View source for KDLT-TV

{{Short description|Television station in Sioux Falls, South Dakota}}
{{good article}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=February 2024}}
{{Infobox television station dual
| name1 = KDLT-TV
| city1 = [[Sioux Falls, South Dakota]]
| logo = KDLT 2023 (without NBC Peacock).svg
| logo_size = 200px
| logo_alt = The bold black letters K D L T 
| image = KDLT-DT2 Fox Sioux Falls.svg
| image_size = 150px
| image_alt = The Fox network logo above the words "Sioux Falls"
| branding = {{ubl|KDLT; ''Dakota News Now''|Fox Sioux Falls}}
| digital1 = 21 ([[UHF]])
| virtual1 = 46
| affiliations = {{ubl|'''46.1/5.1:''' [[NBC]]|'''46.2/5.2:''' [[Fox Broadcasting Company|Fox]]|'''[[KSFY-TV|13.1]]:''' ABC (KDLV-TV only)|''for others, see {{section link||Technical information}}''}}
| country = United States
| airdate = {{start date and age|1960|6|12|p=y}}{{efn|name=|Channel 5 in Mitchell began June 12, 1960. Channel 46 in Sioux Falls began September 23, 1998.<ref name="factbook01">{{Cite book|page=A-1133|url=https://worldradiohistory.com/Archive-BC-YB/2001-TV-Factbook/TV-Factbook-2001-OKL-USVI.pdf|date=2001|title=Television Factbook|chapter=KDLT-TV|via=World Radio History|access-date=April 3, 2023|archive-date=January 31, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230131092730/https://worldradiohistory.com/Archive-BC-YB/2001-TV-Factbook/TV-Factbook-2001-OKL-USVI.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref> It took the KDLT-TV call sign; channel 5 then became KDLV-TV and was relocated to the west to reduce signal overlap.}}
| callsign_meaning1 = Dakotaland Television, former owners
| former_callsigns1 = {{ubl|KORN-TV (1960–1973)|KXON-TV (1973–1982)<ref name="hc">{{Cite web|url=https://enterpriseefiling.fcc.gov/dataentry/api/download/attachment/cf09b366-1fc5-77d7-9b94-75595f6b848c|title=FCC History Cards for KDLV-TV|publisher=[[Federal Communications Commission]]}}{{Dead link|date=February 2025 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }} (as KDLT in Mitchell)</ref>}}
| former_channel_numbers1 = {{ubl|'''Analog:''' 5 (VHF, 1960–1998); 46 (UHF, 1998–2009)|'''Digital:''' 47 (UHF, until 2018)}}
| owner = [[Gray Media]]
| licensee = Gray Television Licensee, [[LLC]]
| sister_stations = [[KSFY-TV]], KPRY-TV
| former_affiliations1 = {{ubl|NBC (1960–1969)|[[American Broadcasting Company|ABC]] (1969–1983)}}
| erp1 = 589 [[kW]]
| haat1 = {{convert|608|m|ft|0|abbr=on}}
| facility_id1 = 55379
| coordinates1 = {{coord|43|30|18|N|96|33|23|W|type:landmark_scale:2000}}
| licensing_authority = [[FCC]]
| website = {{URL|https://www.dakotanewsnow.com/}}
| name2 = KDLV-TV
| city2 = [[Mitchell, South Dakota]]
| digital2 = 26 (UHF)
| virtual2 = 5
| former_channel_numbers2 = '''Analog:''' 5 (VHF, 1998–2009)
| former_affiliations2 = {{ubl|'''13.2:''' [[CW+]] (until 2020)|'''13.3:''' [[MeTV]] (until 2020)}}
| erp2 = 1,000 kW
| haat2 = {{convert|315|m|ft|0|abbr=on}}
| facility_id2 = 55375
| coordinates2 = {{coord|43|45|33|N|98|24|44|W|type:landmark_scale:2000|name=KDLV-TV}}
}}

'''KDLT-TV''' (channel 46) and '''KDLV-TV''' (channel 5) are [[television station]]s licensed respectively to [[Sioux Falls]] and [[Mitchell, South Dakota]], United States, affiliated with [[NBC]] and [[Fox Broadcasting Company|Fox]]. They are owned by [[Gray Media]] alongside [[American Broadcasting Company|ABC]] affiliate [[KSFY-TV]] (channel 13). The stations share studios in Courthouse Square on 1st Avenue South in Sioux Falls. [[KDLT tower|KDLT-TV's transmitter]] is located near [[Rowena, South Dakota|Rowena]], while KDLV's tower is in [[Plankinton]].

KDLV operates as a full-time satellite of KDLT; its existence is only acknowledged in [[station identification]]s. Aside from the transmitter, KDLV has no physical presence in Mitchell. Both of KDLT's subchannels also air on KPRY-TV in [[Pierre, South Dakota|Pierre]], a [[semi-satellite]] of sister station KSFY-TV.

