOU's former studios and offices in Neartown Houston.

Belo ownership

[edit]

In 1984, Dun & Bradstreet sold its entire broadcasting division, including KHOU, to the Belo Corporation, who spun off its Beaumont station, KFDM-TV (channel 6) in order to comply with FCC regulations at the time. KFDM provided at least grade B coverage to much of the eastern portion of the Houston market, with portions of Liberty County getting a city-grade signal. In those days, the FCC normally did not allow common ownership of two stations with overlapping signals, and would not even consider a waiver for a city-grade overlap.

Known for its ownership of The Dallas Morning News and its flagship TV station in its home city of Dallas, WFAA (historically one of ABC's strongest affiliates and a local news powerhouse in that city), Belo began to make significant investments into KHOU, which had become one of CBS' weakest affiliates during the 1980s under the final years of Dun & Bradstreet ownership. With the addition of stronger syndicated programming including the popular game shows Wheel of Fortune and Jeopardy! (both of which were picked up from KPRC-TV) and The Oprah Winfrey Show (which KTRK-TV turned down), the revamping of its news department, and the carrying over of both its Dallas flagship's theme music and popular image branding, The Spirit of Texas, KHOU began to challenge KTRK and KPRC in the local ratings, and eventually became one of CBS' strongest affiliates by the 1990s during a very challenging period for the network. In 1998, KHOU became the first television station in the market to begin broadcasting a high definition digital signal.

On June 13, 2013, the Gannett Company announced that it would acquire Belo for $1.5 billion and the assumption of debt,[8] marking the company's entry into the Texas market and ending KHOU's nearly three decades of ownership by Belo. The sale was completed on December 23.[9] Two years later, on June 29, 2015, the Gannett Company split in two, with one side specializing in print media and the other side specializing in broadcast and digital media. KHOU was retained by the latter company, which would be named Tegna.[10]

Hurricane Harvey

[edit]

Being situated near Buffalo Bayou in an area that had become prone to flooding, KHOU's longtime studios had become vulnerable to damage from major hurricanes and severe weather as the Houston area grew exponentially over the last six decades. On the night of June 8, 2001, the station's studios flooded during Tropical Storm Allison, resulting in damage to much of the station's offices including its newsroom. The damage was so severe that the station had to cease its ongoing coverage of the ensuing flash flood emergency (which itself had interrupted regular programming that night) and instead broadcast a West Coast feed of the Late Show with David Letterman, followed by a feed from the station's doppler radar for roughly 90 minutes until the station could resume its breaking news coverage which lasted the entire weekend. During Hurricane Ike, which hit the Texas Gulf Coast in mid-September 2008, KHOU's storm coverage was distributed nationwide via DirecTV and XM Satellite Radio, as well as through a live feed on the station's website.

On August 21, 2017, KHOU began covering Hurricane Harvey as the storm was projected to hit the Texas Gulf Coast with extensive rainfall expected in the Greater Houston area. The station began wall-to-wall coverage on August 25, 2017, with extensive coverage of the storm's landfall in Rockport (near Corpus Christi). While initial coverage focused on storm damage and cleanup in parts of KHOU's viewing area, by the following Saturday, August 26, massive and continuous rain bands from the Gulf of Mexico led to catastrophic flooding throughout the metropolitan area, with much of the flooding being unprecedented in many places.

On the early morning of Sunday, August 27, KHOU was forced to evacuate its studios due to rising floodwaters from the nearby Buffalo Bayou. Around 6 a.m., the first floor of the building became inundated with floodwaters, forcing station employees to completely abandon its facility nearly three hours later after a move to a second floor conference room proved to only be a short-term option, though critical equipment (such as the studio's robotic cameras) was also moved up to the second floor before the flooding became worse. The station's brand-new news set (which had debuted in November 2016), weather center, newsroom and master control were destroyed by the floodwaters, which rose up to five feet (2 m) within the building.[11] Additionally, the station's over the air signal, including its CBS and diginet feeds, were knocked off the air as computers and other equipment became submerged by floodwaters, with staff relegated to providing updates on social media.[12]

After KHOU's signal was knocked off the air, sister station WFAA began providing live news coverage for KHOU by live-streaming on both station's websites and social media profiles until the station was able to resume broadcasting on its own. Seven hours of news were anchored by WFAA's David Schechter and Jason Wheeler.[13] KHOU's staff then evacuated to the nearby Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas Houston Branch building on higher ground while a new contingency plan was drafted.

With the assistance of PBS member station KUHT (channel 8) and master control from WFAA, KHOU eventually resumed live broadcasting later that night from temporary facilities at the LeRoy and Lucile Melcher Center for Public Broadcasting on the campus of the University of Houston. At various times, WFAA, along with Tegna NBC affiliate KUSA in Denver, provided assistance with weather graphics and master control. Due to technical difficulties, WFAA originated the August 27 edition of the 10 p.m. news that was simulcast in both cities. Eventually a reliable signal was established an hour later from KUHT's studios at the Melcher Center and storm coverage continued. KHOU is the third commercial station in Houston to utilize a part of the UH campus for its facilities, after ill-fated KNUZ-TV (channel 39) from 1953 to 1954 and KTRK-TV (channel 13) from its 1954 launch until its 1961 move to its current studios in the Upper Kirby district.

On the evening of August 31, the station resumed CBS programming with its prime time lineup. For the first month, the station only broadcast its main HD channel while its two subchannels (at the time Bounce TV and Justice Network) remained shut down. The following week, on September 4, KHOU began to reuse parts of its previous 2011–2016 news set in the temporary studio.[14] On October 4, the subchannels returned as widescreen SD simulcasts of the main channel in preparation for the eventual return of the diginets, which would finally return on October 12. Around the same time, the station's on-air look returned to normal with full news and weather graphics restored and program guide listings on the terrestrial signal. A temporary news set, similar in design to its previous news set destroyed in the Harvey floods with additional brick accents, would eventually be constructed for the station at the Houston Public Media facilities.

Move to Westheimer studios

[edit]

On November 16, 2017, KHOU officially announced it would not return to the Allen Parkway facility;[15] the building would eventually be sold to an affiliate of Service Corporation International (whose headquarters are located in an office building adjacent to the former KHOU studios) and was eventually demolished the following May. In December 2017, KHOU announced that it would open a secondary street-side studio at the George R. Brown Convention Center along Avenida Houston.[16] The studio opened in the fall of 2018, and is primarily used for its weekday newscasts. This setup is similar to that of Dallas sister station WFAA's Victory Park studio, which opened a decade earlier in January 2007.

On March 29, 2018, KHOU announced that it had signed a lease for 43,000 square feet (3,995 m2) of space at 5718 Westheimer Road near Uptown Houston (Galleria area). The station occupies three floors of the high-rise in facilities that include two studios, two control rooms, an open collaboration space for all content producing departments, technical operations, sales and executive offices. The station began its operations from its new facility on Sunday, February 17, 2019, during its 10 p.m. newscast.[17]

On January 21, 2020, KHOU would gain a sister station when Tegna acquired KTBU (channel 55) from Spanish Broadcasting System which had been airing its Mega TV service over that station;[18] the sale was completed on March 24 with KTBU moving its operations three days later into KHOU's Westheimer facilities and dropping Mega TV in favor of Tegna's digital multicast network, Quest, which had previously been airing on KHOU's fourth digital subchannel. While KTBU may serve as an alternate CBS affiliate should KHOU need its main signal for long-form breaking news and severe weather coverage, its primary role has been to serve as a UHF rebroadcaster of KHOU's digital signal (which remains on VHF channel 11).

Canceled sale to Cox Media Group

[edit]

On February 22, 2022, Tegna announced that it would be acquired by Standard General and Apollo Global Management for $5.4 billion. As a part of the deal, KHOU and KTBU, along with their Austin sister station KVUE and Dallas sister stations WFAA and KMPX, would be resold to Cox Media Group.[19][20] The sale was canceled on May 22, 2023.[21]

Programming

[edit]

Since its inception, KHOU has been a CBS affiliate, and has largely cleared the entire CBS network lineup without interruption. In addition to its newscasts, KHOU also airs Great Day Houston, a local talk show hosted by Deborah Duncan with paid segments from local businesses in Houston, following CBS Mornings. The talk show, which has aired on the station since 2005, is taped at KHOU's studios on Westheimer Road west of the Galleria. KHOU also serves as the local television broadcaster of Houston's annual Thanksgiving Day parade, the H-E-B Holiday Parade.

