KYW-TV 1970s
Eyewitness News1970s
A fantastic opening from the last time KYW challenged for the top spot in Philly news, the late 1970s.
2nd clip - Jim Hickey teases his special report via voiceover as we leave the newscast. The fantastic theme (which rivaled WPVI's anthem) is called "Streets Of..." and was produced by the now-defunct Telesound.
Eyewitness News1970s
Jessica Savitch was the rising star for this station, quickly moving to NBC as an anchor for the national news, later dying in a car crash. When this team was broken up, KYW quickly fell to last place.KYW-TV 1980s
Eyewitness News Nightcast1987
An open with shots of city landmarks like the now-imploded Veterans Stadium, the PECO Electric company building, and Independence Mall. Not as effective as WPVI's fast-cut open, but Frank Gari's music is a classic. The constitution station promo refers to the 200th anniversary of the US Constitution, which was celebrated in 1987.
Eyewitness News Nightcast1989
KYW kept the same graphics but switched to an update of Turn To News, which had a different melody. A vast improvement over the previous open, this is a fast-cut montage ala Action News, mixing in KYW's weekend talent as they prepare for the newscast.KYW - NBC Affiliate 1990
The News Tonight1991
KYW did a major relaunch of their news product. "Eyewitness News" was gone and each newscast got a unique name and look. The 11pm news, seen here, became "The News Tonight", and all newscasts began using the "KYW" musical signature, long a staple of KYW Newsradio. This open has a great approach to talent opens, having each anchor "in the city" rather than in the studio smiling at the camera.
News 3 Special Report1994
In 1994, KYW dropped the "different names" approach and went for a single, unified name for all newscasts: "KYW News 3". This is a special report from the News 3 era.KYW - CBS Affiliate 1999
KYW 2001 - 2003
KYW-TV Ident2001
KYW only shows an ident at 5am, to mark the beginning of the broadcast day. This is the version used from 2000 to 2003. Great music and animation.
Eyewitness News at Noon2001
February 2001 and the a new glossy colourful title sequence is introduced.
Using slogan "Real People... Real News."
Eyewitness News at 6pm2002
The 'Real People' slogan is dropped.
Larry Kane features in this clip; he inaugurated the Action News format and anchored in Philadelphia almost continuously from 1970 to 2002, on all three big stations.
Eyewitness News This Morning2003
KYW's 2001-2003 Eyewitness News open went through three incarnations. This is incarnation number 3, which is shorter and has a view of the news van and chopper in the beginning.
KYW Morning News & Weather Promos2001
1st clip - KYW's 2002 promos revolved around a virtual shot of their main news studio. This lets you know what to expect on their morning show, which ironically didn't use the main studio at all during that time!
2nd clip - US stations take their weather seriously. VERY seriously. None more so than in Philadelphia, where whenever a flake of snow falls, the local stations go to wall-to-wall coverage.
KYW CBS 3 Philadelphia 2003
KYW's initial January 2003 relaunch was due, for the most part, to a complete revamp of its news operation. Stunningly, Marc Howard, longtime 5pm anchor at leader WPVI, defected to helm KYW's 11pm news, and the station was able to poach WCAU weekend weathercaster Kathy Orr at an opportune time. This is when KYW decided to relaunch almost everything - music, graphics, logo, and the station's moniker changed as well.
This is what has become known as the "Viacom Mandate" by some - an effort to unify and clean up its CBS owned and operated stations, with simpler looks and a greater emphasis on network branding. Unlike some stations who overnight changed their look and/or name, KYW gave its audience advance warning. The launch was also staggered - most non-news on-air promotions changed to reflect the new CBS 3 name on January 1st, while the news did not relaunch until January 6th.
Where I Live Promo2003
Since Dennis Swanson, the new head of Viacom's O&O stations, and Peter Dunn, KYW's new general manager, come from WNBC, it's only natural that they chose to relaunch KYW with an image promotion. The slogan is lifted from WCBS, but the music was composed by Stephen Arnold, who also composed KYW's new theme.
Relaunch Promo2003
Eyewitness News was not to be left out in this relaunch. This promo spotlights many of KYW's anchors and reporters of the time and boasts of recent ratings gains, however small. This teases at the new talent to come - KYW was not allowed to show or mention Marc Howard until the weekend before the relaunch.
Eyewitness News2003
The original "open" to CBS 3 Eyewitness News. It was decided it would be best not to have a proper open and have the anchors right away open the newscast. As a compromise, this nice "letterbox" animation was used to introduce the broadcast. It lasted only a month.
2nd clip - The close to Marc's first edition of Eyewitness News. Everything's gone smoothly, and then Marc goes and forgets where he works...
Eyewitness News Special Edition2003
When the US went to war with Iraq, all the neworks commissioned special animations and themes. CBS went to Peter Scott Fish to compose this funky theme. CBS 3 adopted and modified the network's open to great effect... and just days later used another, less effective version.
2003 - 2004
Eyewitness News At Noon2003
In 2003 many CBS stations standardised their graphics, and brands, changing from 'KYW-3' to just the 'CBS and channel number' brand. KYW started this in January 2003 dropping their stylised '3' used for over 30 years in favour of a plain, undecorated '3'
Make The Switch & Real Time Traffic Promos2003
1st Clip - Promo for CBS3 Eyewitness News massive audience growth since relaunching with a new cohesive blue and white look and new studio anchors.
2nd clip - A promo for their technology-filled traffic coverage, with charismatic reporter Bob Kelly and the only Philadelphia station with an in-studio traffic center.
I'm a 3 Watcher Promos2004
If it works at another station, use it at yours! After letting go its head of promotions, KYW adopted WBBM's "2 Watcher" campaign. Of course, the theme was changed to "I'm a 3 Watcher". Compare the two!2004
KYW Election 042004
The KYW open for Campaign 20-04, which was the first "hint" of new graphics. It conforms to the new 2004 style.