KDLT-TV got its start as KORN-TV, an NBC affiliate on channel 5 in Mitchell, in 1960. It did not begin broadcasting to the Sioux Falls area until 1969, when it switched to ABC. The station changed its call letters to KXON-TV in 1973 when channel 5 was split from KORN radio. The station was sold again in 1982 to become KDLT-TV; it lost its ABC affiliation when the network opted to move to KSFY-TV the next year, picking up NBC instead. For the better part of its history, it suffered from low ratings and the perception that it was a Mitchell station rather than a Sioux Falls station. In 1987, most operations, including news production, moved to Sioux Falls. In 1998, as part of an effort to improve the station's coverage, a new transmitter on channel 46 in Sioux Falls became the main station, while channel 5 was repurposed as a full-time satellite for the market's western portion. Even after these changes, the station has spent the better part of its history as the lowest-rated [[Big Three (American television)|Big Three]] station in the market.

In 2019, Gray Television, owner of KSFY, sought and was granted [[Federal Communications Commission]] approval to buy KDLT in hopes of creating a stronger challenge to long-dominant [[KELO-TV]]. This brought KDLT and KSFY under one roof, with a merged news operation known as Dakota News Now. Gray then bought the market's Fox affiliation, resulting in the migration of Fox from [[KTTW]] to a subchannel of KDLT-TV and the two stations' satellites.

==History==
===The Mitchell years===
Mitchell Broadcasting Association, owner of radio station [[KORN (AM)|KORN]], applied on July 30, 1957, to build a new television station on channel 5 in [[Mitchell, South Dakota]], to be located southeast of the city.{{r|hc}} The [[Federal Communications Commission]] (FCC) approved the application on November 13 of that year, but it was more than two years before KORN-TV was built and activated on June 12, 1960. It was a primary affiliate of NBC.<ref name="Dail600615">{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/101844305/newest-mitchell-industry-begins-operatio/|date=June 15, 1960|page=18|title=Newest Mitchell Industry Begins Operations With Telecasts Sunday Eve|newspaper=The Daily Republic|location=Mitchell, South Dakota|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=May 14, 2022|archive-date=May 14, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220514184128/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/101844305/newest-mitchell-industry-begins/|url-status=live}}</ref><!-- Wed --> The next month, in Sioux Falls, KSOO-TV (the future KSFY-TV) signed on, also an NBC affiliate.<ref name="Argu600729">{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/121993821/ksoo-tv-stockholders-from-both-dakotas/|date=July 29, 1960|page=21|title=KSOO-TV Stockholders From Both Dakotas|newspaper=[[Sioux Falls Argus-Leader]]|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=March 31, 2023|archive-date=April 2, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230402033505/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/121993821/ksoo-tv-stockholders-from-both-dakotas/|url-status=live}}</ref><!-- Fri -->

Coinciding with the construction of a new {{convert|1569|ft|m|adj=on}} tower in [[Salem, South Dakota|Salem]], midway between Mitchell and Sioux Falls, KORN-TV switched to ABC on May 12, 1969, giving the network its first primary affiliate in [[South Dakota]]. The signal traveled in a {{convert|92|mi|km|adj=on}} radius from the transmitter site, providing city-grade coverage to 23 counties in eastern South Dakota and giving Sioux Falls full service from all three major networks.<ref name="Argu681205">{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/101844533/korn-tv-to-switch-to-abc/|date=December 5, 1968|page=21|title=KORN-TV To Switch To ABC|newspaper=Sioux Falls Argus-Leader|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=May 14, 2022|archive-date=May 14, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220514184021/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/101844533/korn-tv-to-switch-to-abc/|url-status=live}}</ref><!-- Thu --><ref name="Dail690509">{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/101844764/korn-tv-goes-abc-monday/|date=May 9, 1969|page=3|title=KORN-TV Goes ABC Monday|newspaper=The Daily Republic|location=Mitchell, South Dakota|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=May 14, 2022|archive-date=May 14, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220514184021/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/101844764/korn-tv-goes-abc-monday/|url-status=live}}</ref><!-- Fri -->

