Technical troubles knock KITV4 local newscasts off the air for days

KITV4 Island News has not had an on-air local newscast for several days, reportedly due to technical difficulties.

KITV President and General Manager Jason Hagiwara and News Director Bill Brennan did not immediately return calls to the Honolulu Star-Advertiser Sunday.

The news broadcast was not on Sunday evening, and the station’s website did not offer an explanation.

However, the station has told callers seeking information about the days of missed broadcasts that it had experienced technical difficulties and hoped to return on-air soon.

The technical problems reportedly began on Thursday.

KITV, an ABC affiliate, usually produces over 30 hours of local news programming a week.

The station, which has a long history in Hawaii starting in 1954, has been filling its normal local news slots with paid programming and national ABC News broadcasts. News stories have been available online, but not on air since KITV since Thursday.

KITV has had other recent service disruptions.

In December 2021, KITV reported that its over-the-air transmitter signal was interrupted on Maui and Hawaii island causing several days where the station’s programs were prevented from reaching all viewers. That incident occurred after a “strong Kona low storm brought down power lines and trees that damaged power and communication lines to our transmitter on Maui and service to Hawaii island,” the station said.

In June, KITV reported that its Hilo transmitter was temporarily offline for repairs “limiting viewing options for residents on the Big Island.” The June outage only affected “customers on the Hilo side of the Big Island who use an antenna to watch KITV4,” the TV station said.