KCTV#Tower

On January 26, 1948, the KCMO Broadcasting Corporation, owner of Kansas City radio station KCMO (810 AM), applied to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) for a permit to build a new television station on channel 5.{{Cite web|url=https://enterpriseefiling.fcc.gov/dataentry/api/download/attachment/a548b60b-1e4e-0275-7c9e-43bf49184ad0|title=History Cards for KCTV|publisher=Federal Communications Commission}}{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-kansas-city-times-kcmo-bid-for-telev/160349497/|date=January 30, 1948|page=3|title=KCMO Bid For Television: It Is the Third Application for a Kansas City Channel|newspaper=The Kansas City Times|location=Kansas City, Missouri|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=December 5, 2024}} It would be more than five years before that application was granted, largely because of a four-year freeze on TV station grants. Five different groups had pending applications for new TV stations in Kansas City: KCMO, the New England Broadcasting Company, and Kansas City radio stations KCKN, KMBC, and WHB.{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118109328/no-new-tv-soon-addition-of-video-channe/|date=March 23, 1951|page=3|title=No New TV Soon: Addition of Video Channels Under FCC Plan Predicted Almost Two Years Off|newspaper=The Kansas City Star|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=February 6, 2023|archive-date=February 11, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230211073202/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118109328/no-new-tv-soon-addition-of-video/|url-status=live}} The freeze ended in April 1952, at which time KCMO and KMBC were already buying and storing equipment with an eye to starting TV stations, and KCMO had already identified the use of its KCMO-FM tower at its studios at 31st and Grand streets to telecast its station.{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118109726/go-ahead-to-tv-freeze-on-new-stations-i/|date=April 14, 1952|page=1, [https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118109800/go-ahead-to-tv/ 2]|title=Go-Ahead to TV: Freeze on New Stations Is Lifted by FCC, Creating a Much Bigger Field|newspaper=The Kansas City Times|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=February 6, 2023|archive-date=February 11, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230211073202/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118109726/go-ahead-to-tv-freeze-on-new-stations/|url-status=live}}

While KCMO had already applied for channel 5, KCKN had originally sought channel 2, which was removed from Kansas City in the final 1952 allocations; that station then amended its application to specify channel 5.{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118110013/amend-a-tv-application-kckn-now-asking/|date=July 11, 1952|page=10|title=Amend A TV Application: KCKN Now Asking for a Station on Channel No. 5.|newspaper=The Kansas City Star|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=February 6, 2023|archive-date=February 6, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230206222911/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118110013/amend-a-tv-application-kckn-now-asking/|url-status=live}} New England Broadcasting had also filed for channel 5, but its application was dismissed by the FCC in January 1953.{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/108618372/tv-uhf-to-be-here-fcc-grants-station-li/|date=January 23, 1953|pages=1, [https://www.newspapers.com/clip/108618595/tv-uhf-to-be-here/ 2]|title=TV-UHF To Be Here: FCC Grants Station License to Empire Coil Company of New Rochelle, N. Y.|newspaper=The Kansas City Star|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=February 6, 2023|archive-date=August 30, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220830204805/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/108618372/tv-uhf-to-be-here-fcc-grants-station/|url-status=live}}

