51 Years Ago, CBS Radio Network Begins Overnight Hourly Newscasts

[Gregg.]

CBS began doing all-night network hourly newscasts on April 1, 1973. To mark the event, it ran full page ads in the trade magazines, showing the outside of a 24 hour supermarket to stress that news shouldn't stop during overnight hours. Until then, there were several hours a day where no newscasts were broadcast. I guess that was from an era when many affiliates were not on the air around the clock.

But I always wondered, if you are supplying an 11pm or 12am newscast for your West Coast affiliates, and a 5 or 6am newscast for your East Coast affiliates, that leaves only a three or four hour gap. So it wasn't a big step to add newscasts in those gap hours.

Why CBS didn't go 24/7 earlier? The All-News format began on WCBS in 1967. KNX, KCBS and WBBM went All-News in 1968. When there was no overnight network news, the anchor simply would read national news stories himself?

And how about NBC and ABC? Did they also begin 24/7 hourly newscasts around the same time? I know Mutual had round-the-clock network newscasts, top and bottom of the hour, when the Larry King Show was being carried. That began in 1978, five years later.

 

[TheBigA]

Why CBS didn't go 24/7 earlier?

My guess is money. Not many stations were 24/7 at the time, so getting carriage during that time was going to be spotty. Then getting advertising was going to become even worse.

Larry King replaced Long John Nebel who replaced Herb Jepko, who started in 1975.

 

[tvnut]

In Chicago, CBS-owned took UPI or AP radio news at the top of the hour overnights. I think it was UPI but can’t find my notes.

 

[Weiserguy]

CBS began doing all-night network hourly newscasts on April 1, 1973 ... Until then, there were several hours a day where no newscasts were broadcast ... But I always wondered, if you are supplying an 11pm or 12am newscast for your West Coast affiliates, and a 5 or 6am newscast for your East Coast affiliates, that leaves only a three or four hour gap. So it wasn't a big step to add newscasts in those gap hours.

If CBS did have an 11 pm PT cast for the West Coast affiliates, that would have been 2 am on the East Coast. So if they picked back up at 5 am for the East, that was only two hourlies that nobody originated each night. Except...

I think (based on very old, spotty memories) that the latest newscasts were only for the Pacific time zone stations. New York might have logged off at 10 or 11 pm ET, and then 2 or 3 casts which originated in L.A. (or possibly S.F., though I doubt that) for only the West Coast subnet. IIRC, the way the network was structured back in those days, the feed for the Eastern subnet originated in NYC, but there were lines into Chicago which fed the Central time zone affiliates, and into Los Angeles to feed the western affiliates. (I can't recall how the Mountain states affiliates were fed - all from Denver, or split up between Chicago's and L.A.'s subnets, tied to one or the other depending on geography or telco topography.)

Why CBS didn't go 24/7 earlier? The All-News format began on WCBS in 1967. KNX, KCBS and WBBM went All-News in 1968. When there was no overnight network news, the anchor simply would read national news stories himself?

Yes, WCBS launched the "All News" format in 1967, but they did *not* go 24-7 until 1969 (possibly even 1970). There used to be an all-night music program, sponsored by American Airlines, called (something like) Music In The Night. It was locally originated in each market with a CBS O&O (WCBS NYC, as well as WEEI Boston, WBBM Chicago, KNX LA, KCBS SF, KMOX St. Louis and WCCO Minneapolis), each with its own local host. (Again, can't recall if they did any news in those hours, but if they did, there would have been a local newsman at each station, whose style would have been softer and more low key, in keeping with the tenor of those programs. Or the hosts themselves would read short newscasts, again in the same low-key style.

 

[Gregg.]

In Chicago, CBS-owned took UPI or AP radio news at the top of the hour overnights. I think it was UPI but can’t find my notes.

Yes, I remember WCBS also used UPI as another source of news reports. But I wasn't listening to All-News in the days where WCBS might have run hourly UPI News in overnight. I do remember that on WABC, the ABC Contemporary Network did not have overnight newscasts. A local WABC newscaster was heard during overnights.

 

[Mark Roberts]

IIRC, the way the network was structured back in those days, the feed for the Eastern subnet originated in NYC, but there were lines into Chicago which fed the Central time zone affiliates, and into Los Angeles to feed the western affiliates. (I can't recall how the Mountain states affiliates were fed - all from Denver, or split up between Chicago's and L.A.'s subnets, tied to one or the other depending on geography or telco topography.)

