newsteam13

NBC9 KUSA and MyDenver20 KTVD (under TEGNA) with FOX31 KDVR and CW2 KWGN (under Nexstar) all under one roof. Half the Mile High City TV Market blanketed by Nexstar. YEAH, THAT'LL BE THE DAY! Let's hope that day never happens!

Those news services are gonna have a field day. CBS Newspath to CBS affiliates, ABC NewsOne feed to ABC affiliates, and so on.

HALF of the Mile High City TV news market will be under one company. Same corporate umbrella. Meanwhile, ABC7 KMGH (Scripps) and KCNC CBS4 (CBS owned stations) are standing on their own.

Let's not forget, the WCAU/KYW situation affected Denver. And Colorado television changed forever. The KCNC documentary from 1995 educated us on WHY the switch happened. It started with FOX launching a sport division, striking a deal with New World, then-owner of the now-former CBS/ABC/NBC affiliates. This prompted most CBS affiliates and some ABC and NBC stations to switch to FOX, because FOX would be much better reached on VHF channels 2 thru 13. Otherwise, FOX and its then-new Sports division wouldn't have gotten a better reach if ti remained on UHF stations. Now, onto Philly where the story came to an end. NBC wanted to buy WCAU from CBS for cash. But to avoid tax problems, CBS suggested a trade. CBS gave WCAU to NBC of course. But in exchange, CBS wanted KUTV Salt Lake City, some NBC equipment in Miami (including the channel 4 signal) and of course, KCNC DENVER!

WAIT, WHAT THE FUCK? KCNC will join alongside KUSA, KWGN, KTVD and KDVR?

First, the Corporation for Public Broadcasting is ordered to yank funds away from PBS and NPR stations, including the Rocky Mountain PBS family of Member stations. NOW THIS FUCKING SHIT? Upon FCC approval, Nexstar will cover HALF the Mile High City TV market

If the deal goes through, looks like all four Denver stations will have to move out of their existing longtime quarters. Nexstar's existing duopoly CW2 KWGN and FOX31 KDVR is located at 100 Speer Boulevard. KDVR built their new home in 2000 for their then-new FOX31 News at 9pm. KWGN moved out of Englewood and moved in with KDVR in 2009. Meanwhile Tegna's existing duopoly NBC9 KUSA and MyDenver20 KTVD resides at 500 Speer Boulevard. KUSA built their home in 1992 while still an ABC affiliate. Looks like NBC9, MyDenver20, CW2 and FOX31 will have have to move out of their longtime homes and into a spacious new building. Possibly right in downtown Denver.

Oh, shitfuck! Another invasion of the Sin-crapola in Denver! First in 2018, Sinclair approached the Tribune stations, who were parent companies of CW2 KWGN and FOX31 KDVR, to merge with them. That merger was rejected and merged with Nexstar instead. Now THIS YEAR? Sinclair is about to invade Denver again. Sin-crapola is approaching Tegna, who is the parent company of NBC9 KUSA, to merge with their stations. It could get worse in Washington DC. Tegna-owned CBS9 WUSA could merge with ABC7 WJLA, which sinclair already owns.

If the deal comes to fruition, then CW2 KWGN and FOX31 KDVR will be under the same roof as NBC9 KUSA and MyDenver20 KTVD

The start of something BADASS for KCNC. Around the time KCNC's parent company, GE, acquired NBC—of which Channel 4 was affiliated—KCNC became an NBC-owned station and, notably, the first TV station in Colorado to be owned by a major network. This transformation was marked by two initial news theme packages featuring the "This is Colorado" motif: Image IV (for First News at 4:30 p.m.) and Image V (NewsCenter 4 at 5 p.m. and 10 p.m.). A key aspect of this launch was the accompanying promotional campaign, which included KCNC announcer Suzy Nelson singing during the promo—definitely a bonus! KCNC fully embraced the partnership and collaboration with Denver-based Jerome Gilmer, even after NBC sold KCNC to CBS in 1995. The news packages featured the KCNC 'This is Colorado' music logo. One specific package from 1993, titled Image IX - Altitude, included the NBC chimes, which was fitting since KCNC was nearing the end of its tenure as an NBC-owned affiliate. However in 2003, KCNC had to discontinue its relationship with Gilmer to comply with the CBS O&O Mandate regarding music packages and logos. CBS required KCNC to use CBS O&O news themes, starting with the Newstime package from 615 Music, alongside its sister stations KCBS in Los Angeles and WBZ in Boston. Subsequently, KCNC began using the "Enforcer" theme by Frank Gari.

