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KPRC-TV
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| KPRC-TV | |
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| Houston, Texas | |
| Branding | Local 2 |
| Channels | Analog: 2 (VHF) Digital: 35 (UHF) |
| Affiliations | NBC |
| Owner | Post-Newsweek Stations |
| Founded | January 1, 1949 |
| Call letters meaning | Kotton Port Rail Center, as described in a 1989 station-produced documentary. |
| Former callsigns | KLEE-TV (January 1949-July 1950) |
| Former affiliations | CBS secondary (1949-1953) ABC (1949-1954) DuMont (1949-1956) [1] |
| Transmitter Power | 100 kW Analog 1,000 kW Digital |
| Website | www.click2houston.com |
For KPRC Radio, see KPRC (AM).
KPRC-TV is the NBC television affiliate in Houston, Texas, owned and operated by Post-Newsweek Stations, a subsidiary of the Washington Post Company. The station operates on analog channel 2 and digital channel 35.
Contents |
History
The station first broadcast on January 1, 1949, as KLEE-TV, and was owned by hotelier W. Albert Lee. It was the first television station in Houston and the 12th in the United States. Lee never did reasonably well with his station, and on June 1, 1950, KLEE-TV was purchased by the Hobby family, owners of the Houston Post, who had signed on KPRC radio in 1925 as Houston's first radio station. The television station's call letters were changed to match its radio cousin on July 3, 1950.
KPRC-TV has been an NBC affiliate from the very first day (as its radio counterpart was also the Houston affiliate for NBC Radio), though it carried secondary affiliations with CBS until 1953 (when KGUL-TV in Galveston, now KHOU-TV in Houston, signed on), with DuMont until 1956 [2], and with ABC until 1954 (when KTRK-TV signed on) because of the FCC freeze. Because of its affiliation with NBC, KPRC was the first station in Houston to broadcast the first color program in Houston and was subsequently the first to broadcast in full color.
The station originated from studios on Post Oak Road near what would later become the Galleria shopping complex in Uptown Houston. KPRC was the first station in Houston with weather radar, videotape for field reporting, the first TV station with a fully staffed Austin news bureau, and the first TV station in Houston to hire female and African-American reporters.
From 1969 until 1998, KPRC produced the longest-running syndicated television program in Texas, The Eyes of Texas, which focused on lifestyle segments relating to Texas culture and life. It was also one of the first stations to air telethons, raising $28,000 for the American Cancer Society in 1950. It has carried the Jerry Lewis Labor Day Telethon, sponsored by the Muscular Dystrophy Association, since 1970.
In March 1972, KPRC-TV moved into its state-of-the-art studios on the Southwest Freeway in Houston's Sharpstown neighborhood, where it remains to this day. The three studios located within the building are suspended from the ground to reduce vibration.
In 1983, the Houston Post was sold to MediaNews Group, while the Hobby's broadcast holdings were reorganized as H&C Communications. After 40 years of ownership by the Hobby family, KPRC was sold to the Washington Post in April 1994. The Houston Post was bought by Hearst and absorbed into its Houston Chronicle, with the last edition printed in April of 1995.
Since 2004 KPRC has been branded "Local 2" under a new station standardization practice by Post-Newsweek that mandates all its stations use the "Local" branding.
Preemptions
KPRC has been notorious in recent years for its share of preemptions. When the NBC soap opera Passions debuted in 1999, KPRC -- along with its sister station WDIV-TV in Detroit until 2002 -- were the only NBC affiliates that preempted the show [3][4]; both stations also had preempted the earlier soap opera Sunset Beach (though UPN stations in both cities carried Sunset Beach). In its place was the Maury show which moved to KHWB when KPRC cleared the preempted soap opera in its normal network timeslot. Initially, it aired for a short time on KNWS in 2001, and later moved to KPRC the next year with a 3 a.m. timeslot. NBC prefers that affiliates not preempt programs, so on August 30, 2004, KPRC placed Passions in its normal 2 p.m. timeslot.
