KVIQ-LD
KVIQ-LD is a low-power CBS-affiliated television station serving Eureka and the surrounding North Coast region of California.
Last updated August 31, 2026
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Overview
KVIQ-LD is a low-power television station in Eureka, California, affiliated with CBS and identified with digital channel 14. The station serves the Humboldt County and North Coast television market and operates from shared facilities on South Broadway in the Spruce Point area of Eureka, alongside NBC affiliate KIEM-TV. Its transmitter is located along Barry Road southeast of the city. The station originated as a proposed full-power television service. Carroll R. Hauser received a construction permit in January 1957 for a station initially associated with the call sign KHUM-TV. Shasta Telecasting, owner of KVIP-TV in Redding, subsequently acquired a half-interest in the permit, which was transferred to California Northwest Broadcasting. Because of the difficult terrain around Eureka, the permittees successfully requested a change from channel 13 to channel 6. The station adopted the KVIQ-TV call sign and began broadcasting on April 1, 1958, from studios on Humboldt Hill Road. KVIQ changed network direction several times during its full-power history. It initially operated primarily as an NBC affiliate, then switched to a primary ABC affiliation in 1961 while retaining some NBC programming. In the mid-1980s, a network realignment involving Eureka's other major station, KIEM-TV, led CBS to affiliate with KVIQ beginning in January 1986. KVIQ subsequently became a long-standing CBS outlet for the market. Ownership also changed repeatedly. The McConnell family sold the station to Miller Broadcasting in 1986, and Miller sold it to the Ackerley Group in 1998. Ackerley expanded KVIQ's local news operation, but after Ackerley merged with Clear Channel Communications in 2002, the station's locally produced news operation was discontinued. Later ownership passed through Sainte Partners II, Redwood Television Partners, Northwest Broadcasting, Cox Media Group, Imagicomm Communications, and finally Marquee Broadcasting, which completed its acquisition of KVIQ-LD and KIEM-TV in May 2025. A major structural change occurred in 2017. Northwest Broadcasting acquired KIEM-TV while divesting the full-power KVIQ facility in order to comply with Federal Communications Commission ownership and signal-related requirements. The former channel 17 facility was reassigned the KJRW call sign and the KVIQ intellectual unit, including the CBS affiliation, was transferred to a low-power facility formerly known as K10FS and later K14QL-D. That facility adopted the KVIQ-LP call sign and now operates as KVIQ-LD on digital channel 14. The former full-power KJRW facility later ceased operation and its license was ultimately canceled, while the KVIQ identity continued through the low-power station. KVIQ has had several local-news identities, including Newswest in the early 1980s, Channel 6 News during much of the 1990s, and Action News 6 after its acquisition by Ackerley. Following the end of its independent news operation, the station carried imported or syndicated programming in place of locally produced newscasts. It later began simulcasting selected Redwood News newscasts from KIEM-TV, including weekday evening programs. KVIQ was also the second Eureka station to broadcast in high definition and completed the shutdown of its analog VHF channel 6 signal on November 28, 2008, continuing with its digital UHF service.
History
KVIQ began with a construction permit obtained by Carroll R. Hauser on January 17, 1957. The proposed station was initially associated with the KHUM-TV call sign and was planned for channel 13 in Eureka. Shasta Telecasting, the company behind Redding station KVIP-TV, acquired a half-interest in the permit during 1957, after which the permit was transferred to California Northwest Broadcasting. Because the surrounding region's mountainous terrain created difficult transmission conditions, the permittees successfully requested channel 6 instead of channel 13. The station adopted the KVIQ-TV call sign and began broadcasting on April 1, 1958, from facilities on Humboldt Hill Road. Carl R. and Leah McConnell acquired all shares of California Northwest Broadcasting in 1960. In 1961, KVIQ moved from a primary NBC affiliation to a primary ABC affiliation, although it continued to carry some NBC programming. The station's network role changed again in the 1980s. KIEM-TV, then the market's CBS affiliate, agreed to become an NBC affiliate in 1985 and planned to retain selected CBS programs. CBS instead affiliated with KVIQ, beginning in January 1986. This made KVIQ the principal CBS television outlet in the Eureka market. The McConnells sold KVIQ to Miller Broadcasting in 1986. Ronald W. Miller, who had already been the station's general manager, was associated with the new ownership. Miller Broadcasting sold KVIQ to the Ackerley Group in 1998. Ackerley invested substantially in the station's news operation, which was branded Action News 6 and included several weekday and weekend broadcasts. Ackerley merged with Clear Channel Communications in 2002. Following the merger, KVIQ's original news operation was quickly discontinued. The station temporarily used news rebroadcasts from sister station KFTY in Santa Rosa, but those rebroadcasts ended after a later sale, and syndicated programming replaced them. Before and during these ownership changes, KVIQ maintained a succession of local-news brands. Its early-1980s Newswest broadcasts included morning, evening, late-night, and midday programming, with features such as Segment 6 and the weekend Open Line program hosted by Saint Clair Adams. During much of the 1990s, the station identified its newscasts as Channel 6 News. Ackerley's Action News 6 schedule included morning, noon, early-evening, late-evening, and weekend broadcasts. In its later configuration, KVIQ carried selected Redwood News programs produced by KIEM-TV, including weekday 5 p.m., 6 p.m., and 11 p.m. broadcasts. Sainte Partners II sold KVIQ to Redwood Television Partners, a subsidiary of Frontier Radio Management. The