Dorado Media

since 2019

**Dorado Media**is an American telecommunications company that is headquartered in Portland, Oregon. Dorado also owns two digital multicast networks (MundoDBC, and The WB Classics) and one major network (The ACME Television Network), and owns or operates radio stations. The company's portfolio consists of television stations across the U.S., most of whom are affiliated with the four "major" U.S. television networks located in small to medium-sized markets.

### **2015: Formation**

Dorado Media was founded as **Dorado Broadcasting**on October 27, 2015. The first television station bought by Dorado was KVCC in Vice City, Vice State. Dorado bought KVCC from Media General (before the company was acquired by Nexstar Media Group). Its founding television station property was KPCT (channel 12) in Portland, Oregon, which signed on the air on October 30 of that year. The station remained an independent since its launch. Dorado purchased KPRT (channel 51), a CW affiliate in Portland because this was in the same market as KPCT. These stations never conducted a 'shared-services' agreement between them.

### **Dorado Media**

#### **Earlier history**

The founder of the company began taking a more active role in the company throughout 2015. In early 2016, Dorado Broadcasting changed its name to **Dorado Media**as the company had pursued multiple station acquisitions.

#### **2015**

ITV dropped its affiliation from Dorado-owned/managed stations in one market. In Arizona, the market saw ITV go from a primary affiliation of one station to joining an existing subchannel of a competing station. The former station transformed into an infomercial station as part of a long-term renewal agreement between ITV and its new digital subchannel owner.

#### **2016**

In May, Dorado announced the launch of the ACME Television Network service, in a joint venture between the Warner Brothers Entertainment subsidiary of Time Warner. The network was operating within the Dorado Media company. The network was created in part that it would be based off The WB, and to some extent, The Dorado Broadcasting Company (which Dorado Media launched in January of 2016, but later, their services and stations were transitioned to the newly formed Dorado Station Services group). The company announced the formation of Dorado Orignal Programming (which was later changed to 'A Dorado Original' for the Dorado Broadcasting Company). The company also announced plans for a future cable network, so it was called Warner Horizon Network(WHN) as many cable show by WB are courtesy of Warner Horizon Television.

#### **2017: Acquisition of AZ Broadcasting** Edit

On April 13, 2017, Dorado announced it that it had entered into a definitive agreement to acquire AZBroadcasting after its former founder had stepped down from his position due to multiple monopolies they had with other companies that were also owned by them. As a result of the deal, Dorado took over the operations of an additional station in Las Vegas that was owned by AZBroadcasting, which launched a duopoly in the market as Dorado already owned a station in that market.

#### **2017: Other Events**

On June 15, 2017, Tribune Broadcasting announced the launch of *Morning Dose*, a two-hour social media-focused morning show produced in partnership with Chicago-based digital content branding agency Dose, which will replace *EyeOpener* on the Tribune stations carrying the latter program on June 29. Hosted by Melissa Rycroft and Brandon London, with news segments anchored by Laila Muhammad (the only announced holdover from *EyeOpener*), the program will feature a mix of news stories selected by Dose through its social storytelling and scientific trend methodology to "[showcase] the content and advancing the stories that will drive the day’s social conversation.”

Following the announcement of the launch of *Morning Dose*, Dorado Media developed a concept for a morning news program intended for stations owned by the company that did not maintain existing news departments. The program would incorporate a local/national format (with the intent to syndicate the program to other markets) similar to that of morning news programs on the major broadcast television networks, with three-minute-long national segments conducted in a more free-form style.

On August 21, 2017, Dorado Media purchased the remaining stake in the digital multicast network The WB Classics after QTV Inc. and its predecessors had sold its property to Dorado.

On September 4, 2017, following the relaunch of EyeOpener, Dorado Media debuted Nightcap. the idea for The program was conceived by Dorado executives, who developed a concept for a news program for stations owned by the company that did not maintain existing news departments. The show would also incorporate a local/national format.

On November 20, 2017, sister-company the Dorado Station Services announced that they would turn over DBC and UDC owned-and-operated stations ranked below the top 99 television markets in the United States to Dorado Media. The company would continue to handle programming and promotional services.

## **Television stations**

Most of the television stations run by Dorado are owned by the company outright, however, the company operates many others through either a local marketing agreement or shared services agreements. The company's stations are affiliates of various television networks, like ABC, CBS, NBC and Fox. Dorado also owns or manages several affiliates of the WB and UPN networks.

In June of 2017, QTV and DBC merged their operations into a new network, UDC. Many independent stations became affiliates of the new network. At the same time, Dorado aligned many of its stations with UDC.

### **Current Dorado stations**

Stations are arranged alphabetically by state and by the city of license.

*Notes:*

* *(\*\*) – indicates a station built and signed-on by Dorado Media.*

* (**##**) – *indicates a station that was owned by AZBroadcasting prior to its acquisition by Dorado Media in 2017.*
* (**§§**) – *indicates a station that was owned by the Dorado Station Services prior to its acquisition by Dorado Media in 2017.*

Notes:

* 1 These stations are nominally owned by Central Broadcasting and are operated by Dorado under local marketing agreements.