KBAK-TV
Encyclopedia
KBAK-TV, virtual channel
29, is a CBS
-affiliate television
station serving Bakersfield, California
, broadcasting digital-only on UHF
channel 33. KBAK also operates the local Fox
affiliate, KBFX-CA
, from a shared facility in Bakersfield.
). It is Bakersfield's oldest television station; KERO-TV
followed a month later. It was a primary CBS affiliate, sharing ABC
programming with KERO-TV
until KLYD-TV (channel 17, now KGET-TV
) signed on in 1959.
Shortly after becoming a full CBS affiliate, channel 29 changed its calls to the current KBAK-TV. In 1974, KBAK swapped affiliations with channel 17, then known as KJTV, and became an ABC affiliate. http://www.mcsittel.com/html/tvg-cca.htm http://ekimmell2.tripod.com/old.html As a CBS and later ABC affiliate, KBAK had aired all of its color programs in color, and went to full color in 1967.
During the 1970s and into the 1980s, KBAK was owned by Chicago-based Harriscope Broadcasting, which also owned WSNS in Chicago (now a Telemundo
O&O) and a partial stake in KRQE
in Albuquerque (now owned by LIN TV
). In the late 1980s, KBAK started signing off only on Fridays, and Saturdays, which as a CBS affiliate it continued to do until May 2008, when the sign-offs on KBAK and KBFX were discontinued and were replaced by a simulcast of the Kern Weather Channel, which is also available on digital cable systems in the Bakersfield area.
In 1986, Harriscope sold KBAK to Burnham Broadcasting, which also owned KHON-TV
in Honolulu and would later acquire WVUE
in New Orleans, WALA-TV
in Mobile, Alabama
and WLUK in Green Bay, Wisconsin
. In 1995, Burnham sold most of its stations to SF Broadcasting, a joint venture between Fox
and Savoy Pictures
, but KBAK was not included in the sale to SF Broadcasting, and was instead spun off to Westwind Communications, a locally-based company linked to former Burnham executives.
In 1995, McGraw-Hill
cut an affiliation deal with ABC which called for all of its stations, including KERO-TV, to become ABC affiliates. Largely by default, KBAK rejoined CBS when KERO picked up ABC in March 1996.
On August 6, 2007, Westwind Communications announced the sale of KBAK and KBFX-CA to Fisher Communications
of Seattle. http://phx.corporate-ir.net/phoenix.zhtml?c=61026&p=irol-newsArticle&t=Regular&id=1037227& The deal closed on January 1, 2008. This marked a re-entry to the Central Valley for Fisher, who previously bought and sold KJEO (now KGPE
) in Fresno
in the late 1990s.
In mid-May 2010, KBAK became the first station in Bakersfield to begin broadcasting local newscasts in 16:9
widescreen standard definition
. Then on January 16, 2011, KBAK took it one step further to become the first station in Bakersfield to launch local news in true high definition. The KBFX shows were included in the upgrade to HD; however, they are presented in downconverted standard definition widescreen on KBAK-DT2 (which serves as a full-power companion to KBFX's low-power Class A
digital terrestrial signal).
The current announcer for KBAK and KBFX is best known nationally recognized voice over, Eric Gordon.
Weather team
Sports team
Reporters
Virtual channel
In telecommunications, a logical channel number , also known as virtual channel, is a channel designation which differs from that of the actual radio channel on which the signal travels....
29, is a CBS
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
-affiliate television
Television
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
station serving Bakersfield, California
Bakersfield, California
Bakersfield is a city near the southern end of the San Joaquin Valley in Kern County, California. It is roughly equidistant between Fresno and Los Angeles, to the north and south respectively....
, broadcasting digital-only on UHF
Ultra high frequency
Ultra-High Frequency designates the ITU Radio frequency range of electromagnetic waves between 300 MHz and 3 GHz , also known as the decimetre band or decimetre wave as the wavelengths range from one to ten decimetres...
channel 33. KBAK also operates the local Fox
Fox Broadcasting Company
Fox Broadcasting Company, commonly referred to as Fox Network or simply Fox , is an American commercial broadcasting television network owned by Fox Entertainment Group, part of Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation. Launched on October 9, 1986, Fox was the highest-rated broadcast network in the...
affiliate, KBFX-CA
KBFX-CA
KBFX-CD Channel 58 is a Class A low-power digital television station serving Bakersfield, California. It is a Fox affiliate which used to broadcast on analog channel 58.-Digital television:The analog signal went off the air in August 2010...
, from a shared facility in Bakersfield.