Late Night with Conan O'Brien used to not air in Houston from 1994 to 1996. KPRC instead opted to air reruns of The Jenny Jones Show in this time slot. However, Late Night did return to KPRC in 1996 but on a delayed basis. In later years, it was delayed to air various programs such as Jerry Springer's talk show at 11:35 p.m., at one point airing other programming in late night which delayed Late Night to 2:40 a.m. This was a fact not lost on Conan, who visited Houston's main bus terminal to watch an episode of his own show in a classic and hilarious skit. KPRC later moved the show to 12:35 a.m. and today airs Conan in its network slot after the Tonight Show. They still however delay Last Call with Carson Daly until 2:05, showing infomercials at 12:35 a.m. in the show's network timeslot. KPRC is also among a handful of NBC affiliates that does not air Poker After Dark.
2001 NASCAR Pepsi 400 controversy
One of the most notorious pre-emptions occurred on July 7, 2001 when KPRC did not air NBC Sports' live coverage of the NASCAR Nextel (then Winston) Cup Series Pepsi 400 from Daytona International Speedway. KPRC, and then general manager, Steve Wasserman (now at sister station WDIV, in Detroit) had a contract to air the Miss Texas Scholarship Pageant live. Unfortunately, this contract was prior to the one signed by NBC to carry NASCAR in late 1999 and by the time KPRC realized that there was a conflict, it was too late to reverse it. This race was especially notable as the winner was Dale Earnhardt, Jr., whose father died at the same track in the final lap of the 2001 Daytona 500 only months before. The station's computer server was temporarily shut down as angry fans flooded KPRC's inbox with a reported 4,000 e-mails. Wasserman also received several complaints in person at KPRC's studios. The race was aired on tape-delay later that night on independent station KNWS, (with permission from NBC) following their prescheduled live airing of a Houston Astros game.
2007 NFL season opener
According to a user of the Daly Planet blog, the first 30 minutes of the 2007 NFL Kickoff game between the New Orleans Saints and the Indianapolis Colts was shown with default audio in Spanish rather than English.Scroll down to the "comments" section of the page KPRC inadvertenly aired the secondary audio program provided by Telemundo (also owned by NBC's parent company, NBC Universal).
Newscasts
In its early years under the direction of legendary news director Ray Miller, KPRC-TV set the standard for television newscasts in Houston and across the country; the station was usually first in the ratings. In 1972, KPRC scored a major coup when it acquired two key KHOU personalities, anchorman Ron Stone and sportscaster Ron Franklin, for its evening newscasts.
From 1985 to 1992, the station used a unique newscast title, "Channel Two News", broadcast round-the-clock updates throughout the day, including during NBC primetime programming. For several years during the early 1990s, the updates were also aired during the overnight hours with producers and other newsroom personnel anchoring. With anchors such as Ron Stone, Bill Balleza, Linda Lorelle, Jan Carson, Bob Nicholas, weatherman Doug Johnson and sports anchors Ron Franklin and Craig Roberts, the station's newscasts, while usually in second place, often competed for and even placed first at times. In 1994, when Post-Newsweek Stations bought KPRC, the newscasts were rechristened "News 2 Houston". Three years later, KPRC culminated in the construction of a new set using the newsroom as a backdrop that was similar to the set at WSVN in Miami. This set was referred to as the "News Center" and was used on-air until 2006, though the physical newsroom still exists in the same area. With the new look, KPRC won more awards and competed with KHOU and KTRK, even occasionally beating KTRK in the ratings at 10 pm.
