Victory Television Network
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The Victory Television Network (VTN) is a
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television network A television network or television broadcaster is a telecommunications network for distribution of television program content, where a central operation provides programming to many television stations or multichannel video programming distributo ...
serving the
U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sover ...
of
Arkansas Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the South Central United States. It is bordered by Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, and Texas and Oklahoma to the west. Its name is from the Osage ...
. It serves as the broadcasting arm of the
Little Rock ( The "Little Rock") , government_type = Council-manager , leader_title = Mayor , leader_name = Frank Scott Jr. , leader_party = D , leader_title2 = Council , leader_name2 ...
–based Agape Church, and is operated by a namesake parent subsidiary that holds the
licenses A license (or licence) is an official permission or permit to do, use, or own something (as well as the document of that permission or permit). A license is granted by a party (licensor) to another party (licensee) as an element of an agreeme ...
for the three stations that comprise the network: flagship station KVTN-DT (channel 25) in Pine Bluff, and satellites KVTH-DT (channel 26) in
Hot Springs A hot spring, hydrothermal spring, or geothermal spring is a spring produced by the emergence of geothermally heated groundwater onto the surface of the Earth. The groundwater is heated either by shallow bodies of magma (molten rock) or by circ ...
and KVTJ-DT (channel 48) in Jonesboro. Although all three stations have
commercial Commercial may refer to: * a dose of advertising conveyed through media (such as - for example - radio or television) ** Radio advertisement ** Television advertisement * (adjective for:) commerce, a system of voluntary exchange of products and s ...
licenses, VTN—which is the only
Christian Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...
-oriented television network headquartered in Arkansas and is among the few religious independent stations located outside of a major U.S.
television market A media market, broadcast market, media region, designated market area (DMA), television market area, or simply market is a region where the population can receive the same (or similar) television and radio station offerings, and may also incl ...
—operates as a non-profit entity reliant on monetary contributions from its viewers to fund its operations. In addition to its broadcast stations, VTN's programming is available on more than 225
cable Cable may refer to: Mechanical * Nautical cable, an assembly of three or more ropes woven against the weave of the ropes, rendering it virtually waterproof * Wire rope, a type of rope that consists of several strands of metal wire laid into a hel ...
systems across Arkansas. Through their over-the-air, cable and satellite distribution, the VTN stations reach 1.2 million homes across the state of Arkansas, western
Tennessee Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked state in the Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the 36th-largest by area and the 15th-most populous of the 50 states. It is bordered by Kentucky to th ...
, the bootheel of
Missouri Missouri is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it is bordered by eight states (tied for the most with Tennessee ...
and portions of northwestern
Mississippi Mississippi () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States, bordered to the north by Tennessee; to the east by Alabama; to the south by the Gulf of Mexico; to the southwest by Louisiana; and to the northwest by Arkansas. Miss ...
. The main offices, production facilities and network operations of the Victory Television Network are located at the Agape Church campus on Napa Valley Drive (west of
Interstate 430 Interstate 430 (I-430) is a Interstate highway in Pulaski County, Arkansas, that bypasses the cities of Little Rock and North Little Rock. I-430 begins at an interchange southwest of Downtown Little Rock with I-30, U.S. Highway 67 (U ...
) in western Little Rock.


