The Liberty Corporation
| File:The Liberty Corporation.png | |
| Public | |
| Traded as | NYSE: LC |
| Industry | Broadcast Television, Insurance |
| Fate | Acquired by Raycom Media |
| Successor | Raycom Media |
| Founded | 1905 as Southeastern Life Insurance Company |
| Defunct | 2006 |
| Headquarters | Greenville, South Carolina |
|
Area served
|
 United States (Nationwide) |
|
Key people
|
Elliott Estes, A. H. Twitchell, W. Frank Hipp, Herman Hipp, W. Hayne Hipp |
| Products | CableVantage, Take Ten Productions, Broadcasting Merchandising Corporation |
The Liberty Corporation was a media corporation originally based out of Greenville, South Carolina. At its peak, The Liberty Corporation owned 15 network-affiliated television stations across the Midwest and Southern regions of the United States. On top of that, 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.
The company formerly held Liberty Life Insurance Company and Pierce National Life Insurance Company, which it sold in 2000 to Royal Bank of Canada.
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.
In August 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. The acquisition was completed in February 2006; After the closing of the purchase of Liberty, Raycom sold a number of stations, including two from the Liberty portfolio. They included ABC WWAY-TV in Wilmington, North Carolina to Morris Multimedia and CBS affiliate KGBT-TV in Harlingen-McAllen-Brownsville, Texas to Barrington Broadcasting.
Former Liberty Stations
- (**) – Indicates that it was built and signed on by Liberty.
| City of license / Market | Station | Channel TV (RF) |
Years Owned | Current Ownership Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Montgomery - Selma | WSFA | 12 (12) | 1959-2006 | NBC affiliate owned by Raycom Media |
| Jonesboro | KAIT | 8 (8) | 1986-2006 | ABC affiliate owned by Raycom Media |
| Albany | WALB | 10 (10) | 1998-2006 | NBC affiliate owned by Raycom Media |
| Evansville | WFIE | 14 (46) | 1981-2006 | NBC affiliate owned by Raycom Media |
| Louisville | WAVE | 3 (47) | 1981-2006 | NBC affiliate owned by Raycom Media |
| Lake Charles | KPLC | 7 (7) | 1986-2006 | NBC affiliate owned by Raycom Media |
| 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 Raycom Media |
| Jackson | WLBT | 3 (28) | 2000-2006 | NBC affiliate owned by Raycom Media |
| Wilmington | WWAY | 3 (46) | 1999-2006 | ABC affiliate owned by Morris Multimedia |
| Toledo | WTOL | 11 (11) | 1965-2006 | CBS affiliate owned by Raycom Media |
| Columbia | WIS ** | 10 (10) | 1953-2006 | NBC affiliate owned by Raycom Media |
| Myrtle Beach - Florence | WMBF-TV | 32 (32) | 1 | NBC affiliate owned by Raycom Media |
| Harlingen - Weslaco - Brownsville - McAllen, Texas |
KGBT-TV | 4 (31) | 1998-2006 | CBS affiliate owned by Sinclair Broadcast Group |
| Lubbock | KCBD | 11 (11) | 2000-2006 | NBC affiliate owned by Raycom Media |
| Tyler - Longview | KLTV | 7 (7) | 2002-2006 | ABC affiliate owned by Raycom Media |
| Lufkin - Nacogdoches | KTRE (Semi-satellite of KLTV) |
9 (9) | 2002-2006 | ABC affiliate owned by Raycom Media |
| Green Bay | WFRV-TV | 5 (39) | 1981-1984 | CBS affiliate owned by Nexstar Broadcasting Group |
- 1 Raycom acquired WMBF's construction permit from Liberty, prior to the station's sign-on in 2008.
