KSTP-TV - News Operation

News Operation

Channel 5 was the early news ratings leader in the Twin Cities. It was the first station in the Central Time Zone to air a 10 p.m. newscast seven days a week. It only lost the lead in the late 1960s, when WCCO-TV created its popular "The Scene Tonight." Trying to reclaim the ratings crown, KSTP installed the market's first co-anchor team in 1970, with longtime station anchors Bob Ryan and John MacDougall. They failed to attract more viewers and were fired from the station in 1971, although MacDougall later served as a newscaster on AM 1500 during the 1980s and early 1990s. Ted O'Brien became the news anchor, with Barry ZeVan 'the weather man' and Tom Ryther on sports, headlining KSTP's new effort as "The World Today".

Channel 5 started using the "Eyewitness News" format for its newscasts in 1973; KMSP-TV had used the title since 1969, but discarded it in favor of using Newsnine as its newscast title. KSTP, still seeking ratings gold, replaced O'Brien with Ron Magers on February 11, 1974. Dr. Walt Lyons, meteorologist, took over for ZeVan in 1975. These men, along with Ryther, were "recalled years later by more than one local media critic as the best Twin Cities TV news ensemble ever." By then, KSTP "could genuinely claim to be not just number one in the market but in much of the country." The news team was strengthened even further with the addition of the well-respected Cyndy Brucato in 1979. These on-air personalities led a strong ratings era, which has been unparalleled at the station.

Lyons and Ryther left the station in the late 1970s, followed by weekend weatherman Roy Finden in 1980. After a highly publicized fallout with management, Ron Magers abruptly departed KSTP in 1981 to join WMAQ-TV in Chicago. KSTP-TV once again fell from its top perch, while WCCO-TV climbed back to #1, but the market and the national networks were changing. Meanwhile, Gannett bought channel 11 in 1983 and revitalized the station. NBC began a major climb in primetime ratings while ABC lost steam. This combination of events, along with the "musical chairs" at channel 5's anchor desk, allowed a significant third contender into the Twin Cities news race. Despite its extensive news background, Channel 5 dipped to third in the ratings by 1985. A year later, it lost Lyons' replacement, Dennis Feltgen, to KARE and replaced Cyndy Brucato as anchor. It has remained near the bottom of the heap, occasionally dropping to fourth behind 9:00 p.m. newscasts on KMSP-TV until February 2008 when KMSP-TV lost its steam. Even a shakeup and quirky advertisements featuring Ed Asner (emulating Lou Grant) didn't help. During this time, however, channel 5 became the first station to use satellite news gathering for its newscasts.

1990 saw the launch of the cable and satellite channel All News Channel (ANC) and all-night news on KSTP which alternated between ANC half hours and local half hours.

Despite all the upheaval, a few staffers have managed to stay at KSTP for several years. Stan Turner wore a number of hats at Channel 5—from news director to news anchor—beginning in 1968 through the late 1980s. Starting in October 1976, reporter Jason Davis produced feature stories. Since 2003, Davis has been host and executive producer of a regional-interest program called "On the Road," which originally a segment produced for newscasts and is now a stand-alone program broadcast on Sunday nights. Meteorologist Dave Dahl was hired in 1977, began doing on-air weather reporting in 1979, and became Chief Meteorologist in 1986. Dahl has been noted as being a skeptic of global warming.

Beginning in 1985, Joe Schmit was a sports reporter and later Sports Director for 20 years before switching to news anchor in 2005. But in June 2006, Schmit left the station to join Petters Media and Marketing Group, a subsidiary of Petters Group Worldwide. After the collapse of the company and the arrest and conviction of founder Tom Petters, Schmit returned to KSTP-TV on January 14, 2010. With his return to the station, the station also brought back Sunday Sports Wrap with Joe Schmit. Phil Aldridge subsequently moved to weekend sports anchor and held that position until his contract ended in June 2010. Chris Long currently spells Schmit on evening and weekend sportscasts.

Cyndy Brucato made a surprise return to the KSTP-TV anchor desk in 2004 after an 18-year absence from the station. Her comeback had been preceded by a guest appearance as a fill-in sportscaster, at Joe Schmit's request. Management then decided to rehire her for a news anchor position. While Brucato's return only caused an initial bump in the ratings, her greater significance has been to add insight and depth to the news desk, which has many newer personalities in the market. Eric Kagnert to join KSTP as new evening anchor

In late 2004, the station became part of the controversies surrounding missing explosives following the 2003 invasion of Iraq. Anchor/Reporter Dean Staley and cameraman Joe Caffrey visited the Al Qa'qaa munitions dump on April 18, 2003. By the next year, Staley had moved on to another station, but the tapes still existed and Caffrey was still at KSTP. When reports surfaced that explosive material might have been stolen from the site, the two realized that they had filmed at the facility during an important time.

On May 12, 2006, KSTP announced it was adding a half-hour newscast at 4 p.m. On September 10, 2007, it was switched to 4:30 p.m., allowing the show to blend with the 5 p.m. newscast. For the first year, KSTP had no news competition at that time. However, in late May 2007, KARE began an online/television lifestyles show at 4 p.m. But KSTP can now claim the market's only hour-long afternoon and evening newscasts—at 4:30 and 6:00 p.m. On August 30, 2010, KSTP expanded its weekday morning newscast a half-hour earlier, now running from 4:30 to 7 a.m.

For much of the 1980s and continuing today, KQRS-FM morning show host Tom Barnard has been the station's voice-over announcer. In August 2007, News Director Chris Berg left the station. A report to the Star Tribune says that his departure was "mutual" and was also delayed due to KSTP's coverage of the I-35W Mississippi River bridge collapse.

KSTP began broadcasting its newscasts in standard definition 16:9 widescreen on June 15, 2009.