OKC group is eyeing Enid’s KXOK station

By Robert Barron Staff Writer

August 02, 2006 12:09 am

— An Oklahoma City group has applied to purchase Enid’s KXOK television station.
Steve Easom, a partner in C2 Productions, said the group entered into a lease management agreement May 1, and its application to purchase the station is on file with Federal Communications Commission.
The group already has a production facility in Oklahoma City, and KXOK would be its first broadcast station.
“The individuals involved have a number of years of history in broadcasting. We will build a premier high-definition station in Enid. We are working on production now and a digital transmitter is on order,” Easom said.
The station still will provide normal broadcasting, but the new digital status is mandated by FCC. Easom said he sees a “huge void” in some outlying communities in the Enid area. Because of Enid’s proximity to Oklahoma City some signals soon will not be receivable without a digital TV.
The station will carry University of Oklahoma and Oklahoma State University coaches’ programs and is producing baseball, softball, wrestling and soccer shows for OSU. Easom helped build a number of stations in the past.
“The Enid station came available, and we thought it was a good place to begin networks throughout Oklahoma. We will still be on the cable system on channel 18. That is the vehicle the homeowner will receive it,” he said.
Those without cable can receive the station on Channel 32, he said.
KXOK is now a 24-hour hunting and fishing channel. Easom said the production group wanted to put programming on that was favorable to the city. In addition to sports programs, he hopes for other shows that are locally produced.
“We’d love to see shows in the city and outlying areas,” he said.
Easom and members of his group consulted with local media outlets, including PEGASYS, to find a way they could complement what those outlets are doing. They plan to sell advertising to support the station but say it is their desire not to shift advertising dollars but encourage businesses who want to advertise with them to increase their advertising budgets.