KOAT

About KOAT

KOAT-TV is a television station in Albuquerque, New Mexico, broadcasting on channel 7 and affiliated with ABC. Owned by Hearst Television, the station is branded as KOAT 7, with newscasts as KOAT Action 7 News and the slogan "Coverage You Can Count On." It was the second station to broadcast in Albuquerque, signing on in October 1953, and its newscasts have generally led the Albuquerque-Santa Fe market since the mid-1970s. The station maintains studios on Carlisle Boulevard in northeast Albuquerque, with its transmitter on Sandia Crest. Twenty-seven repeaters carry its signal to much of New Mexico as well as southwestern Colorado and northeastern Arizona. In August 2026, its fourth subchannel assumed the CBS affiliation for New Mexico.

Signing on in 1953

KOAT signed on in late September or early October 1953, less than a week before KGGM-TV, now KRQE, as one of two new TV stations in Albuquerque that month. It was locally owned by A. M. Caldwell and Walter Stiles and signed on as an ABC affiliate, with a secondary affiliation to the DuMont network. The station suffered financial difficulty twice in its first four years of operation.

The call letters derive from former radio sister KOAT-AM, which went on the air in 1946 as an ABC affiliate.

Stabilizing ownership

In 1957, KOAT was sold to Alvarado Television, the owner of KVOA in Tucson, and in 1962 both stations were sold to Steinman Stations, owner of WGAL in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. Steinman sold KOAT to Pulitzer, then-owner of KSD-TV in St. Louis, in 1969, making it Pulitzer's second television acquisition outside St. Louis. In 1999, Pulitzer sold its entire broadcasting division, including KOAT, to Hearst-Argyle, now Hearst Television.

Ownership by Clinton D. McKinnon and the Steinman Stations group steadied operations after the early financial difficulties, and the Pulitzer and Hearst eras brought sustained investment.

Action 7 News dominance

KOAT's newscasts have generally led the Albuquerque-Santa Fe market in viewership since the mid-1970s. The station uses the Circle 7 logo common to many ABC affiliates, in use at KOAT since 1971, and the Action News title since 1974. Its "Action 7 News" has been the top-rated news operation in Albuquerque for decades.

The newsroom covers New Mexico's distinctive stories, from the state's national laboratories and military bases to its Native American pueblos, desert landscapes, and border issues.

Statewide repeater network

Twenty-seven repeaters carry KOAT's broadcast signal to much of New Mexico as well as southwestern Colorado and northeastern Arizona. The extensive translator network is essential in a rugged, mountainous state where direct reception of the Sandia Crest signal is impossible for many communities.

The station previously operated full-power satellite stations in Carlsbad, Farmington, and Silver City; Hearst surrendered two of those licenses in 2012, replacing them with translators.

The CBS subchannel

In August 2026, KOAT's fourth subchannel assumed the CBS affiliation for New Mexico, after Nexstar converted KRQE, the market's longtime CBS affiliate, to a full-time Fox affiliate. Hearst took over the CBS affiliation on a digital subchannel of its ABC station, ensuring CBS programming remained available to New Mexico viewers.

The arrangement reflects the affiliation realignments reshaping mid-size markets, with subchannels increasingly carrying displaced network affiliations.

Sandia Crest transmitter

KOAT's transmitter is located on Sandia Crest, northeast of Albuquerque, at a height above average terrain of 1,292 meters, one of the highest transmitter sites in American broadcasting. The mountaintop location gives the station commanding coverage of central New Mexico.

The station broadcasts on digital VHF channel 7, displayed as virtual channel 7, having returned to its analog channel with the 2009 digital transition.

Hearst Television ownership

KOAT is owned by Hearst Television, one of the country's premier station groups. Hearst's ownership has supported the station's news dominance and community service across New Mexico.

The station's operations reflect Hearst's emphasis on local journalism and the company's "Commitment" to community service.

Digital presence

KOAT's digital home is koat.com, offering live streaming, on-demand video, and comprehensive coverage of New Mexico news, weather, and sports. The station maintains mobile apps and active social media accounts under the KOAT 7 brand.

As part of Hearst Television, the station's digital operations are integrated with the company's digital media platforms. Its official website is https://www.koat.com.

Cadwell, Stiles, and the early years

KOAT signed on the air on September 28, 1953, less than a week before KGGM-TV, now KRQE, channel 13. It was locally owned by Albert M. Cadwell and Walter Stiles. It first operated from studios located on Tulane Drive, just off Central Avenue in Southeast Albuquerque. Upon sign-on, the station acquired the ABC affiliation from KOB, channel 4, which had carried it as a secondary affiliation. It also carried programming from the DuMont Television Network, which went off the air in 1955. The local owners sold the station to Alvarado Television, the owner of KVOA in Tucson, Arizona, in 1957. In 1962, Alvarado sold both stations to Steinman Stations, who owned WGAL-TV in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, and later acquired WTEV, now WLNE-TV, in New Bedford, Massachusetts. The station moved its studios in the early 1960s to a new facility on University Boulevard in Northeast Albuquerque, and in 1982 KOAT opened a new state-of-the-art facility at the intersection of Carlisle and Comanche in Northeast Albuquerque, where it remains today.

From Alvarado to Pulitzer

Steinman sold both KOAT and KVOA to Pulitzer, the then-owner of KSD-TV, now KSDK, in St. Louis, in 1969. This made KOAT Pulitzer's second television station acquisition outside of its home city of St. Louis; the KOAT acquisition was consummated a year after Pulitzer closed on its purchase of KVOA. A decade later, the other two Steinman stations were sold to Pulitzer as well, reuniting them with KOAT, though KVOA was spun off in 1972. In 1999, Pulitzer sold its entire broadcasting division, including KOAT and WGAL, to Hearst-Argyle. In mid-2009, the Hearst Corporation, already majority owner of what was Hearst-Argyle Television, bought out all of the then-publicly traded shares and changed the broadcasting group's name to Hearst Television. KOAT uses a version of the Circle 7 logo used by many other ABC stations, both owned-and-operated stations and affiliates. The Circle 7 logo has been used at KOAT since 1971, and the Action News title since 1974.

The Circle 7 brand

KOAT is one of four ABC-affiliated Hearst stations that do not offer The Local AccuWeather Channel. KOAT-TV moved its digital signal to its old analog frequency, channel 7, when the analog-to-digital transition was completed on June 12, 2009. The station's branding is KOAT 7, with KOAT Action 7 News for its newscasts, and its slogan is Coverage You Can Count On. Its transmitter is located on Sandia Crest, northeast of Albuquerque, with an effective radiated power of 26.5 kW and a height of 1,292 meters, and 27 repeaters carry its broadcast signal to much of New Mexico as well as southwestern Colorado and northeastern Arizona. Subchannel 7.2 carries Estrella TV. The station's digital home is koat.com.

KOAT-TV serves nearly the entire state of New Mexico with the exception of the Clovis-Portales area, which receives ABC programming from KVIH-TV in Clovis, and Las Cruces-Deming, which is in the El Paso television market and is served by KVIA-TV.

KOAT uses the Circle 7 logo, a version of the design used by many other ABC stations, both owned-and-operated stations and affiliates.