Modern television has become so deeply ingrained in our present day that it’s hard to imagine life without the rectangular picture. Television in the 21st century serves not only an informative purpose but also an entertaining one, which is appreciated the most. Learn more at houston-future.
For the first time in human history, television, if it can be called so, was discovered in the United States in the 1920s. Undoubtedly, it was a pathetic parody of what we have today. But without that stage, we would not have made as much progress as we have in the 21st century. A great leap in television occurred in the 1960s when black and white pictures began to be replaced by color.
Residents of Houston and Texas, as well as any modern city in the world, can at any moment enjoy a variety of TV channels and video resources. Among all the extensive range of options, there is one channel that especially heartens the city’s inhabitants, as it feels close to them. In this article, we will learn more about it. So let’s take an imaginary remote control and turn up our TV receiver louder.
End of the 20th century. The first broadcasts. Channel 26 or KRIV
On August 15, 1971, the call signs of a television channel were first heard. It became the third in the list of Houston channels after Channel 39 (now KIAX) and the short-lived Channel 16, which lasted only a year and a half. Four years later, the station’s then-manager, Leroy Gloger, decided to change the call sign to KDOG.
“Where every dog has its day,” was the slogan of the television channel, which rapidly burst into the media life of Houston and Texas residents. One of the channel’s managers, Jerry Marcus, reported that the wild ratings of Channel 26 led to the persecution of station representatives, as the product displayed on TV screens was indeed of high quality by the standards of that period.
For the first two decades, the studio was located in Highland Village, at 3935 Westheimer Road in Houston.
Another turning point in the development of the channel took place in 1978 when the station was acquired by the Metromedia corporation. At that time, the channel focused on entertainment content, including cartoons, sitcoms, talk shows, movies and premieres. The highlight was Spanish-language programs for the Houston diaspora.
Australian magnate Rupert Murdoch purchased KRIV in 1986, along with all the channels of the Metromedia group. Since then, the era of 26 FOX, as it is known to residents of the USA and Houston, has begun.
At the turn of the millennium
Significant changes occurred in the broadcast schedule by the 2000s, including the cancellation of morning cartoons. The channel also used to broadcast Texans games twice a year from Houston’s NRG Stadium. Over time, the sports content became much more diverse.
The studio relocated from Westheimer Road to the Southwest Freeway in 1997 after countless transformations, changes and adjustments. From there, it began broadcasting in digital format. The former location is known to locals as Central Market of the H-E-B chain.
The station’s transmitter is located near Missouri City, Texas, in Fort Bend County.
Nowadays, the channel is owned by Fox Television Stations and exclusively airs content of the FOX corporation. Nobody won’t be surprised to know that the official second name of the channel is KRIV. It has a rich, contrasting and bright history, which has been tested and proven over more than half a century.
Today, the channel covers news, weather, politics and all possible related aspects. Considering the names of those who work at FOX 26, the best quality is valued here. There is a feeling that this slogan, tested for decades, will yield only good dividends in the future.