agreement was announced in December 2013 and completed on June 30, 2014. In January 2016, Frontier agreed to sell Redwood Broadcast Partners to NBI Holdings, which owned Northwest Broadcasting; the transaction closed on March 24, 2016. Northwest Broadcasting agreed in August 2017 to sell KVIQ to Prime Cities Broadcasting as part of a transaction connected to Northwest's acquisition of KIEM-TV. The transaction closed on December 1, 2017. Prime Cities changed the former full-power channel 17 facility's call sign to KJRW. Northwest retained the KVIQ identity, the CBS affiliation, and associated programming rights, transferring them to a low-power facility previously known as K10FS and later K14QL-D. That facility adopted the KVIQ-LP call sign and eventually became KVIQ-LD, operating on digital channel 14. The former KJRW signal experienced technical problems and was turned off on April 8, 2018. After another shutdown for transmitter repairs on May 29, 2019, its license expired on May 29, 2020, and was canceled on July 23 of that year. These events did not end the KVIQ service because the CBS affiliation had already been moved to the low-power channel 14 facility. In 2019, Apollo Global Management acquired Northwest Broadcasting as part of a broader consolidation involving television assets associated with Cox Media Group and other station groups. The transaction closed on December 17, 2019, and the resulting broadcasting operation used the Cox Media Group name. On March 29, 2022, Cox Media Group announced that it would sell KVIQ-LD, KIEM-TV, and 16 other stations to Imagicomm Communications, an affiliate of the parent company of the INSP cable network. The sale closed on August 1, 2022. On January 16, 2025, Marquee Broadcasting was announced as the buyer of KVIQ-LD and KIEM-TV from Imagicomm. The transaction was completed on May 1, 2025. KVIQ-LD currently operates as a low-power CBS affiliate in Eureka, sharing studio resources with KIEM-TV. The station's history therefore reflects both the evolution of local television in the Humboldt County market and the regulatory and ownership restructuring that converted the original full-power KVIQ service into its present low-power form.
- 2025
Marquee Broadcasting acquisition completed
[1]Marquee Broadcasting completed its purchase of KVIQ-LD and KIEM-TV from Imagicomm on May 1.
- 2022
Imagicomm Communications acquisition completed
[1]Imagicomm completed its acquisition of KVIQ-LD and KIEM-TV from Cox Media Group on August 1.
- 2020
Former full-power KJRW license canceled
[1]The former full-power facility's license expired in May 2020 and was canceled in July after repeated operational and technical problems.
- 2017
KVIQ service moves to a low-power facility
[1]The KVIQ call sign and CBS affiliation moved from the former full-power channel 17 facility to a low-power channel 14 facility, which became KVIQ-LP and later KVIQ-LD.
- 2016
Northwest Broadcasting acquisition completed
[1]NBI Holdings, owner of Northwest Broadcasting, completed its acquisition of Redwood Broadcast Partners.
- 2014
Redwood Television Partners acquisition completed
[1]The sale from Sainte Partners II to Redwood Television Partners was completed on June 30.
- 2008
Analog shutdown
[1]The full-power station ended analog broadcasting on VHF channel 6 on November 28 and continued with its digital UHF service on channel 17.
- 2002
Ackerley merges with Clear Channel Communications
[1]The merger was followed by the discontinuation of KVIQ's locally produced news operation.
- 1998
Ackerley Group acquisition
[1]Miller Broadcasting sold KVIQ to the Ackerley Group, which expanded the station's local-news operation.
- 1986
CBS affiliation begins
[1]CBS affiliated with KVIQ after KIEM-TV shifted toward NBC programming.
Products and positioning
A local low-power CBS television affiliate serving Eureka and Humboldt County, with programming supported by network content and news resources shared with sister station KIEM-TV.
Broadcast television · 1986
CBS network service
KVIQ-LD's principal offering is its over-the-air CBS affiliation on digital channel 14. The service supplies national CBS programming to viewers in Eureka and the surrounding Humboldt County market, supplemented by station promotions, advertising, and locally relevant scheduling.
Local news
Redwood News simulcasts
After its independent news operation ended, KVIQ carried selected Redwood News newscasts produced by sister station KIEM-TV. The documented schedule included weekday 5 p.m., 6 p.m., and 11 p.m. broadcasts, allowing KVIQ to provide local coverage through shared newsroom resources.
Local news · 1980
KVIQ local news
KVIQ historically produced several branded local-news services, including Newswest, Channel 6 News, and Action News 6. These operations offered morning, midday, evening, late-night, and weekend broadcasts at different points, but the independently produced service was discontinued after the Ackerley-Clear Channel ownership transition.
Brand decisions
2017
Transfer of the KVIQ identity to a low-power facilityStrategyBackground
Northwest Broadcasting acquired KIEM-TV while selling the former full-power KVIQ channel 17 facility. The restructuring was undertaken in connection with Federal Communications Commission ownership and signal requirements.
Action taken
The former channel 17 facility was renamed KJRW, while Northwest retained the KVIQ call identity, CBS affiliation, and related intellectual unit and transferred them to a low-power facility operating on digital channel 14.
Aftermath
The low-power service became KVIQ-LP and later KVIQ-LD. The former full-power KJRW facility later ceased operation and its license was canceled.
2002
Discontinuation of independently produced local newsStrategyBackground
Clear Channel Communications acquired Ackerley, the owner of KVIQ, in 2002.
Action taken
KVIQ ended its local Action News 6 operation and subsequently used imported news programming and syndicated content before later sharing news resources with KIEM-TV.
Aftermath
The station's local-news output became dependent on external or shared newsroom production rather than a standalone KVIQ news department.
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