Despite being in a market with an ABC-owned station (KTRK-TV), Jeopardy! aired on KHOU from 1986 to 2015 and Wheel of Fortune has aired on that station since 1986 despite their presence on ABC's other network-owned stations along with another ABC O&O syndication staple, The Oprah Winfrey Show, which KHOU carried for its entire run from 1986 to 2011. Jeopardy! moved to KTRK on September 14, 2015, making it the last ABC-owned station to carry the quiz show. However, KHOU continues to carry Wheel of Fortune at 6:30 p.m., making Houston one of the few markets in the United States where both game shows air on separate stations; in most markets, both game shows are sold as a package, often airing next to one another on the same station in prime time access. Both shows rarely air next to each other in most markets in the Central and Mountain time zones, as most network affiliates often program a 6 p.m. newscast during the traditional access hour (7 p.m. ET/6 p.m. CT) before prime time, with KTRK itself having aired an hourlong 6 p.m. newscast in this hour since September 1982.

In 1987, KHOU refused to air a television adaptation of the then-popular Garbage Pail Kids trading card series on Saturday mornings, owing to concerns regarding the show's ridicule of the disabled and its abundance of heavy violence; as a result of these decisions and concerns, CBS decided not to air it on their Saturday morning schedule for the 1987–88 television season, and the series, to date, has never been telecast in the United States.[22]

Like most CBS affiliates prior to 1993, KHOU often carried syndicated programming (including Entertainment Tonight and reruns of M*A*S*H) in late night following its 10 p.m. newscast, as the network's late night offerings of the era were considered to be less lucrative compared to syndicated offerings. Beginning in 1993, KHOU (like most CBS affiliates) began carrying the Late Show (then hosted by David Letterman) at 11:05 p.m. CT, eventually moving it to immediately following its 10 p.m. newscast (at 10:35 p.m. CT) by 1995. However, the station had always aired The Late Late Show on a 30-minute delay (beginning at 12:07 a.m. CT) since the show first premiered in 1995, fitting a syndicated sitcom, game show or tabloid news program between the two shows. Because the latter program's original host, Tom Snyder, had a simulcast with the CBS Radio Network (which aired locally on KPRC-AM) and took calls from viewers during his stint as host, KHOU asked via disclaimer for Houston area viewers to not call the toll-free call-in number due to the tape-delay. This practice would continue under later hosts Craig Kilborn and Craig Ferguson, as well as the first few months of James Corden's tenure as host.

On September 8, 2015, it began airing The Late Late Show at its network-approved time (11:37 p.m. CT) following Stephen Colbert's debut as host of The Late Show; leaving the station's only CBS preemption being that of the second half-hour of the Sunday morning talk show Face the Nation, which had been tape-delayed to 2:30 a.m. the following Monday morning due to KHOU's longstanding broadcasts of religious programs from Houston-based Lakewood Church and Second Baptist Church, with the former also airing on Sunday night following its 10 p.m. newscast and KHOU 11 Sports Extra (see below). After Lakewood's broadcasts moved to KTRK in 2020 (only to return to KHOU at 11 p.m. only on Sunday nights the following year), Face the Nation began airing its full hour at 9:30 a.m., where the first half-hour had already been airing for years, with the religious broadcast from Second Baptist Church continuing to air at 10:30 a.m.

Sports programming

[edit]

In 2002, the Houston Texans joined the NFL as the league's 32nd franchise, as part of the American Football Conference's newly formed South Division. Being part of the AFC, most Texans games—including all road games against NFC opponents—are aired on CBS (which has held the contract to carry AFC games since the 1998 season), and are therefore aired locally on KHOU. The station also served as the over-the-air outlet for all of the Texans' appearances on Thursday Night Football until 2018 (when Fox picked up the full rights to the Thursday night package that lasted until 2021, thus moving those telecasts locally to KRIV), and have aired simulcasts of ESPN's Monday Night Football in the past (due to ABC's live broadcast of Dancing with the Stars on KTRK conflicting with the games). The Texans are one of two teams never to have been blacked out at home, the other being the Baltimore Ravens; this stands in contrast to the city's previous NFL team, the Houston Oilers, who were often blacked out at home in their twilight years in Houston before moving to Nashville in 1997 for reasons related to the team's controversial management under owner Bud Adams. Beginning in 2014, with the institution of 'cross-flex' rules, games in which the Texans play an NFC opponent at home can be moved from Fox O&O KRIV (channel 26) to KHOU, with the same standard also applying for AFC road games at NRG Stadium being moved over to KRIV.

Other notable appearances by Houston sports teams on KHOU have included the Houston Rockets' 1981 and 1986 appearances in the NBA Finals (both losses to the Boston Celtics; all Rockets games broadcast through CBS' NBA broadcast contract were aired on KHOU from 1973 to 1990) and the University of Houston men's basketball team's three NCAA National Championship appearances in 1983, 1984, and 2025, and their other Final Four appearance in 2021—all via their national coverage by CBS Sports. KHOU also carried Southwest Conference football and men's basketball games (with an emphasis on games involving the University of Houston and Rice University) on Saturday afternoons before the conference folded in 1996, as well as CBS' broadcasts of the 2011 and the 2023 NCAA Final Fours and Super Bowls VIII (1974) and XXXVIII (2004)—all of which took place in Houston. Presently, KHOU may also carry select games from the National Women's Soccer League's Houston Dash.

News operation

[edit]

KHOU presently broadcasts 33 hours, 55 minutes of locally produced newscasts each week (with 5 hours, 35 minutes each weekday, three hours on Saturdays, and 2+1⁄2 hours on Sundays). On weekdays, this includes a 2+1⁄2-hour morning newscast from 4:30 a.m. to 7 a.m., a full hour at 4 p.m., and half-hours at noon, 5 p.m., 6 p.m. and 10 p.m. Its weekend newscasts include a 1+1⁄2-hour morning newscast on Saturday morning, hour-long newscasts at 10 p.m. on Saturday and on Sunday morning, and half-hours at 6 p.m. on Saturday and 5:30 p.m. and 10 p.m. on Sunday. The station also airs KHOU 11 Sports Extra, which features extensive Sunday night sports coverage and commentary, following its 10 p.m. newscast on Sunday night.

Mark Greenblatt at the 69th Annual Peabody Awards for "Under Fire: Discrimination and Corruption in the Texas National Guard"

Throughout its existence, KHOU has been widely regarded as a stepping stone for many well-known television news personalities, as many of its reporters have gone on to work for national networks. KHOU's best known former on-air staffers include former CBS Evening News anchor Dan Rather, NBC News correspondent Dennis Murphy, newswomen Linda Ellerbee and Jessica Savitch, and sports anchors Jim Nantz (now the lead announcer for CBS Sports), Harry Kalas (later a legendary broadcaster for Major League Baseball and NFL Films) and Ron Franklin (later with ESPN). Outside of broadcasting, one of its former sports anchors, Dan Patrick, eventually became Lieutenant Governor of Texas.

KHOU also has gained a reputation for its investigative reporting staff (currently known as KHOU 11 Investigates), whose most notable stories include its 2000 investigation into defective tire designs by Firestone – which led to the mandatory recall of Wilderness AT, Firestone ATX and ATX II tires, as well as numerous lawsuits (the defective tires resulted in a number of deaths, including that of KTRK reporter Stephen Gauvain), a story in the early 2000s that led to the shutdown of the Houston Police Department's crime lab, and allegations of dropout rate fraud in the Houston Independent School District, which resulted in the dismissal of several HISD officials. All of these stories were initially reported by investigative reporter Anna Werner, who eventually went on to become the chief investigative reporter for CBS News.