History

The network was founded by husband-and-wife Howard "Happy" Caldwell II and Jeanne Caldwell, who co-founded the Agape Church in 1979; the Caldwells served as pastors of the church until their semi-retirement in December 2013. In 1987, the Caldwells began developing a television ministry that would utilize the church's production facilities to distribute its weekly services and other ministerial programs, including programs leased to other local ministries, along with acquiring brokered daily and weekly religious programs from non-Arkansas-based ministries that were available in
syndication Syndication may refer to: * Broadcast syndication, where individual stations buy programs outside the network system * Print syndication, where individual newspapers or magazines license news articles, columns, or comic strips * Web syndication, ...
. On April 28, 1987, KIXK Inc., owned by the
El Dorado El Dorado (, ; Spanish for "the golden"), originally ''El Hombre Dorado'' ("The Golden Man") or ''El Rey Dorado'' ("The Golden King"), was the term used by the Spanish in the 16th century to describe a mythical tribal chief (''zipa'') or king o ...
radio station of the same name, donated the
construction permit Planning permission or developmental approval refers to the approval needed for construction or expansion (including significant renovation), and sometimes for demolition, in some jurisdictions. It is usually given in the form of a building perm ...
for KZRQ (channel 25), an unbuilt commercial television station
licensed A license (or licence) is an official permission or permit to do, use, or own something (as well as the document of that permission or permit). A license is granted by a party (licensor) to another party (licensee) as an element of an agreeme ...
to Pine Bluff, to the Agape Church for $40,611. The transaction was granted by the
Federal Communications Commission The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is an independent agency of the United States federal government that regulates communications by radio, television, wire, satellite, and cable across the United States. The FCC maintains jurisdiction ...
(FCC) on June 30. The station, which was assigned the
call letters In broadcasting and radio communications, a call sign (also known as a call name or call letters—and historically as a call signal—or abbreviated as a call) is a unique identifier for a transmitter station. A call sign can be formally assigne ...
KVTN, signed on the air on December 1, 1988, broadcasting from a transmitter near
Arkansas Highway 161 Highway 161 (AR 161, Ark. 161, and Hwy. 161) is a designation for two state highways in Central Arkansas. Route descriptions One route of runs north from US Highway 70 (US 70) to Vandenberg Boulevard near the Little Rock Air Force Base. A ...
in western Jefferson County (located west of
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). By the early 1990s, the Caldwells made plans to expand their television ministry—which they branded as the "Victory Television Network"—into other sections of Arkansas. On February 17, 1993, PPD&G, Inc., sold the license assets of KRZB-TV (channel 26) in
Hot Springs A hot spring, hydrothermal spring, or geothermal spring is a spring produced by the emergence of geothermally heated groundwater onto the surface of the Earth. The groundwater is heated either by shallow bodies of magma (molten rock) or by circ ...
to the Agape Church for $75,000. KRZB-TV had operated from 1986 to 1988 as an independent station but succumbed to mounting financial problems and a signal that did not reach Little Rock. The sale received FCC approval on November 16, 1993, and was finalized on February 8, 1994. A new $700,000 tower was built on Jack Mountain, south of Hot Springs, to expand channel 26's signal into cities such as Benton and
Arkadelphia Arkadelphia is a city in Clark County, Arkansas, United States. As of the 2010 census, the population was 10,714. The city is the county seat of Clark County. It is situated at the foothills of the Ouachita Mountains. Two universities, Henderso ...
. Channel 26 returned to the air on April 2, 1995, as KVTN
satellite station A broadcast relay station, also known as a satellite station, relay transmitter, broadcast translator (U.S.), re-broadcaster (Canada), repeater (two-way radio) or complementary station (Mexico), is a broadcast transmitter which repeats (or tran ...
KVTH. On October 18, 1994, the Arkansas Rural Television Co. sold the construction permit for an unbuilt commercial station assigned to UHF channel 48 in Jonesboro to the Agape Church for $50,000. The transaction received FCC approval on October 6, 1995, and was finalized on December 11; the station signed on as KVTJ on June 1, 1998, from a transmitter near Judd Hill (approximately northwest of the intersection of
US 63 U.S. Route 63 (US 63) is a , north–south United States Highway primarily in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern and Southern United States. The southern terminus of the route is at Interstate 20 (I-20) in Ruston, Louisiana; the northe ...
and Arkansas Highway 214). Agape Church also filed permit applications for two additional satellite stations during the mid-1990s, with the intent of expanding the network into portions of
Northwest The points of the compass are a set of horizontal, radially arrayed compass directions (or azimuths) used in navigation and cartography. A compass rose is primarily composed of four cardinal directions—north, east, south, and west—each sep ...
and South-Central Arkansas: the church filed applications to operate satellites on UHF channel 31 in
Harrison Harrison may refer to: People * Harrison (name) * Harrison family of Virginia, United States Places In Australia: * Harrison, Australian Capital Territory, suburb in the Canberra district of Gungahlin In Canada: * Inukjuak, Quebec, or " ...
(on July 28, 1995) and on UHF channel 43 in El Dorado (on June 28, 1996). The Harrison application was dismissed by the FCC on April 3, 1998, while the El Dorado application was dismissed after auction on March 21, 2000. With its broadcast coverage limited to Central and Northeast Arkansas, VTN relies on cable and satellite carriage to distribute its programming to other areas of the state. On October 14, 2015, the elder Caldwells and their son, Ronnie Caldwell, filed to transfer the VTN stations to Victory Television Network, Inc., a separate licensee operated in conjunction with the Agape Church, for the assumption of monetary operational liabilities. The transfer received FCC approval on December 14. (The network had been overseen by Scott and Loretta Stewart, who became senior pastors at Agape Church in December 2013 as Happy and Jeanne Caldwell transitioned into pastor emeritus roles.) *