However, in recent years, the station has seen its ratings slip dramatically, largely as a result of its perceived tabloid approach to covering the news (which historically has had a track record of failing to attract viewers in Greater Houston); its newscasts prior to the station's buyout by Post-Newsweek were more traditional in comparison. The station's 5pm newscast at one time even reported finishing in fifth place, behind rival news stations KHOU and KTRK, syndicated reruns of The Simpsons on KRIV, and even a Spanish-language newscast on KXLN. The station also saw ratings decline in the mornings and also at 4 p.m. and 10 p.m. due to its focus on entertainment news and stories of little relevance to Houston. On June 8, 2007, KPRC's 10 p.m. newscast led with Paris Hilton being sent back to jail and it stayed on the story for seven minutes while other Houston stations covered the launch of a Space Shuttle Atlantis mission.
The reputation of the news team was damaged even further by a number of controversial decisions, including having a dog, named Radar, help out with weather reports. The station also even aired stories focused on Radar, most notably one focused on a search for the dog's biological sister. [5] As a result, the station later reduced the role of Radar to a minor one. Radar can no longer be seen on its newscasts. KPRC was also hit with a boycott by black civil rights activists following the demotion of two African-American anchors, a decision that had nothing to do with race. To counter this criticism, the station hired longtime KHOU anchor Jerome Gray (who is African-American) for its early evening newscasts.
Overall, KPRC is now a distant third in the ratings behind KHOU and KTRK, which often trade first and second place in the ratings. Its ratings problems have not only been attributed to the past irregularities involving the station's newscasts, but also due to those of NBC, which is now fourth place nationally. Additionally, the market's respective CBS and ABC affiliates, KHOU and KTRK (the latter of which is network owned-and-operated), are among the strongest affiliates in their networks, which makes for fierce competition. However, the station has started to slowly turnaround, making slight gains from last year under a new general manager and news director. Still, it has not helped KPRC out of third place overall, and the station's morning newscast remains in fourth place as NBC's Today show, which the morning newscast leads into, has seen its ratings decline.
Notable Personalities
Current On-Air Talent
Anchors
- Bill Balleza: 5PM and 10PM Anchor/Reporter
- Owen Conflenti: Weekday Morning and 11am Anchor
- Wendy Corona: 4PM and 6PM Anchor/Reporter
- Lauren Freeman: Weekday Morning and 11am Anchor
- Jerome Gray: 4PM and 6PM Anchor/Reporter
- Rachel McNeill: Weekend Evening Anchor/Reporter
- Dominique Sachse: 5PM and 10PM Anchor/Reporter
- Courtney Zavala: Weekend Morning Anchor/Reporter
Reporters
- Kym Alvarado-Booth: General Assignment Reporter
- Phil Archer: General Assignment Reporter
- Robert Arnold: General Assignment Reporter
- Lisa Baldwin: General Assignment Reporter
- Mary Benton: General Assignment Reporter
- Andrea Bishop: General Assignment Reporter
- Amy Davis: General Assignment Reporter
- Stephen Dean: General Assignment Reporter
- Joel Eisenbaum: General Assignment Reporter
- Daniella Guzmán: General Assignment Reporter
- Ryan Korsgard: General Assignment Reporter
- Mariza Reyes: General Assignment Reporter
- Jennifer Reyna: Traffic Reporter
- Elizabeth Scarborough: General Assignment Reporter
- Carl Willis: General Assignment Reporter
Expert
- Brian Wice: Legal Analyst
Weather
- Frank Billingsley: Chief Meteorologist, seen weekday evenings
- Anthony Yanez: Weekday Morning and 11am Meteorologist
- Eric Braate: Weekend Morning and Evening Meteorologist
- Jonathan Novack: Weekend and Backup Meteorologist
Sports
- Randy McIlvoy: Sports Director/Sunday-Thursday Sports Anchor
