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KABC-TV

Coordinates: 34°09′27″N 118°17′17″W / 34.157544°N 118.288121°W / 34.157544; -118.288121
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34°09′27″N 118°17′17″W / 34.157544°N 118.288121°W / 34.157544; -118.288121 {{Infobox broadcast}} may refer to:

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KABC-TV, channel 7, is an owned-and-operated television station of the Walt Disney Company-owned American Broadcasting Company, licensed to Los Angeles, California. KABC-TV's studios are located in Glendale, California, and its transmitter is located on Mount Wilson.

In the few areas of the western United States where viewers cannot receive ABC programs over-the-air, KABC-TV is available on satellite to subscribers of DirecTV.

History

An early KECA-TV logo slide from 1949 to 1954.

Channel 7 first went on the air as KECA-TV on September 16, 1949. At the same time, it was the last of Los Angeles' VHF television stations to sign-on, and the last of the five original ABC-owned stations to debut, after KGO-TV in San Francisco signed-on four months earlier.

The station was named after Los Angeles broadcasting pioneer Earle C. Anthony, whose initials were also present on channel 7's then-sister radio station, KECA (790 AM, now KABC). KECA radio had been an affiliate of the NBC Blue Network. Anthony's other Los Angeles radio station, KFI, was aligned with the Red Network. The Red Network survived the Federal Communications Commission-ordered split of the two NBC radio networks in 1943. Edward J. Noble, who bought the Blue Network (beginning its transformation into ABC), purchased KECA radio a year later when the FCC forced Anthony to divest one of his Los Angeles radio stations.

On February 1, 1954 KECA-TV changed its call letters to the present KABC-TV.

From the time of its initial sign-on in 1949, channel 7 was located at the ABC Television Center (now branded as the Prospect Studios), located in the Los Feliz neighborhood of Los Angeles, east of Hollywood. In December 1999, KABC-TV moved from its longtime studios to a new state-of-the-art facility designed by César Pelli in nearby Glendale. [1] The station is currently a short distance from ABC's West Coast headquarters, and from parent Walt Disney Company's headquarters in Burbank.

File:Abc7 57.jpg
KABC-TV logo, c. 1957.

KABC-TV has used the Circle 7 logo since 1962 (the same year ABC created and implemented its current logo), and augmented its bottom left quadrant with the ABC network logo in 1997. The station's news anchors and reporters wear Circle 7 lapel pins when they appear on camera, a practice that had once been standard at each of the original five ABC-owned stations.

On February 4, 2006, KABC-TV became the first television station in California to broadcast its newscasts in high-definition. Along with the in-house upgrades, the station debuted an upgraded news set and an update to their theme music.

In the weeks preceeding the 2009 Presidential Inaguration, KABC refused to sell ad space to a non-profit organization called gettoknowusfirst.org for the swearing in of the 44th President. The rejected advertisement profiled two LA residents raising 5 children aged 6 to 25. The LA residents depicted were both African-American men. The Media Buyer used by the non-profit organization, Chris Yokogawa, claims that "KABC said it was too controversial to air because many families will be watching". KABC was the only station in all of California to reject the request to purchase ad space by the non-profit organization.

Digital television

The station's digital signal is multiplexed:

KABC-DT

KABC-DT broadcasts on digital channel 53.

Virtual
Channel 		Name Programming
7.1 KABC-DT main KABC-TV/ABC programming
7.2 KABC-DT2 KABC Plus
7.3 KABC-DT3 Local weather channel

KABC Plus, also known as "ABC7+," mainly airs rebroadcasts of its local news and public affairs programming, as well as some syndicated shows. However, ABC7+ can carry shows that are normally on the main channel, if KABC has preempted the shows for breaking news. For example, twice in 2007, ABC7+ aired sports events from ESPN on ABC when KABC covered wildfires. They were the Subway 500 NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series race on October 21 and the first round of the Skins Game golf tournament on November 24.

Analog-to-digital transition

After the analog television shutdown scheduled for February 17, 2009 [2], KABC-TV will move its digital signal to channel 7.[3]

News Programming

File:KABC Eyewitness News 2005.jpg
Old Eyewitness News open, used until the 2006 switch to high-definition.