Programming

Programming on VTN consists primarily of Christian programming syndicated by various national ministries and purchased through time-brokerage agreements, including programs from
televangelists Televangelism ( tele- "distance" and "evangelism," meaning " ministry," sometimes called teleministry) is the use of media, specifically radio and television, to communicate Christianity. Televangelists are ministers, whether official or self-pr ...
such as
Joel Osteen Joel Scott Osteen (born March 5, 1963) is an American lay preacher, televangelist, businessman and author based in Houston, Texas. Known for his weekly televised services and several best-selling books, Osteen is one of the more prominent figu ...
(''
Lakewood Church Lakewood Church is a non-denominational evangelical Christian megachurch located in Houston, Texas. It is one of the largest congregations in the United States, averaging about 45,000 attendees per week. The 16,800-seat Lakewood Church building, ...
with Joel Osteen''), Jesse Duplantis (''Voice of the Covenant''),
Kenneth Copeland Kenneth Max Copeland (born December 6, 1936) is an American televangelist associated with the charismatic movement. The organization he founded in 1967, Eagle Mountain International Church Inc. (EMIC), is based in Tarrant County, Texas. Copelan ...
(''Believer’s Voice of Victory''),
Joyce Meyer Pauline Joyce Meyer (née Hutchison; June 4, 1943) is an American Charismatic Christian author, speaker and president of Joyce Meyer Ministries. Joyce and her husband Dave have four grown children, and live outside St. Louis, Missouri. Her min ...
(''Enjoying Everyday Life''), James Robison (''Life Today''),
Joseph Prince Joseph Prince (born ''Xenonamandar Jegahusiee Singh''; 15 May 1963) is the evangelist and senior pastor of New Creation Church based in Singapore. He is one of the church's founders in 1983. Background He was born Xenonamandar Jegahusiee Singh ...
(''Destined to Reign''),
Marilyn Hickey Marilyn Allene Hickey (born July 1, 1931) is an American Christian minister and televangelist who teaches Bible studies both nationally and internationally. Biography Marilyn Allene Hickey was born on July 1, 1931, in Dalhart, Texas. When she wa ...
(''Today with Marilyn and Sarah''),
Andrew Wommack Andrew Wommack is an American conservative charismatic TV evangelist and faith healer. He founded Andrew Wommack Ministries in 1978 and Charis Bible College (originally Colorado Bible College) in 1994. History Wommack started to preach in 19 ...
(''The Gospel Truth'') and Dr.
Charles Stanley Charles Frazier Stanley (born 1932) is Pastor Emeritus of First Baptist Church in Atlanta, Georgia, after serving as senior pastor for 49 years. He is the founder and president of In Touch Ministries, which widely broadcasts his sermons through te ...
(''In Touch'', which airs in both its daily half-hour and weekly one-hour versions); as well as religion-oriented news and talk shows (such as ''
The 700 Club ''The 700 Club'' is the flagship television program of the Christian Broadcasting Network, airing each weekday in syndication in the United States and available worldwide on CBN.com. The news magazine program features live guests, daily news, co ...
'', '' CBN Newswatch'', ''Christian World News'' and ''Your Health with Dr. Richard and Cindy Becker'') and
gospel music Gospel music is a traditional genre of Christian music, and a cornerstone of Christian media. The creation, performance, significance, and even the definition of gospel music varies according to culture and social context. Gospel music is com ...
programs (such as the ''
Gaither Homecoming ''Gaither Homecoming'' is the name applied to a series of videos, music recordings and concerts, which are organized, promoted and usually presented by Christian music songwriter and impresario Bill Gaither. To date, the ''Gaither Homecoming'' t ...
Hour'' and ''Great American Gospel''). Along with offering syndicated religious programs, the network also offers original programming (including two programs hosted by VTN founder Happy Caldwell, the flagship interview and biblical teaching program ''Arkansas Alive'' and the weekly ''Happy Caldwell Ministries'', and ''In His Presence'', a gospel and biblical teaching program hosted by network co-founder Jeanne Caldwell) and programs produced by other Arkansas-based ministries (such as ''Words to Empower'', hosted by Pastor Frank H. Stewart of
North Little Rock North Little Rock is a city in Pulaski County, Arkansas, across the Arkansas from Little Rock in the central part of the state. The population was 64,591 at the 2020 census. In 2019 the estimated population was 65,903, making it the seventh-mo ...
–based Agape Community Temple of Servants, which is unrelated to the Agape Church; ''2CYR TV'', a program profiling stories of youth in Arkansas's foster care and adoption system, hosted by Perry Black of the Bryant-based Second Chance Youth Ranch; and ''Heart of a Servant'', hosted by Apostle Craig and Pastor Sheryl Banks of Pine Bluff–based Canaan Christian Center). Syndicated faith-based children's programs compliant with
Children's Television Act The broadcast of educational children's programming by terrestrial television stations in the United States is mandated by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), under regulations colloquially referred to as the Children's Television Act (C ...
guidelines (such as ''Dr. Wonder's Workshop'', ''Kids Like You'' and ''Donkey Ollie'') are also broadcast on weekday mid-afternoons in a half-hour block and on Saturday mornings from 6:00 to 7:30 a.m.


