KWTV-DT (channel 9) is a television station in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, United States, affiliated with CBS.

KYW-TV 1970s

KYW-TV 1980s

KYW – NBC Affiliate 1990

KYW – CBS Affiliate 1999

KYW 2001 – 2003

KYW CBS 3 Philadelphia 2003

KYW’s initial January 2003 relaunch was due, for the most part, to a complete revamp of its news operation. Stunningly, Marc Howard, longtime 5pm anchor at leader WPVI, defected to helm KYW’s 11pm news, and the station was able to poach WCAU weekend weathercaster Kathy Orr at an opportune time. This is when KYW decided to relaunch almost everything – music, graphics, logo, and the station’s moniker changed as well. This is what has become known as the “Viacom Mandate” by some – an effort to unify and clean up its CBS owned and operated stations, with simpler looks and a greater emphasis on network branding. Unlike some stations who overnight changed their look and/or name, KYW gave its audience advance warning. The launch was also staggered – most non-news on-air promotions changed to reflect the new CBS 3 name on January 1st, while the news did not relaunch until January 6th.

2003 – 2004

2004

Eyewitness News began in 1968, replacing the previous newscast, Roger Grimsby and the Noisemakers. Roger Grimsby, as the name implies, was carried over to the new format as were Howard Cosell and weatherman Tex Antoine, but the commentators – or “noisemakers” – were dropped. Roger initially anchored alone and was encouraged to show his wit, but the unending stream of quips necessitated the need for a co-anchor. A succession of anchors, most notably Tom Dunn (poached from WCBS) were placed next to him, but Grimsby’s style was so strong that they tried to emulate his presentation – quips and all. After Tom Dunn was involved in a real-estate scam that forced his departure, Al Primo searched for an anchorman who could hold his own with Roger – in essence, his complete opposite. He found it in the anchorman grimsby replaced – Bill Beutel. Beutel had become a foreign correspondent for ABC News, and assured Primo he could be his own man. Beutel’s classy, sophisticated delivery ended up meshing well with Grimsby’s roughness and wit. The Grimsby/Beutel team lasted for 16 years, from 1970 to 1986. The newscast has often been derisively called “happy talk news” – this is, in fact, inaccurate. The term is often applied to the canned banter between anchors in order to make them appear “friendly”. This, emphatically, is NOT the type of banter that was featured on WABC. Grimsby’s remarks, which made up the bulk of the unscripted banter, were often laced with sarcasm and veered close to the lines of good taste. The rest of the banter arose from the natural personalities of the anchors and reporters, who often appeared extremely comfortable with one another, making the banter feel genuine. Thus, a better description for Eyewitness News is “personality news”. Outside of news, WABC had a very strong identity. Like WCBS and WNBC, ABC’s flagship station had all the resources of the network, including its staff announcers. However, while 2 and 4 appeared as extensions of their networks, WABC cultivated its own “brand”: the famous circle-7 logo. Used just as often as ABC’s logo, but rarely together, the local aspect of the station was given equal prominence with the network that broadcast on it.

By 1989, the effects of WABC’s new ownership – and sister station – were clearly visible. While this can be attributed partially to the loose corporate look instituted on all of ABC’s stations, much of WABC’s presentation began to mimic WPVI fairly closely. By the turn of the decade, the station was going through fairly radical personnel changes largely as a result of Capital Cities’ historically tighter budgets. Ernie Anastos, Storm Field, Kaity Tong, and Lou Young were among the prominent anchors and reporters who either left or were let go. In many cases, relatively inexperienced reporters and anchors replaced them – and in many of those cases, these reporters and anchors became popular personalities themselves. By and large, however, the station was defined by Bill Beutel, who was named solo anchor at 6pm and co-anchor of the 11pm news. And, despite his age, he unexpectedly blossomed, and his vivid storytelling and calm delivery became the station’s greatest asset.

By 1980, the classic version of Eyewitness News was arguably at its height. Roger and Bill reigned supreme at 6pm, Rose Ann and Ernie helmed the 11pm, and a host of colorful reporters and presenters added spice to the newscasts. Yet tough competition was brewing, one that would leave WABC in an unfamiliar place. That same year, WNBC overhauled its news operation – News 4 New York, with a slick presentation including a landmark set, and a new 5pm program – Live at Five – that emphasized entertainment, interviews, and lifestyle features. In some ways, “Live at Five” was a natural extension of the WABC personality news format, adding more prominent entertainment and lifestyle segments. By 1983, News 4 New York had deposed Eyewitness News as the top-rated news in the city. What followed was a period of panic as 7 tried to revitalize its product, with far slicker presentation than 7 has seen before or since. But by the end of the decade, WABC had climbed back to the top – thanks to some very controversial decisions.