History

[edit]

Despite not being historically associated with a major newspaper, and being based in Galveston for most of the 1950s, news has always played an integral role in the history of KHOU. The station gained notoriety in 1961 when then-anchor Dan Rather showed what was believed to be the first radar image of a hurricane broadcast on television during Hurricane Carla;[23] this report, which was credited for saving thousands of lives that otherwise would have been lost, would later become a catalyst in his eventual hiring by CBS News. In 1970, KHOU had boasted of the top-rated news team in Houston, led by anchorman Ron Stone (who had been discovered by Rather in 1961), weatherman Sid Lasher and sports director Ron Franklin.

The station entered a tumultuous period during the early 1970s, when Stone departed for a radio reporter role with NBC News in New York and Lasher died from a fatal heart attack in a station breakroom shortly after KHOU's 6 p.m. newscast concluded one night. Stone would eventually return to Houston in 1972 to become the lead anchor at KPRC-TV, and helped that station to overtake KHOU as the leading news station in Houston; both stations would eventually be overtaken by KTRK-TV, whose Eyewitness News came to dominate the Houston market for the next several decades and which had become one of ABC's strongest affiliates by the end of the decade, eventually becoming one of the network's owned-and-operated stations in 1986.

While the station did hire former KPRC-TV lead anchor Steve Smith away from KDKA-TV in Pittsburgh to become its lead anchor in 1975 (a role he maintained for the next 24 years at the station), KHOU continued to trail its rivals as the decade progressed. A string of notable departures also did not help the station's cause, including the 1976 departure of chief meteorologist Doug Brown (who himself succeeded Lasher) to KTRK where he became that station's longtime morning meteorologist, and the subsequent departures to KPRC of news anchors Bob Nicholas (one of Houston's first African-American news anchors) in 1979 and Bill Balleza in 1980, with the latter also joined that year by the aforementioned Ron Franklin, who moved to KHOU to fill the same role of sports director at KPRC.[24] As a result, channel 11 crashed to last place, and would largely remain entrenched in this position throughout the 1980s.

When Belo acquired KHOU in 1984, the station continued to trail behind dominant KTRK and NBC affiliate KPRC, which usually placed a strong second and would further benefit in the decade from NBC's strong prime time programming of the 1980s. Its newscasts fared even worse than CBS' own floundering network programming itself at the time, occasionally even placing behind syndicated reruns on independent stations in the Houston market. Having achieved considerable success with the news department of its flagship station in Dallas, WFAA, since the 1970s, Belo sought to seek similar results for KHOU, and beginning in the late 1980s hired several high-profile people to its news team. The most notable was former National Hurricane Center director Dr. Neil Frank, who was hired as the station's chief meteorologist in July 1987. In another key move, KHOU also hired former KTRK morning anchor Sylvan Rodriguez (then a correspondent with ABC News' West Coast bureau) to anchor the station's early evening newscasts.

During this time, KHOU also commissioned an image rebrand using the "Spirit of Texas" slogan and (initially) TM Productions' "Spirit" music package that originated at its Dallas sister station WFAA. In January 1989, KHOU revamped the appearance of its newscasts, with an image campaign that included full-page ads in the Houston Chronicle and Post, as well as an on-air promotional campaign that focused more on ordinary citizens throughout Greater Houston than on its news team. With a main team consisting of anchors Steve Smith and Marlene McClinton (who the station hired from WMAQ-TV in Chicago), chief meteorologist Dr. Neil Frank and sports director Giff Nielsen (a former Houston Oilers quarterback who became KHOU's lead sports anchor following his retirement from the NFL in 1984), along with a new set, graphics and theme music, KHOU began to mount a serious challenge to its longtime competitors, evolving into a competitive ratings race during the 1990s. Its resurgent newscasts, combined with a strong syndicated programming lineup, helped to sustain the station through what would be a turbulent ratings period for CBS, which lost broadcast rights to NFL games in addition to several of its largest affiliates (including its longtime affiliates in Dallas and Austin) during this time.

1999 proved to be a breakout year for KHOU, with its newscasts reaching #1 in viewership in several timeslots during the May sweeps period, unseating KTRK during the midday hours, and at 5 p.m. (it debuted in May 1974) and 6 p.m., which also coincided with CBS' resurgence to number one in prime time by that year. The station's ratings boost, aided by its continuously strong syndicated lineup and a series of high-profile investigative reports by the station, also included an exclusive interview with Serbian and Yugoslavian President Slobodan Milosevic during the Kosovo War, just a month before his indictment, that drew international news coverage.

This news came despite the station losing three of its core anchors key to the station's resurgence: longtime anchor Steve Smith, who retired from broadcasting in May 1999 to pursue other interests, his fellow anchor Marlene McClinton, who abruptly resigned during one of the station's newscasts in September 1999, and 6 p.m. anchor Sylvan Rodriguez, who had been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and eventually succumbed to the disease in April 2000. Two former local newscasters in New York City, Greg Hurst of ABC flagship WABC-TV and Len Cannon of Fox flagship WNYW (the latter also a former NBC News correspondent and substitute anchor), would respectively join the station, with Hurst succeeding Smith as lead anchor in 1999 and Cannon joining the station in 2006 to replace longtime anchor Jerome Gray, who went to rival KPRC-TV. Cannon himself became lead anchor in 2017 after Hurst left the station (with Hurst eventually joining fellow CBS affiliate WREG-TV in Memphis).

On February 4, 2007, following CBS' coverage of Super Bowl XLI, KHOU began broadcasting its local newscasts in high definition, becoming the first station in the market to do so. On September 7, 2009, KHOU-TV expanded its weekday morning newscast with the addition of the 4:30 a.m. program First Look; despite being the last station in the Houston market to launch a 4:30 a.m. newscast, KHOU was the only station in the market to announce its intentions to do so (three of Houston's major network affiliates – KHOU, KTRK-TV and KPRC-TV – launched 4:30 a.m. newscasts within three weeks of each other in the late summer of 2009 with little fanfare). On August 1, 2011, KHOU debuted a new half-hour newscast at 4 p.m. on weekdays to replace The Oprah Winfrey Show;[25] this would expand to a full hour in 2015 after losing the Houston rights to Jeopardy! to KTRK. Like many CBS and ABC stations in other markets, KHOU has also expanded its weekend 10 p.m. news broadcast to a full hour, including the aforementioned KHOU 11 Sports Extra on Sunday nights.

In 2018, the station rebranded its weekday morning newscasts as HTownRush, with a format emphasizing social media interaction including its own namesake hashtag, a summary of top stories during the first five minutes of each half-hour, and special segments including in-house features exclusive to Tegna stations such as Deal Boss, one-minute business/technology news briefs from Cheddar, and consumer reporter John Matarese's Don't Waste Your Money consumer segments (which usually air on stations owned by the E. W. Scripps Company). In June 2019, KHOU engaged in a similar rebranding process for its 4 p.m. newscast, rebranded as The 411, emphasizing a conceptual format and on-air graphics style similar to that of its morning newscast. KHOU has since dropped the HTownRush branding for its morning newscast as of 2022, instead rebranding as KHOU 11 Morning News.

Unlike most CBS affiliates, the station did not air a Sunday morning newscast until January 5, 2020, with the hour before CBS Sunday Morning instead being filled by one of CBS's three hours of E/I programming which KHOU preempted to carry a Saturday morning newscast in between the two hours of CBS This Morning Saturday. Following the launch of the Sunday morning newscast and subsequent changes in federal regulations on children's television programming, KHOU has since aired two of CBS's three hours of E/I programming from 5 a.m. to 7 a.m. on Saturday morning, followed by the full broadcast of CBS Saturday Morning leading into KHOU's Saturday morning newscast from 9 a.m. to 10:30 a.m.

