Mission Broadcasting stations off of DirecTV & AT&T U-Verse including FOX4 due to a re-trans fight.

FOX4 in Grand Junction, KFQX has been pulled from DirecTV, DirecTV Stream & AT&T U-Verse as KFQX's owner Mission Broadcasting, Inc is in a fee dispute with the Sat Caster.  The blackout began at 4PM Mountain time today.  

***NOTE: This only affects KFQX and not KREX or KGJT as Nexstar Media is not currently in contract talks with DirecTV. ***

It will be interesting to see how long this dispute lasts. 

We have a counter going on the blog to track how long FOX4 is off DirecTV.   So if you have satellite service in Grand Junction or Montrose you might want an Antenna if you want to watch FOX NFL Sunday or FOX News Sunday this weekend.   

Interestingly enough there is nothing on Westernslopenow.com indicating there is any service disruption to FOX4. It's strange to me the station wouldn't have notice on its website. 

FOX31's NEW SET & STUDIO DEBUT'S TONIGHT

FOX31 KDVR/KFCT---Debuts it's new studio & set tonight on FOX31 NEWS @ 9PM.  It's been 2 months in the making.  It has lots of video monitors and a new weather center, it was built by Orlando FL based FX Design group. 

Check out the link below to get a sneak peek.   If you're thinking to yourself the station has used a lot of news sets over the years, your correct, from their original studio that went on the air in 2000, there updated FOX O&O Set, to the newsroom set after the merger with KWGN, to the set they have been using since 2018.  (My count is this will be their 5th set since there debut newscast on July 16, 2000.)  

https://kdvr.com/on-air/on-fox31/new-set-studio-oct-2022/

Former KCNC Anchor Suzann McCarroll has passed away

We have sad news to pass along, former KCNC Anchor & Reporter Suzanne McCarroll has passed away in Southern California according to CBS Denver, she passed away yesterday afternoon.  She was on the air from 1982-2016, as a general assignment reporter and financial specialist. 

There is currently no word on the cause of death. 

For those of us that have been here in Denver for years, she will be greatly missed. 

https://www.cbsnews.com/colorado/video/remembering-suzanne-mccarroll-as-a-journalist-mentor-friend/?intcid=CNM-00-10abd1h

                                                                          (Picture: KCNC/CBS)

                  Mike Ferburg, Suzanne McCarroll & Meteorologist Jim Thomas (Picture: KCNC/CBS)

9NEWS Turns 70 today.

Today 9NEWS Celebrates 70 years on the air.  They officially went on the air on October 12, 1952 at 3:00PM.  Unfortunately, there is no film or tape of there 1st newscast or anything from their first day on the air.  

Here is some more history about KUSA TV / KBTV---9NEWS. 

• It was the 2nd tv station in Colorado & 111th nationwide.
• ABC loaned the station it's 112,000-Watt temporary transmitter, it was boosted 20times to 240,000 watts by June 1953.
• The slogan at the time was "Denver's better television station".
• The first studio location was at Colfax Ave & Speer Boulevard behind where Denver Fire station #1 is located today. (No pictures have been found of this building)
• They broadcast programing from CBS & ABC.  (NBC Programing was seen on KWGN at the time)
• The fist program on the air was The Quiz Kids from CBS. 
• They eventually moved into a new studio at 1089 Bannock Street in Denver (KRMA later took this address over) 
• In 1992 they moved to the current studio location at 500 E. Speer Boulevard, it was the largest TV station in Denver by square foot until FOX Television Stations, LLC built KDVR's News & Technology Center in 2000. 
• On September 10, 1995 KUSA switched from ABC to NBC as part of a larger national broadcast re-alignment, other stations included with this re-alignment were WTVJ in Miami, WNCN in Raleigh, NC & KSL-TV in Salt Lake City  
• In April 2004 KUSA was the first TV Station in Colorado to go High Definition, included with this was a new SKY9 a Eurocopter-AS350. 
• They switched call letters from KBTV to KUSA-TV in 1984. 
• They briefly shared the Dumont Network with KWGN from 1953-1956.
• They were the first TV station in the country to film the construction of a nucellar power plant (Fort St Vrain) now a natural gas fired power plant in Northeastern Colorado owned by Xcel Energy.
• There 2nd studio location on Bannock street was a former car dealership that was converted to a tv studio.
• NBC's Tom Costello was a reporter at 9NEWS in the early 1990s, he left the station in Summer of 1995. 
• Reporter Fred Dressler founded the E! Entertainment Network, Sun Sports Network (now Bally Sports SUN), Sports Net New York & In-Demand network, that was seen on many cable systems (CATV) nationwide.  
• KUSA's 1996-2004 News set was used in the 1997 NBC Made for TV Movie "Asteroid". 
• 9NEWS.COM launched in May of 1996, a brainchild of former 9NEWS manager Tim Deetz who retired February 1, 2021.