I don't know about radio - but, for TV, Mountain time zone stations were mostly on their own. In Albuquerque, the NBC and CBS affiuliates ran their own banks of videotape recorders in prime time and (for NBC) late-night. Daytime feeds were live from the East Coast. KOB didn't sign on until 7 am, which meant that Albuquerque and Santa Fe got one hour of the Today show live and that was it. The ABC affiliate had some sort of arrangement for time-delay coming out of Phoenix via Tucson. In the 1980s, NBC finally established a center for network feeds in the Mountain time zone in Denver.

 

[pjc1961]

Yes, WCBS launched the "All News" format in 1967, but they did *not* go 24-7 until 1969 (possibly even 1970). There used to be an all-night music program, sponsored by American Airlines, called (something like) Music In The Night. It was locally originated in each market with a CBS O&O (WCBS NYC, as well as WEEI Boston, WBBM Chicago, KNX LA, KCBS SF, KMOX St. Louis and WCCO Minneapolis), each with its own local host. (Again, can't recall if they did any news in those hours, but if they did, there would have been a local newsman at each station, whose style would have been softer and more low key, in keeping with the tenor of those programs. Or the hosts themselves would read short newscasts, again in the same low-key style.

@Weiserguy is indeed, wise: WCBS Newsradio88 Appreciation Site

"Music Till Dawn" had its last program on Sunday morning, January 4, 1970.

More WCBS info at WCBS Newsradio 88 Appreciation Site

 

[Weiserguy]

@Weiserguy is indeed, wise: WCBS Newsradio88 Appreciation Site

"Music Till Dawn" had its last program on Sunday morning, January 4, 1970.

More WCBS info at WCBS Newsradio 88 Appreciation Site

Yes, that was it, Music Till Dawn. Thank you! I knew what I wrote was slightly off, but couldn't remember the accurate name. While it wasn't my taste in music, I do remember tuning into the early part of that final broadcast (as I finished recovering from pneumonia). I wish I'd run tape.

 

[Gregg.]

You would think that as "Music 'Til Dawn" was running, CBS would have had network newscasts all night to go along with it, similar to NBC News running hourly during "Monitor." But that didn't happen. It was all music with a few spots and announcements. No news.

I've heard that, while many CBS-owned stations ran the program called "Music 'Til Dawn" all night, it was only a playlist that was sent to each station. A local, live host did the announcing during the five hours in each city and played the songs from the playlist.

 

[semoochie]

I don't know about radio - but, for TV, Mountain time zone stations were mostly on their own. In Albuquerque, the NBC and CBS affiuliates ran their own banks of videotape recorders in prime time and (for NBC) late-night. Daytime feeds were live from the East Coast. KOB didn't sign on until 7 am, which meant that Albuquerque and Santa Fe got one hour of the Today show live and that was it. The ABC affiliate had some sort of arrangement for time-delay coming out of Phoenix via Tucson. In the 1980s, NBC finally established a center for network feeds in the Mountain time zone in Denver.

That's surprising about KOB. You would think that with that many rural listeners, getting up to milk the cow, there would be ample reason to start by at least 6AM and probably earlier!

Also, I have no recollection of Long John Nebel. I thought Larry King replaced Herb Jepko!

 

[On the Dial]

CBS began doing all-night network hourly newscasts on April 1, 1973. To mark the event, it ran full page ads in the trade magazines, showing the outside of a 24 hour supermarket to stress that news shouldn't stop during overnight hours. Until then, there were several hours a day where no newscasts were broadcast. I guess that was from an era when many affiliates were not on the air around the clock.

But I always wondered, if you are supplying an 11pm or 12am newscast for your West Coast affiliates, and a 5 or 6am newscast for your East Coast affiliates, that leaves only a three or four hour gap. So it wasn't a big step to add newscasts in those gap hours.

Why CBS didn't go 24/7 earlier? The All-News format began on WCBS in 1967. KNX, KCBS and WBBM went All-News in 1968. When there was no overnight network news, the anchor simply would read national news stories himself?