Notable current on-air staff

[edit]

Notable former on-air staff

[edit]

Criticism

[edit]

On November 24, 2022, KHOU was criticized for interrupting a Thanksgiving Day game between the Buffalo Bills and the Detroit Lions for a tornado warning with 23 seconds left in the game, causing viewers to miss a last second game-winning field goal by the Bills. The station did not incorporate a picture-in-picture treatment or split-screen format for viewers in Houston to continue watching the game while the weather report was issued. KHOU made no public apology for the interruption incident.[41]

Technical information and subchannels

[edit]

KHOU's transmitter is located near Missouri City, in unincorporated northeastern Fort Bend County.[2] The station's signal is multiplexed:

Subchannels of KHOU[42]
Channel Res. Aspect Short name Programming
11.1 1080i 16:9 KHOU-HD CBS
11.2 480i ShopLC Shop LC
11.3 Crime True Crime Network
11.4 COMET Comet
11.5 Roar Roar
39.2 480i 16:9 Ant TV Antenna TV (KIAH)
39.4 HSN2 HSN2 (KIAH)
  Broadcast on behalf of another station

On September 26, 2011, KHOU began broadcasting Bounce TV on its second digital subchannel (which originally launched as a quasi-independent station) upon the network's launch.[43] The station had previously signed on to carry the .2 Network on one of its digital subchannels, although .2 Network never debuted. In 2015, the station began carrying programming from the Justice Network on its third digital subchannel. Quest was added to the fourth digital subchannel on January 16, 2018, and was changed to a simulcast of sister station KTBU after that station switched to the network on March 27, 2020; in February 2021, the fourth digital subchannel became an affiliate of Twist. The fifth digital subchannel, Circle, which was 50 percent owned by Gray Television with the other half owned by a subsidiary of Ryman Hospitality Properties' Opry Entertainment Group, debuted with the network on January 1, 2020. Bounce TV moved to KPXB-DT2 in January 2022. Twist and Circle were both removed on December 31, 2023; the former was discontinued by Tegna, while the latter transitioned into a free ad-supported streaming television (FAST) operation. The fourth digital subchannel became an affiliate of Sinclair Broadcast Group's Comet network in February 2024.

Analog-to-digital conversion

[edit]

KHOU discontinued regular programming on its analog signal, over VHF channel 11, on the morning of June 12, 2009, as part of the federally mandated transition from analog to digital television.[44] The station's digital signal relocated from its pre-transition UHF channel 31 to VHF channel 11.[45]

Notes

[edit]

References

[edit]
[edit]
Revisions and contributorsEdit on WikipediaRead on Wikipedia

KHOU

View on Grokipedia
from Grokipedia
KHOU, branded on-air as KHOU 11, is a CBS-affiliated television station licensed to Houston, Texas, United States, broadcasting on virtual channel 11 (VHF digital channel 11). Owned by TEGNA Inc., the station maintains transmitter facilities in unincorporated northeastern Fort Bend County, southeast of Missouri City. It serves as a primary source of local news, weather, sports, and community programming for the Greater Houston area, operating under the brand promise "KHOU Stands for Houston" to emphasize accountability, heroism, and reliability in journalism. KHOU signed on the air on March 22, 1953, as KGUL-TV, an affiliate broadcasting from , with initial co-ownership by Hollywood actor Jimmy Stewart, who hosted its debut broadcast. The station changed its call letters to KHOU-TV in 1959, switched to affiliation, and relocated its studios to in 1960, where it has operated continuously since. Key milestones include broadcasting the first live radar image during in 1961 and becoming the nation's first fully station in 1998. In 2019, KHOU moved to a new 43,000-square-foot facility at 5718 Westheimer Road in 's area, featuring advanced studios and control rooms. The station has earned widespread recognition for its investigative reporting and community engagement, including nine National Awards, five duPont-Columbia Awards, four George Foster Peabody Awards, and two National News & Documentary . KHOU produces local programs such as the morning newscast Great Day Houston and leads annual community drives for , , and toys, while its digital platform, KHOU.com, and app provide 24/7 streaming of news and weather updates. As of November 2025, TEGNA's ownership of KHOU remains in place, though a $6.2 billion acquisition by , announced in August 2025, is pending regulatory approval and shareholder vote, expected to close in the second half of 2026.

Overview

Station profile

KHOU is a television station licensed to Houston, Texas, United States, operating as a CBS affiliate on virtual channel 11 (VHF digital channel 11). The station signed on the air on March 22, 1953, as KGUL-TV in Galveston, Texas, initially as an NBC affiliate, and switched to its current CBS affiliation in 1959. In June 1959, it changed its call letters to KHOU and relocated its city of license to Houston to better serve the larger market. The station's studios are located at 5718 in , a facility it moved into in February 2019 after its previous studios at 1945 Allen Parkway were severely damaged by flooding during in August 2017. KHOU's transmitter is situated in unincorporated northeastern Fort Bend County near Missouri City, providing broadcast coverage to the area. Houston ranks as the fifth-largest television market in the United States according to the Fall 2025 Nielsen revisions, with KHOU's signal reaching a metropolitan population of approximately 7.5 million people. KHOU is owned by TEGNA Inc., which also owns sister station KTBU (channel 55), a Quest network affiliate acquired in March 2020; the two stations share studio facilities.

Ownership and operations

KHOU is currently owned by , a media company headquartered in , which acquired the station through the 2015 spin-off of Gannett's broadcasting and digital media businesses. As part of 's portfolio, KHOU operates alongside 63 other television stations across 51 U.S. markets, serving a combined of over 100 million people monthly. The station is licensed by the (FCC) to KHOU-TV, Inc., a wholly owned of TEGNA. Prior to TEGNA's ownership, KHOU was held by the from 1984 until 2013, when it was acquired by Gannett in a $1.5 billion deal that included Belo's television assets. There have been no ownership changes since the formation of TEGNA in 2015, though TEGNA entered a definitive agreement in August 2025 for to acquire the company for $6.2 billion, pending regulatory approval and shareholder vote on November 18, 2025, with closure anticipated by the end of 2025. In terms of operations, KHOU forms a duopoly with fellow TEGNA-owned station KTBU (channel 55), a Quest affiliate licensed to , which was acquired in March 2020 for $15 million to expand local market presence. The two stations share studios on in , following a 2019 relocation, but maintain independent programming schedules with no current agreements or news partnerships. Ongoing operations emphasize multi-platform delivery, including and on-demand content via the KHOU 11+ app, which was launched in 2019 to provide free access to news, weather, and sports coverage.

History

Origins and early years

KHOU traces its origins to KGUL-TV, which signed on the air on March 22, 1953, in Galveston, Texas, as the second commercial television station in the Houston market. The station was established by the Gulf Television Corporation, a consortium of Galveston and Houston investors that included actor Jimmy Stewart, with Paul Taft serving as president and primary stockholder. Operating on VHF channel 11, KGUL-TV adopted a primary affiliation with CBS from its inception, supplemented by secondary arrangements with ABC and the DuMont Television Network, and featured a mix of network fare alongside local programming such as live country music performances. Its transmitter, located in Santa Fe near Galveston, broadcast at 235,000 watts—making it the most powerful television station in Texas at the time—but coverage was initially concentrated along the Galveston-Houston corridor due to the station's licensing and studio location in Galveston. In its early years, KGUL-TV encountered stiff competition from established outlets like (NBC affiliate, on air since 1949) and the newly launched (ABC affiliate, 1954), as well as the educational (channel 8, 1953). These rivals, based directly in , drew larger audiences in the metropolitan area, contributing to KGUL-TV's more modest viewership during the . The station's Galveston focus also posed logistical challenges for serving the broader audience, limiting its immediate impact despite the robust signal strength. By the late 1950s, to better compete and expand reach, KGUL-TV undertook a significant relocation to . In May 1959, groundbreaking ceremonies for new studios occurred, attended by correspondent ; one month later, the call letters officially changed to KHOU-TV, reflecting the shift to "." The station solidified its exclusive affiliation with the move, dropping secondary network ties, and completed the transition to its Allen Parkway studios in April 1960. This repositioning marked the end of KGUL-TV's Galveston era and positioned KHOU as a core player in broadcasting, with early on-air talent including future anchor , who joined as a reporter shortly after the relocation. In September 1961, during , KHOU broadcast the first live radar image of a hurricane on television, with Rather reporting from the Galveston Weather Bureau, revolutionizing weather coverage.

