KSNF

KSNF is the NBC affiliated television station for the Joplin, Missouri-Pittsburg, Kansas television market, the 145th DMA. KSNF broadcasts its digital signal on UHF channel 46. Its transmitter is located in Joplin.

KSNF

Joplin, Missouri-Pittsburg, Kansas
Branding	KSN
Slogan	Your Hometown News
Channels	Digital: 46 (UHF)
Subchannels	16.1 NBC
Owner	Nexstar Broadcasting Group, Inc. (Nexstar Broadcasting, Inc.)
First air date	September 2, 1967
Call letters' meaning	Kansas State Network Four-States (reflecting former owner)
Sister station(s)	KODE-TV
Former callsigns	KUHI-TV (1967-1974) KTVJ (1974-1982)
Former channel number(s)	Analog: 16 (UHF, 1967-2009)
Former affiliations	CBS (1967-1980)
Transmitter power	175 kW
Height	322.2 m
Facility ID	67766
Transmitter coordinates	37°4′33″N 94°33′16″W
Website	www.fourstateshomepage.com/

History

KUHI-TV logo, April 1974.

The Nexstar Broadcasting Group acquired the station in 1998, with its digital signal on channel 46 signing on in 2003. KSNF was the first station in the Joplin-Pittsburg market to broadcast on the UHF band, which as a result, is where the first set of call letters, KUHI (K UltraHIgh Frequency), came from.The station first signed on as CBS affiliate KUHI-TV on September 2, 1967, changing its call letters to KTVJ (TeleVision of Joplin) in 1974. It swapped affiliations with KOAM-TV in 1980 and became an NBC affiliate. The owners of the Kansas State Network (KSNW) bought the station in 1982, changing the calls to KSNF, but the station did limited simulcasting with KSNW. KSN then sold KSNF to Price Communications in 1987, but the station continued the partial simulcast with KSNW. It stopped simulcasting KSNW completely after George Lilly (SJL Communications) acquired the KSN stations and in a cost cutting effort, cut the microwave links to KSNT and KSNF.

KSN logo from 1999 to 2005

In 2002, it was announced KSNF and ABC affiliate KODE would merge, with building expansion planned at the KSN studios. Although some departments did in fact move to KSNF, the process has not yet been completed, leaving the Joplin market as the only one of the several Nexstar-owned duopolies to have failed to completely merge. In June 2008 KSN began broadcasting NBC HD programming to HD customers on cable and satellite. At this time, only NBC programming is provided in HD, local news and syndicated shows are still in SD, pending the upgrade of KSN's production systems and equipment to accommodate HD.

In the fall of 2010 - possibly as response to FOX14's expansion of their weekday 9pm news to one full hour, KSN debuted the area's first and only hour long 6pm newscast.

KSNF former logo from 2005-2010

On May 8, 2009, severe thunderstorms affected the Joplin area. KSNF's tower was destroyed (falling on the studio and nearby homes) and the studio was heavily damaged. KSNF could not broadcast due to this tower collapse so nearest NBC stations air in certain areas (KSNW in Southeast Kansas, KJRH in Northeast Oklahoma, and KYTV in Southwest Missouri). However, several five- to ten-minute news updates were aired on fourstateshomepage.com each day until broadcasting resumed.

The station returned to the air on June 17, 2009. It constructed a news set inside of the studios of its sister station KODE-TV where it will now be housed.

It was made public in February 2010 that both KSNF and KODE would be moving to the previous KSNF studios at 1502 Cleveland, just down the road from the current KODE building.

Branding

While in its role as airing partial simulcasts of KSNW programming, it used the Hello News music package until 1990.

In November 2005, a graphics and music change took place. As part of the update (and with upcoming digital changes) the "16" was removed from KSN's logo, opens, and all other images, including station vehicles.

News operation

News/station presentation

Newscast titles

• KUHI-TV News (1968–1974)
• KTVJ 16 Reports At (time) (1974–1980s)
• NewsCenter 16 (1980s)
• KSN NewsCenter (1980s–1997)
• KSN 16, Your Hometown News Station (1997–1999)
• KSN 16, Your Hometown News (1999–2005)
• KSN, Your Hometown News (2005–2012)
• KSN Local News (2012-present) 

Station slogans

• You're Looking Good on 16 (1979-1980; localized version of CBS ad campaign)
• 16, Proud as a Peacock! (1980-1981; localized version of NBC ad campaign)
• 16, Our Pride is Showing (1981-1982; localized version of NBC ad campaign)
• Hello Four-States, KSN Loves You (1982–1990; used during period station used Frank Gari's Hello News)
• KSN There, Be There! (1983-1984; localized version of NBC ad campaign)
• You've Got A Friend In/Turn To KSN (1980s; while the station did not use Frank Gari's Turn To News package, they did use the image campaign from the theme)
• Come Home to KSN (1986-1987; localized version of NBC ad campaign)
• Come on Home to KSN (1987-1988; localized version of NBC ad campaign)
• Come Home to the Best, Only on KSN(1988-1990; localized version of NBC ad campaign)
• Come Home to KSN (1990–1994)
• KSN, is The Place to Be! (1990-1992; localized version of NBC ad campaign)
• It's A Whole New KSN (1992-1993; localized version of NBC ad campaign)
• The Stars Are Back on KSN (1993-1994; localized version of "The Stars Are Back on NBC" ad campaign)
• Together, We're Making A Difference (1994–1997)
• Your Hometown News (1997–2012; primary slogan)
• Experience The Difference (2004–2012; secondary slogan)
• Keeping it Local (2012-present)

News team 

Anchors

• Eric Crosswhite- weeknights at 6 and 10
• Jessica Shaer - weeknights at 6 and 10
• Melanie Huonker - weekdays at 4 (Living Well)
• Hank Rotten JR - weekday mornings and noon
• Jasmine Bailey - weekday mornings and noon
• Lauren Lupka - weekends

KSN Weather Team

• Stacey Garvilla - chief meteorologist; weekdays at 4 p.m. (Living Well), and weeknights at 6 and 10 p.m.
• Chase Bullman - meteorologist; weekday mornings Local News Today and noon
• Jeremiah Cook - weekend weather; reporter

Sports team

• Eric Knecht - sports director; weeknights at 6 and 10 p.m.
• Alex Brown - weekend sports

Reporters

• Melanie Huonker - general assignment reporter
• Brad Douglas - general assignment reporter
• Rae Patterson- general assignment reporter

Former on-air staff

• Stephanie Diffin - weekend anchor/reporter (now at KAKE in Wichita, Kansas)
• Iris Hermosillo - weekend meteorologist/reporter (now at KCTV in Kansas City, Missouri)
• Meredith Mitchell - weekend weather anchor/reporter (now at KTHV in Little Rock, Arkansas)
• Carla Ponso - Meterologist (now at WVLA in Baton Rouge, LA)
• Felicia Lawrence - Anchor (now at Fox 46 in Charlotte, NC)
• Hayden Herrera - Sports Anchor (now at KMTR in Eugene, OR)

References

1. ^ http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/30647305/
2. ^ http://fourstateshomepage.com/content/fulltext/?cid=65151
3. ^ http://fourstateshomepage.com/content/fulltext/?cid=68311
4. ^ http://fourstateshomepage.com/content/fulltext/?cid=108532

External links

• KSNF Website
• Query the FCC's TV station database for KSNF
• BIAfn's Media Web Database -- Information on KSNF-TV