- Keith Norton: Friday and Saturday Sports Anchor
- Winston Dutchin: Sports Reporter/Executive Sports Producer
Former On-Air Talent
- Emily Akin - consumer reproter (1995-2005, now at Houston Community College & KRIV)
- Richard Alderman - (1980's)"The People's Lawyer", whose segment was produced at the station and syndicated across Texas. Now in the same capacity at KTRK
- Mark Alford - reporter and weekend newscaster (1995-1998, now at WDAF in Kansas City)
- Gail Anderson - "2 On Your Side" reporter/midday anchor (1986-1991, now at KTLA in Los Angeles)
- Terry Anzur - anchor (1985-89, later worked at WPEC)
- Don Armstrong - voice announcer for several decades; also served as traffic reporter (1993-2005)
- Ford Atkinson - reporter (1982-1991, now at KRIV)
- Larry Audas - reporter/weekend anchor (1986-1995, now president and general manager of KTHV in Little Rock)
- Mike Barajas - reporter (1980s, now primetime anchor at KRIV)
- Bill Bellis - weekend weathercaster (1999-2003, now at KNXV in Phoenix)
- Katharine Blissard - host, This Day with Katharine (1970s-1980s) (deceased)
- Jason Brewer - weekend weathercaster (2006-07, now at WESH in Orlando)
- Glynn Boyd - reporter (1993-1996, currently at WGNO in New Orleans)
- Bebe Burns - business reporter (1982-1995)
- Chris Bury - reporter (1981-1982; currently a correspondent for ABC News' Nightline)
- Mike Capps - reporter
- Jan Carson - evening anchor (1983-1995; now working in public relations and also a motivational speaker)
- Ginger Casey - reporter (1986-1987)
- Silvia Castañeda - health reporter (1994-2002, left for WKRN in Nashville)
- Jack Cato - police reporter (1966-1994, later became Harris County Treasurer, deceased)
- Velma Cato - reporter (1980s's, moved on to NBC News' Atlanta & New York Bureaus and later became a producer of nationally syndicated programs)
- Chris Chandler - host (1960s, appeared in Hellfighters while with the station)
- Pauline Chiou - morning anchor (1997-2002, now with CBS News)
- Shern-Min Chow - reporter/weekend anchor (1992-1996, now at KHOU)
- Joe Collum - reporter
- Jerry D'Amico - reporter
- Dave Dickson - weekend, backup meteorologist
- Frank Dobbs: weekend anchor (mid-1960s)
- Bill Enis - sports anchor
- Melvin Epps - weekend meteorologist
- Ron Franklin - Sports Director (1980-1987, now play-by-play announcer for ESPN)
- Duke Frye - weekend sports anchor
- Roland Galvan - daytime weather anchor (1990-1996, deceased)
- Chuck George - meteorologist (1997-2003, now at KOLD-TV in Tucson)
- Mark Gillespie - weekend anchor
- Carrie Glasser - investigative reporter
- Paul Gonzales - weekend sports anchor
- Dick Gottlieb - host, voice announcer (1950s, deceased)
- Charles Hadlock - reporter (1982-1984; later worked at KHOU, currently a correspondent for NBC News)
- Trazanna Halstead (Moreno) - reporter (1999-2003; later did reporting for KRIV)
- Amelia Hamilton-Morris - producer/reporter
- Paul Harasim - "Hats Off 2 Houston" reporter (1995-1998; came from KHOU)
- James Hattori - reporter (1987-1988; departed for CBS News and eventually CNN; currently an NBC News Correspondent)
- Wes Hohenstein - meteorologist (2003-06, now at WNCN in Raleigh)
- Rod Hooks "Captain Rod" - traffic pilot (1991-2001, deceased)
- Jennifer Holloway - traffic anchor
- Amy Huggins - reporter
- Kay Bailey Hutchison - known on-air as Kay Bailey, Channel 2's first female reporter (1967-1972, currently a Republican United States Senator from Texas)
- Matt Jablow - morning anchor, most recently the spokesman for the Baltimore Police Department
- Tom Jarriel - worked behind the scenes in the news department as a reporter for a number of years; formerly of ABC News
- Doug Johnson - weather anchor (1961-1994, now owns Johnson Broadcasting)
- Rob Johnson - early evening anchor/reporter (1995-1998, now at WBBM-TV in Chicago)
- Ken Kalthoff - reporter
- Chris Kelley - reporter
- Cecil Knight - traffic director
- Tony Kovaleski - investigative reporter (1997-2001, now at KMGH-TV in Denver)
