WKBD-TV
FCC | |
Facility ID | 51570 |
---|---|
ERP | 285 kW |
HAAT | 290.6 m (953.4 ft) |
Transmitter coordinates | 42°29′1″N 83°18′44″W / 42.48361°N 83.31222°W |
Links | |
Public license information | |
Website | www |
WKBD-TV (channel 50), branded as Detroit 50, is an
WKBD began broadcasting on January 10, 1965. It was the first
As part of the dissolution of Field Communications,
Paramount's parent company, Viacom, merged with CBS in 2000, bringing WKBD-TV and CBS-owned WWJ-TV under one roof. WKBD's news operation was briefly extended to serve the previously newsless WWJ-TV, but this failed to attract viewers, and it was shut down in 2002. After having the Red Wings, Pistons, and Detroit Tigers rights at the same time, all three professional teams abandoned WKBD between 2003 and 2005. When UPN and The WB merged to form The CW in 2006, WKBD-TV and twelve other CBS-owned UPN stations were among its first affiliates. CBS sold its stake in The CW in 2022 and withdrew its eight remaining affiliates from the network the next year. The station airs local newscasts as part of CBS News Detroit, the news operation and streaming service for WWJ-TV established in 2023.
Channel 50 prior to WKBD-TV
Channel 50 was first assigned to Detroit in April 1952, when the
Woodward Broadcasting, which applied later, withdrew its bid when it purchased the channel 62 construction permit belonging to the
History
Kaiser and Field ownership (1965–1983)
Signing on with sports
On August 31, 1962,[15] Kaiser Industries, the conglomerate owned by California industrialist Henry J. Kaiser, applied to the FCC for three new UHF TV stations: channel 38 in Chicago; channel 41 in Burlington, New Jersey (to serve Philadelphia); and channel 50 in Detroit.[16] This was the second application by Kaiser Broadcasting for TV stations on the U.S. mainland: it already owned stations in Hawaii and had requested UHF channels in the Los Angeles and San Francisco areas. Richard C. Block, the president of Kaiser Broadcasting, told Broadcasting magazine that the company had "an abiding faith that there is right now a need for additional TV service ... and UHF obviously provided the opportunity". The applications called for a general-appeal program lineup, local and live talent, and local news.[17] The FCC granted the construction permit for the Detroit station on January 3, 1963; it was the third permit granted, after the two California stations.[15][18]
We felt that someone should go out and build a UHF station to keep the all-channel bill going—and do it right ... manufacturers were saying: "Nobody is putting any money into this thing, so why do it?"
Richard C. Block, Kaiser Broadcasting executive, on why WKBD was chosen as its first UHF station[19]
With the permit granted, Kaiser sent John Serrao, manager of its
WKBD first signed on the air on January 10, 1965.
Local shows and Lou Gordon
On February 6, 1966, WKBD began a talk show featuring journalist
But, almost from the beginning, it was sharp-tongued Lou Gordon who made viewers—important and ordinary—aware of WKBD... For 12 years, until his death at 60 in 1977, Gordon baited guests and railed against big corporations on his Channel 50 show. Utilities were particular targets if he thought they were gouging the "little people". Monday mornings in Detroit's workplaces, Gordon's latest escapade was frequently the subject of coffee break conversations.
Bettelou Peterson, Detroit Free Press television critic[35]
Gordon went national in 1967, under the title Lou Gordon's Hot Seat, and began to be distributed to the other Kaiser stations. The first program featured a 35-minute interview with
Gordon's program regularly generated scoops. A 1971 front-page story in the Free Press was generated based on an advance interview conducted by Gordon which revealed an attempt by Pentagon press officials to encourage the introduction of favorable resolutions at the Disabled American Veterans convention in Detroit.[49][46] In 1974, his interview with Henry Ford II led to Ford announcing Lee Iacocca as the next president of the Ford Motor Company;[50] a federal judge pronounced himself in favor of the impeachment of Richard Nixon; and another appearance led to an investigation of fraud in television repair. These stories made their way into local and national newspapers. His talk show had higher ratings in Detroit than the national programs of Mike Douglas or Johnny Carson, or local travel host George Pierrot.[51] In 1975, when he signed a new deal with Kaiser, it was airing on six of the company's stations plus three others.[52] The program continued until Gordon died in his sleep on May 25, 1977.[45] WKBD attempted to replace Gordon with a show hosted by Barry Farber in his former timeslot, running from November 1977 to June 1978.[53][54]
Network aspirations, local news and financial issues
WKBD briefly gained a
Under Kaiser Broadcasting ownership, in 1968, WKBD began producing a nightly newscast at 10 pm; this was part of a large investment by Kaiser into forming news departments for most of their stations. Kaiser's commitment to news programming groupwide wavered, sometimes in the span of months. In April, half the news department at WKBD was fired, and the news director was dismissed;[59] the group then began expanding programming again, encouraged by ratings success in Cleveland and Detroit.[60] Ultimately, the entire news operation was closed after only two years, due to a weak economy and reluctance to embrace UHF stations; WKBD's news operation was the only one of Kaiser's news departments to turn a profit, though ratings were still much lower than expected.[61][62] The 10 p.m. news had 50,000 viewers per an American Research Bureau survey, capturing just 10 percent of the audience at that hour. Seventeen employees lost their jobs in Detroit.[63]
By 1970, WKBD had become the dominant UHF station in the group and the only profitable one. Losses accelerated throughout the company in 1968 after the sign-on of WKBF and
A minority 22.5 percent stake in Kaiser Broadcasting's holdings (excluding KBSC and Kaiser's radio stations) was sold to
The Ghoul
To say that The Ghoul Show is one long Polish joke interrupted by a boring monster movie ... is not far from the truth. But it is also—in a spontaneous, crazy way—a very funny show.
