states branding north dakota s cw slogan dare to defy channels digital 19 uhf virtual 2 psip subchannels 2.1 the cw plus 2.2 cbs 2.3 laff 2.4 escape affiliations the cw plus 2016 present cbs dt2 owner nexstar broadcasting group nexstar broadcasting inc. first air date october 15 1956 ; 59 years ago 1956 10 15 call letters meaning kx television sister station s kxmb tv kxmc tv kxmd tv former callsigns kdix tv 1956 1983 kndx 1983 1985 former channel number s analog 2 vhf 1956 2009 former affiliations primary cbs 1956 2016 both secondary nbc 1956 1980 abc 1956 1986 transmitter power 150 kw height 217 m facility id 55684 transmitter coordinates 46 43 35 n 102 54 57 w 46.72639 n 102.91583 w 46.72639 ; 102.91583 kxma tv licensing authority fcc public license information profile cdbs website www.myndnow.com kxma tv channel 2 is a cw plus affiliate for dickinson north dakota . this outlet broadcasts a high definition digital signal on uhf channel 19 or virtual channel 2.1 via psip from a transmitter southwest of dickinson . the station maintains a news bureau and advertising sales office at the intersection of west villard street and state avenue north in dickinson . as dickinson uses mountain time kxma airs 6 p.m. starts to primetime rather than the usual 7 p.m. start for the rest of mountain time or in central time where most of north dakota is located . kxma is considered a semi satellite of kxmb tv in bismarck which is the flagship station of the four station kx television regional network . kxmc tv in minot is the oldest station and the former flagship station of the network while kxmb provides master control and some internal operations of the entire network . kxma airs a time shifted simulcast of kxmb in mountain time for most of the day . however kxma airs separate commercials and station identifications . the kx network relays cbs network programming and other programs across central and western north dakota as well as bordering counties in montana and south dakota . kxma clears all network and syndicated programming as provided through its parent but airs separate station identifications and commercial inserts . kxma serves the southwestern portion of the bismarck minot market . the four stations along with abc affiliates wday tv in fargo and wdaz tv in grand forks often share news stories . the four stations are counted as a single unit for ratings purposes . unlike the other kx stations kxma airs the cw plus on it s main signal and cbs programming which aired on 2.1 until 2016 on dt2 . syndicated programming on kxma dt2 includes dr. phil the ellen degeneres show entertainment tonight friends rachael ray among others . contents 1 history 2 programming 3 digital television 3.1 digital channels 3.2 analog to digital conversion 4 news operation 5 see also 6 references 7 external links history edit logo used by kxma as a main cbs affiliate . kxma signed on in 1956 as kdix tv and was owned by the dickinson radio and tv corporation along with kdix radio . although the federal communications commission fcc had combined all of western and central north dakota into a single market in the mid 1950s this wouldn t be fully realized for another three decades mainly because dickinson is in the mountain time zone . it carried programming from all three networks cbs nbc and abc but was a primary cbs affiliate . the station was unable to get a direct network feed for its first three decades on the air . until 1966 the station picked up what cbs programs it could under cbs extended market plan which served as a go between for non interconnected stations in very small markets . it also aired a few abc and nbc shows out of pattern . then in 1966 kota tv in rapid city planned to sign on khsd tv channel 11 a satellite station in lead south dakota ; to extend its coverage into northeastern wyoming and southeastern montana . at the time kota tv held a joint affiliation with cbs and abc but slightly favored cbs . stanley deck kdix s general manager at the time discovered that dickinson was close enough to lead that his engineers could easily get an acceptable signal from khsd whenever cbs and abc programming aired . he arranged with the duhamel family owners of kota to provide network programming for kdix tv . in addition deck purchased virtually all the stock in the dickinson radio and tv corporation . the deal took effect when khsd opened on november 2 1966 ; for the next several years kdix was practically a separately owned satellite of kota . then in 1970 kota swapped affiliations with krsd tv a precursor of the present kota tv and joined nbc . kdix tv still picked up abc programming from kota and was also able to pick up nbc as well . however its engineers now had to switch to kxmb s signal for cbs shows . when kqcd tv signed on in 1980 channel 2 dropped all nbc programming and severed its remaining ties with kota ; afterward kdix and the reiten stations kxmc tv kxmb tv and kxmd tv were jointly branded as the 4x network . 