(PICTURE: KUSA)

1965 Denver Flood (KUSA TV) 

(News footage from 1988, behind the scenes when the 5pm news was an hour long)

(Video: KUSA)

(The 9NEWS Set that was used for the NBC tv Movie Asteroid)

It wasn't until Day 2 that 9NEWS started its news reporting, October 13, 1952, with only a 10-minute report of the day's news and a quick weather report with Vince Monforte.  

Fast forward to today, they are now broadcasting 40 hours of news a week on 2 tv stations KUSA & KTVD, they have multiple channels--NBC 9.1, COZI-TV 9.2 True Crime Network 9.3, Quest on 9.5 & Circle TV on 9.6. (9.4 is used on the KTVD side to re-broadcast KUSA for folks who have signal issues with the KUSA signal) 

(KBTV's 1st Logo)

(KUSA's current Logo, since 2017)

9NEWS--KUSA TV, Turns 70 Tomorrow.

Tomorrow October 12th KUSA TV celebrates 70 years on the air.   I will try to capture as much as I can tomorrow.  So Stay Tuned.....  

If you're wondering why I didn't do anything on KWGN's 70th back in July they didn't mention much about it.  It was Denver's 1st TV Station, then KBTV now KUSA signed on.  

KBTV's studios were originally a converted car dealership at 11th Ave & Bannock street. A studio location they used until 1992 when they moved into their current facilities at 500 E. Speer Boulevard in Denver.  There original studios became the home of KRMA Rocky Mountain PBS from 1992 to 2019 when they moved to 5 points.     

On Sunday September 10, 1995 9NEWS Switched from ABC to NBC in what was called "The Big Switch" we have an article on this blog explaining that switch if you want to read it, it involved stations in Philadelpha & TV transmitters in Miami. 

9NEWS has had some great promos so far showing some of their history, I can't wait to see what they show tomorrow. 

(We are 17 years & 2 months away from Channel 20--KTVD turning 50)  

Here are the past logos of 9NEWS: 

1st Logo, October 12, 1952--1956

1956-1964

1966-1974

1974-1977

1977- 1984

1984-1995

September 10, 1995-October 31, 1995

(Used after the switch to NBC)

October 31, 1995-March 31, 1999

March 31,1999- August 1,2017

August 1, 2017--Present  

(Used on news programing with the bottom logo)

September 7 2017--Present 

(Alternate Logo, used on promos, Legal I.D.s, social media & NBC Primetime)

9NEWS/ KUSA, Current & Past Anchors & Reporters as KUSA gets ready to celebrate 70 years on the air.

9NEWS Turns 70 on October 12th.   The station has been running ad's since March about the upcoming 70th anniversary.  So yesterday the station did a big photo shoot with past  & present 9NEWSers.  Here is that photo..

               (Picture Courtesy: TWITTER/@MikeNelson247 )  

Around October 12th or so, I'll post more old station photos and do a detailed history on 9NEWS.