Fawn Bifoss, Detroit Free Press reporter[66]
One of Kaiser's final syndicated efforts was Creature Features with The Ghoul, which originated from Kaiser's Cleveland station, WKBF, starting in 1971.
The Ghoul was cancelled in the spring of 1975,[76] a precursor to WKBF's own shutdown later that April.[77] While Sweed sued Kaiser for the intellectual property rights to the Ghoul character, WKBD-TV briefly revived the program in August 1975.[78] Sweed moved the show to WXON (channel 20) in September 1976 after prevailing in court[66] and continued to portray the character on various Cleveland and Detroit stations over the next four decades.[68]
Field takes over
Kaiser sold the group to Field outright in January 1977 for a combined $42.625 million (equivalent to $214 million in 2023)
WKBD also occasionally aired programs that the Detroit network affiliates opted not to
In 1981, the station's coverage of the Red Wings diminished from 25 to 15 games a year, with some telecasts migrating to the pay service
Cox ownership, news expansion and Fox affiliation (1983–1993)
Following a family dispute over the company's future,[105] Field Communications placed their entire station group up for sale in July 1982.[106] The liquidation process took place on a per-station level, with Field's Chicago, Boston and San Francisco outlets sold to separate owners at the end of 1982.[107] Cox Communications purchased WKBD for $70 million on May 18, 1983, (equivalent to $214 million in 2023) contingent on Cox divesting their existing cable systems in the market. For Cox, WKBD represented the chain's seventh television station and one of the most successful: Nielsen ratings in 1982 ranked WKBD as the highest-rated UHF independent in the country.[108][109][c] The sale closed in March 1984.[111]
One of the station's first decisions under Cox was to decide it could no longer devote time to carry both of the Red Wings and Pistons. It chose the Pistons, who had higher ratings; beginning in the 1984–85 season, the Red Wings moved their games to WXON.[112] The Red Wings' tenure at WXON lasted only two years; the team returned to WKBD for the 1986–87 season.[113]
During the changeover, Sonny Eliot relinquished hosting duties for the One O' Clock Movie but was retained with a one-year contract extension.
WKBD, along with Cox-owned
The station was buoyed by success in 1988 with Red Wings and Pistons coverage, first-run syndication hits and Fox's weekend lineup stabilizing.
Cox continued to invest in WKBD. A larger physical plant was inaugurated on May 24, 1988, adjacent to the original facilities in Southfield, which were originally intended as temporary and likened to a Quonset hut and "a Cracker Jack box"; this building was later repurposed for storage.[130][131] The new facility allowed for further news expansion with an on-air set incorporating the newsroom,[132] and by April 10, 1989, an extension of The Ten O'Clock News to an hour-long broadcast, even as WKBD's efforts in February 1989—a 5 rating and 7 share—trailed third-place WJBK's 11 p.m. news with a 9 rating and 17 share.[133] The expanded news hour was modeled on KTVU's successful 10 p.m. news program.[134] By July 1991, WKBD claimed to have Detroit's third-highest late evening news, drawing larger numbers than WJBK at 11 pm, a claim WJBK disputed. General manager Duane Kell told the Detroit News, "our goal is to be the No. 1 late news program in the market by 1995."[135]
Sale to Paramount and UPN affiliation (1993–1999)
Cox put both of its Fox affiliates—KTVU and WKBD—on the market in November 1992.[136] This announcement drew industry surprise as Cox's financial position was regarded as strong; in a statement, Cox CEO James C. Kennedy said the company was proud of both stations, had "no overwhelming desire to sell them", and considered them "extremely successful".[137] Rumored as one of several potential suitors,[136] Paramount Stations Group purchased WKBD in June 1993.[138] Terms were not disclosed, but the purchase price was estimated to be between $100 million and $125 million,[139] or as high as $200 million.[140] After the sale closed in October 1993, Paramount announced the formation of a new broadcast network in a joint venture with United Television,[141] but management said WKBD would continue to honor their existing Fox affiliation agreement.[142] When Paramount purchased WKBD, it was among the five highest-rated Fox affiliates in the country.[138]
We had no idea it was coming. But we believe it's going to be an easy transition for us... Remember that Fox only broadcasts two hours a day. It's a very small part of our schedule... I think we're going to do at least as well as we have before, and possibly better.
