KNXV in Phoenix

Energized station serves one of nation's fastest-growing markets with news that 'won't waste your time.'

KNXV/CHANNEL 15
Phoenix, Arizona

Address:
515 N. 44th Street;
Phoenix, Ariz. 85008

Phone: 602-273-1500
Fax: 602-685-3000
Web address: www.phoenix360.com

Brad Nilsen, vice president and general manager at KNXV, has only to point to the station's new 70,000-square-foot home to explain the ABC affiliate's dedication to news, education and entertainment in Greater Phoenix.

The new facility, which became operational February 1999, is equipped for digital transmission and offers state-of-the-art technology throughout. Among its feature are two studios - 60 feet wide and 80 feet long - each with a 22-foot high grid clearance; and a three-story parking garage for nearly 200 automobiles and the station's helicopter.

Centrally located near Loop 202 and State Route 143, reporters can readily cover news assignments in any part of the valley, either from the air or on the ground.

"Location is critical because breaking news is a top priority and the strategic placement of the new facility allows quicker access to every corner of the coverage area," Nilsen explains.

AT A GLANCE

Brand Name: ABC 15

Slogan: "We Won't Waste Your Time"

One word to describe KNXV?
ENERGIZED

Personnel: 155 full-time and 10 part-time employees

Famous former staffers: Bob Woodruff, ABC Network; Inga Hammond, CNN; and Virginia Silva, Extra.

News Format: The news department produces five daily newscasts and four weekend newscasts. KNXV is the only station in the market with an exclusive bird's-eye camera located atop the tallest building in Arizona, the Bank One building in downtown Phoenix. From this vantage point, the News 15 Ultracam has a 360-degree view of the entire valley, giving viewers a closer look at events and news occurring around the valley 24-hours a day regardless of weather conditions.

Competition: The Phoenix market is extremely competitive with eight full-power commercial English stations and two full-power Spanish stations. Few markets in America are home to five full-service television news operations.

The Market: Phoenix is the 17th largest television market in the United States and has been the fastest growing top 20 TV market in the country for four years in a row. The Nielsen DMA (or geographic market area) has 1,390,750 TV households.

Penetration: KNXV's reach into market households averages 80 to 85 percent per week, and 89 percent to 93 percent per month. KNXV is carried into 99.1 percent of the cable households in the market, or 855,599 KNXV cable households. KNXV is currently carried on both the DISH network and DirecTV satellite systems.

Major Employers: Motorola, Wal-Mart, AlliedSignal, American Express Co., Bank One, Samaritan Health Systems, America West Holdings, Intel, Raytheon Missile and Wells Fargo.

Community: Phoenix is a diverse community with a rich heritage. There are approximately 2,593,565 people living in the valley, and 20.3 percent of these people are between 25-34 years old and 21.4 percent of the people are between 35-44. Eighteen percent of the population has a four-year degree. Fifty six percent of the population has attended some kind of higher education for at least one year and 33.4 percent have attended a technical/vocational school.

Higher Education: Arizona State University, University of Arizona at Tucson and Northern Arizona University at Flagstaff

Area Attractions: Lifestyle is the major attraction to the valley. The weather is typically warm and the coolest times of the year are considered "sweater weather." Location is another big appeal. Los Angeles, San Diego and Las Vegas are only an hour away by airplane. Just a two-hour drive north to Flagstaff offers a much cooler climate. Four hours north of the valley is the Grand Canyon and four hours south of the valley is the border town of Nogalas, Mexico. The valley is home to major league sports including the NFL's Cardinals, MLB's Arizona Diamond Backs, the NBA's Phoenix Suns and the NHL's Coyotes. The arts are an important part of life in Phoenix. With world-class museums and its own symphony orchestra, the arts community is strong and flourishing.

BACKGROUND

Signing on as an independent station in Phoenix on Sept. 9, 1979, KNXV-TV was owned by New Television Corporation and originally broadcast from a 3,500-square-foot facility in south Phoenix. The call letters KNXV were chosen to stand for "News 15" (the "n" is for news; the XV are Roman numerals). The station adopted the slogan, "We're # Fun," and leased its prime-time hours to national Subscription Television, which featured first-run films, Arizona State University sporting events, National Hockey League games and boxing matches. In 1984, a banner year for Channel 15, the station was sold to Scripps Howard Broadcasting for $30 million.

The station became one of the first affiliates of the fledgling FOX network in 1986 and made history on April 5 the following year as it helped launch FOX's first prime-time lineup. Toward the end of its eight-year association with FOX, the station was leaning toward creating an innovative local-news format and began in 1994 to prepare for the presentation of its first news program.

Shortly before the newscast was to launch, the station learned it would be changing affiliations from FOX to ABC. At 10 p.m. on Aug. 1, 1994, the fast-paced "No Chit Chat, More News" newscast hit the air. News programs at 5 and 6 p.m. and 11 a.m. soon followed. On Jan. 9, 1995, the day ABC was officially on board, the fifth daily newscast (6-7 a.m.) was added. Within six months, KNXV had gone from no news to five newscasts per day competing head to head with four other news operations in Phoenix.