The Murder of John Lennon

The death of John Lennon on December 8, 1980 was a profound and tragic event that initiated an unprecedented level of mourning around the world. WABC’s coverage during the days immediately following the murder was very thorough, with nearly all of their reporting team assigned to cover some aspect of the story. These clips not only show the massive outpouring of emotion that occurred during the event, but also how the Eyewitness News team covered a story that not only originated in New York, but had a massive global aspect to it as well.

Into The 2000s

The late 1990s and early 2000s saw increased turnover at Eyewitness News. Bill Beutel gradually decreased his workload, retiring from the 11pm news in 1999, and leaving the anchor desk altogether in 2001. Bill Ritter was chosen as his successor – not his replacement, as Ritter would stress. Like Beutel, Bill Ritter was a network correspondent, frequently based overseas – one of his biggest assignments was the death and funeral of Princess Diana. Longtime 6 and 11pm coanchor Diana Williams requested a move to

Comings, Goings, and the 5:00 Eyewitness News

Beginning in 1981, WABC began to slowly modernize its newscasts, as it rushed to compete with WNBC’s growing newscasts, especially its breakout Live at Five. This saw an end to the long-running 4:30 Movie. The new newscast was initially slated to be “Now on 7”, hosted by Rose Ann Scamardella and featuring a similar mix of news and entertainment as WNBC’s offering. What came to air was the aptly-titled 5:00 Eyewitness News, which seems to have initially featured Scamardella and Storm Field as presenters. In 1982, the set and graphics recieved a facelift. The beige woodpaneling and ribbon logo were replaced with a very curvy set – plainer than the other news organizations, yes, but then WABC was never as flashy as its competitors. This and the beginning of a ratings slide marked a period of continual change at 7, with anchors, graphics, and other features changing almost yearly.

All Change…

1984 and 1985 saw WABC and Eyewitness News slip badly in the ratings. This was due in large part to a bad ABC lineup, but also to the recent gains in viewership by long-time also-ran WNBC. The Live at Five/News 4 New York formats seemed to take viewership away from 7 and over to 4, while WCBS’ ratings remained relatively steady during this period. As a result, the station began to act curiously – trying to change its image to become “hipper”, and introducing fluffier and more sensational content in the form of “Insider Reports”. From 1984, another major change was made: the music. In 1983, WLS in Chicago, under the leadership of Bill Applegate and Dennis Swanson, retooled its own lagging Eyewitness News to great success. As part of that retooling, WLS commissioned Frank Gari to produce a revised and expanded version of the Cool Hand Luke/Tar Sequence theme called “News Series 2000”. Soon after, NS2000 was adopted by most of the stations using the original CHL theme, including WABC.

Cranston-Csuri

Computerized graphics began to come into their own by 1985, and all of the major New York stations embraced them rather quickly. Eyewitness News made tentative steps into CG with the previous “flying letters” set of titles, but commissioned a bold new look for 1985 from Cranston-Csuri, then one of the leaders in CGI computer graphics. The opens from this period are impressive, featuring a CGI New York skyline. Bold new chyron graphics were introduced and the 1982 set was painted blue. The look, while impressive, did not last a year as WABC continued to experience slumping ratings. ABC bosses brought in Bill Applegate, who had successfully revitalized KABC and WLS, to do the same thing at WABC. The station’s on-air look was changed to reflect that of WLS and KABC, and the expensive opens were scrapped for more primitive traditionally animated graphics.

CBS2 2000 – 2003

WCBS, lagging in ratings, brought in WSVN’s creator, Joel Cheatwood to revitalize its news operation. The solution that Cheatwood came up with was… controversial, to say the least. He reinventede the station as the “CBS 2 Information Network”, using reports from various “content partners” such as CBS News, US News and World Report, and even VH1! WCBS seemed to change something every few months. The impressive graphics were unveiled for “News 2” in April; they were then modified for the “CBS 2 Information Network” in October. The 11pm news was overhauled and became “Nightcast” in January 2001, with a different theme and graphics. The newscasts originated from CBS’ “The Early Show” studios, but then moved to the CBS Sports studios in mid-2001. With September 11th, WCBS began to tone down its graphics and eventually ended up dumping the Information Network and Nightcast in 2002.

