Liberty Corporation

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Not to be confused with Liberty Media, a media conglomerate.
The Liberty Corporation
TypePublic
NYSE: LC
IndustryBroadcast Television, Insurance
Founded1919
DefunctJanuary 31, 2006 (2006-01-31)
FateAcquired by Raycom
SuccessorRaycom Media
Gray Television
HeadquartersGreenville, South Carolina
Area served
Flag of the United States.svg United States (Nationwide)
Key people
Elliott Estes, A. H. Twitchell, W. Frank Hipp, Herman Hipp, W. Hayne Hipp
ProductsCableVantage, Take Ten Productions, Broadcasting Merchandising Corporation

The Liberty Corporation was a media corporation originally based in Greenville, South Carolina. At its peak, Liberty owned 15 network-affiliated television stations across the Midwest and Southern regions of the United States. Cable advertising sales group CableVantage Inc., video production facility Take Ten Productions and broadcast equipment distributor Broadcast Merchandising Corporation were also some of its assets.

Liberty was founded in 1919 when W. Frank Hipp, a former top agent at Spartanburg-based Southeastern Life Insurance Company, struck out on his own. Within a decade, Liberty had grown large enough to buy his former employer. It entered broadcasting in 1930, when it bought WIS in Columbia—the start of what would become the Broadcasting Company of the South, renamed Cosmos Broadcasting in 1965. Under Francis Hipp, who succeeded his father in 1943, Liberty reorganized as a holding company, The Liberty Corporation, in 1967.[1]

Liberty sold its insurance subsidiaries, Liberty Life and Pierce National Life, to Royal Bank of Canada in 2000. Cosmos was then folded directly into the Liberty banner.

After the sale of its insurance division, the company employed approximately 1,400 people. The executive officers included chairman and CEO W. Hayne Hipp (who, with his family, owned about 25% of the company before its sale to Raycom Media), president and COO James M. Keelor, CFO Howard L. Schrott.

On August 25, 2005, Liberty agreed to be bought out by Raycom Media. Raycom paid $987 million, or $47.35 per Liberty share, and assumed Liberty's debts of approximately $110 million in the buyout.[2] The acquisition was completed on January 31, 2006.[3] After closing the deal, Raycom sold a number of stations, including two from the Liberty portfolio. They included ABC affiliate WWAY-TV in Wilmington, North Carolina to Morris Multimedia and CBS affiliate KGBT-TV in Harlingen, Texas to Barrington Broadcasting.

Former Liberty Stations[]

  • (**) – Indicates that it was built and signed on by Liberty.
  • (++) – Indicates a station that was owned by Orion Broadcasting prior to its merger with Cosmos/Liberty in 1981.
City of license / Market Station Channel
TV (RF) 		Years owned Current ownership status
Montgomery - Selma WSFA-TV 12 (12) 1959–2006 NBC affiliate owned by Gray Television
Jonesboro KAIT 8 (8) 1986–2006 ABC affiliate owned by Gray Television
Albany WALB 10 (10) 1998–2006 NBC affiliate owned by Gray Television
Evansville WFIE ++ 14 (46) 1981–2006 NBC affiliate owned by Gray Television
Louisville WAVE ++ 3 (47) 1981–2006 NBC affiliate owned by Gray Television
Lake Charles KPLC 7 (7) 1986–2006 NBC affiliate owned by Gray Television
New Orleans WDSU 6 (43) 1972–1989 NBC affiliate owned by Hearst Television
Biloxi - Gulfport - Pascagoula WLOX 13 (28) 1995–2006 ABC affiliate owned by Gray Television
Jackson WLBT 3 (28) 2000–2006 NBC affiliate owned by Gray Television
Wilmington WWAY 3 (46) 1999–2006 ABC affiliate owned by Morris Multimedia
Toledo WTOL 11 (11) 1965–2006 CBS affiliate owned by Tegna Inc.
Columbia WIS ** 10 (10) 1953–2006 NBC affiliate owned by Gray Television
Myrtle Beach - Florence WMBF-TV 32 (32) 1 NBC affiliate owned by Gray Television
Harlingen - Weslaco -
Brownsville - McAllen, Texas 		KGBT-TV 4 (31) 1998–2006 Antenna TV owned-and-operated station (O&O),
owned by Nexstar Media Group
Lubbock KCBD 11 (11) 2000–2006 NBC affiliate owned by Gray Television
Tyler - Longview KLTV 7 (7) 2002–2006 ABC affiliate owned by Gray Television
Lufkin - Nacogdoches KTRE
(Semi-satellite of KLTV) 		9 (9) 2002–2006 ABC affiliate owned by Gray Television
Green Bay WFRV-TV ++ 5 (39) 1981–1984 CBS affiliate owned by Nexstar Media Group
Marquette - Escanaba - Iron Mountain WJMN-TV ++
(Semi-satellite of WFRV-TV) 		3 (48) 1981–1984 CBS affiliate owned by Nexstar Media Group

Note:

  • 1 Raycom acquired WMBF's construction permit from Liberty, prior to the station's sign-on in 2008.

References[]

  1. ^ Archive of company history
  2. ^ "Liberty Corporation to Merge with Raycom Media, Inc". businesswire.com. August 25, 2005. Archived from the original on November 6, 2018. Retrieved November 6, 2018.
  3. ^ "Liberty Corporation Completes Merger with Raycom Media". businesswire.com. January 31, 2006. Archived from the original on November 6, 2018. Retrieved November 6, 2018.
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