Mitchell Broadcasting sold the station to Buford Television of [[Tyler, Texas]], in 1972 for $775,000.<ref name="Dail720623">{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/101845005/texans-to-pay-775000-for-korn-tv/|date=June 23, 1972|page=3|title=Texans To Pay $775,000 For KORN-TV|newspaper=The Daily Republic|location=Mitchell, South Dakota|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=May 14, 2022|archive-date=May 14, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220514184021/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/101845005/texans-to-pay-775000-for-korn-tv/|url-status=live}}</ref><!-- Fri --> The new owners changed the [[call sign]] the next year to KXON-TV, as Mitchell Broadcasting retained the KORN radio stations.<ref name="Dail730908">{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/47636560/korn-tv-to-be-kxon-tv/|date=September 8, 1973|page=3|title=KORN-TV To Be KXON-TV|newspaper=The Daily Republic|location=Mitchell, South Dakota|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=March 29, 2020|archive-date=March 30, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200330005844/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/47636560/korn-tv-to-be-kxon-tv/|url-status=live}}</ref><!-- Sat --> Additionally, Buford opened a sales office in downtown Sioux Falls, the station's first physical presence in the city.<ref name="Argu730706">{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/101845076/accent-on-business/|date=July 6, 1973|page=7|title=Accent On Business|newspaper=Sioux Falls Argus-Leader|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=May 14, 2022|archive-date=May 14, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220514184021/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/101845076/accent-on-business/|url-status=live}}</ref><!-- Fri --> Buford saw the station through a lengthy reconstruction after the Salem tower was felled in an ice storm on March 27, 1975; ice built up on the tower and, aided by gusting winds, led to its collapse.<ref name="Argu750328">{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/101843699/ice-winds-topple-1565-foot-kxon-tower/|date=March 28, 1975|page=1|agency=Associated Press|title=Ice, Winds Topple 1,565-Foot KXON Tower Near Salem; Madison Tower May Collapse|newspaper=Sioux Falls Argus-Leader|location=Sioux Falls, South Dakota|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=May 14, 2022|archive-date=May 14, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220514184134/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/101843699/ice-winds-topple-1565-foot-kxon-tower/|url-status=live}}</ref><!-- Fri --> The station reverted to its original tower in Mitchell before a replacement {{convert|1563|ft|m|adj=on}} tower was activated at Salem in mid-1976.<ref name="Dail760427">{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/101843737/new-kxon-tower-ready-by-june/|date=April 27, 1976|page=2|title=New KXON tower ready by June|newspaper=The Daily Republic|location=Mitchell, South Dakota|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=May 14, 2022|archive-date=May 14, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220514184022/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/101843737/new-kxon-tower-ready-by-june/|url-status=live}}</ref><!-- Tue -->

After a proposed purchase of the station by a consortium of investors known as Group Five Television was abandoned in March 1977,<ref name="Dail760723">{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/101845374/area-businessmen-seek-loan-to-buy-tv-sta/|date=July 23, 1976|page=3|first=Peter B.|last=Sleeper|title=Area businessmen seek loan to buy TV station|newspaper=The Daily Republic|location=Mitchell, South Dakota|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=May 14, 2022|archive-date=May 14, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220514184023/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/101845374/area-businessmen-seek-loan-to-buy-tv/|url-status=live}}</ref><!-- Fri --><ref name="Dail770304">{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/101845396/plans-to-buy-kxon-tv-abandoned/|date=March 4, 1977|page=3|first=Judy|last=Burke|title=Plans to buy KXON-TV abandoned|newspaper=The Daily Republic|location=Mitchell, South Dakota|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=May 14, 2022|archive-date=May 14, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220514184134/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/101845396/plans-to-buy-kxon-tv-abandoned/|url-status=live}}</ref><!-- Fri --> Buford put KXON-TV on the market because it had committed to the construction or purchase of four television stations in other parts of the United States.<ref name="Dail770317">{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/101845598/kxon-for-sale/|date=March 17, 1977|page=3|title=KXON for sale|newspaper=The Daily Republic|location=Mitchell, South Dakota|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=May 14, 2022|archive-date=May 14, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220514184023/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/101845598/kxon-for-sale/|url-status=live}}</ref><!-- Thu --><ref name="Dail771024">{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/101845681/wisconsin-man-to-buy-kxon/|date=October 24, 1977|page=3|title=Wisconsin man to buy KXON|newspaper=The Daily Republic|location=Mitchell, South Dakota|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=May 14, 2022|archive-date=May 14, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220514184025/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/101845681/wisconsin-man-to-buy-kxon/|url-status=live}}</ref><!-- Mon --> In October 1977, Buford accepted an offer from [[George N. Gillett Jr.]] of [[Wausau, Wisconsin]], to purchase KXON-TV. It was the first holding of his Gillett Broadcasting. Gillett noted that he selected KXON-TV to purchase in part because there were so few TV stations on the market; it was affiliated with ABC, then the top network; and it was a low-band [[VHF]] TV station.<ref name="Argu780303">{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/101845821/kxons-new-owner-says-station-changes-co/|date=March 3, 1978|page=2C|title=KXON's new owner says station changes coming|newspaper=Argus-Leader|location=Sioux Falls, South Dakota|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=May 14, 2022|archive-date=May 14, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220514184024/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/101845821/kxons-new-owner-says-station-changes/|url-status=live}}</ref><!-- Fri --> Gillett made improvements to the presentation of the station's two daily newscasts, then branded ''Metro News'', which had perennially been in third place in the market behind [[KELO-TV]] and KSFY. Despite this, channel 5 remained hamstrung in its ability to capture ratings, especially for local news, in Sioux Falls. While KELO-TV and KSFY both had at least three full-power transmitters, KXON only had one. Its news department had nine reporters and was half the size of KSFY and a tenth the size of KELO-TV. It had less equipment than its competitors and faced the stigma of being considered a "Mitchell station".<ref name="Argu810206">{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/41443898/kxon-the-undeterred-underdog/|date=February 6, 1981|first=Marshall|last=Fine|page=1B, [https://www.newspapers.com/clip/41443938/ 3B]|title=KXON: The undeterred underdog|newspaper=Argus Leader|location=Sioux Falls, South Dakota|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=March 23, 2020|archive-date=March 24, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200324044209/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/41443898/kxon-the-undeterred-underdog/|url-status=live}}</ref><!-- Fri --> It did not help matters that [[KCAU-TV]] in [[Sioux City, Iowa]], put a strong signal to much of the market; for most of the time from the late 1960s to the 1980s, it claimed Sioux Falls as part of its primary coverage area.<ref name="Argu670724">{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/102671359/kcau-tv-9-formerly-kvtv-will-be-abc/|date=July 24, 1967|page=11|title=KCAU-TV 9 (Formerly KVTV) Will Be ABC For Sioux City and Sioux Falls|newspaper=Argus-Leader|location=Sioux Falls, South Dakota|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=May 28, 2022|archive-date=May 28, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220528084029/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/102671359/kcau-tv-9-formerly-kvtv-will-be-abc/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="Siou850921">{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/102709470/television-is-in-the-spotlight-turner-r/|date=September 21, 1985|page=A1, [https://www.newspapers.com/clip/102709414/turner-receives-standing-ovation/ A26]|title=Television is in the spotlight: Turner resigns|newspaper=Sioux City Journal|location=Sioux City, Iowa|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=May 28, 2022|archive-date=May 28, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220528215107/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/102709470/television-is-in-the-spotlight-turner/|url-status=live}}</ref>