History
KBAK signed on in August 1953 as KAFY-TV owned along with KAFY radio (AM 550, frequency now occupied by KUZZKUZZ
KUZZ and KUZZ-FM are American radio stations licensed to serve Bakersfield, California, USA. The stations are owned by Buck Owens Production Company and the licenses are held by Owens One Company Inc.They broadcast a simulcast country music format to the inland central California region...
). It is Bakersfield's oldest television station; KERO-TV
KERO-TV
KERO-TV is a television station serving Bakersfield, California. It is an ABC affiliate owned by McGraw-Hill, and transmits its digital signal on VHF channel 10. Syndicated programming on KERO includes: Wheel of Fortune, Jeopardy!, and Ellen....
followed a month later. It was a primary CBS affiliate, sharing ABC
American Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
programming with KERO-TV
KERO-TV
KERO-TV is a television station serving Bakersfield, California. It is an ABC affiliate owned by McGraw-Hill, and transmits its digital signal on VHF channel 10. Syndicated programming on KERO includes: Wheel of Fortune, Jeopardy!, and Ellen....
until KLYD-TV (channel 17, now KGET-TV
KGET-TV
KGET-TV is a television station serving Bakersfield, California, owned by High Plains Broadcasting and operated by Newport Television, LLC. It is an NBC affiliate, and transmits on UHF channel 25 . KGET also has a digital-only/cable CW outlet called KWFB, one of the The CW Plus stations...
) signed on in 1959.
Shortly after becoming a full CBS affiliate, channel 29 changed its calls to the current KBAK-TV. In 1974, KBAK swapped affiliations with channel 17, then known as KJTV, and became an ABC affiliate. http://www.mcsittel.com/html/tvg-cca.htm http://ekimmell2.tripod.com/old.html As a CBS and later ABC affiliate, KBAK had aired all of its color programs in color, and went to full color in 1967.
During the 1970s and into the 1980s, KBAK was owned by Chicago-based Harriscope Broadcasting, which also owned WSNS in Chicago (now a Telemundo
Telemundo
Telemundo is an American television network that broadcasts in Spanish. The network is the second-largest Spanish-language content producer in the world, and the second-largest Spanish-language network in the United States, behind Univision....
O&O) and a partial stake in KRQE
KRQE
KRQE, digital channel 13, is the CBS-affiliated television station serving the Albuquerque, New Mexico television market; the station is owned by LIN TV Corporation and is sister station to Fox affiliate KASA-TV...
in Albuquerque (now owned by LIN TV
LIN TV
LIN TV Corporation is an American holding company that operates 31 television stations.-History:LIN TV's roots trace back to the founding of its former parent, LIN Broadcasting Corporation, in 1961. LIN Broadcasting was engaged in radio, television, direct marketing, information and learning, music...
). In the late 1980s, KBAK started signing off only on Fridays, and Saturdays, which as a CBS affiliate it continued to do until May 2008, when the sign-offs on KBAK and KBFX were discontinued and were replaced by a simulcast of the Kern Weather Channel, which is also available on digital cable systems in the Bakersfield area.
In 1986, Harriscope sold KBAK to Burnham Broadcasting, which also owned KHON-TV
KHON-TV
KHON-TV is a Fox-affiliated television station in Honolulu, Hawaii. The station broadcasts on virtual channel 2.In addition to its Honolulu broadcast facilities, KHON has relays on all the major Hawaiian Islands to rebroadcast programs outside of metropolitan Honolulu: KHAW-TV in Hilo; KAII-TV in...
in Honolulu and would later acquire WVUE
WVUE
WVUE-DT, broadcasting on virtual channel 8, is a TV station in New Orleans, Louisiana, affiliated with the Fox Broadcasting Company. WVUE is owned by Louisiana Media Company, with studios in the Gert Town section of New Orleans and transmitter in Chalmette, Louisiana.- Digital television :WVUE-DT...
in New Orleans, WALA-TV
WALA-TV
WALA-TV is the Fox-affiliated television station for Southern Alabama, Southeastern Mississippi, and the Western Florida Panhandle that is licensed to Mobile. It broadcasts a high definition digital signal on VHF channel 9 from a transmitter in Spanish Fort, Alabama...
in Mobile, Alabama
Mobile, Alabama
Mobile is the third most populous city in the Southern US state of Alabama and is the county seat of Mobile County. It is located on the Mobile River and the central Gulf Coast of the United States. The population within the city limits was 195,111 during the 2010 census. It is the largest...
and WLUK in Green Bay, Wisconsin
Green Bay, Wisconsin
Green Bay is a city in and the county seat of Brown County in the U.S. state of Wisconsin, located at the head of Green Bay, a sub-basin of Lake Michigan, at the mouth of the Fox River. It has an elevation of above sea level and is located north of Milwaukee. As of the 2010 United States Census,...