1 in 1983 deck sold kdix tv to big horn communications which owned kous tv now khmt in billings and the calls were changed to kndx . big horn paid so little attention to kndx that the station s signal quickly deteriorated to the point of unacceptability . with the station was on the verge of closing down the reitens came to kndx s rescue agreeing to buy the station in late 1984 . the station adopted its current calls kxma tv when the deal closed on january 2 1985 . it would have been kxme but prairie public television objected . since then kxma has been a semi satellite of kxmb . electronic news gathering unit supporting kxmb and sister stations in 2006 the stations began a web portal like website called kx net with each station s website displaying a localized front page . the stations continue to be branded as kx television and as kx news on the air but also use the kx net monkier on the air also . kxnet.com combined the previous domains kxma.com kxmb.com kxmc.com and kxmd.com under one umbrella . the original domains are still active . kxnet.com won the 2007 teddy award for best website and the 2007 eric sevareid award for best website small market television in a six state region . in july 2008 reiten television began a joint agreement to sell television commercial slots on both its existing stations and kbmy bismarck s abc affiliate owned by forum communications company . a consequence of this agreement was that kbmy s programming began to be simulcast in dickinson on a full power signal on kxma s second digital subchannel in 2009 . in october 2007 kxnet.com along with midkota solutions launched dakotapolitics.com a web site focusing on north dakota political news coverage . dakotapolitics featured profile information voting records and some analysis . dakotapolitics also launched weekly tracking polls for the 2008 elections . in 2008 kxnet.com became the first web site in north dakota to deliver a live news broadcast over the internet when they streamed a 1 hour special coverage of the 2008 presidential caucuses from bismarck . nexstar broadcasting group announced its 44 million purchase of the reiten television stations including kxma tv on september 17 2015 . 2 sale was completed on february 2 2016 . 3 as result of the acquisition nexstar decided terminate the joint sales agreement with kbmy . 4 programming edit the north dakota state fair parade in minot is aired live every july as well as a july 4 parade in mandan . the kx network carries cbs news up to the minute though with public service announcements instead of local commercials while weekends simulcast the local weather conditions of north dakota . all four stations provide a formal sign off including the star spangled banner every night at 1 05 a.m. ct 12 05 a.m. mt tuesday saturday mornings and at 1 35 a.m. ct 12 35 a.m. mt on sunday and monday mornings . digital television edit digital channels edit the station s digital signal is multiplexed channel video aspect psip short name programming 5 2.1 720p 16 9 kxma wx main kxma tv programming north dakota cw 6 2.2 1080i kxma dt cbs 2.3 480i 4 3 laff 2.4 escape starting in 2016 kxma moved cbs programming to its second digital subchannel with the cw on its primary channel . this is likely to ensure must carry status for the cw in dickinson . analog to digital conversion edit kxma tv shut down its analog signal over vhf channel 2 on june 12 2009 the official date in which full power television stations in the united states transitioned from analog to digital broadcasts under federal mandate . the station s digital signal remained on its pre transition uhf channel 19 . 7 through the use of psip digital television receivers display the stations virtual channel as its former vhf analog channel 2 . news operation edit kx news logo . kxmb produces local newscasts on weekdays at noon 6 and 10 p.m. weekend newscasts are produced at 6 and 10 p.m. on saturdays and 10 p.m. on sundays . kxmc produces a morning show at 5 a.m. and co produces a 5 p.m. newscast with kxmb broadcast on all four stations . all of the local newscasts are broadcast in high definition . for many years kxma placed inserts into kxmb s newscasts . however recent cutbacks have resulted in kxma s operations being largely merged with those of kxmb and local inserts have been eliminated . as a whole kx television has long trailed nbc north dakota in the ratings by a significant margin ; the main stations and their satellites are counted as one station for ratings and regulatory purposes . however kx news morning has recently surged well ahead of nbc north dakota s country morning today the only time in recent memory that nbc north dakota has lost consecutive ratings periods in any time slot . on november 30 2013 actor will ferrell as a promotion for his film anchorman 2 co anchored the kx network s evening news as his character ron burgundy . 8 see also edit kxmb tv kxmc tv kxmd tv references edit 4x is the new north dakota advertisement pdf . broadcasting . april 28 1980 . p. 48 . retrieved february 18 2015 . nexstar buys 4 north dakota stations . tvnewscheck . september 17 2015 . retrieved september 17 2015 . consummation notice federal communications commission application for consent to assignment of broadcast station construction permit or license federal communications commission rabbitears tv query for kxma https dakotawire.wordpress.com 2016 07 01 kx adds the cw to western north dakota dtv tentative channel designations for the first and the second rounds pdf . retrieved 2012 03 24 . will ferrell anchors north dakota newscast as anchorman ron burgundy . new york daily news . retrieved 2 december 2013 . external links edit official website query the fcc s tv station database for kxma biafn s media web database information on kxma tv program information for kxma at titantv.com v t e television stations in central and western north dakota including bismarck minot dickinson and williston bismarck kbme 3.1 pbs 3.2 world 3.3 mn 3.4 lifelong kfyr 5.1 nbc 5.2 fox 5.3 metv kxmb 12.1 cbs 12.2 cw 12.3 laff 12.4 escape kbmy 17.1 abc 17.2 mynetworktv justice 17.3 wday z xtra kndb 26.1 h & i k43jq d 43.1 eicb tv k46dy 46 tbn minot ksre 6.1 pbs 6.2 world 6.3 mn 6.4