Belo Corporation era

In 1983, the A. H. Belo Corporation announced its acquisition of four television stations, including KHOU-TV in Houston, from Dun & Bradstreet's Corinthian Broadcasting subsidiary for $606 million, with the deal closing in 1984. This purchase marked Belo's major expansion into broadcasting beyond its newspaper roots, positioning KHOU as a key asset in the competitive Houston market. Under Belo ownership, KHOU underwent significant programming enhancements, emphasizing robust local content and pioneering that built on the station's reputation for in-depth reporting. These changes propelled KHOU from a distant third in local ratings to second place by 1990, establishing it as one of the top affiliates in during the 1990s. The station's news department expanded considerably in the , with investments in production facilities and staff that supported this resurgence and contributed to Belo's overall revenue growth, reaching $354 million company-wide by 1984, largely driven by stations like KHOU and flagship . Key milestones during the Belo era included standout coverage of national events, such as the 1991 Gulf War, where KHOU's broadcasts as a affiliate drew strong local viewership amid heightened . The station achieved peak local ratings in 1999, benefiting from the prominence of the era at , which bolstered affiliate performance across markets like . These developments solidified KHOU's modernization and market standing until Belo sold the station to Gannett in 2013, later restructured as TEGNA.

TEGNA ownership

In December 2013, Gannett Co. Inc. acquired , KHOU's previous owner, in a $1.5 billion cash deal that included 20 television stations, among them KHOU in . The acquisition was completed on December 23, 2013, integrating KHOU into Gannett's expanding broadcast portfolio. On June 29, 2015, Gannett spun off its broadcasting and digital media properties into a new publicly traded company named TEGNA Inc., retaining KHOU as part of the separation while the publishing assets became the rebranded Gannett Co. Inc. Under TEGNA, KHOU aligned with the company's digital-first strategy, emphasizing multi-platform content delivery across broadcast, websites, and mobile apps to reach audiences beyond traditional TV. This included enhancements to khou.com around 2016, such as improved mobile responsiveness and integrated video streaming, as part of TEGNA's broader investment in local digital media tools like Premion, an OTT advertising platform launched that year. In January 2020, TEGNA expanded its Houston presence by acquiring independent station KTBU (channel 55) from for $15 million, creating a duopoly with KHOU and enabling shared resources for enhanced content production across platforms. The deal closed in March 2020, allowing TEGNA to leverage KTBU for additional programming and advertising opportunities while maintaining KHOU's focus on network and . Since 2015, KHOU has experienced no major format overhauls, sustaining steady operations with consistent ratings performance, often placing second in key Houston news demographics such as the 10 p.m. slot. TEGNA's ownership has seen occasional sale attempts, including a 2022 agreement with Standard General that ultimately fell through, but these did not disrupt KHOU's routine milestones like annual ratings stability and community-focused initiatives.

Major events and challenges

During Hurricane Harvey in August 2017, KHOU's studios at 1945 Allen Parkway suffered severe flooding on August 27, forcing an immediate evacuation of staff while live broadcasts were ongoing. The station quickly shifted to temporary operations from the facilities of Houston Public Media (KUHT/PBS) at the University of Houston, with additional support from TEGNA sister station WFAA in Dallas providing remote production assistance to maintain continuous coverage. KHOU resumed full local broadcasts from the temporary setup by early September, enabling the station to continue delivering essential news amid the disaster's aftermath. In response to the Harvey damage, KHOU relocated its operations in 2019 to a new 43,000-square-foot facility at 5718 near , marking a significant upgrade in infrastructure. The move, completed in February 2019 after nearly 18 months of temporary arrangements, included two modern studios, two control rooms, and an integrated newsroom, enhancing production efficiency and collaborative workflows. KHOU faced ownership uncertainty in 2022–2023 as part of TEGNA's proposed $8.6 billion sale to and , which included plans to divest stations like KHOU and KTBU to to address regulatory overlaps. The deal collapsed on May 22, 2023, after the FCC raised concerns over potential media consolidation and foreign influence, resulting in a $136 million termination fee to TEGNA and preserving the station's status under its current ownership. Following the failed transaction, KHOU experienced operational stability, focusing on team enhancements such as the addition of reporter Orko Manna in October 2024 and anchor Ilona Carson in July 2025 to bolster its newsroom. As of November 2025, TEGNA's ownership remains in place, though a $6.2 billion acquisition by , announced on August 19, 2025, is pending regulatory approval and shareholder vote, with an expected close in the second half of 2026.

Programming

Network affiliation

KHOU has maintained a continuous affiliation with since signing on the air as KGUL-TV on March 22, 1953, in , making it one of the network's early charter affiliates in the region. Initially licensed as a primary affiliate with secondary arrangements for ABC and DuMont programming, the station aired a mix of network and content from its launch, reflecting the limited availability of affiliates in the market at the time. Following its change to KHOU in and to studios in 1960, the station solidified its exclusive affiliation by the early 1960s, as ABC established in 1954 and DuMont ceased operations in 1956, leaving no competing networks in the area. KHOU carries the complete schedule, including all primetime dramas, comedies, and late-night shows; daytime soaps and game shows; and major specials such as the and , while preempting portions for inserts and weather alerts. The affiliation operates under a standard rights fee agreement between TEGNA Inc., KHOU's owner since 2015, and , with the most recent multi-year renewal executed in 2022 extending through late 2028 across multiple TEGNA markets. This arrangement also encompasses 's NFL coverage, providing KHOU with rights to broadcast games.

Syndicated and local shows

KHOU airs a mix of syndicated programming and original local content outside of its network affiliation and news blocks, primarily in daytime and access periods. Key syndicated staples include the long-running Wheel of Fortune, which occupies the 7:30 p.m. weekday slot as a lead-in to network primetime, having been a fixture on the station for nearly four decades. Daytime features classics like at 10:00 a.m. and soap operas such as at 11:00 a.m., followed by . The station's flagship local original is Great Day Houston, a lifestyle talk show that has aired weekdays at 9:00 a.m. since the early 2000s, hosted by Deborah Duncan and focusing on food, fashion, fitness, and community features with local personalities. The program often includes occasional specials highlighting Houston culture, such as event previews and local artist spotlights. A typical weekday lineup incorporates 4 to 6 hours of syndicated and local programming, spanning morning talk and games to afternoon dramas, providing a balance of before evening . Weekends feature lifestyle segments and occasional movies, extending the station's emphasis on community-oriented content. Following the 2019 move to new studios at 5718 after displaced the previous facility, KHOU increased production of lifestyle segments, including enhanced sets for Great Day Houston to support more dynamic local features.

Sports coverage

KHOU, as the affiliate for the market, holds broadcasting rights to select games through ' (AFC) package, which has included Houston Texans matchups since the team's inaugural season in 2002. This coverage encompasses regular-season games, playoffs, and the when the AFC representative is involved, with KHOU airing local feeds for Texans home games and select away contests based on 's national selections. From 2014 to 2017, KHOU broadcast select games in partnership with during the first half of the season, featuring AFC matchups including potential Texans appearances before the rights shifted to in 2018. Beyond professional football, KHOU provides extensive local sports programming through its KHOU 11 Sports unit, including pre-game and post-game analysis for Texans games, often featuring on-site reporting from with hosts like Jason Bristol and Zack Tawatari. The station also delivers weekly highlights via segments like Texas High School Football Now and Inside High School Sports, airing Saturday nights and streaming digitally to cover Greater Houston-area games and statewide top plays. In , KHOU airs men's basketball tournament games as part of CBS's long-term rights agreement with the NCAA, including early rounds and select coverage during March Madness. For Houston's MLB and NBA teams, the Astros and Rockets, KHOU occasionally provides overflow or national game broadcasts when aligned with CBS's limited sports slate, such as rare regular-season or playoff simulcasts, though primary local rights reside with regional sports networks. As of 2025, KHOU maintains robust Texans coverage with live game broadcasts, extended analysis shows, and integrated digital streaming of sports segments on the free KHOU 11+ app, available on platforms like and mobile devices for on-demand highlights and live post-game recaps. This multi-platform approach ensures accessibility for viewers tracking the team's contention and playoff aspirations.