KABC-TV first adopted the Eyewitness News format in February 1969, not long after it became a hit at sister station WABC-TV in New York City. Like the other ABC-owned stations, Channel 7 used the "Tar Sequence" cue from the soundtrack of the 1967 film Cool Hand Luke as its theme music, and continued to do so even after the others adopted the Frank Gari-composed News Series 2000, an updated version of the theme. Later on, the original Cool Hand Luke theme would only be used in the news open, a similar practice to what KGO-TV, WTVD-TV and WABC-TV did at the time. The station's newscasts used a synthesized version of the old theme, composed by Frank Becker, during the mid-1980s. KABC-TV would pick up the News Series 2000 package in 1990. In 1995 KABC began using Gari's "Eyewitness News" music package, which remains the station's news theme.

During the 1980s, KABC-TV was one of a few stations in the country to run a three-hour block of local news during weekday afternoons and early evenings from 4:00 to 7:00 p.m. The station was the first in the region, if not the state, to introduce an hour long newscast at 4 p.m., first anchored by Jerry Dunphy and Tawny Little in September 1980. Before this the station ran two hours of news from 5-7 p.m.

The station reduced this block by one half hour in 1990, when it moved ABC World News Tonight (now World News with Charles Gibson) from 7:00 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. For a time in the late 1980s, its 6:30 p.m. newscast was branded "Eyewitness Update" and served as a final recap of the day's news, similar in nature to an 11 p.m. newscast.

KABC-TV is currently one of two ABC stations on the West Coast to air World News at 6:30 p.m.; The only other ABC station to do this is KGTV in San Diego which recently moved it's 6 PM airing of "World News" to make room for a 7 PM newscast. Most other Western ABC stations run this broadcast at 5:30 or 6:00 p.m.. When the network soap opera Port Charles ended its run in 2003, channel 7 expanded its midday newscast to a full hour. KABC-TV currently airs over 40 hours of live news programming each week, more than any other individual television station in Los Angeles.

KABC-TV is one of two Los Angeles television stations with a full-time presence in California's state capital, Sacramento. Since late 2003, the station has shared resources with sister stations KGO-TV in San Francisco and KFSN-TV in Fresno to staff a Sacramento bureau following Arnold Schwarzenegger's election to the office of Governor, during the 2003 California recall.

Notable on-air personalities who have worked for the station's news department in the past include Bill Bonds, Jerry Dunphy, Christine Lund, Lisa McRee, Harold Greene, Tawny Little, Laura Diaz, Paul Moyer, Chuck Henry, Dr. George Fischbeck, Judd Rose, and Bill Weir. Former channel 7 sports reporters and anchors include former NFL players Lynn Swann, Gene Washington, Jim Hill and Bob Chandler, and former Major League Baseball player (and current Los Angeles Dodgers radio analyst and play-by-play announcer) Rick Monday.

During the 1970s and 1980s the station's newscasts often included spirited mini debates and commentaries reflecting various political viewpoints. Several notable politicians and political pundits appeared on these segments including Proposition 13 backer Howard Jarvis, former U.S. Representative and Senator John Tunney, Bruce Herschensohn, Bill Press and Baxter Ward. In addition, like many other stations at the time, KABC-TV aired brief editorials from the stations general manager, most notably John Severino, who served throughout the 1980s. This practice was discontinued in 1990.

Ratings

The introduction of Eyewitness News, followed by the addition of syndicated staples such as The Oprah Winfrey Show (in 1986), Live with Regis and Kelly, Jeopardy!, and Wheel of Fortune (all in 1992) has given a slight boost to KABC's ratings.

Leveraging the strength of its sizeable Oprah lead-in at 3:00 p.m, channel 7 has long held 2nd or 1st the ratings lead for its 4:00 to 6:30 p.m. news block. However, ratings leads for the morning and late news have typically been spirited (and expensive) battles with local stations KTLA and KTTV in the morning, and KNBC (and recently KCBS-TV) at 11:00 p.m. When ABC primetime programming was faltering, channel 7 would typically finish in second place behind KNBC at 11:00 p.m. and 2nd place in the morning to KNBC or KTLA.

With its across-the-board ratings success in hand, the station has been running quick five-second "tags" throughout the day that say, "ABC 7 -- Number one in news, number one in Southern California." This is a throwback to its openers during the 1980s, when the station proudly proclaimed itself "Number One in Southern California."