Stations

The Victory Television Network consists of the following full-power digital stations: :1 The ''Broadcasting and Cable Yearbook'' says KVTJ signed on June 6, while the ''Television and Cable Factbook'' says it signed on June 26. :2 KVTN, KVTH and KVTJ incorporated the "-DT" suffix into their respective callsigns on June 22, 2009.


Technical information


Subchannel


Analog-to-digital conversion; spectrum repack

KVTN, KVTH and KVTJ shut down their analog signals at 10:00 a.m. on February 9, 2009, eight days before the original federal deadline for American full-power television stations to transition exclusively to digital broadcasts (which Congress had moved the previous month to June 12). The post-transition channel allocations for the Victory Television Network stations are as follows: * KVTN's digital signal remained on its pre-transition UHF channel 24, which is displayed as virtual channel 25 on digital television receivers. * KVTH's digital signal relocated from its pre-transition UHF channel 14 to channel 26 for post-transition operations. * KVTJ's digital signal relocated from its pre-transition UHF channel 49 to channel 48 for post-transition operations. As a part of the broadcast frequency repacking process following the 2016–17 FCC incentive auction, both of KVTN's satellite stations were required to change their digital channel assignments, which were assigned to the 600 MHz UHF band (corresponding to channels 38–51) that was being reallocated for wireless telecommunications use: * KVTH's digital signal relocated from its pre-transition UHF channel 26 to channel 16, which is displayed as virtual channel 26 on digital television receivers. * KVTJ's digital signal relocated from its pre-transition UHF channel 48 to channel 18, which is displayed as virtual channel 48 on digital television receivers.


References


External links

* {{Other Arkansas Stations Television stations in Arkansas Television channels and stations established in 1988 1988 establishments in Arkansas Evangelical television networks