News operation

Development and milestones

KHOU's news operation launched alongside the station in 1953, with initial broadcasts consisting of brief 15-minute programs typical of early local television news formats in the United States. These early efforts focused on basic reporting from the Galveston area, where the station signed on as KGUL-TV, before relocating to Houston and adopting the KHOU callsign in 1959. A pivotal milestone occurred in September 1961 during , when news director broadcast the first live television images of a hurricane from the Galveston Weather Bureau office. Rather's innovative use of overlays on a map convinced officials to allow the transmission, vividly illustrating the storm's massive scale and prompting the evacuation of approximately 350,000 people—the largest weather-related evacuation in U.S. history at the time—ultimately saving countless lives despite the storm's Category 4 intensity. This breakthrough elevated KHOU's reputation for innovative weather reporting and propelled Rather's career to national prominence. The marked a period of significant growth for KHOU's news department, as the station expanded its daily programming to 90 minutes amid rising viewer interest in local coverage. By the end of the decade, KHOU had established itself as a leader in Houston's competitive media landscape, boasting one of the top-rated news teams in the market. This era saw increased investment in on-air talent and production, setting the stage for further achievements. In 1999, KHOU achieved a major ratings milestone by claiming the #1 position in key timeslots across the Houston market for the first time, unseating longtime leader KTRK during the May sweeps period. Technological advancements continued into the 2000s, with KHOU launching the market's first high-definition newscasts on February 4, 2007, immediately following coverage, enhancing visual quality and viewer engagement. By the 2010s, KHOU adapted to by introducing mobile apps for news delivery, starting with the KHOU 11 Morning app in 2012, which provided breaking stories, weather updates, and live video to users. As of 2025, the station produces approximately 33.5 hours of locally originated news content each week, encompassing morning, evening, and weekend newscasts as well as integrated news segments on the lifestyle program Great Day Houston.

Current format and style

KHOU's news programming is branded under "KHOU 11 News," which incorporates an investigative unit called KHOU 11 Investigates dedicated to in-depth reporting on issues affecting the community. The overall format prioritizes alongside community-oriented stories that highlight local heroes, accountability, and diverse perspectives in . This approach underscores a commitment to accuracy, fairness, and transparency in coverage. The weekday morning newscast, KHOU 11 Morning News, runs from 5:00 a.m. to 7:00 a.m. on the main broadcast channel, delivering headlines, real-time traffic updates, and weather forecasts tailored to commuters. It extends to 9:00 a.m. exclusively on the KHOU 11+ streaming platform, providing continuous local insights without commercial interruptions during the additional hours. Evening broadcasts include dedicated slots at 5:00 p.m., 6:00 p.m., and 10:00 p.m., focusing on breaking developments, in-depth analysis, and essential daily recaps. Weather reporting receives prominent emphasis through the KHOU 11 Weather team, which employs advanced tools like the for hyper-local conditions down to the street level and Weather Impact Alerts to warn of severe events affecting daily life. Digital expansion has been a key evolution, with the KHOU 11+ app—launched in 2022—enabling 24/7 of newscasts, on-demand videos, and interactive features across devices like , Fire TV, and mobile platforms. channels complement this by delivering real-time updates on , traffic incidents, and community events, fostering direct engagement with viewers. In 2025, the format remains stable with no significant changes since 2023, maintaining a strong emphasis on local , such as coverage, and practical to address 's urban challenges.

On-air personnel

KHOU's on-air personnel have played a pivotal role in delivering to Houston viewers, with a team emphasizing experienced journalists and meteorologists focused on investigative reporting and coverage.

Current Staff

Anchors
  • Ilona Carson serves as a morning co-anchor on KHOU 11 News, joining the station in July 2025 after a career at ABC13 (KTRK) where she earned multiple Emmys for her reporting on community issues and breaking news. She co-anchors weekdays from 5 to 9 a.m. alongside Jacob Rascon, contributing to a team-oriented format that highlights diverse perspectives in Houston's morning broadcasts.
  • Jacob Rascon, an Emmy and Edward R. Murrow Award winner, joined KHOU in early 2025 as a morning anchor and reporter, bringing his experience from NBC affiliates to cover local stories with a focus on public service journalism. A Houston native and father of five, Rascon anchors the 5-9 a.m. newscast, emphasizing family-oriented and community-driven narratives.
  • Shern-Min Chow anchors and reports for KHOU 11, specializing in in-depth features on Houston's cultural and social landscape since joining the team in recent years.
Reporters
  • Orko Manna, a two-time Emmy Award-winning investigative reporter, joined KHOU in October 2024 from KCRA in Sacramento, where he covered public safety and government accountability; at KHOU, he focuses on exclusive investigations into local crimes and policy impacts. His reporting has highlighted community resilience, aligning with KHOU's emphasis on diverse voices in journalism.
  • Ugochi Iloka is a general assignment reporter covering breaking news and human interest stories across the Houston area, contributing to the station's commitment to inclusive storytelling through her focus on underrepresented communities.
  • Mia Gradney reports on education and health topics, providing detailed coverage that supports KHOU's investigative unit with on-the-ground reporting.
Meteorologists
  • David Paul is the chief at KHOU 11, leading weather coverage with a emphasis on hurricane preparedness and daily forecasts for the Gulf Coast region.
  • Chita Craft serves as the morning , delivering weather updates from 5 to 9 a.m. and specializing in interactive segments on impacts for viewers.
  • Kim Castro is the weekday , having joined in October 2021 after five years on the West Coast, where she honed skills in forecasting tropical systems relevant to .
As of November 2025, KHOU has seen no major departures from its news team, with recent hires like Carson and enhancing diversity by adding seasoned professionals from varied backgrounds to bolster investigative and community-focused reporting.

Former Notables

  • began his television career at KHOU in the late 1950s as a reporter and anchor, gaining national attention for his groundbreaking live coverage of in 1961, which included the first televised radar images of a hurricane and earned him a position at in 1962. His work at KHOU during the 1960s established innovative standards for weather and disaster reporting that influenced nationwide.

Awards and controversies

KHOU's news operation has received numerous accolades for its investigative journalism and breaking news coverage. The station's investigative unit, known as the 11 News Defenders, has earned multiple Peabody Awards in the 2000s for in-depth series exposing systemic issues. In 2001, KHOU won a Peabody for "Treading on Danger," an investigation into Firestone tire failures that prompted recalls and safety reforms. This was followed by a 2003 Peabody for "Evidence of Errors," revealing mishandling in the Houston Police Department's DNA crime lab, which led to procedural overhauls and case reviews. Another Peabody came in 2009 for "Under Fire: Discrimination and Corruption in the Texas National Guard," a series that resulted in the firing of the Guard's top officer and reassignments of others, influencing military accountability policies. The station has also garnered regional Lone Star Emmy Awards for excellence in news reporting. In 2018, KHOU received nominations, including for overall excellence and breaking news related to its Hurricane Harvey coverage, highlighting the team's efforts in documenting the storm's impacts amid widespread flooding. By 2024, KHOU earned a Lone Star Emmy for News Excellence, among three total awards that year, recognizing consistent journalistic standards. In the 2020s, KHOU has led Houston market ratings in key time slots, such as late news in February 2021, where it grew viewership by 52% among adults 25-54 and outperformed competitors by 39%. KHOU's investigations into local corruption have driven policy changes in Harris County during the 2010s. The station exposed scandals including the 2010 federal of Jerry Eversole on charges tied to developer kickbacks, which contributed to stricter oversight of county contracts. Additional reporting uncovered attempted computer hacking by officials in 2010 and mismanagement at Metro leading to the CEO's resignation amid federal probes, prompting investigations into public transit governance and ethics reforms. These exposés, often led by the Defenders unit, have been credited with enhancing transparency and accountability in . Despite its achievements, KHOU has faced controversies over broadcast decisions and perceived biases. On Thanksgiving 2022, the station interrupted its CBS airing of the Buffalo Bills-Detroit Lions NFL game in the final minutes to issue a tornado warning for southeast Harris County, drawing criticism from viewers who missed the game-winning field goal and accused the station of poor timing. KHOU has faced minor claims of negative bias in reporting on local issues like criminal justice bonds, though overall ratings from fact-checkers describe it as least biased with high factual accuracy. As of 2025, KHOU continues to receive recognition for community service, with host Deborah Duncan honored at the Houston Heroes Awards for contributions to public awareness initiatives. The station's ongoing food drives and partnerships, such as with the Astros Foundation, underscore its role in local support efforts.

