KVUE, virtual channel 24 (digital channel 33), is the local Austin, Texas-based ABC affiliate, owned by Belo Corporation. Its transmitter is located in West Lake Hills, just west of Downtown. Syndicated programming on KVUE includes: Entertainment Tonight, Live with Regis and Kelly, and Ellen.

Digital programming[link]

Digital channels

Analog-to-digital transition[link]

KVUE requested to transmit in digital only, effective June 12, 2009. After it shut down its analog signal on that date, the rescheduled completion date of the nationwide analog television shutdown, which Congress had moved the previous month from its original completion date of February 17, 2009, KVUE-DT remained on its pre-transition UHF digital channel 33 (remapped to the station's former analog channel 24 via PSIP).

History[link]

This section requires expansion with: further information on the history of KVUE.

The station began broadcasting on UHF channel 24 on September 12, 1971^[2] as a full-time ABC affiliate. Previously, ABC had been limited to off-hours clearances on KTBC-TV, though most of the market could pick up San Antonio's KSAT-TV with a good antenna.

KVUE was originally operated by Center Broadcasting Co. of Center, Texas (Tolbert Foster, owner) which sold the station to Universal Communications, the broadcasting arm of The Detroit News, in 1978. It was acquired by the Gannett Company in 1986 as part of its purchase of The Detroit News. In 1999, Belo began establishing a Texas-based news network partnership with KHOU-TV in Houston, WFAA-TV in Dallas and KENS-TV in San Antonio upon the creation of a 24-hour cable news television network called TXCN. Looking for a station in Austin, it swapped KXTV in Sacramento to Gannett in return for KVUE.

News operation[link]

For most of its first quarter-century on the air, KVUE was a distant third in the market behind KTBC and KXAN-TV. However, after KTBC switched to Fox, KVUE's ratings steadily picked up, and by the latter part of the 1990s had edged into second place. For most of the time since then, it has waged a spirited battle with KXAN for first place. In the most recent Nielsen Ratings book, KVUE was #1 in all newscasts.

At a time when much of many local television stations focused mostly on crime, KVUE only reported on significant crime.^[3]

On June 1, 2008, KVUE became the second television station in the Austin market to broadcast its local newscasts to go high definition following CBS affiliate KEYE-TV; with the transition, KVUE became the first Austin area station to implement HD weather graphics and broadcast field reports in the 16:9 widescreen format.

News/Station presentation[link]

Newscast titles[link]

• Television 24 News (1971–1978)
• 24 Action News (1978–1993)^[4]
• KVUE 24 News (1993–2001)^[5]
• KVUE News (2001–present)^[6]
• KVUE News in HD (2008–present)

Station slogans[link]

• "We're With You on 24" (1984–1985; localized version of ABC ad campaign)
• "You'll Love It on 24" (1985–1986; localized version of ABC ad campaign)
• "Together on 24" (1986–1987; localized version of ABC ad campaign)
• "Something's Happening on 24" (1987–1988; localized version of ABC ad campaign)
• "Where News Comes First" (1993–2001)
• "Austin At Its Best" (2001–2002)
• "Austin's News Station" (2002–present)^[7]
• "Start Here" (2007–present; localized version of ABC ad campaign)

This film, television or video-related list is incomplete; you can help by expanding it with reliably sourced additions.

News team[link]

Current on-air staff[link]

Anchors

• Quita Culpepper - Saturdays at 6, Sundays at 5 and weekends on Nightbeat (10 p.m.); also weeknight reporter
• Melissa Gale - weekday mornings Daybreak (5-7 a.m.) and 11 a.m.
• Terri Gruca - weeknights at 5, 6 and Nightbeat (10 p.m.); also consumer reporter
• Bryan Mays - weekday mornings Daybreak (5-7 a.m.) and 11 a.m.
• Jade Mingus - weekend mornings Daybreak; also weeknight reporter
• Tyler Sieswerda - weeknights at 5, 6 and Nightbeat (10 p.m.); also "Eat Drink, & Be Wary" feature reporter
• Jessica Vess - weekday mornings Daybreak (4:30-5 a.m.); also weekday morning reporter

KVUE StormTeam

• Mark Murray (AMS Certified Broadcast Meteorologist and NWA Seals of Approval) - chief meteorologist; weeknights at 5, 6 and Nightbeat (10 p.m.)
• Andrew Chung (AMS Certified Broadcast Meteorologist Seal of Approval) - meteorologist; Saturdays at 6, Sundays at 5 and weekends on Nightbeat (10 p.m.)
• Ilona McCauley (AMS Seal of Approval) - meteorologist; weekend mornings Daybreak
• Albert Ramon (AMS and NWA Seals of Approval) - meteorologist; weekday mornings Daybreak (4:30-7 a.m.) and 11 a.m.