And how about NBC and ABC? Did they also begin 24/7 hourly newscasts around the same time? I know Mutual had round-the-clock network newscasts, top and bottom of the hour, when the Larry King Show was being carried. That began in 1978, five years later.

Yes, NBC started 24/7 newscasts at about the same time. I can't remember whether it was before or after CBS. ABC started a little bit later, because it had four different networks (ABC Information, ABC Entertainment, ABC Contemporary and ABC FM), and running four separate newscasts during every overnight hour represented a significantly higher expense.

 

[Mark Roberts]

That's surprising about KOB. You would think that with that many rural listeners, getting up to milk the cow, there would be ample reason to start by at least 6AM and probably earlier!

I was referring to TV. In radio, KOB started its broadcast day at 5:30 am in the 1950s. I can't readily find schedules from the 1960s.

 

[gr8oldies]

Yes, NBC started 24/7 newscasts at about the same time. I can't remember whether it was before or after CBS. ABC started a little bit later, because it had four different networks (ABC Information, ABC Entertainment, ABC Contemporary and ABC FM), and running four separate newscasts during every overnight hour represented a significantly higher expense.

I'm thinking we were well into the 70s before ABC ran overnight newscasts, and then not 7 days. I recall one person handling Information and Entertainment, another handling Contemporary and FM.

 

[ILOVERADIO]

You would think that as "Music 'Til Dawn" was running, CBS would have had network newscasts all night to go along with it, similar to NBC News running hourly during "Monitor." But that didn't happen. It was all music with a few spots and announcements. No news.

I've heard that, while many CBS-owned stations ran the program called "Music 'Til Dawn" all night, it was only a playlist that was sent to each station. A local, live host did the announcing during the five hours in each city and played the songs from the playlist.

Why did CBS pay for local announcers instead of 1 network host nationwide for late night music?

 

[tvnut]

Why did CBS pay for local announcers instead of 1 network host nationwide for late night music?

First, American Airlines paid for the show. C.R. Smith, the chairman of the company, was an insomniac and wanted good music to listen to at night while advertising American. He went to Frank Stanton, pitched the idea, and Stanton said it would be great for the 50 kW stations CBS had. With time-zone differences it made no sense to put it on the network, plus the Telco 5 kHz lines would inhibit the quality of the music (back when AM stations ran a wider signal). Plus, it also ran on KRLD Dallas (American's HQ city), so the boss could listen, WLW Cincinnati and a station in Tulsa where American's aircraft maintenance facility is.

Here's how it sounded on KCBS.

 

[Weiserguy]

First, American Airlines paid for the show. C.R. Smith, the chairman of the company, was an insomniac and wanted good music to listen to at night while advertising American. He went to Frank Stanton, pitched the idea, and Stanton said it would be great for the 50 kW stations CBS had. With time-zone differences it made no sense to put it on the network, plus the Telco 5 kHz lines would inhibit the quality of the music (back when AM stations ran a wider signal). Plus, it also ran on KRLD Dallas (American's HQ city), so the boss could listen, WLW Cincinnati and a station in Tulsa where American's aircraft maintenance facility is.

Here's how it sounded on KCBS.

Almost right, except for the line I've bolded above. Remember, we're talking about Music Till Dawn, which ended its run in the early part of 1970. Through most of the '70s, American Airlines was headquartered in New York City, not Dallas (or anywhere else in Texas). I know this firsthand. AA used to be HQ'ed at 633 Third Avenue in Manhattan, occupying the 2nd through 8th floors. In the '70s, I worked on the 10th floor of that very same building, and AA and my company shared a number of facilities, such as a corporate cafeteria (in the basement), a medical office (on the 9th floor) and a lobby barber shop. So C.R. Smith would have been on AA's 8th (executive) floor. AA did have facilities near the very new DFW Airport, so it did make sense for KRLD to be one of the stations carrying Music Till Dawn. But by the time they made the decision to relocate corporate to DFW, MTD had long since been sunsetted.

 

[tvnut]

You are correct, sir. American moved HQ from New York to Fort Worth in 1979. Smith, though, was a native Texan and a lot of flights on American's southern route went through DFW in the pre-jet era, so that had to have influenced the KRLD selection. A fascinating fellow. Convinced Douglas to build the DC-3, which modernized passenger service, then placed an order with Boeing for the 707 even though Boeing had never built a passenger jet.