Gillett sold KXON-TV in 1982 to Dakotaland Broadcasting, owners of [[KOTA-TV|KEVN and KIVV]] in the [[Rapid City]] market. The call letters were changed to KDLT on September 27 that year to reflect the new owners (DLT for "Dakotaland Television") and also to "project a new image".<ref name="Argu820929">{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/101846628/kxon-tv-changes-call-letters-to-kdlt/|date=September 29, 1982|page=4C|title=KXON-TV changes call letters to KDLT|newspaper=Argus Leader|location=Sioux Falls, South Dakota|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=May 14, 2022|archive-date=May 14, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220514184024/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/101846628/kxon-tv-changes-call-letters-to-kdlt/|url-status=live}}</ref><!-- Wed --> The station lost its ABC affiliation the next year after ABC approached KSFY-TV, with its larger network of repeaters and higher ratings, to become its new affiliate in eastern South Dakota.<ref name="Argu830224">{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/47636147/kdlt-may-affiliate-with-nbc-after-ksfy-s/|date=February 24, 1983|page=1B|title=KDLT may affiliate with NBC after KSFY switches to ABC|newspaper=Argus Leader|location=Sioux Falls, South Dakota|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=May 14, 2022|archive-date=May 14, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220514184025/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/47636147/kdlt-may-affiliate-with-nbc-after-ksfy/|url-status=live}}</ref><!-- Thu --> Consequently, KDLT took over KSFY's former NBC affiliation.<ref name="Argu830805">{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/101846337/mitchells-kdlt-switches-from-abc-to-nbc/|date=August 5, 1983|page=3C|title=Mitchell's KDLT switches from ABC to NBC|newspaper=Argus Leader|location=Sioux Falls, South Dakota|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=May 14, 2022|archive-date=May 14, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220514184024/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/101846337/mitchells-kdlt-switches-from-abc-to-nbc/|url-status=live}}</ref><!-- Fri -->

===Heritage and Red River ownership===
Dakotaland's owners decided to exit the business, selling their broadcast holdings to [[Heritage Cablevision|Heritage Communications]] in 1985.<ref name="Rapi850301">{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/101846491/firm-buys-kevn-other-tv-stations/|date=March 1, 1985|page=1, [https://www.newspapers.com/clip/101846522/ 2]|first=J.D.|last=Ames|title=Firm buys KEVN, other TV stations|newspaper=Rapid City Journal|location=Rapid City, South Dakota|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=May 14, 2022}}</ref><!-- Fri --> It was the first acquisition of broadcast stations by the group, which became [[Heritage Media]] in 1987 when the broadcast stations were spun out from the firm's cable TV systems.<ref name="DesM870531">{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/101847360/texas-may-land-heritage-tv-radio-compan/|date=May 31, 1987|page=1F, [https://www.newspapers.com/clip/101847388/ 3F]|first=Dale|last=Kasler|title=Texas may land Heritage TV, radio company|newspaper=The Des Moines Register|location=Des Moines, Iowa|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=May 14, 2022}}</ref><!-- Sun --> That same year, rule changes allowed KDLT to move most of its operations to a studio on South Westport Avenue in Sioux Falls; previously, the station staff was split between the two cities.<ref name="Argu870814">{{cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/47635781/|newspaper=Argus Leader|location=Sioux Falls, South Dakota|via=Newspapers.com|date=August 14, 1987|title=KDLT plans changes, moves to Sioux Falls|page=1B|first=Ann|last=Grauvogl|access-date=March 29, 2020}}</ref> The new owners focused KDLT's low-rated newscasts, now called ''Sioux First News'', on Sioux Falls events. This was out of necessity; it could not hope to adequately cover the entire 80-county market with just a single transmitter.<ref name="Argu870824">{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/52151536/new-look-signals-kdlt-tvs-move-to-city/|date=August 24, 1987|page=5A|first=Ann|last=Grauvogl|title=New look signals KDLT-TV's move to city|newspaper=Argus-Leader|location=Sioux Falls, South Dakota|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=May 14, 2022}}</ref><!-- Mon -->