KCKN withdrew its application at the start of June 1953 after co-owned WIBW became the sole applicant for channel 13 in Topeka, Kansas.{{cite news|page=5|title=Closed Circuit|work=Broadcasting|date=June 8, 1953|id={{ProQuest|1285700608}} }} The FCC granted the construction permit on June 3, 1953, at which time KCMO estimated that KCMO-TV would begin in about four months, bringing to the city additional network programs that WDAF-TV, the only pre-freeze TV station in the city, could not fit in its schedule. This was the first VHF station construction permit awarded in Kansas City since the end of the freeze; a UHF station, KCTY, had been awarded for channel 25.{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118204299/kcmo-tv-permit-channel-no-5-is-assigne/|date=June 3, 1953|page=1|title=KCMO-TV Permit: Channel No. 5 Is Assigned by Federal Commission to the Station Here.|newspaper=The Kansas City Star|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=February 8, 2023|archive-date=February 11, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230211073203/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118204299/kcmo-tv-permit-channel-no-5-is/|url-status=live}} The grant of KCMO-TV's permit spurred KMBC and WHB, applicants for channel 9, to combine their bids and seek shared-time use of the channel.{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118204435/kmbc-whb-ask-joint-tv-application-for-o/|date=June 24, 1953|page=1|first=Duke|last=Shoop|title=KMBC-WHB Ask Joint TV: Application for Operation of Transmitter Filed With FCC.|newspaper=The Kansas City Star|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=February 8, 2023|archive-date=February 11, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230211073203/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118204435/kmbc-whb-ask-joint-tv-application-for/|url-status=live}} The FCC promptly approved on June 25, and KMBC-TV and WHB-TV began transmitting from an interim facility on August 2.{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118204461/joint-tv-permit-authorization-of-single/|date=June 25, 1953|page=1|title=Joint TV Permit: Authorization of Single Channel to KMBC and WHB Made by Government.|newspaper=The Kansas City Star|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=February 8, 2023|archive-date=February 11, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230211073203/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118204461/joint-tv-permit-authorization-of/|url-status=live}}{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/108623346/new-tv-station-on-air-programming-is-be/|date=August 3, 1953|page=1|title=New TV Station on Air: Programming Is Begun by KMBC-TV and WHB-TV.|newspaper=The Kansas City Times|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=February 8, 2023|archive-date=August 30, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220830204806/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/108623346/new-tv-station-on-air-programming-is/|url-status=live}} Channel 9, under both licensees, would be the CBS affiliate in Kansas City; KCMO-TV by that point had set a start date of September 27, the end date of daylight saving time.{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/108623274/tv-changes-soon-saturday-start-is-plann/|date=July 26, 1953|page=17C|title=TV Changes Soon: Saturday Start Is Planned on Channel 9, With a Jump in Programs.|newspaper=The Kansas City Star|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=February 8, 2023|archive-date=February 11, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230211073203/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/108623274/tv-changes-soon-saturday-start-is/|url-status=live}}

KCMO-TV made the September 27 start date, with an official dedication featuring former president Harry Truman as the guest of honor taking place on October 4.{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118204997/fete-for-tv-channel-former-president-ap/|date=October 5, 1953|page=3|title=Fete For TV Channel: Former President Appears at KCMO Dedication.|newspaper=The Kansas City Times|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=February 8, 2023|archive-date=February 11, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230211073227/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118204997/fete-for-tv-channel-former-president/|url-status=live}} It took the ABC affiliation, giving Kansas City four channels for the four networks: NBC on WDAF-TV, CBS on KMBC-TV and WHB-TV, DuMont on KCTY, and ABC on KCMO-TV.{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118204685/the-fourth-tv-channel-here-and-world-ser/|date=September 27, 1953|page=2E|title=The Fourth TV Channel Here And World Series in Spotlight|newspaper=The Kansas City Star|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=February 8, 2023|archive-date=February 11, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230211073204/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118204685/the-fourth-tv-channel-here-and-world/|url-status=live}} Before the first week of telecasting on channel 5 had concluded, the KCMO Broadcasting Company agreed to sell itself to the Meredith Publishing Company of Des Moines, Iowa, for $2 million.{{r|Kans531013}} Meredith executives had visited several weeks prior to tour the television facility; company president E. T. Meredith joked that he would like to have a radio and television property closer to Des Moines than its holdings in Syracuse, New York. He was more than joking; he expressed serious interest in the property to Tom L. Evans and Lester Cox, KCMO's stockholders, with Cox letting Evans sell the stations.{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118204761/kcmo-to-be-sold-all-stock-in-broadcasti/|date=October 2, 1953|page=1, [https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118204859/kcmo-to-be-sold/ 2]|title=KCMO To Be Sold: All Stock in Broadcasting Company Will Go to Meredith Publishing Company.|newspaper=The Kansas City Star|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=February 8, 2023|archive-date=February 11, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230211073204/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118204761/kcmo-to-be-sold-all-stock-in/|url-status=live}} This gave Meredith its fourth television station: it had built WHEN-TV in Syracuse and made radio-TV purchases in consecutive years that brought WOW-TV in Omaha, Nebraska, and KPHO-TV in Phoenix, Arizona, into the fold.{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118204904/kcmo-price-2-million-also-meredith-fi/|date=October 13, 1953|page=1|title=KCMO Price, 2 Million: Also, Meredith Firm Will Assume $450,000 in Notes.|newspaper=The Kansas City Times|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=February 8, 2023|archive-date=February 11, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230211073205/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118204904/kcmo-price-2-million-also-meredith/|url-status=live}} DuMont programs moved to KCMO-TV in February 1954, when the network—having bought KCTY in an unsuccessful salvage attempt—opted to shut down that station.{{Cite news|date=February 18, 1954|title=DuMont on KCMO-TV|page=4|work=The Kansas City Times|via=Newspapers.com|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/60768949/dumont-on-kcmo-tv/|access-date=October 9, 2020|archive-date=August 30, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220830204805/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/60768949/dumont-on-kcmo-tv/|url-status=live}} The network ceased operations in 1955.{{Cite magazine|id={{ProQuest|1014914488}}|title=DuMont Network To Quit In Telecasting 'Spin-Off'|page=64|magazine=Broadcasting|date=August 15, 1955}}