CBS2 2003

A major shakeup of Viacom/CBS’ television station operations came in 2002, when Dennis Swanson was named president of Viacom Television Stations. Cheatwood was out and WNBC news director Dianne Doctor was in. Predictably, many of Cheatwood’s excesses were toned down under Doctor and Swanson – Nightcast was changed back to “CBS 2 News at 11”, and the tabloid elements began to be ditched in favor of a “news for the people” approach. WCBS unveiled its new sets, graphics, and theme in January 2003. The theme was a revised version of KCBS’ 1997 theme, composed by John Hegner and later named “News In Focus”. Ironically, KCBS dropped its original version just days before WCBS launched its version!

WESH (channel 2) is a television station licensed to Daytona Beach, Florida, United States, serving the Orlando area as an affiliate of NBC.

1980s

1990s

2000s

WEWS-TV (channel 5) is a television station in Cleveland, Ohio, United States, affiliated with ABC.

Like WTXF did, WFLD chooses to identify as “Fox Chicago.” News is “Fox News Chicago”, though most graphics just say Fox Chicago or Fox. Their news is fronted by Walter Jacobson, who is one of Chicago’s news legends. Thus, it has a far less hypey tone than many Fox stations, although it’s arguably flashier than the other stations in town.

WFTC (channel 9.2) is a television station licensed to Minneapolis, Minnesota.

WGNX-TV

WJBK (channel 2) is a television station in Detroit, Michigan, United States, serving as the market’s Fox network outlet.

WJW (channel 8) is a television station in Cleveland, Ohio, United States, affiliated with the Fox network.

WKYC (channel 3) is a television station in Cleveland, Ohio, United States, affiliated with NBC and owned by Tegna Inc.

WLVI (channel 56) is a television station licensed to Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, serving the Boston area as an affiliate of The CW.

CW56

WMAQ-TV (channel 5) is a television station in Chicago, Illinois, United States, serving as the market’s NBC outlet.

Aside from the 1987 update, the basic look of News 4 New York had remained unchanged for ten years, from 1980 to 1990. That year brought a much more dramatic revision of the station’s overall imaging. The familiar theme was now entirely dropped for a new composition by John Hegner, a new version of the cut 4 was introduced, and the set was completely repainted to a blue-and-white scheme. The results were mixed – the set still looks good, but the brighter colors diminish the classic feeling of depth and style. Responding to diminished ratings, News 4 New York took on a more subdued, serious news feel. Pat Harper left the station, to be replaced with the much younger Dawn Fratangelo, while a returning Tony Guida replaced Jack Cafferty on a retooled, more serious “Live at Five”. The retooled Live at Five did not last long – the format was retired in September 1991 and Chuck Scarborough teamed with Sue for “News 4 New York At 5”.

WNBC, like the NBC television network, was in a general slump during the 1970s. It was usually running third in news ratings behind WCBS and WABC, which usually battled for control of first place. At the beginning of the decade, WNBC originated the “NewsCenter 4” concept, which introduced a space-age control room like set and a futuristic ticker; the “NewsCenter” name spread across the country, with the ticker theme and set design copied by a number of NBC affiliates and O&Os. This page covers WNBC from the 1970s until the first part of 1980. News 4 New York coverage follows on the next page…

News 4 New York was introduced in October 1980 and was the culmination of a major restructure of WNBC’s last-place news operation. Many of the changes were already in place when the rebrand occurred: most prominently, the new “Live at Five” news-and-entertainment format, largely a cost-cutting measure that moved most of the major newsgathering resources to the 6pm and 11pm newscasts. (Indeed, through much of the 1980s, Live at Five was positioned as a separate brand – it was “Live at Five” then “News 4 New York”, never “News 4 New York Live at Five”.) The revamp introduced a dramatic, landmark new look. Jim McAllister composed an entirely synthesized new theme with an identifiable ticker, a new dual-cut “4” design was introduced, and graphics were more polished than ever before. However, the most dramatic part of the new look was the set. An update of the “control room” theme WNBC had used for years, the design took advantage of negative space and selective lighting. The result was a distinctive, “in-depth” look that remains unique.