Other Programming

KABC-TV produces several local shows including Vista L.A.. (which profiles Latino life in Southern California), and Eye on L.A.. (which has been on the air in some form since the early 1980s). On weekends, the station airs Eyewitness Newsmakers, hosted by reporter Adrienne Alpert.

The station produces a sports/variety type show branded ABC 7 Sports Zone, which formerly originated from the ESPN Zone in Anaheim. This show airs occasionally following network telecasts of NCAA football and NBA games. Most ABC 7 Sports Zone shows now originate from local sports venues including the Los Angeles Coliseum, the Rose Bowl in Pasadena and Staples Center in Los Angeles, and occasionally at the station's studios in Glendale. It is hosted by Rob Fukuzaki. This program is a spin-off of Monday Night Live, which aired on KABC-TV from 1989 until Monday Night Football left the network after the 2005 NFL season. That show was hosted by Todd Donoho until 1997, and later Bill Weir and Rob Fukuzaki and featured an extensive trivia contest.

Prior to ABC's annual telecasts of the Academy Awards, KABC-TV produces a live pre-awards show, An Evening at the Academy Awards: The Arrivals, featuring red carpet interviews and fashion commentary. This show also airs on the network's other owned stations and is syndicated to several ABC affiliates and other broadcasters outside the country. The station also produces and broadcasts post-ceremony show called An Evening at the Academy Awards: The Winners.

In the past, KABC-TV featured various locally produced shows such as AM Los Angeles; a morning talk show which at various times featured personalities Regis Philbin, Sarah Purcell, Ralph Story, Tawny Little, Cristina Ferrare, Cyndy Garvey, and Steve Edwards as hosts. Edwards also hosted a short lived afternoon show in the mid-1980s branded 330. (Live with Regis and Kelly, co-hosted by Philbin, now occupies the former time slot of AM Los Angeles.)

On April 30, 1954, KABC-TV aired a preview, Dig Me Later, Vampira, hosted by Maila Nurmi at 11:00pm. The Vampira Show premiered on the following night, May 1, 1954. For the first four weeks, the show aired at midnight, and it moved to 11:00pm on May 29. Ten months later, the series aired at 10:30pm, beginning March 5, 1955. As Vampira, Nurmi introduced films while wandering through a hallway of mist and cobwebs. Her horror-related comedy antics included talking to her pet spider Rollo and encouraging viewers to write for epitaphs instead of autographs. When the series was cancelled in 1955, she retained rights to the character of Vampira.

In 1964, Pinky Lee attempted a return to kids TV by hosting a local children's comedy program on KABC-TV. The series was also seen in national syndication for the 1964 & 1965 TV seasons. But the program fell prey to creative interference from the show's producers and from station management. Lee tried to fight off the creative interference, but his efforts were for naught. The 1960s version of "The Pinky Lee Kids TV Show" went off the air after one season.

Current personalities

Anchors

  • Marc Brown - weeknights 5:00 p.m. & 11:00 p.m
  • John Gregory - weekend mornings & Saturdays Noon
  • Lisa Hernandez - weekend mornings & Saturdays Noon
  • Jovana Lara - weekend evenings
  • Ellen Leyva - weekdays 4:00 p.m. & 6:00 p.m.
  • Micah Ohlman - weekend evenings
  • David Ono - weekdays 4:00 p.m. & 6:00 p.m.
  • Phillip Palmer - weekday mornings & 11:00 a.m.
  • Leslie Sykes - weekdays 11:00 a.m.
  • Michelle Tuzee - weeknights 5:00 p.m. & 11:00 p.m.
  • Kathy Vara - weekday mornings

Weather

  • Garth Kemp - Weekday Mornings
  • Indra Petersons - Weekend mornings & Saturdays Noon
  • Dallas Raines (AMS Certified) - chief meteorologist - Weeknights
  • Danny Romero - weekend evenings

Traffic

Sports

Reporters

Notable alumni

   

Newscast titles

  • Southern California/Los Angeles Report (1950-1962)
  • Channel 7 News (1962-1969)
  • Channel 7 Eyewitness News (1969-1997)
  • ABC 7 Eyewitness News (1997-present)
  • ABC 7 Eyewitness News HD (February 2006-present)

Movie Umbrella Titles

Rebroadcasters

KABC is rebroadcast on the following translator stations:

See also

References

  1. ^ YouTube - KABC New Year 2000 Footage
  2. ^ http://hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/DA-06-1082A2.pdf
  3. ^ CDBS Print
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