KGBT-TV's roots lie in the 1941 establishment of KGBT radio, an independent radio station with a staff of eleven people. The station was owned by the Harbenito Broadcasting Company. KGBT became an affiliate of the CBS Radio Network in 1943. KGBT-TV signed on in 1953 as a CBS Television affiliate, mirroring its radio cousin. KGBT-TV was founded by Tichenor Media System, Inc., a regional conglomerate of Spanish-languageradio stations. Tichenor owned the KGBT radio station until 2003 when the company merged with Univision Communications. Before 1976, KGBT shared ABC programming with NBC affiliate KRGV-TV. When KRGV-TV became an ABC affiliate, KGBT-TV took on a secondary NBC affiliation until 1981 when KVEO-TV signed on. In 1986, Tichenor decided to exit the English-language broadcasting market by selling KGBT-TV to the Draper Holdings Business Trust, the owner of WBOC-TV in Salisbury, Maryland. In 1998, Draper sold KGBT-TV to Cosmos Broadcasting, the broadcasting division of the Liberty Corporation. Cosmos came directly under the Liberty banner in 2001 when Liberty sold off its insurance business. Liberty merged with Raycom Media in 2006. In August of that year, KGBT-TV was sold again to Barrington Broadcasting. In 2013, Barrington sold KGBT-TV to the Sinclair Broadcast Group as part of a larger deal which involved 18 television stations. The sale was completed on November 25. On January 27, 2020, Sinclair announced that it would sell WDKY-TV in Lexington, Kentucky and the non-license assets of KGBT to Nexstar Media Group as part of a settlement between the two companies over Sinclair's failed acquisition ofTribune Media, which was ultimately acquired by Nexstar. KVEO-TV assumed the CBS affiliation on 23.2 the next day, thus bringing an end to KGBT's affiliation with CBS after 66 years; the.1 subchannel is now inactive, but the station's other subchannels are still in operation.
KGBT's broadcasts became digital-only, effective June 12, 2009.
Specialty programming
KGBT produces annual telethons to benefit children's hospitals. The station has also produced local segments for the annual Jerry LewisMDA Labor Day Telethon.
News operation
24/7 Weather Lab
KGBT-TV was the first news station in the metropolitan area with its own live weather radar, which was called "Live Super Doppler." KGBT-TV broadcast a 24-hour weather station, which provided updated local forecasts. On April 29, 2008, KGBT-TV's 43-year veteran weatherman, Larry James, retired. James was a veteran of the station's "glory days" during the late 1960s and 1970s when the station produced the top-rated newscast in the Rio Grande Valley.
"Sports Extra"
KGBT-TV formerly aired "Sports Extra", an extended sports segment that aired during the 10 p.m. newscasts on Fridays and Sundays. The main focus of the Friday segment was local high school football games, while the Sunday edition provideed the highlights of high school, college and professional football, and generally featured a panel of local sports writers and sports talk radio personalities, who break down high school football games and provide analysis. Prior to the start of the high school football season, KGBT produced Action 4 Sports: Countdown to Kickoff. The hour-long special briefly previewd each team in the Rio Grande Valley. As of September 2008, "Sunday Sports Extra" is in association with 956 Sports. 956sports.com provides commentators who share their input and provide analysis.
