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KVUT shuts down

Theater of My Mind

Theater of My Mind

RadioInsight:
radioinsight.com

KVUT Ceases Operations – RadioInsight

Tyler TX has lost its only locally originating Public Radio station as the University of Texas-Tyler ceased operations of 99.7 KVUT Cuney at 5pm today. KVUT launched in September 2020 following the University's $120,000 purchase of the station. KVUT rimshot the Tyler portion of the...
radioinsight.com radioinsight.com

Other reports noted the press release was sent to the media at 4 p.m., an announcement made on-air shortly after that and then it signed off at 5 p.m. Abrupt, to say the least. The website is completely down as well.
 
  • Wow
Reactions: HTX
the last song played was dave brubecks take 5, then a live legal id and goodbye/thanks and off.

it seems like it may have been a bit of a surprise to be so abrupt to the staff as well
 
tested said:
My observation: it's odd to see a station owned by a public university system shut down after only 3 years on the air. Something just seems.... off... about this whole thing.
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It really comes down to money for the most part and student interest
 
Very strange. So is the station going up for sale or are they going to file another silent STA? It doesn’t seem like the license was turned in
 
SomeRadioGuy said:
It really comes down to money for the most part and student interest
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It probably didn’t help student interest that they they only played classical and jazz. Then again, would the donors in Tyler support a station that played indie/alternative like some college radio stations do? I was hoping the station would dedicate some time to play alternative since there aren’t really any options OTA for post 1980s rock.
 
From the linked article:

“Reinvesting in our students is crucial for fostering the next generation of communicators, journalists and media professionals. By reallocating resources, we can enhance our curriculum, provide cutting-edge technology and create hands-on learning experiences that prepare our students for the rapidly evolving media landscape.”
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This is exactly what all the big radio companies are doing, as they lay off local staff and replace them with VT and syndication. The only difference is in how they explain it. When the radio companies do it, the critics call them greedy. When a university does it, everyone just nods and accepts it.
 
Was it even student-involved radio station or just an NPR vanity station with outside staff, meant to bolster the university's image?

@radioislife2020 It was a noncom station but it's in the commercial part of the FM band so the license could be converted.
 
Theater of My Mind said:
Was it even student-involved radio station or just an NPR vanity station with outside staff, meant to bolster the university's image?

@radioislife2020 It was a noncom station but it's in the commercial part of the FM band so the license could be converted.
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The CP filed by New Wavo was intended to be a commercial Class A at Mt. Selman. The move to Bullard and the conversion to non-commercial both occurred once the University took over the facility from Dick Witkovski. If there's a buyer lined up for it, I'm unaware of it. The most likely scenario is that it will be re-acquired Dick Witkovski and will therefore remain silent for the foreseeable future. Remember, the TX site has to relocate again. That can tend to be a tall hurdle here.

I'm not the type of person who stands there and gawks at the neighbor's recently burnt-out home, so with that said, goodbye KVUT. We barely knew you.
 
radioislife2020 said:
How solid is the coverage inside Tyler?
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Good enough, but will be changing in some capacity with the next relocation.
radioislife2020 said:
Wonder what this could be Worth.
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The university struck the deal with Witkovski in December 2019, at an agreed price of $120,000 to acquire the license. I believe it was finally announced in May or June of 2020. The station then signed on in September. They, of course, didn't need to worry about the lack of a TX site as they fully intended to move it onto the campus from the get-go.
 
Would they have done better if they had been a NPR affiliate? 24 hour jazz seemed like an odd choice for that town.
 
stan said:
Would they have done better if they had been a NPR affiliate? 24 hour jazz seemed like an odd choice for that town.
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They had been doing that and it was an even worse choice than all music
 
stan said:
Would they have done better if they had been a NPR affiliate? 24 hour jazz seemed like an odd choice for that town.
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KVUT wasn't Jazz 24/7 at all, Stan. NPR mornings and early afternoon, with jazz filling the rest of the hours. Plenty of local content, University specific programming and news featured daily. It was also very highly touted in Tyler right beforw and after UT initially signed it on. Had several segments dedicated to its impending sign-on with every major network newscast here. It sounded extremely professional in every way, during the 3 year run, but with new leadership at the University not as enthusiastic about the whole radio venture thing as the predecessor, the station was no longer a priority and soon became an expenditure. SRG is right on. They tried different approaches, and it was certainly, in no way, caused by a lack of effort from the team they had in place. There is just not enough of a listener base here to make a station like KVUT successful. It is a real loss to the airwaves of East Texas.

I don't forsee NPR ever getting a major foothold here. The KERA translator is where most Tylerites would know to go if they seek out NPR programming. Been so for over 20 years now. You don't need to cover the small, rural towns around Tyler, and that's what NTPB gets about the market. Tyler, itself, is majority Democrat, albeit, a more conservative Democrat that you'd typically find in the South. These listeners are going home and driving to work in the K261CW sweet spot.This entire area of East Texas is majority conservative, as evidenced by our local Christian broadcaster, the ERFET, possessing a 6 station cluster here. Sure, that's a drop in the bucket for the much bigger KSBJ, but the cluster is the biggest one in our part of the state, including Texarkana.

I have been wondering how much longer LSU-Shreveport will continue with KTYK. The loss of KVUT will likely prolong it, but 100.7 isn't moving many needles itself. It's hard to target the "big city" of Tyler when your signal turns its back on it.
 
one of the complaints i hear about KVUT is that it did carry NPR and people didnt like its "fake news" and how it "trash talks the formnr president all the time"

not the exact words i was given/told, but thats the sentiment
 
rosecitymedia said:
The CP filed by New Wavo was intended to be a commercial Class A at Mt. Selman.
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I had almost forgotten about that. Was supposed to be part of a trio of Country stations on 99.7 with KVST Conroe and the now deleted KROY in Palacios. I remember the deal to acquire KROY went south about the same time as that CP was sold, but can’t remember the reasons…perhaps New Wavo just decided to hang on to their money.
SomeRadioGuy said:
one of the complaints i hear about KVUT is that it did carry NPR and people didnt like its "fake news" and how it "trash talks the formnr president all the time"
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Outside of the big cities in Texas you’re in Fox News territory, where they regard Trump as their lord and savior. NPR is going to be vilified, while the religious broadcasters rake in the dough. It’s a very longstanding cultural reality.
 
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