- Priscilla Kwan - weekend anchor/reporter (2004-2006)
- Tim Lake - weekend anchor/medical reporter (1987-1992, now at WCAU in Philadelphia)
- Ed Laskos - reporter (late 1990s-2000, now at KTTV in Los Angeles)
- Matt Lavine - meteorologist (early 1980s, formerly with KRIV)
- Ed Lenderman - reporter (now at KUSI in San Diego)
- Susan Lennon - reporter and weekend anchor (1994-1999, later worked at KUSI in San Diego)
- Linda Lorelle - anchor (1989-2006, recently freelancing at KRIV)
- Brennan Lothery - morning sports anchor (late 1990s)
- Lisa Malosky - weekend sports anchor (early 1990s, later served as a host for American Gladiators)
- Krista Marino - reporter
- Steve Mark - sports anchor/reporter (1997-2006; currently PR Director with the MLS' Houston Dynamo)
- Anita Martini - sports reporter, deceased
- Beth McDonough - business reporter
- John McPherson - reporter
- Gasia Mikaelian - morning anchor/reporter (2003-2006, now at KTVU in Oakland/San Francisco, Calif.)
- Itica Milanes - first reporter to break the news of the Space Shuttle Columbia Disaster on February 1, 2003 (2002-2005, now at KFSN in Fresno, Calif.)
- Ray Miller - news director (1950s-1979)
- Byron Miranda - morning weather anchor (2006; later moved to KTVU in Oakland, CA until April, 2007 now on NBC Weather Plus)
- Al Moffett - weekend sports (mid-1960s)
- Dan Molina - reporter (moved back and forth between KPRC & NBC News throughout the 1980s and 90s eventually becoming KPRC's Austin Bureau Chief; Currently a freelancer, as well as a consultant for several broadcast relations firms)
- Mauri Moore - reporter (moved on to NBC News' Bureau in Tel Aviv; Currently a city councilor in Edmonds, Washington)
- Christi Myers - medical reporter (mid 80s; now at KTRK)
- Bob Nicholas - morning/weekend anchor (1979-2001)
- Roger O'Neil - reporter (1977-1979; currently a correspondent for NBC News)
- Dan O'Rourke - reporter/morning anchor (1978-1994; now runs Twin Lion Communications, a public relations firm)
- Jeannie Ohm - reporter
- Paul Orseck - sports (mid-1960s)
- Ginny Pace - host of Midday program (mid-1960s)
- Carl Parker - weekend meteorologist (1995-1999, now at The Weather Channel)
- Rosa Linda Perez - reporter
- Sylvia Perez - weekend anchor/medical reporter (1985-1989, now at WLS-TV in Chicago)
- Jerry Peterson - weather (mid-1960s)
- Paula Poindexter - reporter
- John Quiñones - reporter/anchor (1975-1978, now a correspondent with ABC News)
- Larry Rasco - reporter/anchor (1960s - early 1970s)
- Ron Regan - weekend anchor/reporter (1980s-1996), later communications director for the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston
- Jacque Reid - reporter/anchor (1997-2000, went on to anchor BET Nightly News)
- Craig Roberts - longtime sports anchor (1980-2002); now co-host of "Sports Off Center" on KTBU
- Dr. Peter Scardino - medical reporter
- Janet Shamlian - weekend anchor (1996-1997; currently a correspondent for NBC News)
- Ted Shaw - morning, weekend and backup meteorologist, occasional sports
- Orelon Sidney - weekday meteorologist (1994-1997, later worked for CNN)
- Catherine Smith - NASA reporter
- Steve Smith - anchor/reporter (1966-1974, before his long tenure at KHOU, retired)
- Susan Starnes - reporter
- Ron Stone - longtime anchor (1972-1992)
- Ron Stone, Jr. - reporter (now KPRC's managing editor; son of Ron Stone)
- Dr. Dixie Swanson - Family Health Report correspondent (1980's & 90s)
- Cal Thomas - Notable syndicated newspaper columnist & commentator
- Spencer Tillman - sports reporter/anchor (1987-1997; first hired during the offseason period when he was playing with the Houston Oilers, later moved to WABC-TV in New York and now at CBS Sports)
- Kathie Turner - reporter/weathercaster (1985-1988, later a weekend weathercaster on KHOU in the '90s)
- Maria Valdez - reporter (1990s)
- Jo Ann Vallie Rush - Morning anchor/reporter (1984-1988); Currently a business partner in a Houston-based Christian boutique.
