KPXE-TV (channel 50) is a television station in Kansas City, Missouri, United States, affiliated with Ion Television. Owned by Inyo Broadcast Holdings, the station maintains offices on Oak Street and Cleaver Boulevard in Kansas City, Missouri, and its transmitter is located in the city's Brown Estates section. KPXE-TV also serves as the de facto Ion outlet for the St. Joseph market, as that area does not have an Ion station of its own. History Prior channel 50 Channel 50 in Kansas City first signed on the air on October 29, 1969 as KCIT-TV. Founded by Allied Broadcasting, it was the first independent station to sign on in the Kansas City market and the first new commercial station to sign on in the area since the short-lived DuMont Television Network affiliate KCTY (on channel 25) debuted in 1954. Channel 50 programming primarily consisted of shows that the three network-affiliated television stations in Kansas City preempted, as well as some local programming. Allied Broadcasting, owned by 20 local stockholders, could not survive a downturn in the economy and competition from a new independent station that signed on a year later, KBMA-TV channel 41 (now NBC affiliate KSHB-TV). KBMA-TV had wealthier owners and a stronger signal than channel 50. KCIT-TV cut programming hours in June, only to go silent July 8, 1971, after several days of bare minimum programming. The station's technical facilities were acquired for use in relaunching KCPT (channel 19) with color capability. KBMA-TV became the sole independent station in Kansas City for several years afterward until KEKR-TV channel 62 (now KSMO-TV) signed on in September 1983 (the KCIT call letters are now assigned to a Fox-affiliated station in Amarillo, Texas). Relaunch The channel 50 allocation remained dormant for several years. On July 2, 1976, Kansas City Youth for Christ, Inc., filed for a construction permit for a new channel 50 TV station, which was granted by the FCC on April 29, 1977. The new station signed on December 15, 1978 as KYFC, named after its owner. Operating as a noncommercial independent station, its lineup largely consisted of religious programming through the 1980s, however a few "family-friendly" secular shows had been added to its schedule. The station ran newscasts from CNN Headline News at least once a day for several years, replacing the commercials during breaks within the simulcasts with other announcements. Pledges to support the station declined during the 1990s.