1970s

1980s

1990s

In 1992, WNBC was looking to update its image, as News 4 New York had fallen behind in the ratings. Under station manager Bill Bolster, a new logo and identity – “4 New York” – was commissioned, along with a fantastic new theme package composed by Edd Kalehoff. The centerpiece? An elaborate, amazing 3 minute and 30 second promo shot all over the city. While there was some criticism of the campaign as too “small market”, elements of this look stayed with WNBC for years. The logo, the general graphics style, and even the theme (reworked in 1995 to include the NBC musical logo) lasted in some form or another until 2003. The campaign has proved popular enough for two revivals. For the Winter Olympics in 2002, the jingle was resurrected as a morale-booster in the wake of the September 11th attacks. A more comprehensive revival – rivaling and perhaps surpassing the original in scope – was launched in 2007.

NBC 4 / News Channel 4

The station rebranded itself again in 1995, to reflect a newsier appearance. “NBC 4” was adopted for general station branding, while “NewsChannel 4” replaced the long-running “News 4 New York”. “We’re 4 New York” was also gone, replaced by the more serious “The Tri-State NewsChannel”. However, aside from that the rebranding amounted to little more than a name change. The music was, essentially, a revision of “We’re 4 New York” with the NBC chimes added to the melody. No significant graphics or set changes were made from 1995 to 2003, as WNBC abided by the “if it’s not broke, don’t fix it” philosophy. And WNBC was certainly not broken – this look defined a period when the station and network were dominating the ratings.

2003 Upgrade

In 2003, WNBC’s set in Studio 6B was found to have bad electrical wiring, and the station was forced to reconstruct its set in order to bring it up to code. During that time, the station decided to finally upgrade its on-air look to a much more contemporary standard. As NBC was standardizing its stations around a graphical look designed for KNBC in Los Angeles, it was widely believed the new look would echo this new house style. Surprisingly, it didn’t. A very nice custom appearance was designed, centered around beams of light and a shimmering blue peacock. This look was designed by Randy Pyburn of Pyburn Films; similar graphic designs were used previously at CNBC and later at KYW in Philadelphia. The music was composed by Rampage Music New York, headed by Pyburn’s associate James Ryan. Again, two sets were erected, one for Today In New York and Live at Five, and one for the 6pm and 11pm newscasts. The morning and 5pm set used a unique backdrop that seemed to put the studio right in the heart of Midtown. The 6pm and 11pm set was much simpler yet technically impressive: it centered around a huge backdrop of New York. However, the image was in fact a seamless video backdrop, achieved using four rear projectors and footage mounted from a hard drive. While the station looked great (and looked even better with a 2006 transition to HD newscasts), ratings began to drop due to lacklustre performance at NBC as well as cost-cutting measures that saw the departure of many of the station’s top talent.

Iconic as it was, the News 4 New York presentation package needed a refresh by 1987. The look was much more of an evolution, as the elements remain similar to the 1980 originals. The biggest change was reserved for the newscast opens, which had moved from film animation to cutting edge CGI. A new, dancier version of the McAllister theme – possibly by Edd Kalehoff – was adopted.

2008

With the successful reintroduction of “We’re 4 New York”, the revived branding suddenly began to filter through all aspects of the station’s operation. By 2008, it seemed like 1993 all over again: “News 4 New York” was reinstated as the title of the newscasts, and “4 New York” returned as the general station branding, displacing “NBC 4”. Unfortunately, it was 1993 all over again in another area: the ratings. NBC had sunk into dead last in prime time, and WNBC’s ratings sharply declined as well. The station was being hobbled by rampant NBC cost cutting – if a corner could be cut, it was. Saying that, many of the station’s wounds were self-inflicted. A decision to start a 7pm newscast resulted in a “News at When” scenario for the evening newscasts. Live at Five was cancelled, in favor of a half-hour of consumer news at 5:30. Then the half-hour of consumer news was uncancelled and a 5pm half-hour returned. The 7pm was cancelled, and the 5pm hour was back… then it wasn’t, as WNBC had decided to do a non-news local program in that timeslot. In November 2008, WNBC launched one more controversial experiment: the “content center”. Instead of writers, producers, and editors, WNBC’s staff became “content producers” for the main newscasts, a digital news/lifestyle channel, and a revamped non-news local website. The new setup was implemented in the new Studio 7E at 30 Rock, leaving the cavernous Studio 6B that had been the station’s home for decades. Is it an improvement? That’s up to you to decide…

WNDU-TV (channel 16) is a television station in South Bend, Indiana, United States, affiliated with NBC.

WNEP-TV (channel 16) is a television station licensed to Scranton, Pennsylvania, United States, serving as the ABC affiliate for Northeastern Pennsylvania.