Technical facilities

Broadcast signal and subchannels

KHOU operates its primary digital signal on VHF channel 11 (virtual channel 11.1) with an effective radiated power of 60 kW from a directional antenna. The transmitter is located on a guyed mast near Missouri City, Texas, at coordinates 29°33′40″N 95°30′4″W, with a height above average terrain (HAAT) of 593 m (1,946 ft), enabling robust over-the-air coverage across the Houston metropolitan area. The station's signal reaches 29 counties in Southeast Texas, serving an estimated population of over 6 million within a 75.6-mile contour that spans approximately 17,970 square miles. Primary coverage focuses on the core , while rimshot signals allow reception in peripheral areas such as Beaumont. Complementing broadcast reach, KHOU offers national streaming via its dedicated app, providing live and on-demand access to programming. KHOU has supported (NextGen TV) broadcasting since December 2021, enabling advanced features like higher-quality video and interactivity on compatible devices. As of November 2025, KHOU multiplexes five digital subchannels, all in standard definition except for the main feed. Subchannel details are as follows:
SubchannelResolutionNetwork/ProgrammingNotes
11.1 HDMain channel; high-definition simulcast of primary programming.
11.2Shop LCShopping network offering lifestyle and jewelry products.
11.324/7 true crime content from Katz Networks.
11.4Sci-fi and adventure programming from Sinclair.
11.5RoarCountry music and lifestyle content (branded as ).

Digital transition

KHOU operated as a full-power station on VHF channel 11 from its inception on March 22, 1953, when it signed on as KGUL-TV in , before relocating its operations to and changing its call letters to KHOU in 1959. The station maintained analog broadcasting as its primary signal throughout this period, serving the area with network programming and local content. In preparation for the digital transition, KHOU commenced digital test broadcasts in 1998 on UHF channel 31, positioning it among the early adopters of ATSC standards in the United States. This initial operated alongside the analog broadcast, allowing the station to experiment with high-definition programming while complying with FCC requirements for gradual deployment of digital facilities during the late 1990s and early 2000s. KHOU fully complied with the FCC's nationwide full-power digital transition deadline on June 12, 2009, discontinuing its on channel 11 at approximately 6:45 p.m. CT that day. Following the shutdown, the station relocated its from the pre-transition UHF channel 31 to VHF channel 11, enabling viewers to continue receiving the primary feed on the same without retuning antennas. Unlike some other stations that participated in the FCC's temporary Analog program to provide post-transition informational loops until mid-July, KHOU ceased analog operations immediately upon the deadline. The digital transition significantly enhanced KHOU's broadcast capabilities, delivering improved and audio quality to viewers equipped with digital tuners or converter boxes. This shift also facilitated the introduction of subchannels in the ensuing decade, with the station launching its first additional subchannel—affiliate —on DT2 in September 2011.