Heritage Media sold KDLT to Red River Broadcasting, owner of [[KVRR]] in [[Fargo, North Dakota]], in 1994.<ref name="Argu940701">{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/101847858/nd-firm-to-acquire-kdlt-tv/|date=July 1, 1994|page=1B|first=Brenda|last=Wade Schmidt|title=N.D. firm to acquire KDLT-TV|newspaper=Argus Leader|location=Sioux Falls, South Dakota|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=May 14, 2022}}</ref><!-- Fri --> Red River embarked on a two-pronged campaign to expand KDLT's coverage area. In 1995, it set up low-power [[Broadcast relay station#Translators|translators]] in [[Aberdeen, South Dakota|Aberdeen]], [[Milbank, South Dakota|Milbank]], [[Pierre, South Dakota|Pierre]], and [[Watertown, South Dakota|Watertown]], adding over 84,000 potential viewers to its coverage area. Viewers in these areas had long been served over the air by KELO-TV and KSFY.<ref name="Argu950721">{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/101848094/new-owners-to-expand-kdlts-reception-ar/|date=July 21, 1995|page=5D|first=Brenda|last=Wade Schmidt|title=New owners to expand KDLT's reception area: Plans will bring more parity with KSFY, KELO|newspaper=Argus Leader|location=Sioux Falls, South Dakota|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=May 14, 2022}}</ref><!-- Fri -->

[[File:KDLT Tower.jpg|thumb|upright=1|alt=A very tall, guyed broadcast tower in a field|The KDLT tower at Rowena was built in 1998 as part of the launch of the high-power channel 46, part of a signal expansion program undertaken by Red River.]]
The second phase, however, was even more crucial. FCC rules for the forthcoming introduction of digital television required a station's digital signal to cover at least 80 percent of its analog footprint. KDLT's transmitter was too far away from Sioux Falls to provide that city with an acceptable digital signal; it was located over {{convert|41|mi|km}} from Sioux Falls. In 1989, KDLT had purchased K46CB, a low-power station in Sioux Falls, to improve its reception in the city.<ref name="Argu891111">{{cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/40491726/kdlt-buys-k46cb-sioux-falls/|newspaper=Argus Leader|location=Sioux Falls, South Dakota|via=Newspapers.com|date=November 11, 1989|access-date=March 29, 2020|page=5C|title=Newspaper Notice|archive-date=March 30, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200330005838/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/40491726/kdlt-buys-k46cb-sioux-falls/|url-status=live}}</ref> On March 6, 1997, FCC granted Red River a construction permit to replace this translator with a new full-power station licensed to Sioux Falls on channel 46. It would operate from a tower in [[Rowena, South Dakota|Rowena]], from where KELO and KSFY had broadcast since the 1960s.<ref name="Argu991206">{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/argus-leader-tv-towers-weathered-storms/127229442/|date=December 6, 1999|page=2B|first=Alica P.|last=Thiele|title=TV towers weathered storms, planes: KELO, KSFY television, 2 radio stations use tower|newspaper=Argus-Leader|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=June 28, 2023}}</ref><!-- Mon --><ref>{{Cite news|page=101|work=Broadcasting & Cable|id={{ProQuest|1016963420}}|title=For the Record|date=March 24, 1997}}</ref> On September 23, 1998, Red River activated the new channel 46;{{r|factbook01}} it took the KDLT-TV call sign. Channel 5 continued to operate on its original license and changed its call letters to KDLV-TV.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://licensing.fcc.gov/cgi-bin/ws.exe/prod/cdbs/pubacc/prod/call_hist.pl?Facility_id=55375&Callsign=KDLV-TV|title=Call Sign History for KDLV-TV|website=Consolidated Database System|publisher=[[Federal Communications Commission]]}}</ref>{{efn|The KDLV-TV call sign had been parked on the channel 46 construction permit since April 1, 1997.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://licensing.fcc.gov/cgi-bin/ws.exe/prod/cdbs/pubacc/prod/call_hist.pl?Facility_id=55379&Callsign=KDLT-TV|title=Call Sign History for KDLT-TV|website=Consolidated Database System|publisher=[[Federal Communications Commission]]}}</ref>}} In December, KDLV-TV moved to a new tower in Plankinton, closer to Mitchell and increasing its coverage to the west. This was necessary because the FCC did not allow Red River to simply move channel 5's tower to Sioux Falls; channel 46 was the lowest UHF allocation available in Sioux Falls at the time.<ref name="Argu981127">{{cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/40491973/|title=FCC didn't allow tower move|newspaper=Argus Leader|location=Sioux Falls, South Dakota|via=Newspapers.com|date=November 27, 1998|page=1D|access-date=March 29, 2020}}</ref> The changes cost $8 million.<ref name="Argu981212">{{cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/46995317/|title=Radio stations to ask listeners to vote on web site|first=Bob|last=Keyes|newspaper=Argus Leader|location=Sioux Falls, South Dakota|via=Newspapers.com|date=December 12, 1998|page=1B|access-date=March 29, 2020}}</ref> The launch of channel 46 coincided with the station launching its first morning newscast, ''Sioux Falls Today''.<ref name="Argu980926">{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/122186931/show-aims-for-hard-edge/|date=September 26, 1998|page=1B|first=Bob|last=Keyes|title=Show aims for hard edge|newspaper=Argus Leader|location=Sioux Falls, South Dakota|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=April 3, 2023|archive-date=April 3, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230403072338/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/122186931/show-aims-for-hard-edge/|url-status=live}}</ref><!-- Sat -->