Paul Prange, WKBD program director[143]
On May 23, 1994, WJBK-TV owner
Under Paramount, WKBD committed to become an affiliate of UPN in late August 1994. UPN only programmed for two nights at launch, enabling the station to continue carrying Pistons and Red Wings games with minimal preemptions, which was not possible in WKBD's last year with Fox.[152] The station also acquired the over-the-air rights to Detroit Tigers baseball from WDIV beginning with the 1995 season via a five-year, $25 million contract.[153] A primetime movie showcase was reinstated on nights UPN did not program, with off-network reruns airing on Thursday nights, including reruns of The Simpsons in the same time slot it had previously held on Fox.[143] This placement of Simpsons reruns came after the station received substantial complaints when Fox moved the show from Thursday to Sunday nights.[150]
WJBK's switch to Fox also resulted in their late-evening newscast moving to 10 pm, directly opposite WKBD. The first week after the switch saw channel 50 fall to fifth place in prime time ratings without Fox programming, and WJBK besting WKBD at 10 pm, a pattern that never changed.[154][155] WKBD's problems were exacerbated by their sports coverage: in the May 1995 sweeps, the 10 p.m. news start time was delayed 10 times due to overruns in game coverage. The newscasts were revamped to have a more updated on-air look, eschewing their "no-frills" presentation.[156] UPN proved a poor lead-in for WKBD's news: when the network suffered a year-over-year decline of 50 percent in the fall of 1998, WJBK-TV's 10 p.m. newscast outdrew WKBD's news by a 2–1 margin. Attempting to draw on WKBD's local sports coverage, the 10 p.m. news was reduced to 30 minutes, with the second half devoted to an ensemble sportscast hosted by Lane, Tim Swor, Mickey Redmond and Karen Newman.[157] While ratings improved modestly in late 1999, co-anchor Dave Scott was replaced with market veteran Rich Fisher, a choice made owing to Fisher's reputation in the market.[158]
Merger into WWJ-TV (1999–2006)
Paramount's parent company, Viacom, purchased half ownership of UPN from United Television in 1996[159] and the remainder in 1999.[160] Viacom purchased CBS Corporation on September 7, 1999, creating a duopoly with WWJ-TV.[161] Unlike other Viacom CBS-UPN duopolies created by the merger where the CBS-owned station had a long-established dominant news department,[162] WKBD was regarded as the larger, higher-rated station, and had a local news presence as opposed to WWJ.[161] WKBD general manager Mike Dunlop was retained to head both stations,[163] with operations consolidated at WKBD's Southfield facilities; seven technical employees lost their jobs in the transition.[164]
By April 2001, WKBD's newscast now ranked as the least-watched in the market[165] and continued to see audience declines against WJBK.[166] Despite this, the station began producing an 11 p.m. weeknight newscast for WWJ-TV, using WKBD's air talent and reporters.[167] Discussions of WKBD's news department producing news for WWJ had been underway prior to the CBS-Viacom merger; at least one dress rehearsal of a channel 62 newscast had been conducted.[168] General manager Mike Dunlop was dismissed in August 2001, due to the continued ratings challenges: from sign-on to sign-off, both stations each drew half the audience of third-place WJBK.[169] By February 2002, WKBD's newscast was repositioned to attract a younger audience with newly appointed lead anchors Pallas Hupe[170] and Donna Terrell, while Fisher and Makupson were reassigned to anchor for WWJ exclusively.[171] Fisher left WWJ in late May, prompting Terrell and WKBD reporter Harry Hariston to alternate as Makupson's co-anchor on the WWJ newscast, resulting in Tom Long of The Detroit News to suggest the purportedly different newscasts were the "attack of the clones".[162]
I'm sorry, very sorry, that [the newscast] is canceled, but it's strictly business. When I'm thinking with my head but not my heart, there's plenty of eyeballs out on the street. Detroit news viewers are going to know what's going on, the viewers are going to get their news.