References

  1. https://www.tab.org/member-services/station-directory/khou-dt
  2. https://www.khou.com/about-us
  3. https://www.khou.com/article/entertainment/television/khou-11-70-years/khou-70-years/285-9af49028-2bf1-4fbb-abbd-05aa0d07dc9d
  4. https://www.khou.com/article/news/an-inside-look-at-khou-11s-new-studios/285-bdd70253-0eac-486b-b495-c316cd0e106c
  5. https://investors.tegna.com/news-releases/news-release-details/tegna-inc-reports-third-quarter-2025-results
  6. https://www.10tv.com/article/about-us/nexstar-to-acquire-tegna/507-5bfc1ab2-83bd-49dd-a567-98e14dba07b0
  7. https://www.khou.com/article/news/local/outreach/anniversary/1960s-video-behind-the-scenes-at-khou-11-news/285-320959902
  8. https://www.khou.com/article/news/khou-broadcasts-for-the-first-time-from-new-studio/285-f74fed1a-44c6-48af-82e7-7ab1a17f545d
  9. https://www.khou.com/gallery/syndication/facebook-instant/photos-khou-11-studios-flood-during-harvey/285-469580841
  10. https://www.livenewsworld.com/khou-houston/
  11. https://radioinsight.com/headlines/309156/houston-enters-top-five-in-nielsen-fall-2025-market-rank-revisions/
  12. http://censusreporter.org/profiles/31000US26420-houston-pasadena-the-woodlands-tx-metro-area/
  13. https://www.khou.com/article/news/local/khou-11/285-57490ee2-3058-448b-963c-6fd7ad6022b1
  14. https://www.tegna.com/about/
  15. https://investors.tegna.com/
  16. https://enterpriseefiling.fcc.gov/dataentry/public/tv/publicFacilityDetails.html?facilityId=28324
  17. https://www.keranews.org/2013-06-13/gannett-to-shell-out-1-5-billion-for-belo-tv-stations-including-wfaa
  18. https://www.nexstar.tv/nexstar-media-group-inc-enters-into-definitive-agreement-to-acquire-tegna-inc-for-6-2-billion-in-accretive-transaction/
  19. https://mikemcguff.blogspot.com/2020/01/khou-11-buys-ktbu-55.html
  20. https://tvnewscheck.com/business/article/david-loving-named-president-gm-of-khou-ktbu-houston/
  21. https://www.khou.com/video/news/khou-launched-new-app/285-7b01b755-f079-4510-a42c-990a67b23bdf
  22. https://houstonradiohistory.blogspot.com/2008/12/kgul-tv-channel-11-galveston.html
  23. https://www.chron.com/entertainment/tv/article/KHOU-recalls-60-years-of-Houston-history-4627145.php
  24. https://www.khou.com/article/news/local/khou-celebrates-65th-anniversary/285-531088999
  25. https://www.nytimes.com/1983/06/21/business/belo-tv-purchase-put-at-606-million.html
  26. https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/a-h-belo-corporation
  27. https://www.fundinguniverse.com/company-histories/a-h-belo-corporation-history/
  28. https://www.encyclopedia.com/books/politics-and-business-magazines/h-belo-corporation
  29. https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2013-06-13/gannett-to-buy-belo-for-1-5-billion-to-gain-tv-stations
  30. https://tvnewscheck.com/uncategorized/article/gannett-completes-its-acquisition-of-belo/
  31. https://www.tegna.com/separation-of-gannett-into-two-public-companies-completed/
  32. https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/39899/000003989920000006/tgna-20191231x10k.htm
  33. https://www.marketscreener.com/quote/stock/SPANISH-BROADCASTING-SYST-120787552/news/TEGNA-Inc-completed-the-acquisition-of-assets-and-license-related-to-KTBU-DT-of-Spanish-Broadcastin-33941459/
  34. https://www.insideradio.com/sbs-sells-houston-tv-station-to-tegna-for-15-million/article_9b129c30-42c5-11ea-9480-0bb2381108e0.html
  35. https://www.nexttv.com/features/local-news-close-up-stations-battle-for-booming-houstons-new-arrivals
  36. https://www.poynter.org/business-work/2022/tegna-standard-general-sale-local-tv/
  37. https://www.kare11.com/article/weather/houston-news-station-floods-during-live-broadcast-forced-to-evacuate/89-468194224
  38. https://www.poynter.org/reporting-editing/2017/as-the-water-rose-this-houston-tv-station-scrambled-to-stay-on-air-update7/
  39. https://www.newscaststudio.com/2017/09/06/khou-temporary-set/
  40. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qTV93dtdEsI
  41. https://www.nexttv.com/news/khou-houstons-harvey-coverage-draws-national-attention-168157
  42. https://www.chron.com/news/houston-texas/houston/article/How-far-KHOU-has-come-since-Hurricane-Harvey-13179763.php
  43. https://www.khou.com/article/news/local/khou-announces-location-of-new-station/285-533170471
  44. https://www.newscaststudio.com/2018/03/29/khou-new-building/
  45. https://www.chron.com/life/article/KHOU-11-moves-to-state-of-art-studio-westheimer-13619464.php
  46. https://www.newscaststudio.com/2019/02/19/khou-new-set-new-building/
  47. https://deadline.com/2023/02/standard-general-tegna-merger-fcc-1235270510/
  48. https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/business/business-news/tegna-sale-private-equity-firms-1235097233/
  49. https://www.reuters.com/markets/deals/tegna-terminates-86-billion-merger-with-standard-general-2023-05-22/
  50. https://thedesk.net/2023/05/tegna-standard-general-merger-dead-falls-apart/
  51. https://www.khou.com/article/about-us/team-bios/orko-manna/285-00924f2d-6dcb-4e8e-9870-6c7ed9cf80d7
  52. https://www.khou.com/article/about-us/ilona-carson-khou-11-morning-news/285-6b01de61-b889-4de6-ad4d-a1ced1a06217
  53. https://fadedsignals.com/post/78061589941/a-group-of-investors-including-actor-jimmy
  54. https://logos.fandom.com/wiki/KHOU
  55. https://www.tvtechnology.com/news/viacomcbs-gray-renew-cbs-network-affiliate-agreements
  56. https://investors.tegna.com/static-files/6773897b-9976-41ab-9d96-bf8b7600d95e
  57. https://thedesk.net/2022/11/tegna-cbs-fox-new-affiliate-agreements/
  58. https://www.khou.com/article/entertainment/television/programs/great-day-houston/wheel-of-fortune-takes-a-spin-at-a-new-era/285-1ddaa3dc-b0d5-4584-950b-4d474a916753
  59. https://www.ontvtonight.com/guide/listings/channel/69048801/khou.html
  60. https://www.tvpassport.com/tv-listings/stations/cbs-khou-houston-tx/2403
  61. https://houstonbroadwaytheatre.org/board-and-staff/deborah-duncan
  62. https://www.khou.com/greatday
  63. https://www.guidetogooddivorce.com/deborah-duncan/
  64. https://www.khou.com/article/entertainment/television/programs/great-day-houston/houston-happenings-october-16-19-2025/285-27237bd7-79bd-4f66-a538-a9ef7fa287eb
  65. https://www.newscaststudio.com/2019/03/07/great-day-houston-new-set/
  66. https://www.adweek.com/tvspy/khou-signs-lease-set-to-move-into-building-in-fall-2019/
  67. https://www.paramountpressexpress.com/cbs-sports/releases/view?id=57181
  68. https://www.khou.com/video/news/live-texans-postgame-coverage/285-13955aeb-fbe7-4071-94ca-7a8882b12a53
  69. https://www.khou.com/video/sports/high-school/hs-football/texas-hs-football-now/texas-high-school-football-now-week-11/285-a9551dfe-072c-4c0f-aa67-b2d67b54049b
  70. https://www.khou.com/article/about-us/how-to-watch-khou-11-plus/285-a74571a1-a53c-4875-9d0a-ee446d8e49b5
  71. https://www.khou.com/texans
  72. https://texasarchive.org/broadcasting-1968
  73. https://www.khou.com/article/news/video-khou-newsman-dan-rather-covers-hurricane-carla-in-1961/285-321024745
  74. https://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2012/10/dan-rather-showed-the-first-radar-image-of-a-hurricane-on-tv/264246/
  75. https://www.accuweather.com/en/hurricane/dan-rathers-carla-radar-changed-hurricane-coverage/1014484
  76. https://texasarchive.org/2016_04171
  77. https://broadcasting.fandom.com/wiki/Miscellaneous_unorganized_material/KHOU
  78. https://www.khou.com/article/news/khou-11-news-morning-app-sweepstakes/285-339692734
  79. https://www.khou.com/investigations
  80. https://www.khou.com/article/about-us/khou-11-morning-news/285-70b36213-9084-4ac2-bced-51732e819248
  81. https://www.khou.com/video/about-us/beginning-june-30-were-extending-khou-11-morning-news-for-two-additional-hours/285-f5abe558-cf3a-4dd8-abb0-b4bec29839fb
  82. https://www.ontvtonight.com/guide/listings/channel/69021823/khou-hdtv.html
  83. https://www.khou.com/video/news/special-reports/uvalde-school-shooting/uvalde-video/introducing-the-khou-11-neighborhood-weather-network/285-eb0dee4c-ca7e-45c4-a16d-696e2b2472c6
  84. https://www.facebook.com/KHOUJeremyRogalski/videos/what-a-way-to-kick-off-our-brand-new-weather-impact-brand-khou-11-news-general-m/455106347138906/
  85. https://www.khou.com/news
  86. https://www.chron.com/news/houston-texas/article/texas-anchor-abc-13-ilona-carson-20768995.php
  87. https://www.khou.com/article/about-us/team-bios/jacob-rascon-bio/285-4468510b-7a1f-4f2b-b9f9-b5e89244f1a4
  88. https://www.khou.com/video/about-us/jacob-rascon-khou-11-new-anchor/285-bbd51867-2d13-4703-84d9-9bf3de67376a
  89. https://www.khou.com/meet-the-team
  90. https://www.chron.com/news/houston-texas/article/khou-news-orko-manna-19853755.php
  91. https://www.khou.com/article/about-us/team-bios/kim-castro/285-4d2ce07d-0e28-4c75-ae5f-aec19e138d4e
  92. https://www.khou.com/article/news/dan-rather-honored-for-ground-breaking-hurricane-coverage/285-321016194
  93. https://danratherjournalist.org/ground/natural-disasters/hurricane-carla/video-hurricane-carla-rather-report.html
  94. https://peabodyawards.com/award-profile/treading-on-danger/
  95. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-fZHO6mPUiI
  96. https://peabodyawards.com/award-profile/under-fire-discrimination-and-corruption-in-the-texas-national-guard/
  97. https://www.khou.com/article/news/khou-11-honored-with-21-regional-lone-star-emmy-nominations/285-599235273
  98. https://www.khou.com/article/about-us/khou-11-lone-star-emmy/285-932e7ad0-8f54-413c-a29c-538fac1a903a
  99. https://marketshare.tvnewscheck.com/2021/03/22/how-khous-late-news-led-febs-ratings/
  100. https://www.khou.com/article/news/harris-county-commissioner-jerry-eversole-indicted-by-federal-grand-jury/285-341974614
  101. https://www.khou.com/article/news/harris-county-sheriff-officials-accused-of-attempted-computer-hacking/285-342110562
  102. https://www.khou.com/article/news/metros-ceo-quits-lawsuits-and-investigations-move-forward/285-342138660
  103. https://www.khou.com/article/news/local/photos-11-news-defenders-win-prestigious-award/285-342452961
  104. https://www.si.com/extra-mustard/2022/11/25/houston-tv-station-khou-criticized-interrupting-end-bills-lions-game
  105. https://awfulannouncing.com/nfl/khou-bills-lions-tornado-warning-nfl-game.html
  106. https://mediabiasfactcheck.com/khou-houston-news-bias/
  107. https://www.instagram.com/reel/DGWTqN5un6J/
  108. https://www.khou.com/community
  109. https://www.rabbitears.info/market.php?request=print_station&facility_id=34529
  110. https://www.khou.com/article/tech/nextgen-tv-houston/285-d72f8994-304f-4ecb-9cb7-3add6d6f0aee
  111. https://www.khou.com/tv-listings
  112. https://www.radiodiscussions.com/threads/houston-analog-shut-off-times.561075/
  113. https://apps.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/DOC-291375A1.pdf
  114. https://variety.com/2011/tv/news/bounce-net-springs-sept-26-launch-date-1118039771/
Add your contribution
Related Hubs
User Avatar
No comments yet.