RECOGNITION

KNXV has been recognized many times over the years by the Arizona Chapter of the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences with Rocky Mountain Emmy Award nominations for general news, newscast production, feature hard news story-same day, investigative reporting, photography and sports. The station won 11 Emmy Awards in 1998 and another 11 Emmys in 1999.

The station has been honored for it's coverage of local education issues as winner of the 1997 and 1998 Arizona Education Association Presidential Award for Excellence in Education News Coverage. "Education First" airs every weeknight during News 15 with stories dedicated to teachers, schools and other educational topics. KNXV is known in the market as the "educational station."

LOCAL
PROGRAMMING

* "What's Up" is an educational program designed to appeal to children from eight to 12 years of age. The station visits Greater Phoenix schools, museums, the zoo, sports organizations, businesses and community activities in an effort to enlighten and educate young viewers in a presentation style that appeals to kids. KNXV also has the exclusive broadcast rights to the Arizona State Spelling Bee, which sends its winner to the Scripps Howard national competition in Washington D.C.

* "Arizona Short Stories" is a series of three-minute vignettes that offer viewers a look at the people, places and history surrounding the beautiful state of Arizona. These segments follow the morning, noon and evening newscasts. Arizona Short Stories highlights heritage, history, personal achievements, cultural diversity and much more.

* KNXV offers viewers "Fouhy on Sports," a unique perspective on sports not found on other local television stations. Former high school and college coach Craig Fouhy (pronounced phooey) offers one-minute commentaries on topical contemporary issues and news affecting the world of sports.

* Even with its dedication to reporting local issues, KNXV still knows how to have fun. In addition to ABC's comedy and drama lineup, KNXV offers its own locally- produced brand of entertainment. Sonoran Grill, a weekly cooking program, is hosted by "Mad Coyote Joe" Daignealt. He teaches viewers how to prepare gourmet grilled dishes such as mesquite-grilled swordfish, roasted Cornish game hen with a prickly pear chili glaze and fun things like pizza and birthday cake (yes, cake made on the grill!). Mad Coyote Joe's style is not only enlightening but extremely entertaining.

COMMUNITY
SERVICE

Community service is a natural extension of KNXV's dedication to reporting happenings in the valley.

The station has teamed up with the Children's Miracle Network to raise funds for Phoenix Children's Hospital. KNXV has been a major supporter of "Check Out Hunger," the only statewide campaign to raise funds for all local food banks, raising over $700,000 in 1998 and over a million dollars in 1999. Each dollar of this donation helps provide five meals or distributes more than five pounds of food to the hungry. And, as part of the commitment to put "Education First," KNXV was one of the first participants in an innovative Washington School District bus advertisement program designed to raise funds to convert district vehicles to compressed natural gas. Because KNXV is devoted to education, the station has partnered with the Literacy Volunteers of Maricopa County and supports their ongoing literacy programs. The station also proudly sponsors the Hon Kachina volunteer awards program to recognize the achievements of outstanding Arizona volunteers. Holiday of Hope is the station's yearly campaign to highlight lesser-known, non-profit organizations and gives viewers the opportunity to spread cheer and hope to people who are not normally the recipients of help.

ABC 15's KidNews gives kids the chance to see what it's like to be part of a live newscast. While at local events, this interactive attraction gives kids an opportunity to report on what they've seen and done. Each child's report is put on tape and given to the child to take home. Not only does KidNews serve as a hands-on link to the community, it provides a tremendous promotional opportunity.

KNXV teamed up with the Phoenix Fire Department to develop the "West Valley News Bureau." The Bureau includes a reporter and photographer who work in an office based out of Fire Station No. 44. The purpose is to better cover community news and issues located in the West Valley.

Recognizing Arizona's large Hispanic community, KNXV partnered with Telemundo (affiliate KDRX) in October, 1997 to produce their local newscast on the News 15 set for the Spanish-speaking members of the community. These Spanish language newscasts air weeknights at 5 p.m., 8 p.m. and 10 p.m. on KDRX, Channel 64. Prior to this partnership, Telemundo only offered national news.

KNXV's strong commitment to the community is evidenced by its involvement, which has made a positive impact on many local charities in Phoenix. Some of these charities include Homeward Bound, The Association for Retarded Citizens, Anasazi Foundation, Literacy Volunteers, Lifesaver Summer, The Arthritis Foundation, Arizona Kidney Foundation, United Way, Drugs Don't Work in Arizona, Arts for the Abused, Hospice, Solid Rock Foundation, Salvation Army, Fiesta Bowl, Clean Air Campaign, Arizona Cancer Society, Boys & Girls Clubs, Goodwill, Easter Seals and March of Dimes.