Sports team

• Mike Barnes - sports director; weeknights at 6 and Nightbeat (10 p.m.)
• Matt Mitchell - sports anchor; Saturdays at 6, Sundays at 5 and weekends on Nightbeat (10 p.m.), also sports reporter

Reporters

• Steve Alberts - Austin Metro and City Hall reporter
• Jim Bergamo - general assignment reporter
• Shelton Green - general assignment reporter
• Jessica Holloway - police and court reporter

Belo Bureau Correspondents

• Dave Cassidy - Washington bureau reporter
• Angela Kocherga - Mexico bureau border issues reporter

Notable former on-air staff[link]

• Arthel Neville - reporter (later CNN and Fox News; most recently at KSWB-TV in San Diego)
• Fred Roggin - sports anchor (now at KNBC in Los Angeles)
• Casey Stegall - anchor/reporter (2004-2005; now Los Angeles bureau correspondent at Fox News Channel)

References[link]

External links[link]

• KVUE Website
• Query the FCC's TV station database for KVUE
• Query TV Fool's coverage map for KVUE
• BIAfn's Media Web Database -- Information on KVUE-TV
• Program Information for KVUE at TitanTV.com
• AustinTVNews.com :: KVUE

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Left to right -- Lunchbox, Bobby Bones, Amy, Carlos and Alayna in the studio

The Bobby Bones Show is a morning radio show broadcast in Austin, Texas, on 96.7 KISS FM and syndicated in Wichita, Kansas, Amarillo, Texas, Lubbock, Texas, Augusta, Georgia, Waco, Texas, Tuscaloosa, Alabama, Beaumont, Texas, and Albany, Georgia. Bobby Bones is accompanied by co-hosts Lunchbox, Amy, Carlos, and Alayna. Jay Shannon is program director. According to Clear Channel Radio, the show is the number one rated morning show in Austin, Wichita, Amarillo, and Lubbock; though regarding the Austin market it is not always the case due to heavy competition from rival radio shows - notably the Dudley and Bob Morning Show on rival station 93.7 KLBJ FM "The Rock of Austin." The morning show runs on weekdays from 6 AM to 10 AM.^[1] On July 18, 2011, it was announced that Bobby signed a three-year extension to do mornings for Clear Channel's Kiss 96.7 KHFI, and also signed a deal with Premiere Networks for syndication rights.^[2]

Show cast[link]

Bobby Bones[link]

Bobby Bones was born in Hot Springs, Arkansas on April 2, 1980.

His first job in radio was at the age of 18 on the college radio station KSH 91.1 The Switch at Henderson State University. In July 2003, Bones was offered to move his show to the west coast for an even larger radio market. Through several contract negotiations throughout the years, Bobby has remained in Austin where he hosts the Bobby Bones Show on 96.7 KISS FM, and is syndicated in various other markets throughout the country.

In October 2008, Bones ran a rumor on the internet that he was dating Scott Porter. Bobby told his listeners to perform a Google search of "Bobby Bones Scott Porter" to see if he could get a rumor started. After seeing a steady increase in ratings in the Google Trends, he told his listeners to search "Bobby Bones Scott Porter vacation photos" and "Bobby Bones Scott Porter on the beach".^[3][4] On October 14, 2008, it was the number two search topic on Google.^[5]

Bobby and his friend Andy Roddick co-hosted a sports radio show on Fox Sports Radio on August 6, 2011.^[6]

Awards[link]

• 2008-2009: Worst Radio Personality (AWRT)^[7]
• 2007-2008: Worst Radio Personality (AWRT)^[8]
• 2007-2008: Worst Radio Personality and Best Radio Program (Austin Music Awards)^[9]
• 2004-2005, 2005–2006, 2006-2007: Best Radio Personality (Austin Music Awards)^{[9][10][11][12]}

References[link]

Rob Kampia is co-founder and executive director of the Marijuana Policy Project, the largest 501(c)(4) nonprofit organization in the U.S. that is solely dedicated to ending cannabis prohibition.