By 2016, KDLT-TV's news ratings were still a distant third behind KSFY-TV, in turn a distant second behind KELO-TV, which outdrew both stations combined.<ref name="Argu170308">{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/122187151/tv-news-entering-new-era-in-sioux-falls/|date=March 8, 2017|pages=6, [https://www.newspapers.com/clip/122187144/tv/ 7]|title=TV news entering new era in Sioux Falls|newspaper=Sioux Falls Business Journal|first=Patrick|last=Anderson|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=April 3, 2023|archive-date=April 3, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230403072350/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/122187151/tv-news-entering-new-era-in-sioux-falls/|url-status=live}}</ref><!-- Wed -->

===Consolidation with KSFY-TV===
On May 1, 2018, [[Gray Television]] announced its purchase of KDLT-TV for $32.5 million. The deal created a [[duopoly (broadcasting)|duopoly]] with KSFY-TV<ref name="tvnc-saletogray">{{cite news|last1=Miller|first1=Mark K.|title=Gray Buying KDLT Sioux Falls For $32.5M|url=http://www.tvnewscheck.com/article/113255/gray-buying-kdlt-sioux-falls-for-325m|access-date=May 2, 2018|work=TVNewsCheck|language=en|archive-date=May 2, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180502142802/http://www.tvnewscheck.com/article/113255/gray-buying-kdlt-sioux-falls-for-325m|url-status=live}}</ref> with the combined operation to be based at KSFY's studios on Courthouse Square in Sioux Falls; in its announcement of the KDLT purchase, Gray noted that the KSFY studio has enough space to house a second station's news and sales department.<ref>{{cite press release|title=Gray Agrees to Acquire KDLT-TV in Sioux Falls, South Dakota|url=https://gray.tv/uploads/documents/pressreleases/PressReleaseKDLTSiouxFalls.pdf|publisher=Gray Television|access-date=May 14, 2022|date=May 1, 2018|archive-date=December 17, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181217014740/https://gray.tv/uploads/documents/pressreleases/PressReleaseKDLTSiouxFalls.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref> Gray needed to obtain a waiver in order to complete the deal, since the FCC normally does not allow one entity to own two of the four highest-rated stations in a market. However, in its filing requesting such a waiver, Gray argued that KDLT would be in a stronger position to compete in the market if its resources were combined with those of KSFY. Gray contended that a KSFY/KDLT duopoly would fulfill "a dire need for an effective competitor" in a market where [[CBS]] affiliate KELO-TV has been the far-and-away leader for as long as records have been kept. At the time the purchase was announced, KELO-TV held a local news share of 70 percent and an advertising market share of 55 percent, leading Gray to describe Sioux Falls as a "unicorn".<ref>{{cite web|url=https://licensing.fcc.gov/cdbs/CDBS_Attachment/getattachment.jsp?appn=101807286&qnum=5170&copynum=1&exhcnum=5|title=December 2018 Amendment to Assignment Application|date=December 2018|access-date=May 14, 2022|publisher=Federal Communications Commission}}</ref>