Here's a KNBC promo that features Seinfeld's co-star Michael "Kramer" Richards (at the 0:37 mark) and all the other NBC stars: Scott Bakula of Quantum Leap, Kevin Nealon from SNL with Jess Marlow, Alan Rachins of LA Law. It wasn't We're 4 LA, yet. There was a slogan If it Happens Here, it Happens on 4.

Frank Gari brought Lalo's Cool Hand Luke into the 80s and early 90s with NewsSeries 2000. I remember hearing that Gari version on KRDO ABC13 in Colorado Springs (my hometown) when I was a kid. I didn't hear the Lalo Schifrin original until I was a senior in high school and the internet came along. We'll miss Lalo a great deal. Oh, and say Hello to Al Primo for us. Schifrin is now up there with Primo. in the Eyewitness Newsroom in the sky.

Earl Grizzell, your KCRA theme made its way to KRDO ABC13 in my hometown of Colorado Springs. It was used from 1987 thru 1989. As you can see, its NEWS13 intro mimics that of the Dallas ABC affiliate WFAA - aerial footage, headshots and all

WPLG and ABC stayed married for 69 years. Through it all, this marriage between network (ABC) and affiliate (WPLG) survived all the craziness with WSVN, WTVJ and WCIX/WFOR going on in both 1989 and 1995. Together, Channel 10 and ABC were (as the network's late 70s campaign said it) STILL THE ONE in South Florida! That was, until this week, when WPLG filed for divorce from ABC. The nearly 70 years of marriage is over. All because ABC was demanding more money from WPLG and its parent company Berkshire Hathaway. A quote fulled from the article in the Miami Herald - “[It] became clear that if we accepted the deal ABC was proposing, we too would have been forced to lay off employees in order to pay the hefty price the network was demanding.”

Past the 28:46 mark...WHAT"S THIS? Is that the full-length close we get to hear? Same music as heard on KUSA?

Nobody comes home to watch the news anymore. Not even the local news at 5pm, 6pm and 11pm (10pm on central/mountain). Certainly not the network evening newscasts. More people are streaming nowadays, not to mention getting their news on the internet. CBS News's YouTube channel offers full-length episodes of the CBS Evening News. After they broadcast on their local affiliates, CBS News uploads that night's newscast like 4 hours later, so people who prefer online can watch on YouTube at their own convenience. ABC News YouTube channel, same deal with World News Tonight uploaded like 4 hours after they broadcast on ABC affiliates. NBC News YouTube Channel uploading the NBC Nightly News the same night. Talk about ease of access! Why aren't local stations following suit with the networks? That is, uploading the local newscast on their stations YouTube channel the same night after they aired it live?

Though I love that CBS brought back the 1987-1991 original Dan Rather theme music (from Trivers/Myers), this is like the 3rd time they brought it back? How about bringing back the 1991-2006 updated version done by Patterson, Walz and Fox? A REFRESHED version with the This is CBS branding mnemonic thrown in, of course?

Been such a long time since the early 1980s, when the multi-anchor/multi-city format became passe. Remember the Huntley/Brinkley Report and then NBC Nightly News? Chet Huntley (1956-70), John Chancellor (1970-82) and Tom Brokaw (1982-82) anchored from New York. David Brinkley (1956-81) and then Roger Mudd (1979-83) co-anchored from Washington. How about the first few years of World News Tonight from ABC News? Peter Jennings from London, Max Robinson from Chicago, Frank Reynolds from Washington and Barbara Walters as the forth anchor. Awesome they're making the old-school very cool again, but with a twist. Maurice DuBois and John Dickerson as the two-man anchor team from New York. Margaret Brennan from Washington. Throw in Meteorologist Lonnie Quinn with the weather news. You got yourself a cool twist on the old-school format. Never in the history of the CBS Evening News had that New York anchor/Washington anchor format like NBC and ABC had. Not even during the days of Douglas Edwards, Walter Cronkite and Dan Rather