. In 1995, Burnham sold most of its stations to SF Broadcasting, a joint venture between Fox
Fox Broadcasting Company
Fox Broadcasting Company, commonly referred to as Fox Network or simply Fox , is an American commercial broadcasting television network owned by Fox Entertainment Group, part of Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation. Launched on October 9, 1986, Fox was the highest-rated broadcast network in the...
and Savoy Pictures
Savoy Pictures
Savoy Pictures Inc. was an independent motion picture company in operation from 1992 to 1997.-History:Victor A. Kaufman became chairman and chief executive officer of Savoy Pictures in 1992 along with vice chairman executive, Lewis J. Korman...
, but KBAK was not included in the sale to SF Broadcasting, and was instead spun off to Westwind Communications, a locally-based company linked to former Burnham executives.
In 1995, McGraw-Hill
McGraw-Hill
The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc., is a publicly traded corporation headquartered in Rockefeller Center in New York City. Its primary areas of business are financial, education, publishing, broadcasting, and business services...
cut an affiliation deal with ABC which called for all of its stations, including KERO-TV, to become ABC affiliates. Largely by default, KBAK rejoined CBS when KERO picked up ABC in March 1996.
On August 6, 2007, Westwind Communications announced the sale of KBAK and KBFX-CA to Fisher Communications
Fisher Communications
Fisher Communications is a media company in the United States. Based in Seattle, Washington, the company owns a number of radio and television stations in the Western United States.- Radio Stations :- Television Stations :...
of Seattle. http://phx.corporate-ir.net/phoenix.zhtml?c=61026&p=irol-newsArticle&t=Regular&id=1037227& The deal closed on January 1, 2008. This marked a re-entry to the Central Valley for Fisher, who previously bought and sold KJEO (now KGPE
KGPE
KGPE, virtual channel 47, is the CBS affiliated television station for the Fresno, California market. KGPE's digital signal is on UHF channel 34 from Auberry, California. It's currently owned by High Plains Broadcasting and operated by Newport Television, LLC....
) in Fresno
Fresno, California
Fresno is a city in central California, United States, the county seat of Fresno County. As of the 2010 census, the city's population was 510,365, making it the fifth largest city in California, the largest inland city in California, and the 34th largest in the nation...
in the late 1990s.
In mid-May 2010, KBAK became the first station in Bakersfield to begin broadcasting local newscasts in 16:9
16:9
16:9 is an aspect ratio with a width of 16 units and height of 9. Since 2009, it has become the most common aspect ratio for sold televisions and computer monitors and is also the international standard format of HDTV, Full HD, non-HD digital television and analog widescreen television ...
widescreen standard definition
Standard-definition television
Sorete-definition television is a television system that uses a resolution that is not considered to be either enhanced-definition television or high-definition television . The term is usually used in reference to digital television, in particular when broadcasting at the same resolution as...
. Then on January 16, 2011, KBAK took it one step further to become the first station in Bakersfield to launch local news in true high definition. The KBFX shows were included in the upgrade to HD; however, they are presented in downconverted standard definition widescreen on KBAK-DT2 (which serves as a full-power companion to KBFX's low-power Class A
Class A television service
The class A television service is a system for regulating some low-power television stations in the United States. Class A stations are denoted by the broadcast callsign suffix "-CA" or "-CD" , although very many analog -CA stations have a digital companion channel that was assigned the -LD...
digital terrestrial signal).
The current announcer for KBAK and KBFX is best known nationally recognized voice over, Eric Gordon.
Newscast titles
- KAFY Television Newsreel (1953–1959)
- The Big News (1959–1966)
- The Night Report (1966–1969)
- The Television 29 News (1969–1973)
- The Hal Lafoon News (1973–1974)
- 29-TV ABC News (1974–1977)
- The News Today (1977–1979)
- TeleNews 29 (1979–1981)
- NewsForce 29 (1981–1985)
- News 29 (1985–1992)
- ([Channel/CBS] 29) Eyewitness NewsEyewitness NewsEyewitness News is a style of news broadcasting used by local television stations in different markets across the United States. It refers to a particular style of television newscast with an emphasis on visual elements and action video...
