Our Story
Story By:
Source: KOAA
June 29, 1953 KCSJ-TV began its first broadcasting day in the Pueblo/Colorado Springs market. The broadcasting “day” lasted between 9 and 10 hours because Channel 5 was limited to only locally-produced programming. A few days later, on July 5, Channel 5 officially became an NBC affiliate.
In 1961 KSCJ-TV was purchased by the owners of KOA-TV in Denver and the call letters were changed to KOAA-TV. With a video recorder brought down from Denver, KOAA was able to record and play back programs for the first time. This piece of equipment meant the end of live commercials.
By 1969, the primitive video equipment had been replaced with new updated color equipment and KOAA was able to offer local news and other locally originated programming in full color (but only to those people who owned a color TV).
November 1976 became a turning point at KOAA-TV when the station was bought by Evening Post Publishing Company out of Charleston, S.C. and John O. Gilbert was hired as President/General Manager. By 1978, with a news staff based in Colorado Springs, KOAA jumped to second in the ratings after being “fourth in a three station market” for many years. Gilbert then began focusing on coverage of community events as a way of connecting with the viewers.
The early-80’s saw the construction of Channel 30, simulcasting the Channel 5 signal and allowing KOAA to reach more viewers in the Colorado Springs area. Channel 5 also got a new transmitter and began broadcasting in stereo.
By 1982 KOAA-TV’s Eyewitness News was number one in the ratings at 10 p.m. The early evening newscast at 5:30 p.m. was still number two.
The mid-80’s found KOAA-TV at the forefront of community involvement, servicing a variety of new areas: from locally produced public service announcements to hands-on assistance from KOAA-TV staff in community projects and fundraisers.
In January 1996, KOAA-TV added 12 staff members and expanded its hour-a-day local Monday through Friday news offering to two-and-a-half hours a day. The hour-long Eyewitness News Today at 6 a.m. was immediately the number one morning news show in the market and remains there today. A 30-minute midday news program was also added at that time. In 1997, KOAA-TV expanded its news operation again, adding a 5 p.m. newscast and moving the 5:30 news to 6 p.m. In 2001, News First at 5 a.m. was added to the KOAA-TV news line-up, offering viewers four hours of local news per day. News First maintains the leadership position in Southern Colorado. The news department expanded from 22 employees in 1994 to more than 40 today.
David Whitaker, was named President and General Manager of KOAA-TV in 1998. Whitaker is leading Channels 5&30 into the digital age of television. Under his leadership, the Eyewitness News moniker was changed to News First. The station has added a state-of-the-art digital switcher that enables KOAA-TV to produce better video effects than ever before. In the spring of 2003, a satellite news gathering vehicle (News First SatLink) was added, giving the news department the ability to broadcast live from anywhere news is happening.
The year 2004 brought several changes to the on-air product. Spanish sub-titles became available to KOAA viewers in January with just a touch of a button. Weather First Now was launched in April serving viewers of the local cable provider Comcast with up-to-the-minute local weather information 24-hours-a-day, 7-days-a-week. The most current weather information, local forecasts, news updates, school closings, outdoor reports and up-to-date airline information from the Colorado Springs Airport is reported around the clock. In April, 2007 we changed the name to News First Now and in the summer began offering a 30-minute newscast at 4 and 9 p.m. Monday through Friday in addition to a 9 p.m. newscast on weekends.
In August, 2006 KOAA launched KOAA-DT. This digital signal originates on
Cheyenne Mountain southwest of downtown Colorado Springs and provides High Definition Television over-the-air to viewers all over Southeastern Colorado. This digital signal is currently the most powerful of any television station in Colorado.
KOAA-TV has received numerous awards and recognition over the years; such as being named Station of the Year by the Colorado Broadcasters Association more than a dozen times. KOAA-TV generally wins a handful of awards from the Associated Press each year, as well as an occasional Emmy.
KOAA-TV continues to support the community through involvement and sponsorship of many events and non-profit fundraisers. Whitaker has also brought community projects to Southern Colorado that address many issues affecting viewers through on-air viewer interactive endeavors; Your Stories, Your Health First and Teachers First.
Click HERE to contact people at KOAA-TV, News First, News First Now, and KOAA.COM.
Click HERE - then scroll down - to read about our news and weather team members.
Mission Statement:
We will serve our communities with a quality news product that is overwhelmingly local, relevant, and useful to viewers.
We will listen to our viewers' interests and concerns and seek solutions with compassionate stories and pro-active journalism.
We will build on our leadership position, providing community involvement programs that will help enrich the quality of life for our viewers.
We will achieve these goals through good communication, teamwork, and an effective use of our resources.