In January 1955, Meredith reached a group affiliation deal with CBS covering its radio and television properties outside Phoenix.{{efn|Simultaneously, KPHO-TV in Phoenix lost the CBS affiliation to KOOL-TV, which was owned by entertainer Gene Autry and whose radio counterpart, KOOL, was the CBS affiliate in Phoenix.}} The agreement saw KCMO radio and television become CBS secondary outlets with immediate effect.{{Cite news|url=https://worldradiohistory.com/Archive-BC/BC-1955/1955-01-24-BC.pdf|work=Broadcasting|date=January 24, 1955|title=Five Meredith Stations Become CBS Affiliates|id={{ProQuest|1285718345}}|page=62|access-date=February 8, 2023|archive-date=January 31, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230131025007/https://worldradiohistory.com/Archive-BC/BC-1955/1955-01-24-BC.pdf|url-status=live}} The news was received, per a report in Variety, with "puzzlement" in Kansas City, where KMBC radio was the sixth-oldest CBS affiliate with more than 25 years of service to the network.{{Cite news|pages=28, 34|work=Variety|title=WOW, KMBC Shift To CBS in Major Affiliate Juggle|date=January 26, 1955|id={{ProQuest|1032366674}}}} KCMO-TV joined CBS and KMBC-TV joined ABC on September 28, 1955, with their radio counterparts exchanging affiliations on December 1.{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/117994035/kansas-city-tv-stations-will-trade-netwo/|date=September 25, 1955|page=1B|title=Kansas City TV Stations Will Trade Networks|newspaper=St. Joseph News-Press|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=February 8, 2023|archive-date=February 11, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230211073204/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/117994035/kansas-city-tv-stations-will-trade/|url-status=live}} After a year of construction, in February 1956, the original KCMO-FM tower was replaced by the present tower on the site, then measuring {{convert|1042|ft|m|sp=us}}, and the station began broadcasting at the maximum effective radiated power of 100,000 watts.{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118206477/tv-signal-up-1042-feet-kcmo-begins-tra/|date=February 23, 1956|page=3|title=TV Signal Up 1,042 Feet: KCMO Begins Transmission from Tower at 31st and Grand.|newspaper=The Kansas City Times|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=February 8, 2023|archive-date=February 11, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230211073232/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118206477/tv-signal-up-1042-feet-kcmo-begins/|url-status=live}}

File:Liberty Memorial 046.jpg. In the 1970s, when KCMO radio and television moved to Fairway, Kansas, Kansas City civic leaders suggested dismantling the tower because of the hazard posed by falling ice.|alt=At dusk, a silhouetted, unlit TV tower looms over the Kansas City skyline as seen from the air.]]