Amyre Makupson, former WKBD–WWJ news anchor[172]
Rumors emerged that Viacom executive Dennis Swanson[173] planned to close the WKBD–WWJ news operation, the last newsroom Viacom inherited from Paramount that was still in operation.[174] When contacted by a Free Press reporter, these rumors were met with lukewarm responses from station executives.[175] Viacom ultimately signed a five-year contract with WXYZ-TV to produce a 10 p.m. newscast for WKBD, cancelling WWJ's 11 p.m. news outright. In November 2002, WKBD's 10 p.m. news posted a 2.8 rating, far behind WJBK's 7.8 rating.[172] Fifty of the combined newsroom's 70 employees were not retained when the newscasts ended on December 4, 2002.[170][176] Titled UPN Detroit Action News, the replacement WXYZ-TV newscast on WKBD was estimated to save Viacom approximately $10 million annually in expenses, while also providing WXYZ an opportunity to showcase their higher-rated newscasts to UPN's younger demographics.[177] Failing to compete against WJBK, the WXYZ-produced 10 p.m. broadcast was canceled on December 3, 2004, with WKBD filling the timeslot with off-network sitcom reruns.[176][178]
Through the early 2000s, WKBD's local sports coverage came at the expense of UPN programming, which was frequently preempted and moved to the weekends.
The CW affiliation (2006–2023)
On January 24, 2006, CBS Corporation (created after the split of Viacom in December 2005[185]) and the Warner Bros. unit of Time Warner announced that the two companies would shut down UPN and The WB and combine the networks' respective programming to create a new "fifth" network called The CW.[186][187] The day of the announcement, it was revealed that 11 of CBS Corporation's 15 UPN affiliates, including WKBD-TV, signed 10-year affiliation contracts with The CW.[188] The former WB affiliate, WDWB, signed up with MyNetworkTV under the WMYD call sign.[189]
The station resumed having a local news presence with the debut of First Forecast Mornings, an extension of WWJ's existing morning newscast, on February 7, 2011,[190] co-anchored by Syma Chowdhry.[191] First Forecast Mornings was canceled on December 28, 2012, due to low viewership.[192][193]
WKBD-TV began broadcasting a digital signal on December 4, 2000.[194] The station shut down its analog signal, over UHF channel 50, on June 12, 2009, as part of the federally mandated transition from analog to digital broadcasts. The station's digital signal continued to broadcast on its pre-transition UHF channel 14, using virtual channel 50.[195] In 2019, the station was repacked from channel 14 to channel 34 as a result of the 2016 United States wireless spectrum auction.[196]
On December 4, 2019, Viacom and CBS Corporation re-merged to form ViacomCBS, now Paramount Global.[197] WKBD restored a 10 p.m. newscast on January 22, 2020, produced by KTVT in Fort Worth, Texas, and the CBSN Local streaming service as part of an expansion of news programming on CBS-owned CW and independent stations; these included reports from multimedia journalists based in Detroit.[198] On December 14, 2021, ViacomCBS announced the creation of CBS News Detroit, a full-scale news department for the rebranded "CBS News Local", with newscasts simulcast over WWJ and WKBD.[199] Paul Pytlowany, with WKBD since 1988 and the station's director of local production and community affairs since 2017, was named the founding news director.[200] Prior to CBS News Detroit's launch on January 23, 2023,[201][202] WKBD's KTVT-produced 10 p.m. newscast was relaunched as Detroit Now News in July 2022, a hybrid national/local newscast also produced from KTVT with content reported by CBS News Detroit staff.[203]
Return to independence (2023)
On October 3, 2022, Nexstar Media Group acquired majority ownership of The CW.[204] Under the agreement, CBS was given the right to pull its affiliations from WKBD and its seven other CW stations. On May 5, 2023, CBS announced it would exercise that right, with WKBD becoming an independent station at the end of August.[205][d] Coinciding with reverting to independent status, WKBD-TV rebranded as "Detroit 50" and Detroit Now News was dropped from the schedule.[208]
Subchannels
The station's signal is
Channel | Res. | Aspect | Short name | Programming |
---|---|---|---|---|
50.1 | 1080i | 16:9 |
WKBD-HD | Main WKBD-TV programming |
50.2 | 480i | Comet | Comet TV
| |
50.3 | Charge | Charge! | ||
50.4 | TBD | TBD | ||
50.5 | Nosey | SMPTE color bars | ||
50.6 | QVC | QVC |
See also
Notes
- ^ The Captain [City] children's show format was used on the other Kaiser stations[37][38][39] and originated at KHVH-TV as Captain Honolulu, which also had a host nicknamed "Sgt. Sacto".[40]
- ^ White's appraisal has also been cited in contemporary media coverage on WKBD and Lou Gordon.[27][35][45]
- ^ The final Field station, WKBS-TV in Philadelphia, signed off permanently after failing to secure a buyer by the liquidation deadline.[110]
- ^ The CW affiliation in Detroit initially moved to WADL, then was moved again to WMYD by mid-November.[206][207]
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