KFVE serves a 7,954-square-mile (20,601 km2) area, and covers an estimated population of 71,400.[4][5] The station's programming is also seen on satellite stationKLEI, channel 21 in Wailuku which is owned by Mango Broadcasting and operated by Gray under a local marketing agreement (LMA).
History
The station went on the air in 1988[1] as KVHF, a satellite of Mauna Kea Broadcasting's KMGT channel 26, and changed its call letters to KLEI on March 9, 1992.[6] The station was affiliated with Pax TV/i/Ion (as a satellite of KPXO-TV),[1] and later with The Family Channel in 2011.[7]
In late 2017, KLEI dropped its Family Channel affiliation and became Hawaii's first over-the-air affiliate of Spanish-language network Telemundo, filling a void in the market for a Spanish language station that opened up when KHLU-CD (a Univision affiliate) ceased operations in 2016. Shortly after assuming the Telemundo affiliation, KLEI became available on all cable systems in Hawaii for the first time.
On December 3, 2018, the station's call sign changed to KSIX-TV.
On July 8, 2020, Gray Television, owner of Honolulu-based stations KGMB and KHNL and their satellites, agreed to purchase KSIX-TV for $1 million, pending approval of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). Maui-based satellite KLEI was not included in the sale.[9] The transaction was finalized on September 9.[10] The call letters of KSIX-TV and Hilo's KFVE were switched on November 13.
^"The Family Channel - Where to Watch". The Family Channel, LLC. Archived from the original on June 14, 2016. Retrieved October 17, 2017.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