KCMO continued to broadcast from the 31st Street studios for more than 20 years. However, in 1976, under general manager Charles McAbee, it announced plans to move its operation from Kansas City across the state line to Fairway, Kansas, where it planned to build a studio facility twice the size. Members of city government expressed dismay at the proposed relocation of the radio and television stations and even suggested dismantling the large tower beside the studios as an icing hazard; McAbee claimed to have scouted six sites in Kansas City itself, including Crown Center.{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118205380/kcmo-move-defended-by-manager/|date=August 13, 1976|page=17A|first=Robert L.|last=Carroll|title=KCMO Move Defended By Manager|newspaper=The Kansas City Times|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=February 8, 2023|archive-date=February 8, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230208065957/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118205380/kcmo-move-defended-by-manager/|url-status=live}} Kansas City councilmembers went as far as to allow the legal department to protest the continued use of the KCMO call letters if the radio and television operations moved to Fairway,{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118205463/channel-19-may-buy-kcmo-building/|date=September 13, 1976|page=3|title=Channel 19 May Buy KCMO Building|newspaper=The Kansas City Star|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=February 8, 2023|archive-date=February 8, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230208070001/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118205463/channel-19-may-buy-kcmo-building/|url-status=live}} though the FCC and a federal appeals court rebuffed their challenges.{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118205574/station-to-move-to-fairway-city-loses-b/|date=April 28, 1977|page=3|first=Roger|last=Moore|title=Station to Move to Fairway: City Loses Battle With KCMO|newspaper=The Kansas City Star|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=February 8, 2023|archive-date=February 11, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230211073204/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118205574/station-to-move-to-fairway-city-loses/|url-status=live}}{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118205609/fcc-renews-tv-licenses/|date=July 6, 1977|page=7B|title=FCC Renews TV Licenses|newspaper=The Kansas City Times|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=February 8, 2023|archive-date=February 8, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230208065959/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118205609/fcc-renews-tv-licenses/|url-status=live}} Kansas City's public television station, KCPT, then agreed to purchase the 31st Street studios from KCMO; however, KCMO-TV itself would continue to be broadcast from the tower at the site.{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118205516/kcpt-channel-19-to-purchase-kcmo-facilit/|date=November 13, 1976|page=21A|first=Robert W.|last=Butler|title=KCPT-Channel 19 to Purchase KCMO Facilities for $220,000|newspaper=The Kansas City Times|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=February 8, 2023|archive-date=February 11, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230211073205/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118205516/kcpt-channel-19-to-purchase-kcmo/|url-status=live}} The Fairway move was completed at the end of 1977.{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118205637/on-the-tv-scene-real-life-disasters-in/|date=January 8, 1978|page=4E|first=Steve|last=Nicely|title=On the TV Scene: Real-Life Disasters In 'Havoc' Series|newspaper=The Kansas City Star|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=February 8, 2023|archive-date=February 8, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230208065957/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118205637/on-the-tv-scene-real-life-disasters-in/|url-status=live}}