The media landscape under Gannett was characterized by significant investment in resources, fostering a vibrant and distinctive identity for each station. Gannett stations enjoyed access to high-quality cameras, advanced equipment, helicopters, the best damn photojournalists (NPPA award winners), and top-tier talent, including renowned voiceovers like NBC's Danny Dark and ABC's Ernie Anderson (for station promos and news opens). Not to mention the patriotic red/white/blue color scheme for each station's logos and graphics. The emphasis was on creativity and local engagement, allowing each station to develop its unique branding and tailor content to resonate with local audiences. This commitment to individuality and quality resulted in a rich viewer experience, with stations able to connect deeply with their communities. In contrast, the current model under Tegna reflects a shift towards standardization and efficiency, often at the expense of local identity and production values. Centralizing marketing teams means that individual stations no longer have the autonomy to customize their branding and messaging for their specific markets, leading to a homogenized viewer experience. As Tegna prioritizes cost-cutting and uniformity, the previous emphasis on creativity is diminished, which can alienate local audiences who appreciate the distinctiveness of their hometown stations. This transition may also have negative implications for employees, resulting in job losses and decreased morale, ultimately affecting the connection between the stations and the communities they serve. I remember KUSA in Denver as a fabulous television station during the Gannett days. The anchor team featured Mike Landess and Ed Sardella. 9NEWS was allowed to showcase its theme music, which included the "It's All Right Here" promos and news theme music packages from Peters Productions and Frank Gari. When KUSA was an ABC affiliate in the 1980s, who better to promote 9NEWS and open its newscast than Mr. ABC himself, Ernie Anderson? Unfortunately, today's KUSA doesn't resemble its glory days. One noticeable change is removing the signature patriotic red, white, and blue lines from the current 9NEWS logo, which was introduced in 1984 when the station changed its call letters from KBTV to KUSA. Not to mention we don't see the 9 K*USA logo as much nowadays.

If you were an ABC affiliate in a big city, and if the owner was wealthy and could afford it, you couldn't go wrong with Mr. ABC himself Ernie Anderson. That was exactly the case when KUSA was an ABC affiliate in Colorado's capital, and its parent company Gannett (now Tegna) had a lot of money to burn. Gave KUSA carte blanche to make their 9NEWS product kick-ass, including hiring the voice of ABC to do promos and news opens for KUSA. Here's one of the 9 Country/11 Country cuts with Ernie promoting the call letter switch from KBTV to KUSA in 1984 And here's the main cut of 9 Country/11 Country with Ernie opening for Landess and Sardella

YEP! Both news sets from both WXIA and KARE (KUSA's sister stations) DID give off that vibe of the news set from KOA-TV/KCNC (KUSA's competitor) from their NewsCenter 4 days. All of them NBC affiliates, except one affiliate in Denver was owned by GE and then the NBC network itself (became a CBS O&O in 1995). KCNC's color scheme was different from the patriotic red/white/blue American flag color scheme that KUSA, KARE, WXIA and other Gannett stations have used

I wonder who composed that awesome 80s news theme package. Before and after the switch from KBTV to KUSA in 1984, Channel 9 started using it in 1983. What made the KUSA news opens with that theme ever better...Mr. ABC himself Ernie Anderson opening for Mike Landess/Ed Sardella and the rest of the 9NEWS team. When Gannett bought sister station KARE (the WTCN) Channel 11 in 1983, it brought KUSA's Joe Franzgrote to the Twin Cities. Along with him came that theme music package and some of his KUSA news team. I'm dying to know who composed that 1983-88 news theme music package

Metromedia owning an independent like WTCN. When I think of that time, I think of stations like KRIV, WTTG, WNEW (now WNYW), KTTV that became the original O&O stations with the then-new FOX network. As far as use of that news theme from 1984 (9 Country/11 Country), I'm more partial to the use on sister station 9NEWS KUSA in Denver from the Mike Landess/Ed Sardella years with the voice of Mr. ABC himself Ernie Anderson opening for 9NEWS About the Magers brothers: had Ron came back to the Twin Cities when his brother Paul came, these two brothers anchoring together would've made a splash in icy Minnesota. Sounded like Gannett back then had a boatload of money to spend on its stations, its equipment, its people and news production. Seems like they were a wealthy media group. Today, with all this standardization going on, that's just not the case.

That's one of them lipstick makeovers of existing things. KUSA took an existing set and made it even more cool.

Station Logo lapel pins. A sweet fashion accessory for every on-air talent. You gotta love em!!!