KZNO-LD

KZNO-LD is a low-power television station licensed in California and associated historically with Big Bear Lake and, more recently, the Los Angeles transmission market. The station began operation on August 7, 1996, under the call sign K06MU as a translator serving Big Bear Lake. In its early years, it was also carried by Charter Cable on channel 6 and functioned in part as a community-oriented outlet. Its programming included local news, public-affairs material, travel programming, and other productions created by residents of the Big Bear Valley, giving the station a public-access-style local identity rather than the profile of a large national network affiliate. The station later underwent a significant ownership and technical transition. In 2016, ownership moved from Bear Valley Broadcasting to Venture Technologies, a broadcast operator that had also owned KSFV-CA. The change was part of the station's movement away from its original Big Bear-focused operating model and toward facilities in the San Gabriel Mountains. Its current transmission facilities are at the Mount Harvard Radio Site, near Mount Wilson, where it shares facilities with other low-power broadcast operations, including Ontario-licensed KPOM-CD. For much of its analog era, KZNO was notable because television channel 6 occupies frequencies adjacent to the FM radio band. As a result, the station's analog audio could be received by FM radios at 87.7 MHz in areas where the signal was available. The station was not required to convert on the June 12, 2009, deadline that applied to full-power television stations because it operated as a low-power outlet. Its analog operation eventually ended on July 9, 2021, shortly before the Federal Communications Commission deadline for low-power television stations to cease analog transmissions. Digital operation was authorized effective July 15, 2021, at which point the call sign changed from KZNO-LP to KZNO-LD. Following the digital transition, KZNO-LD continued to have an unusual relationship with 87.7 FM. The station received temporary authority in July 2021 to resume audio transmissions that could be heard by FM receivers. In 2023, an FCC report and order identified KZNO-LD as one of a limited group of channel 6 stations permitted to continue an FM6 service as an ancillary or supplementary broadcast. This regulatory arrangement reflects the station's hybrid position between low-power television and channel-6 FM audio distribution. The station's listed programming profile includes a Spanish-language religious radio service available through its channel-6 audio operation. Its ATSC 3.0 digital video feed carries Jewelry Television on digital channel 12.1. Accordingly, KZNO-LD's present identity is defined less by locally originated television programming than by the combination of a low-power digital television signal, a Spanish-language religious audio service, and a commercial television shopping feed. Its history nevertheless remains rooted in community programming for the Big Bear Valley and in the technical distinction of channel 6 audio being receivable at 87.7 FM.

KZNO-LD began on August 7, 1996, as translator station K06MU in Big Bear Lake, California. The station was also distributed to local Charter Cable subscribers on channel 6. Its original programming was closely tied to the Big Bear Valley community and resembled a public-access television service. Local residents produced or contributed news, public-affairs, and travel programs, giving the outlet a distinctly local orientation. The station later operated under the KZNO-LP call sign. During its analog television period, its channel 6 audio could be received by suitably tuned FM radio receivers at 87.7 MHz. This was possible because television channel 6 occupies the 82–88 MHz portion of the spectrum, adjacent to the conventional FM band. The station's low-power status meant that it was not subject to the June 12, 2009, digital-transition deadline imposed on full-power television stations. In 2016, Bear Valley Broadcasting transferred ownership to Venture Technologies. The new owner had previously operated KSFV-CA, another channel 6 low-power station. Under Venture Technologies, KZNO's facilities became associated with the Mount Harvard Radio Site in the San Gabriel Mountains, near Mount Wilson, in the Los Angeles area. The station shares transmission infrastructure in that area with other low-power facilities, including KPOM-CD. KZNO-LP ceased analog television transmissions on July 9, 2021, ahead of the July 13 FCC deadline requiring low-power television stations to end analog service. Digital operation was licensed effective July 15, 2021, and the call sign changed to KZNO-LD. The digital transition altered the station's television distribution while preserving interest in its channel 6 audio capability. On July 27, 2021, the FCC granted six months of special temporary authority for the station to resume audio transmissions receivable at 87.7 FM. The regulatory position of channel 6 audio was subsequently clarified. In a July 20, 2023, FCC report and order, KZNO-LD was included among 13 stations allowed to continue an FM6 service on an ancillary or supplementary basis. This enabled the station to maintain a hybrid operating model combining low-power television and FM-compatible audio. The station's described service mix includes Spanish-language religious audio programming, while its ATSC 3.0 video feed carries Jewelry Television on digital channel 12.1. KZNO-LD therefore evolved from a community-oriented Big Bear translator into a specialized Los Angeles-area low-power digital broadcaster with both television and radio-like distribution characteristics.