In 1982, Meredith announced it would sell the Kansas City radio stations to Richard Fairbanks, retaining the television station; it noted that the radio properties were not meeting its "growth objectives".{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118205836/meredith-negotiates-sale-of-3-radio-stat/|date=September 21, 1982|page=5B|title=Meredith negotiates sale of 3 radio stations|newspaper=The Des Moines Register|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=February 8, 2023|archive-date=February 11, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230211073205/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118205836/meredith-negotiates-sale-of-3-radio/|url-status=live}} The separation of KCMO radio from KCMO-TV required one or the other to change its call sign upon completion of the sale.{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/117536034/will-name-change-be-alphabet-soup-for-kc/|date=October 13, 1982|page=2B|first=Gerald B.|last=Jordan|title=Will name change be alphabet soup for KCMO?|newspaper=The Kansas City Star|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=February 8, 2023|archive-date=February 11, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230211073708/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/117536034/will-name-change-be-alphabet-soup-for/|url-status=live}} Meredith found its new call letters for channel 5 in San Angelo, Texas, where KCTV had been on the air with that designation since 1957. KCMO-TV approached the Texas station, which agreed to seek new call letters, leaving KCTV open to be claimed in Kansas City; the Texas station was reimbursed for all of its expenses in changing over.{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118205935/kcs-mo-has-need-to-be-kctv/|date=January 14, 1983|page=1A, [https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118205973/kcs/ 4A]|first=Annette|last=Lamoreaux|title=KC's MO has need to be KCTV|newspaper=San Angelo Standard-Times|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=February 8, 2023|archive-date=February 8, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230208070004/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118205935/kcs-mo-has-need-to-be-kctv/|url-status=live}}{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/90802280/goodbye-kcmo-tv-hello-kctv/|date=January 14, 1983|page=2B|first=Gerald B.|last=Jordan|title=Goodbye KCMO-TV; hello KCTV|newspaper=The Kansas City Star|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=February 8, 2023|archive-date=February 8, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230208065958/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/90802280/goodbye-kcmo-tv-hello-kctv/|url-status=live}} The KCTV in Texas became KLST in March 1983,{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118206039/kctv-to-change-call-letters-sunday/|date=March 5, 1983|page=7A|title=KCTV to change call letters Sunday|newspaper=San Angelo Standard-Times|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=February 8, 2023|archive-date=February 8, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230208070001/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118206039/kctv-to-change-call-letters-sunday/|url-status=live}} and KCMO-TV became KCTV on June 6, 1983, with the station launching a promotional campaign among advertisers and the public.{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118206078/for-some-children-darkness-lasts/|date=May 4, 1983|page=2B|first=Gerald B.|last=Jordan|title=For some children, darkness lasts|newspaper=The Kansas City Star|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=February 8, 2023|archive-date=February 8, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230208070014/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118206078/for-some-children-darkness-lasts/|url-status=live}}{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118206112/kcmo-puts-on-push-to-sell-its-name/|date=June 4, 1983|pages=F-1, [https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118206118/kctv/ F-5]|first=Roxane|last=Johnson|title=KCMO puts on push to sell its name change|newspaper=The Kansas City Times|location=Kansas City, Missouri|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=February 8, 2023|archive-date=February 8, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230208070000/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118206112/kcmo-puts-on-push-to-sell-its-name/|url-status=live}}

When a major affiliate realignment caused WDAF-TV to switch affiliations from NBC to Fox in 1994, the displaced NBC network wooed KCTV as an affiliate.{{cite news|url=https://worldradiohistory.com/Archive-BC/BC-1994/BC-1994-06-27.pdf|pages=6, 7|first1=David|last1=Tobenkin|first2=Steve|last2=Coe|work=Broadcasting & Cable|title=Affiliates change partners again|id={{ProQuest|1505567203}}|access-date=February 9, 2023|archive-date=December 6, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221206072322/https://worldradiohistory.com/Archive-BC/BC-1994/BC-1994-06-27.pdf|url-status=live}} However, CBS was also courting Meredith and ultimately able to secure an affiliation agreement for KCTV, KPHO-TV in Phoenix, and WNEM-TV in Saginaw, Michigan, the latter two becoming new CBS affiliates.{{cite news|title=Meredith Shifts Stations to CBS|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1994/06/30/business/the-media-business-meredith-shifts-stations-to-cbs.html|newspaper=The New York Times|page=6|date=June 30, 1994|access-date=November 27, 2016|archive-date=March 7, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160307042616/http://www.nytimes.com/1994/06/30/business/the-media-business-meredith-shifts-stations-to-cbs.html|url-status=live|agency=Associated Press}}

