Wnbt Analysis

The History of NBC

News Channel 4 signed on the air as WNBT on July 1,1941, at 1:29 p.m. This historic event was the beginning of commercial television in the United States. At 2:30 p.m. the same day, WNBT again made history when 4,000 television sets were tuned to the station's first telecast, a game at Ebbets Field between Brooklyn and Philadelphia, followed by the P&G sponsored "Truth or Consequences" and "Uncle Jim's Questions Bee." The telecast also brought the first sponsor to the air. The Bulova clock filled the lower right hand quadrant of the test pattern and an announcer read the time. Bulova paid $4 for the first commercial and $5 for the use of facilities. And, America saw its first pair of televised dishpan hands—those
WNBC became the NBC flagship television station, responsible for programming its own local time. Early programs included "City at Midnight" (an hour-long drama originating from the story's actual location, somewhere in the City) and weather forecasts delivered by cartoonist Tex Antoine. In March of 1948, "The Voice of Firestone" was heard for the first time; in 1954, the "Tonight Show" with Steve Allen was born; and in the late `50s, George A. Heinmann created "Shari Lewis and Lamb chop." Over the next few decades, WNBC-TV also achieved many industry firsts in news. WNBC-TV was the first station to inaugurate the half-hour late-night news format on its "11th Hour News"; first to launch the one-hour early evening local news broadcast "Sixth Hour News;" first to broadcast local news in color and first to present a two-hour news program in New York titled "News Center 4." WNBC-TV was also the first local station to introduce local audiences to a live news interview program—"Live at Five," which remains on the station's program schedule today. The program was later named "News 4 New York at 5" August of `91 and again dubbed "Live at Five" in August of
on October 30,1995, News Channel 4 became the exclusive NBC television network component of the PrimeTime 24 PT East package. PrimeTime 24 offers packages of network affiliates to home satellite dishes and cable television systems via satellite. Now, the hundreds of thousands of people across the country that are unable to view network television without a dish, can watch the high caliber news and entertainment programming synonymous with News Channel 4. In January 1996, the Tri-State area was overtaken by one of the worst snowstorms to hit the area in the last century. Throughout the three days of "Blizzard `96," News Channel 4's team anchors, reporters and weather experts were on-air, providing viewers with over 24 hours of up-to-the-minute snow information. After the storm, the station was also the source for much needed follow-up reports. As a result, more viewers turned to NBC4 to get their weather information than any other New York City station, and "News Channel 4" won high critical praise for its in-depth, wall-to-wall coverage. In 1996, News Channel 4 celebrated the centennial Olympic games and originated its "News Channel 4/Liveat Five" broadcasts from Atlanta, July 19 through August 5. Beginning with the actual lighting of the Olympic flame, the "Live at Five" anchors delivered the 5 p.m. news from Atlanta's