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| KRQE (TV) | |
|---|---|
| Callsign | KRQE |
| Branding | KRQE News 13 |
| Digital | 13 (VHF) |
| Virtual | 13 |
| Affiliations | NBC, The CW (secondary) |
| Founded | 1952 |
| Location | Albuquerque, New Mexico |
| Owner | Nexstar Media Group |
| Sister stations | KASA-TV, KWBQ |
| Erp | 100 kW |
| Haat | 1,200 m |
| Facility id | 34439 |
KRQE (TV) is a television station licensed to Albuquerque, New Mexico, serving the Albuquerque–Santa Fe–Las Cruces market in the United States. It is owned by Nexstar Media Group and operates as the market's NBC affiliate with a secondary affiliation for The CW on a sister station. The station traces its roots to the early postwar expansion of American television and plays a significant role in regional broadcasting, weather coverage, and political reporting for the Four Corners and Rio Grande regions.
The station began broadcasting in 1953 amid the nationwide growth of Federal Communications Commission-licensed television outlets and commercial affiliates of networks such as NBC, CBS, and ABC. Early ownership involved local investors and regional media figures linked to newspapers and radio properties in Albuquerque and Santa Fe, New Mexico. Throughout the 1960s and 1970s the station navigated competition from stations like KOAT-TV and KOB (TV), adapting facilities at transmitter sites near Sandia Mountains and expanding coverage to Las Cruces and the Four Corners area. In the 1980s and 1990s corporate consolidation saw ownership ties with groups connected to Young Broadcasting, Media General, and later Tribune Media-era transactions before acquisition by Nexstar Media Group in the 21st century. Technological shifts included transitions from analog VHF to digital broadcasting following the Digital television transition in the United States and investments in high-definition production linked to the rise of ATSC standards and multicasting.
KRQE's news department has developed during eras shaped by regional politics, energy industry reporting, and Southwest demographic change involving communities such as Pueblo of Isleta, Navajo Nation, and Hispanics and Latinos in New Mexico. Its investigative teams have covered stories tied to institutions like the University of New Mexico, energy companies operating in the Permian Basin, and entities such as the New Mexico Legislature. The station competes with legacy rivals including KOAT-TV and KOB (TV) for audience share in morning, evening, and late-night newscasts, deploying weather services that draw on partnerships with mapping and forecasting providers used by stations in markets like Phoenix, Arizona and El Paso, Texas. Notable coverage has included regional elections involving figures connected to the Governor of New Mexico, natural disaster reporting for events like New Mexico wildfires, and border-related stories intersecting with agencies such as the United States Customs and Border Protection.
As an affiliate of NBC, the station carries national programs including news magazines and entertainment series historically produced by networks headquartered in New York City and studios in Hollywood. The station has aired syndicated fare in common with peers such as talk and court shows distributed by syndicators like Warner Bros. Domestic Television Distribution and 20th Television. Local programming has included specials tied to cultural institutions such as the New Mexico State Fair, coverage of sporting events for regional teams and high schools, and segments highlighting museums like the New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science and festivals including Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta. The station has also partnered with public cultural events at venues like Santa Fe Opera and civic entities in Bernalillo County.
KRQE transitioned its analog signal pursuant to mandates from the Federal Communications Commission and implemented digital multiplexing using ATSC 1.0 technology, with subchannels offering network feeds similar to technical configurations used by stations in markets served by Nexstar Media Group. Transmitter facilities leverage high-elevation sites to maximize effective radiated power across the Rio Grande Valley and adjacent high-desert terrain, with engineering considerations paralleling broadcasters operating near ranges such as the Sangre de Cristo Mountains. The station has participated in spectrum repacking coordinated through FCC processes that involved auctions and relocation plans analogous to the Wireless Spectrum Auction outcomes.
On-air personnel have included anchors, meteorologists, and investigative reporters who moved between stations and markets, joining or departing to organizations such as ABC News, CBS News, and regional outlets in Denver, Colorado and Phoenix, Arizona. Some former staff advanced to national platforms or transitioned into academia at institutions such as the University of New Mexico's communications programs. Notable figures in the station's history have engaged with statewide civic initiatives and journalism associations like the National Association of Broadcasters and Society of Professional Journalists.
The station has engaged in community initiatives involving partnerships with non-profits such as local chapters of United Way and cultural organizations including The Hispanic Cultural Center of New Mexico, while promoting public service campaigns during public health efforts coordinated with the New Mexico Department of Health. Controversies have occasionally emerged over editorial decisions, personnel changes, and reporting on contentious topics linked to entities like energy companies operating in the San Juan Basin or law enforcement agencies in Bernalillo County. These disputes have mirrored debates at comparable stations over journalistic standards embraced by organizations such as the Radio Television Digital News Association.
Category:Television stations in New Mexico Category:Nexstar Media Group