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File:KCTV 5 logo.png

File:KCTV 5 2020 Logo.svg

Meredith entered into a $26.8 million agreement to acquire the non-license assets of KSMO-TV (channel 62), then an affiliate of The WB owned by Sinclair Broadcast Group, in November 2004, immediately assuming responsibility for KSMO's advertising sales and administrative operations under a joint sales agreement and moving its staff to the KCTV facility in Fairway. It also had an option to buy the station if FCC rules so approved for a further $6.7 million.{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/117976251/cbs-affiliate-taking-over-wb-station/|date=November 13, 2004|page=C-1, [https://www.newspapers.com/clip/117976314/tv-kctv-is-assuming-control-of-ksmo-und/ C-6]|first=Aaron|last=Barnhart|title=CBS affiliate taking over WB station|newspaper=The Kansas City Star|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=February 5, 2023|archive-date=February 11, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230211073705/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/117976251/cbs-affiliate-taking-over-wb-station/|url-status=live}}{{cite web|title=KCTV owner pays $26.8M for WB affiliate's assets|url=http://www.bizjournals.com/kansascity/stories/2004/11/08/daily44.html|newspaper=Kansas City Business Journal|publisher=American City Business Journals|date=November 12, 2004|access-date=December 10, 2016|archive-date=February 11, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230211073708/https://www.bizjournals.com/kansascity/stories/2004/11/08/daily44.html|url-status=live}}{{cite web|title=Meredith Creates Duopoly-Lite|url=http://www.broadcastingcable.com/news/news-articles/meredith-creates-duopoly-lite/105002|first=John|last=Eggerton|periodical=Broadcasting & Cable|publisher=Reed Business Information|date=November 12, 2004|access-date=December 10, 2016|archive-date=February 11, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230211073709/https://www.nexttv.com/news/meredith-creates-duopoly-lite-105002|url-status=live}}{{cite web|title=Deals|url=http://www.broadcastingcable.com/news/news-articles/deals/105100|first=John|last=Eggerton|agency=BIA Financial Networks|periodical=Broadcasting & Cable|publisher=Reed Business Information|date=November 21, 2004|access-date=December 10, 2016|archive-date=February 11, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230211073712/https://www.nexttv.com/news/deals-105100|url-status=live}} Meredith then filed to buy KSMO-TV outright in January 2005, a transaction that required a failing station waiver from the FCC as there would be fewer than eight unique owners of TV stations in the market.{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/117977023/kctv-owner-seeks-ksmo-license-meredith/|date=January 27, 2005|page=C3|first=Suzanne|last=King|title=KCTV owner seeks KSMO license: Meredith Corp. seeks FCC waiver for the merger|newspaper=The Kansas City Star|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=February 5, 2023|archive-date=February 11, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230211073710/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/117977023/kctv-owner-seeks-ksmo-license-meredith/|url-status=live}} On the grounds that KSMO-TV's revenue and market share had steadily declined in the preceding five years,{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/117977493/more-local-programming-planned-for-chann/|date=September 30, 2005|page=C-1, [https://www.newspapers.com/clip/117977454/deal-kctv-buys-kcmo-license/ C-8]|title=More local programming planned for Channel 62: KCTV buys KSMO license|newspaper=The Kansas City Star|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=February 5, 2023|archive-date=February 11, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230211073711/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/117977493/more-local-programming-planned-for/|url-status=live}} the commission granted the waiver in September 2005, approving the transaction.{{cite news|title=FCC approves sale of KSMO-TV license|url=http://www.bizjournals.com/kansascity/stories/2005/09/26/daily47.html|newspaper=Kansas City Business Journals|publisher=American City Business Journals|date=September 30, 2005|access-date=December 5, 2016|archive-date=December 20, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161220201140/http://www.bizjournals.com/kansascity/stories/2005/09/26/daily47.html|url-status=live}}{{cite web|title=Meredith Buys Rest of KSMO|url=https://www.broadcastingcable.com/news/news-articles/meredith-buys-rest-ksmo/108138|first=John|last=Eggerton|periodical=Broadcasting & Cable|publisher=Reed Business Information|date=September 29, 2005|access-date=December 5, 2016|archive-date=December 21, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161221012828/https://www.broadcastingcable.com/news/news-articles/meredith-buys-rest-ksmo/108138|url-status=live}}{{cite web|title=Station to Station|url=http://www.broadcastingcable.com/news/news-articles/station-station/105926|first=Allison|last=Romano|periodical=Broadcasting & Cable|publisher=Reed Business Information|date=February 13, 2005|access-date=December 10, 2016|archive-date=December 21, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161221011302/http://www.broadcastingcable.com/news/news-articles/station-station/105926|url-status=live}} It created the third duopoly in Kansas City, alongside KSHB-TV with KMCI-TV and KMBC-TV with KCWE.{{r|Kans041113}}