Rob Kampia, executive director and co-founder of the Marijuana Policy Project

Formative years[link]

Kampia grew up in Harleysville, Pennsylvania, a small suburban town 30 miles (48 km) northwest of Philadelphia. Kampia was valedictorian of his 300-person graduating class at Souderton Area High School in 1986,^[1][2] served three months in prison from November 1989 to February 1990 for growing his own cannabis for personal use at Penn State University, and was elected student body president two years later at that same school.^[1] Three days after graduating with honors from Penn State in 1993 with a bachelor’s degree in Engineering Science (a multidisciplinary honors program) ^[3] and minor in English, he moved to Washington, D.C., for the purpose of ending the government’s war on marijuana users.^[4]

Marijuana Policy Project[link]

Rob Kampia co-founded MPP in 1995.^[5] MPP has a lobbying branch, an educational branch, and a political action committee,^[6] is based in Washington, D.C., with satellite offices in Arizona and Nevada. MPP employs 36 full-time staffers across these locations, as well as consultants to pass statewide ballot initiatives in Arizona and Michigan, and lobbyists to pass medical cannabis bills in Illinois, Minnesota, and New York.

As executive director, Kampia has been quoted in almost every major newspaper in the U.S., discussed the cannabis issue dozens of times on local and national radio, appeared on national TV more than a dozen times, and has testified before Congress on two occasions.^[7][8]

Sex scandal[link]

In August 2009, seven MPP staffers quit over an alleged incident of sexual misconduct^[9] by Kampia involving a female subordinate after an office happy hour. According to former employees, department heads at the organization unanimously asked Kampia to move into a different position than executive director over the incident.^[10] Following his statement that he was "hypersexualized,",^[11] Kampia was "encouraged" by the MPP Board of Directors to take a three-month leave of absence and his return is subject to "convincing the board he has dealt with his issues."^[12] This reportedly resulted in a cancellation of the MPP's annual fundraiser at the Playboy Mansion, with MPP's acting director indicating that "the PR ramifications of holding the event right now are probably obvious"^[11] Kampia likened the incident to the Monica Lewinsky scandal, saying he could remain in charge just as Bill Clinton did.^[13]

Notable appearances[link]

In March 2001, Kampia testified before a subcommittee of the U.S. House of Representatives on the medical cannabis case that was pending before the U.S. Supreme Court at the time. As the only witness to advocate for the removal of criminal penalties for cannabis-using patients, Kampia was grilled mercilessly by all Republican subcommittee members in attendance, including Chairman Mark Souder (R-IN), who told Kampia, "You're an articulate advocate for an evil position.^[14]" The hostile exchange between Kampia, Souder, and other members of Congress made national news.

Again in April 2004 Rob Kampia testified before the U.S. House subcommittee on drug policy, attacking the federal government's medical cannabis policies, as well as subcommittee Chairman Mark Souder (R-Ind.) — one of the House's most vehement opponents of medical cannabis. Kampia was the only anti-prohibitionist to testify at the hearing.^[15]

Kampia has debated the cannabis issue on national TV against then White House Deputy Drug Czar Andrea Barthwell, then-Congressman Bob Barr (R-GA) (who subsequently lobbied for MPP^[16]), then DEA Administrator Asa Hutchinson, then California Attorney General Dan Lungren, and other prohibitionists.^[7]

Kampia has also discussed the cannabis issue on National Public Radio's “Justice Talking” with Margot Adler and—more recently in January 2006—on NPR's “All Things Considered.”

Electoral politics[link]

Kampia ran for Washington D.C.'s congressional seat in 2000, as a member of the Libertarian Party. He was defeated by Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC).^[1] He supported former Congressman Bob Barr in the 2008 presidential election, saying that Barr was "the only presidential candidate who is in favor of reducing the size of the federal government while also supporting civil liberties."^[17]

See also[link]

• Marijuana Policy Project
• NORML

References[link]

External links[link]

• Official MPP Website
• Kampia's appearance on MSNBC to discuss marijuana's status as the U.S. number 1 cash crop
• Kampia's appearance at the Austin Freedom Fest
• Kampia discusses MPP for the organization's year end review