KSDK NewsChannel 5 signed on the air in 1947. Joseph Pulitzer II of Pulitzer Publishing Company brought television to St. Louis on Feb. 8, 1947, with the first broadcast of KSD-TV. It was one of only seven television stations in the country and the only station in St. Louis until 1953. Within days of its debut, KSD televised the first play-by-play sports event in the Midwest. For the first time on television, St. Louis viewers watched a basketball game between Saint Louis University and Oklahoma.

In the early days of TV, many St. Louisians can remember their favorite local shows on KSD like "St. Louis Hop" and "To The Ladies" and favorite personalities like Charlotte Peters and Corky the Clown. In the 1970s, KSD began broadcasting Cardinals baseball games. And in 1979, award-winning journalist Karen Foss joined the NewsChannel 5 team.

In 1983, Multimedia, Inc. bought KSD from Pulitzer Publishing Company and changed its name to KSDK-TV. During the mid-1980s, Sally Jessy Raphael's syndicated program "Sally" was produced and broadcast at KSDK. And in 1989, the NBC affiliate expanded its broadcasting to 24 hours a day to better serve the community.

Ownership changed one more time in 1995, when Gannett Co. Inc., bought KSDK from Multimedia, Inc. At that time, St. Louis television saw its first female general manager, Ardyth Diercks, followed by the current and second female general manager and president, Lynn Beall.

KSDK NewsChannel 5 is consistently recognized for its emphasis on local news. The NBC affiliate is often the number-one rated station in the country. Virtually every newscast is rated number one in its time period. The news comes from a team of St. Louis' most familiar and trusted faces. Among them are anchors Mike Bush, Deanne Lane, Kay Quinn, Jennifer Blome, and Art Holliday. Cindy Preszler leads the Weather Plus team of meteorologists. Rene Knott heads up the sports department and joins Frank Cusumano for "Sports Plus" on Sunday nights.

KSDK NewsChannel 5's commitment to news and the community is apparent in its slogan, "Where the News Comes First." KSDK airs over 40 hours of local news and local programming a week. Additionally, our local news and programming is streamed live on ksdk.com.

KSDK NewsChannel 5 was the first station in St. Louis to feature a weekly Sunday night sports wrap-up show, "Sports Plus." The show consistently delivers higher ratings than other network affiliates' sports shows.

In 1995, KSDK NewsChannel 5 began producing the multi-award winning show "Show Me St. Louis," which airs weekdays from 3 - 3:30 p.m. This popular local show features the good news of St. Louis. On many occasions "Show Me St. Louis" takes you places you can only go by watching the show.

With the encouragement and support of Gannett Co. Inc., KSDK NewsChannel 5 places great emphasis on serving the community. The station supports a variety of organizations and outreach efforts such as the United Way, the Susan G. Komen St. Louis Race for the Cure, "A Place to Call Home" adoption project, and the Muscular Dystrophy Association's Labor Day Telethon.

In 1998, KSDK NewsChannel 5 sponsored St. Louis' first Komen St. Louis Race for the Cure. The St. Louis community came out in full force making that first race the largest inaugural race in a city. Since then, the race has grown and exceeded expectations.

KSDK NewsChannel 5 is also committed to fighting breast cancer with its Friend to Friend program. The station has teamed up with Komen for the Cure to bring you this program. On the fifth of the month, viewers are reminded to do their monthly breast self-exams.

In the past, KSDK NewsChannel 5 was a significant supporter of the Salvation Army's Tree of Lights campaign. One of the most recognizable community efforts in KSDK NewsChannel 5 history is Volunteer 5.

From 1993 through 2005, Volunteer 5 helped area non-profit organizations recruit volunteers. The program provided more than $5 million annually in volunteer services and hundreds of thousands of volunteer hours to St. Louis' non-profit organizations during its span.

In April 2000, KSDK NewsChannel 5 launched ksdk.com. ksdk.com provides our customers with news and information 24 hours a day, seven days a week and attracts more than 11 million page views a month.

On Feb. 6, 2006, KSDK NewsChannel 5 again made history by becoming the first television in the St. Louis market to broadcast its local news and programming in high-definition.

Shortly after signing on the air, KSD began broadcasting St. Louis Cardinals games. In December 2006, it was announced that the Cardinals would return to their original television broadcast home. KSDK NewsChannel 5 will serve as the flagship station for the Cardinals Television Network, which consists of stations reaching across eight states including Missouri, Illinois, Iowa, Tennessee, Indiana, Arkansas, Kentucky, and Oklahoma.

Over the years, KSDK NewsChannel 5 has attained several distinctions including local Emmy Awards, Gabriel Awards, National Press Photographers Association Awards, and several Edward R. Murrow Regional Awards from the Radio-Television News Directors Association, including an award for overall excellence in 2004. It has also been honored by such organizations as the National Association of Black Journalists and the Associated Press.

From KSD's first broadcast in 1947 to KSDK NewsChannel 5's leadership in the digital era, the station has been focused on local news and information that's important to our customers, community need and leadership in the technology arena.

Videotape replaced film. Computer technology replaced videotape. Black and white turned to color. Standard definition has moved to high definition. Through all the changes, KSDK NewsChannel 5 has been recognized as a leader. We pride ourselves in having the passion to lead, power to inspire and consider it a privilege to serve you, our customers. That leadership will continue through the next decades and beyond.

KSDK is owned by Gannett Broadcasting which consists of 22 television stations reaching 17.4 percent of the U.S. television market.

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