The sale was approved by the FCC on September 24, 2019—a wait of 16 months.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://docs.fcc.gov/public/attachments/DA-19-943A1.pdf|title=Memorandum Opinion and Order|publisher=[[Federal Communications Commission]]|date=September 24, 2019|access-date=September 25, 2019|archive-date=September 25, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190925233143/https://docs.fcc.gov/public/attachments/DA-19-943A1.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref> Hank Price of TVNewsCheck suggested that legal challenges to the new FCC rules and its handling of such high-profile cases as the [[attempted acquisition of Tribune Media by Sinclair Broadcast Group]] diverted its attention. The FCC cited compelling public interest and its own authority, rather than the new rules.<ref name="TVNC200316"/> Gray took control of KDLT the following day.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.ksfy.com/content/news/Gray-Television-completes-purchase-of-KDLT-TV-561335161.html|title=Gray Television completes purchase of KDLT-TV|work=[[KSFY-TV|KSFY.com]]|publisher=[[Gray Television]]|date=September 25, 2019|access-date=September 25, 2019|archive-date=September 25, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190925233144/https://www.ksfy.com/content/news/Gray-Television-completes-purchase-of-KDLT-TV-561335161.html|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.argusleader.com/story/news/business-journal/2019/09/25/ksfy-purchases-kdlt-gray-television-red-river-broadcasting/2441108001/|title=Owner of KSFY-TV finalizes purchase of KDLT-TV|first=Katie|last=Nelson|newspaper=Argus Leader|date=September 25, 2019|access-date=September 25, 2019}}</ref>
[[File:Dakota News Now logo.svg|thumb|Logo of Dakota News Now|alt=The word Dakota, italicized in Bank Gothic typeface large in white, with "News Now" beneath in white, unitalicized, and yellow, italicized.]]
On January 13, 2020, KDLT moved its operations to KSFY's studios on Courthouse Square. The merged news operation, ''Dakota News Now'', launched the same day. With the exception of the two-hour morning news at 5 a.m. and 10 p.m. newscast, which both stations air to satisfy network program commitments, newscasts are scheduled on each station at complementary times, with KDLT airing news for an hour at 4 p.m. and half-hours at 5:30 and 6:30 p.m. Between them, the stations air three hours of news on weeknights.<ref name="Argu200113">{{Cite web|url=https://www.aberdeennews.com/news/ksfy-kdlt-to-become-dakota-news-now/article_52b89592-33f3-11ea-a125-5358f7ca240c.html|title=KSFY, KDLT to become Dakota News Now|last=Anderson|first=Patrick|website=Argus Leader|language=en|access-date=January 13, 2020|archive-date=January 13, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200113065512/https://www.aberdeennews.com/news/ksfy-kdlt-to-become-dakota-news-now/article_52b89592-33f3-11ea-a125-5358f7ca240c.html|url-status=live}}</ref>{{r|TVNC200316}} Employees that were not retained by the combined newsroom were prioritized for openings elsewhere in the Gray chain.<ref name="TVNC200316">{{Cite news|url=https://tvnewscheck.com/journalism/article/ksfy-kdlt-a-model-of-top-4-consolidation/|work=TVNewsCheck|date=March 16, 2020|first=Hank|last=Price|title=KSFY-KDLT: A Model Of Top 4 Consolidation|access-date=April 3, 2023|archive-date=April 3, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230403072400/https://tvnewscheck.com/journalism/article/ksfy-kdlt-a-model-of-top-4-consolidation/|url-status=live}}</ref> Gray also filled gaps in ABC and NBC coverage by combining the transmitter networks of KDLT-TV and KSFY-TV, making both stations accessible in the same areas. Before the merger, one-third of the market needed cable or satellite to watch both stations; KELO was the only station that covered the entire market over the air.{{r|TVNC200316}}

On November 2, 2020, Gray purchased the non-license assets of [[KTTW]] (channel 7) from Independent Communications, Inc.; [[Fox Broadcasting Company|Fox]] programming moved to KDLT on subchannel 46.2. [[Cozi TV]], which was also carried on KTTW, moved to subchannel 46.4.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.facebook.com/fox7siouxfalls/posts/3658595667516875|title=Facebook|publisher=Fox 7 Sioux Falls|date=September 25, 2019|access-date=September 25, 2019}}</ref><ref name="foxonkdlt">{{cite web|url=http://www.northpine.com/blog/2020/11/02/fox-changes-channels-in-sioux-falls/|title=Fox Changes Channels in Sioux Falls|first=Jon|last=Ellis|website=Northpine.com|date=November 2, 2020|access-date=November 3, 2020|archive-date=November 3, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201103051624/http://www.northpine.com/blog/2020/11/02/fox-changes-channels-in-sioux-falls/|url-status=live}}</ref>

==Technical information==
The stations' signals are [[multiplex (TV)|multiplexed]], but not with the same programming. This is because KDLV-TV carries KSFY on its third subchannel. KDLT's NBC and Fox subchannels (46.1 and 46.2) are simulcast on KPRY-TV in Pierre.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.rabbitears.info/market.php?request=station_search&callsign=KPRY |title=RabbitEars TV Query for KPRY |access-date=April 3, 2023 |url-status=live |archive-date=April 3, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230403072417/https://rabbitears.info/market.php?request=station_search&callsign=KPRY }}</ref>

===KDLT-TV subchannels===
{| class="wikitable"
|+Subchannels of KDLT-TV<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.rabbitears.info/market.php?request=station_search&callsign=KDLT#station |title=RabbitEars TV Query for KDLT |access-date=June 20, 2014 |archive-date=March 3, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160303212442/http://www.rabbitears.info/market.php?request=station_search&callsign=KDLT#station |url-status=live }}</ref>
! scope = "col" | [[Digital subchannel#United States|Channel]]
! scope = "col" | [[Display resolution|Res.]]
! scope = "col" | [[Aspect ratio (image)|Aspect]]
! scope = "col" | Short name
! scope = "col" | Programming
|-
! scope = "row" | 46.1
| [[1080i]] || rowspan=6 | [[16:9]] || KDLT-TV || [[NBC]]
|-
! scope = "row" | 46.2
| [[720p]] || FOX || [[Fox Broadcasting Company|Fox]]
|-
! scope = "row" | 46.3
| rowspan="4" | [[480i]] || The365 || [[The365]]
|-
! scope = "row" | 46.4
| Cozi || [[Cozi TV]]
|-
! scope = "row" | 46.5
| Court
|[[Court TV]]
|-
! scope = "row" | 46.6
| IONMyst
|[[Ion Mystery]]
|}