(1992–present)
Station slogans
- 29-TV's The One (late 1970s; localized version of ABC ad campaign)
- We're The One You Can Turn To, 29-TV (1978–1979; localized version of ABC ad campaign)
- 29 is New for You (1980)
- We're Comin' on Strong (1981)
- Our Strength is Our People (1982)
- Come on Along with 29 (1982-1983; localized version of ABC ad campaign)
- That Special Feeling on 29 (1983–1984; localized version of ABC ad campaign)
- We're With You on 29 (1984–1985; localized version of ABC ad campaign)
- You'll Love It on 29 (1985–1986; localized version of ABC ad campaign)
- See the Difference (1986)
- Together on 29 (1986-1987; localized version of ABC ad campaign)
- Something's Happening on 29 (1987–1990; localized version of ABC ad campaign)
- The Hometown Team (1988)
- The Southern Valley's News Leader (1990s–1997)
- If It's Bakersfield, It Must Be 29 (1992-1993; localized version of ABC ad campaign)
- Watched By More Bakersfield, 29, ABC (1993-March 1996; last localized version of ABC ad campaign, before the switch to CBS)
- Experience You Can Trust (1997–2003)
- Live, Local, Latebreaking (1999–2000)
- CBS 29 and You (2001–2003)
- 29, The Eyewitness NewsEyewitness NewsEyewitness News is a style of news broadcasting used by local television stations in different markets across the United States. It refers to a particular style of television newscast with an emphasis on visual elements and action video...
Station (2003–2010) - Investigating Stories Others Don't (2006–present)
- Breaking News, Alerts and Investigations (2008)
News themes
| Package | Composer | Years Used |
| Fanfare for the Common Man Fanfare for the Common Man Fanfare for the Common Man is a 20th-century American classical music work by American composer Aaron Copland. The piece was written in 1942 for the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra under conductor Eugene Goossens. It was inspired in part by a famous speech made earlier in the same year where vice... |
Aaron Copland Aaron Copland Aaron Copland was an American composer, composition teacher, writer, and later in his career a conductor of his own and other American music. He was instrumental in forging a distinctly American style of composition, and is often referred to as "the Dean of American Composers"... , Arrangement by Emerson, Lake & Palmer Emerson, Lake & Palmer Emerson, Lake & Palmer, also known as ELP, are an English progressive rock supergroup. They found success in the 1970s and sold over forty million albums and headlined large stadium concerts. The band consists of Keith Emerson , Greg Lake and Carl Palmer... |
1979–1980 |
| Allegro | Frank Gari Communications Frank Gari Frank Gari is a popular singer and songwriter from the late 1950s and early 1960s. His best known songs as a performer are "Utopia" , "Lullaby of Love" and "Princess" , all of which hit the U.S. Top 40 in 1961. He co-wrote with Roger McGuinn the song Beach Ball for Bobby Darin... |
1989–1997 |
| Millennium 3 | Shelly Palmer | 1997–2001 |
| Impact (V.1, V.2, V.3, V.4) | 615 Music 615 Music 615 Music is a broadcast production music company based in Nashville, Tennessee. 615 Music composes television news music packages and custom image campaigns for many television networks around the world. 615 Music also operates out of Los Angeles... |
2001–2003 |
| Right Here, Right Now | 615 Music 615 Music 615 Music is a broadcast production music company based in Nashville, Tennessee. 615 Music composes television news music packages and custom image campaigns for many television networks around the world. 615 Music also operates out of Los Angeles... |
2003–2008 |
| The Viper | 615 Music 615 Music 615 Music is a broadcast production music company based in Nashville, Tennessee. 615 Music composes television news music packages and custom image campaigns for many television networks around the world. 615 Music also operates out of Los Angeles... |
2008– |
News team
Anchors- Amity Addrisi - weekends at 5, 6 and 11 p.m; also weeknight reporter and fill-in weather anchor
- John Dabkovich - weekday mornings (5-7 a.m.)
- Lisa Krch - weeknights at 5. 6 p.m. and 10
- Megan Munro - weekdays at noon
- Kurt Rivera - weeknights at 5, 6 and 11 p.m.
- Leyla Santiago - weekday mornings (5-7 a.m.)
Weather team
- Miles Muzio - chief meteorologist; weeknights at 5, 6 and 11 p.m.
- Aaron Perlman - weather anchor; weekday mornings (5-7 a.m.) and noon
- Anthony Bailey - weather anchor; weekends 5, 6 and 11 p.m., also reporter
Sports team
- Greg Kerr - sports director; weeknights at 5, 6 and 11 p.m.
- John Franchi - sports anchor; weekends at 5, 6 and 11 p.m., also sports reporter
Reporters
- Cambi Brown - weekday morning reporter
- Keisha Courtney - multimedia journalist
- Carol Ferguson - crime and government reporter
- Jose Gaspar - general assignment reporter; also fill-in anchor
- Megan Munro - general assignment reporter; also fill-in anchor