• 2023

  Included in FCC FM6 authorization

  [1]KZNO-LDen.wikipedia.org

  The FCC included KZNO-LD among 13 channel 6 stations permitted to continue an ancillary or supplementary FM6 service.

• 2021

  Analog service ends

  [1]KZNO-LDen.wikipedia.org

  KZNO-LP stopped analog television transmissions on July 9, ahead of the federal low-power television analog shutdown deadline.

• 2021

  Digital license and KZNO-LD call sign take effect

  [1]KZNO-LDen.wikipedia.org

  Digital operation became effective July 15, accompanied by the change from KZNO-LP to KZNO-LD.

• 2021

  Temporary FM6 authority granted

  [1]KZNO-LDen.wikipedia.org

  The station received six months of special temporary authority to resume audio transmissions receivable at 87.7 FM.

• 2016

  Ownership moves to Venture Technologies

  [1]KZNO-LDen.wikipedia.org

  Bear Valley Broadcasting transferred the station to Venture Technologies, which subsequently operated it from facilities associated with the San Gabriel Mountains.

• 1996

  Station founded as K06MU

  [1]KZNO-LDen.wikipedia.org

  K06MU began operation on August 7 as a translator serving Big Bear Lake and was also carried by Charter Cable on channel 6.

A specialized low-power broadcast station combining digital television distribution with channel-6 FM audio capability, Spanish-language religious programming, and television shopping content, while retaining historical ties to community broadcasting in the Big Bear Valley.

• Low-power television station · 2021

  KZNO-LD digital television service

  KZNO-LD is the station's digital television operation serving the Los Angeles-area market from transmission facilities at the Mount Harvard Radio Site in the San Gabriel Mountains. Its ATSC 3.0 video feed includes Jewelry Television on digital channel 12.1. The service represents the station's post-2021 replacement for its former analog operation under the KZNO-LP call sign.

• Television channel 6 audio

  87.7 FM FM6 audio service

  Because channel 6 occupies frequencies near the FM radio band, KZNO's analog and authorized FM6 operations can be received by compatible FM receivers at approximately 87.7 MHz. The station's described audio programming is Spanish-language religious content. Following temporary authority in 2021, the station was included in the FCC's 2023 authorization for selected channel 6 stations to continue ancillary or supplementary FM6 service.

• Local television programming · 1996

  Big Bear community programming

  During its earlier operation as K06MU, the station carried programming with a public-access-style character for the Big Bear Valley. Local residents produced news, public-affairs, and travel programs, making community participation a central part of the station's original service identity.

• 2023

  Continuation of FM6 serviceStrategy

  Background

  The FCC reviewed the status of channel 6 stations that sought to continue FM-compatible audio alongside television service.

  Action taken

  The FCC included KZNO-LD among 13 stations permitted to operate an FM6 broadcast as an ancillary or supplementary service.

  Aftermath

  KZNO-LD retained a regulatory basis for continuing its hybrid television and FM-compatible audio model.

  Source

• 2021

  Conversion from analog KZNO-LP to digital KZNO-LDGeneration change

  Background

  Federal rules required low-power television stations to end analog transmissions in July 2021.

  Action taken

  Analog broadcasts ended on July 9, digital operation became effective on July 15, and the station changed its call sign from KZNO-LP to KZNO-LD.

  Aftermath

  The station shifted to digital television while separately seeking and receiving authority for continued channel 6 audio distribution.

  Source

• 2021

  Resumption of 87.7 FM-compatible audioStrategy

  Background

  The end of analog television threatened the channel 6 audio service that could be heard on FM receivers at 87.7 MHz.

  Action taken

  The FCC granted six months of special temporary authority beginning July 27 for the station to resume the audio transmissions.

  Aftermath

  The station retained a radio-like distribution component while operating as a digital television outlet.

  Source

• 2016

  Transfer to Venture TechnologiesM&A

  Background

  The station had operated as a Big Bear Valley translator and community-oriented local outlet under Bear Valley Broadcasting.

  Action taken

  Ownership was transferred from Bear Valley Broadcasting to Venture Technologies, a broadcaster with experience operating another low-power channel 6 station.

  Aftermath

  The station became associated with transmission facilities in the San Gabriel Mountains and the Los Angeles market.

  Source

1. 1KZNO-LDen.wikipedia.org
2. 2Channel 6 Big Bearchannel6bigbear.com