KCTV was the CBS affiliate of record in St. Joseph, Missouri, from 1967—when local station KFEQ-TV switched from CBS to ABC{{cite news|url=https://worldradiohistory.com/Archive-BC/BC-1967/1967-05-08-BC.pdf|date=May 8, 2017|work=Broadcasting|page=61|title=KFEQ-TV signed as basic ABC affiliate|id={{ProQuest|1014507113}}|access-date=February 9, 2023|archive-date=November 8, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211108151231/https://worldradiohistory.com/Archive-BC/BC-1967/1967-05-08-BC.pdf|url-status=live}}—until June 1, 2017, when locally based KBJO-LD (channel 30, which concurrently became KCJO-LD) switched its primary affiliation from Telemundo to CBS.{{cite news|title=NPG to add local CBS affiliate in June|url=http://www.newspressnow.com/news/local_news/npg-to-add-local-cbs-affiliate-in-june/article_37d188b5-17d1-5cc6-9ec2-7cc7f9bbe86e.html|newspaper=St. Joseph News-Press|publisher=News-Press & Gazette Company|date=February 24, 2017|access-date=June 12, 2017|archive-date=February 25, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170225155130/http://www.newspressnow.com/news/local_news/npg-to-add-local-cbs-affiliate-in-june/article_37d188b5-17d1-5cc6-9ec2-7cc7f9bbe86e.html|url-status=live}}{{cite web|title=NPG To Launch CBS Affil In St. Joseph, MO|url=http://www.tvnewscheck.com/article/101800/npg-to-launch-cbs-affil-in-st-joseph-mo|author=Mark K. Miller|website=TVNewsCheck|publisher=NewsCheck Media|date=February 24, 2017|access-date=February 25, 2017|archive-date=July 31, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170731234936/http://www.tvnewscheck.com/article/101800/npg-to-launch-cbs-affil-in-st-joseph-mo|url-status=live}}{{cite news|title=NBC affiliate coming to St. Joe|url=http://www.newspressnow.com/news/business/nbc-affiliate-coming-to-st-joe/article_48ed5f08-6859-5134-ba6b-fde5c295eb26.html|newspaper=St. Joseph News-Press|publisher=News-Press & Gazette Company|date=August 18, 2016|access-date=December 12, 2016|archive-date=October 23, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161023181101/http://www.newspressnow.com/news/business/nbc-affiliate-coming-to-st-joe/article_48ed5f08-6859-5134-ba6b-fde5c295eb26.html|url-status=live}} A month later, KCTV was removed from Suddenlink's St. Joseph cable system.{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118269566/kctv-no-longer-listed/|date=July 12, 2017|page=B1|title=KCTV no longer listed|newspaper=St. Joseph News-Press|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=February 9, 2023|archive-date=February 9, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230209050824/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118269566/kctv-no-longer-listed/|url-status=live}}

On May 3, 2021, after 68 years of Meredith ownership, Gray Television announced its intent to purchase the Meredith Local Media division, including KCTV and KSMO-TV, for $2.7 billion.{{Cite news|url=https://www.nexttv.com/news/gray-buys-meredith-stations-in-deal-worth-dollar27-billion|first=Jon|last=Lafayette|work=Broadcasting & Cable|title=Gray Television Buying Meredith Stations in Deal Worth $2.7 Billion|date=May 3, 2021}} The sale was completed on December 1.{{Cite news|url=https://tvnewscheck.com/business/article/gray-closes-on-meredith-purchase/|date=December 1, 2021|work=TVNewsCheck|title=Gray Closes On Meredith Purchase|access-date=December 4, 2024}}

