KPAZ-TV (channel 21) is a religious television station in Phoenix, Arizona, United States, owned and operated by the Trinity Broadcasting Network (TBN).
The original owner went bankrupt less than two years after putting KPAZ-TV on the air; in 1970, Glad Tidings Church filed to buy the station and immediately became active in its management even before it was approved to complete the purchase.
Even though Glad Tidings struggled to find its economic footing, it built new studios and invested in additional equipment for channel 21.
On January 19, 1977, RCA, one of Glad Tidings's creditors, seized its equipment and forced the station off the air; questions were also raised about the church's ability to honor savings certificates it had sold to finance operations.
On February 10, 1965, Spanish Language Television of Arizona, Inc., filed with the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to build a new station on channel 14 in Phoenix.
[2] A January 1966 article stated that the station had already secured an affiliation with the Spanish International Network and planned to begin broadcasts by Labor Day of that year.
[3] In May, after the FCC overhauled the UHF table of allocations, SLTA amended its application to specify channel 21, as well as a studio location at 16th Street and Buckeye Road in Phoenix.
KPAZ would instead build its studios as part of the expansion of the Tower Plaza shopping center, and it also announced plans to air a ticker-tape of Associated Press newswire during the daytime hours.
Channel 21's formal opening included dignitaries such as Governor Jack Williams, Senator Barry Goldwater and Phoenix mayor Milton H.
[9] KPAZ also aired English-language entertainment shows, including Arizona State Sun Devils football highlights, and the syndicated music program Upbeat.
[16] Glad Tidings, even though it did not yet have the license, immediately took an active hand in operating KPAZ, raising potential concerns about undue influence.
[18][16] It would not be until June that the FCC approved the transfer of the KPAZ-TV license, at which time Glad Tidings announced it had bought new color videotape equipment.
The live Saturday night program, allowed viewers to bid for products such as furniture, Native American jewelry, and automobile supplies.
[26] The February 1975 Nielsen ratings showed KPAZ pulled more female viewers aged 25–40 for its broadcasts of The Real McCoys than those watching the CBS Evening News.
[28] Immediately, Trinity began buying air time on KPAZ at a rate of $10,000 a month, giving the station a vital lifeline.
[33] However, in March, TBN made another push to buy the station, asking KPAZ's bondholders to swap their Glad Tidings bonds for those of Trinity Broadcasting of Arizona.
Special Temporary Authority granted in October 2002 allowed the digital signal to sign on the air at a lower power level.