Drewry Communications
| Company type | Privately held company |
|---|---|
| Industry | Media |
| Founded | 1941 |
| Founder | Ransom H. Drewry |
| Fate | Acquired by Raycom Media in 2015 |
| Headquarters | Lawton , United States |
Key people | Robert Drewry (President), Bill Drewry (CEO), Larry Patton (General Manager) |
| Products | Radio and television broadcasting |
The Drewry Communications Group was a privately held media enterprise based in Lawton, Oklahoma. The leadership team consisted of Robert Drewry (President), Bill Drewry (CEO), and Larry Patton (General Manager). The organization managed a total of 13 radio and television outlets, predominantly serving markets in Oklahoma and Texas, with particular emphasis on western and central Texas regions.
History
The company was established in 1941 by Ransom H. Drewry, who initiated operations with the launch of KSWO (1380 AM) radio station in Lawton. In 1953, Drewry Communications ventured into television by introducing KSWO-TV, an affiliate of ABC. Over the years, the firm expanded its holdings through calculated acquisitions, including the purchase of Amarillo’s CBS affiliate KFDA-TV in 1976, as well as stations like KWES-TV in Midland, KXXV-TV in Waco, and KEYU in Amarillo.
After the death of Ransom Drewry, his sons Robert and Bill took charge and continued to grow the business. They re-entered the radio sector by acquiring stations such as KTXC (104.7 FM) in Lamesa in 2002 and KEYU-FM in Amarillo in 2014, focusing on Spanish-speaking audiences.
In 2008, Drewry announced intentions to sell its eleven television stations to London Broadcasting Company for $115 million; nevertheless, this agreement was terminated due to economic instability during the Great Recession. The following year, Drewry entered into a joint sales agreement with Hoak Media for managing KAUZ-TV operations while maintaining separate physical locations.
The company’s trajectory culminated with its acquisition by Raycom Media in 2015 for $160 million, encompassing both its TV and radio properties. This deal marked Raycom’s re-entry into radio ownership. Simultaneously, American Spirit Media purchased KAUZ-TV from Hoak Media to satisfy regulatory conditions. The transaction was finalized on December 1, 2015, ending Drewry Communications’ status as an independent operator.
Former stations
- Stations are organized alphabetically by state and city of license.
- Stations constructed and launched by Drewry are denoted with two boldface asterisks (**).
| Media market | State | Station | Acquisition year | Divestiture year | Remarks |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Duncan | Oklahoma | KRHD | 1947 | 1998 | |
| KRHD-FM | 1975 | 1998 | |||
| Lawton | KSWO ** | 1941 | 1998 | ||
| KSWO-TV ** | 1953 | 2015 | |||
| Amarillo | Texas | KAMT-LP | 2009 | 2010 | [lower-alpha 1] |
| KEYU | 2009 | 2015 | |||
| KEYU-FM | 2014 | 2015 | |||
| KFDA-TV | 1976 | 2015 | |||
| KZBZ-CD | 2009 | 2015 | |||
| KTMO-LP | 2001 | 2014 | [lower-alpha 2] | ||
| Big Spring | KWAB-TV | 1991 | 2015 | Template:Efn-ua | |
| Bryan | KRHD-CD | 1997 | 2015 | Template:Efn-ua | |
| KSCM-LP | 2006 | 2015 | |||
| KUTW-LP | 2009 | 2010 | [lower-alpha 1] | ||
| Canyon | KTXC-LP | 2006 | 2015 | [lower-alpha 3] | |
| Odessa–Midland | KTLE-LP | 2001 | 2015 | ||
| KTXC | 2002 | 2015 | |||
| KWES-TV | 1991 | 2015 | |||
| Waco–Temple | KXXV | 1994 | 2015 | ||
| KWKO-LP | 2009 | 2010 | [lower-alpha 1] | ||
| Wichita Falls | KAUZ-TV | 2009 | 2015 | [lower-alpha 4] | |
| KUWF-LP | 2009 | 2010 | [lower-alpha 1] |
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