===KDLV-TV subchannels===
{| class="wikitable"
|+Subchannels of KDLV-TV<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.rabbitears.info/market.php?request=station_search&callsign=KDLV#station |title=RabbitEars TV Query for KDLV |access-date=June 20, 2014 |archive-date=March 3, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160303234708/http://www.rabbitears.info/market.php?request=station_search&callsign=KDLV#station |url-status=live }}</ref>
! scope = "col" | [[Digital subchannel#United States|Channel]]
! scope = "col" | [[Display resolution|Res.]]
! scope = "col" | [[Aspect ratio (image)|Aspect]]
! scope = "col" | Short name
! scope = "col" | Programming
|-
! scope = "row" | 5.1
| rowspan=3 | 720p || rowspan=3 | 16:9 || KDLV-TV || NBC
|-
! scope = "row" | 5.2
| FOX || Fox
|- style="background-color: #E6FFF7;"
! scope = "row" | [[KSFY-TV|13.1]]
| KSFY-TV
| [[American Broadcasting Company|ABC]] ([[KSFY-TV]])
|}
{{legend|#E6FFF7|Simulcast of subchannels of another station}}

===Analog-to-digital conversion===
Both stations shut down their analog signals on February 1, 2009, during the late newscast after [[Super Bowl XLIII]]. KDLT chose that time to shut down both analog transmitters for maximum exposure.<ref name="Argu090128">{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/122186889/kdlt-forging-ahead-with-digital-switch/|date=January 28, 2009|page=4A|first=Peter|last=Harriman|title=KDLT forging ahead with digital switch|newspaper=Argus Leader|location=Sioux Falls, South Dakota|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=April 3, 2023|archive-date=April 3, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230403072408/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/122186889/kdlt-forging-ahead-with-digital-switch/|url-status=live}}</ref><!-- Wed --> The two stations continued to broadcast on their pre-transition digital channels—channel 47 for KDLT-TV and channel 26 for KDLV-TV.<ref name="Analog to Digital">{{Cite web |date=May 23, 2006 |title=DTV Tentative Channel Designations for the First and Second Rounds |url=http://hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/DA-06-1082A2.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130829004251/http://hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/DA-06-1082A2.pdf |archive-date=August 29, 2013 |access-date=August 29, 2021 |publisher=Federal Communications Commission}}</ref> KDLT relocated its signal from channel 47 to channel 21 on November 30, 2018, as a result of the [[2016 United States wireless spectrum auction]].<ref name="Repack Table">{{Cite web|url=http://data.fcc.gov/download/incentive-auctions/Transition_Files/Phase_Assignment_Closing_PN.csv|title=FCC TV Spectrum Phase Assignment Table|format=CSV|website=[[Federal Communications Commission]]|date=April 13, 2017|access-date=April 17, 2017|archive-date=April 17, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170417160749/http://data.fcc.gov/download/incentive-auctions/Transition_Files/Phase_Assignment_Closing_PN.csv|url-status=live}}</ref>

===Translators===
KDLT-TV is rebroadcast on the following [[Broadcast relay station#Broadcast translators|translator stations]]:<ref>{{Cite web|date=July 23, 2021|title=List of TV Translator Input Channels|url=https://www.fcc.gov/sites/default/files/tv-translator-input-channels-07232021.xlsx|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211209195336/https://www.fcc.gov/sites/default/files/tv-translator-input-channels-07232021.xlsx|archive-date=December 9, 2021|access-date=December 17, 2021|publisher=Federal Communications Commission}}</ref>
* [[Aberdeen, South Dakota|Aberdeen]]: K33MI-D
* [[Badger, South Dakota|Badger]]: K35GR-D
* [[Brookings, South Dakota|Brookings]]: K17NF-D
* [[Jackson, Minnesota|Jackson]]: K27NF-D
* [[Pierre, South Dakota|Pierre]]: K27HJ-D
* [[Springfield, South Dakota|Springfield]]: K33GX-D
* [[Watertown, South Dakota|Watertown]]: K28OE-D

==Note==
{{notelist}}

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
* {{Official website|https://www.dakotanewsnow.com/}}

{{Sioux Falls TV}}
{{South Dakota TV}}
{{Minnesota TV}}
{{Iowa TV}}
{{Gray TV}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kdlt-Tv}}
[[Category:1960 establishments in South Dakota]]
[[Category:Court TV affiliates]]
[[Category:Cozi TV affiliates]]
[[Category:Fox Broadcasting Company affiliates]]
[[Category:Gray Media]]
[[Category:Ion Mystery affiliates]]
[[Category:NBC affiliates]]
[[Category:Television channels and stations established in 1960]]
[[Category:Television stations in Sioux Falls, South Dakota|DLT-TV]]