- Joe Vazquez - reporter (1998-2001, now at KPIX in San Francisco)
- Bill Waldrop (pseudonym Tom Donovan) - traffic pilot
- Larry Weidman - reporter (moved on to helm NBC News' Rome Bureau)
- Irv White - reporter/weekend anchor (1993-1997)
- Officer Rick Wiener - Houston police officer and "2 Catch a Crook" correspondent
- Bill Worrell - reporter (1970s, now television play-by-play announcer for the NBA's Houston Rockets)
- Chris Wragge - sports director (1998-2004, also covered sports for NBC and USA simultaneously, now lead anchor at WCBS-TV in New York)
- Paula Zahn - anchor (1981-1983, formerly with CNN)
- Marvin Zindler - reporter (1950-1954; later became legendary investigative reporter for KTRK, deceased)
News/Station Presentation
Newscast Titles
- The News Reporter and NightBeat - both with Steve Smith (1970-1973)
- NOTE: The "Nightbeat" designation was used again to distinguish late newscasts beginning in the 1990s.
- Big 2 News (1969-1980)
- 2News (1980-1985)
- Channel Two News (1985-1992)
- Channel 2 News (1992-1994)
- News 2 Houston (1994-2004)
- Local 2 News (2004-present)
Station Slogans
- On Your Side (1985-88, also the name of the consumer investigation unit headed by Gail Anderson during this time)
- Tuned into Houston. And The World. (1986-88)
- Working For You. (1988-91)
- Houston's 24-Hour News Source (1990-91)
- Houston's 24-Hour News Channel (1991-93)
- Where Local News Comes First (1995-2006)
- Putting You First (2000-2004, primarily in personality-driven & community service promotions)
Trivia
- As KLEE-TV, the station became the source of controversy thanks to some British TV viewers who claimed to receive the signal of KLEE-TV in September 14, 1953, three years after the original signal was transmitted. However, this was actually a hoax.[6]
- KPRC is the only Houston station on the VHF dial that does not air on a cable channel matching the over-the-air analog channel, due to interference from the low-band VHF terrestrial signal. It is placed on Comcast cable 12 instead.[7]
External links
- Official site
- Snopes.com article about a KLEE-TV phantom broadcast
- Query the FCC's TV station database for KPRC
Sources
Schroeder, Richard. Texas Signs On: The Early Days of Radio and Television. College Station, Texas: Texas A&M University Press. ISBN 0-89096-813-6.
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Local television stations serving Greater Houston/Galveston/Sugar Land/Baytown Defunct television stations Significantly Viewed Out-of-Market Broadcast Stations |
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KPRC 2 (Houston) - KFDX 3 (Lawton / Wichita Falls) - KSAN 3 (San Angelo) - KAMR 4 (Amarillo) - KBTV 4 (Port Arthur) - WOAI 4 (San Antonio) - |
| See also: ABC, CBS, CW, Fox, MyNetwork TV, PBS, Telefutura, Telemundo, Univision, Religious, Other English and Other Spanish stations in Texas |