In 1979, KCMO-TV paired Wendall Anschutz, already a 13-year veteran of the channel 5 news staff at that time, with 23-year-old Anne Peterson to anchor the station's evening newscast.{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-kansas-city-star-wendall-anschutz-ju/160351479/|date=August 5, 1979|page=5K|first=Gerald B.|last=Jordan|title=Wendall Anschutz Just as Nice a Guy Off Camera as On|newspaper=The Kansas City Star|location=Kansas City, Missouri|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=December 5, 2024}}{{Cite news|work=Variety|pages=50, 63|title=Anne Peterson, 23, Named By KCMO-TV To Succeed Karen Foss As Coanchor|date=August 1, 1979|id={{ProQuest|1401356381}} }} The pairing endured in some form through 2001, making it the longest-lasting in Kansas City television.{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/117710175/dynamic-tv-duos/|date=November 3, 2002|page=Magazine 6|first=Tim|last=Engle|title=Dynamic TV duos|newspaper=The Kansas City Star|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=February 11, 2023|archive-date=February 11, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230211073710/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/117710175/dynamic-tv-duos/|url-status=live}} In 1981, channel 5 had the first 10 p.m. newscast in the market to reach a 40 share—40 percent of homes watching TV at that time.{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118271030/channel-5-has-first-10-pm-newscast-to/|date=March 31, 1981|page=A-13|first=Steve|last=Nicely|title=Channel 5 has first 10 p.m. newscast to attract 40 percent of audience|newspaper=The Kansas City Times|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=February 9, 2023|archive-date=February 9, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230209060452/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118271030/channel-5-has-first-10-pm-newscast-to/|url-status=live}} However, the station spent most of the 1980s and early 1990s in a competitive battle with KMBC-TV and WDAF-TV for news viewers.{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118271059/channel-9-pulls-slightly-ahead-in-evenin/|date=February 19, 1982|page=2B|first=Barry|last=Garron|title=Channel 9 pulls slightly ahead in evening news|newspaper=The Kansas City Star|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=February 9, 2023|archive-date=February 11, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230211073712/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118271059/channel-9-pulls-slightly-ahead-in/|url-status=live}}{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118271140/news-ratings-give-a-boost-to-channel-4/|date=March 23, 1984|page=2B|first=Barry|last=Garron|title=News ratings give a boost to Channel 4|newspaper=The Kansas City Star|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=February 9, 2023|archive-date=February 9, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230209060453/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118271140/news-ratings-give-a-boost-to-channel-4/|url-status=live}}{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118271215/channel-5-news-takes-ratings-lead/|date=August 26, 1986|page=2C|first=Barry|last=Garron|title=Channel 5 news takes ratings lead|newspaper=The Kansas City Star|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=February 9, 2023|archive-date=February 9, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230209061216/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118271215/channel-5-news-takes-ratings-lead/|url-status=live}} It was also the first television station in the United States to begin closed captioning of its local newscasts in 1982—years ahead of Boston's WCVB-TV, which claimed to be the first to do so in 1986.{{cite news|title=Notes from Broadcast Markets in the U.S. and Abroad|work=Variety|page=70|date=September 15, 1982|id={{ProQuest|1438350706}} }}{{Cite news|title=On Sept. 21, 1982, television history was made in Kansas City at KCMO-TV 5 (ad)|id={{ProQuest|963236061}}|url=https://worldradiohistory.com/Archive-BC/BC-1982/BC-1982-11-08.pdf|date=November 8, 1982|work=Broadcasting|page=73}}{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118297537/boston-tv-stations-help-deaf-viewers/|date=December 26, 1985|page=7B|agency=Associated Press|title=Boston TV Stations Help Deaf Viewers|newspaper=The Burlington Free Press|location=Burlington, Vermont|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=February 11, 2023}}

By the early 1990s, KMBC-TV had taken a clear first place in the market,{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118271393/channel-9-clearly-leads-news-pack/|date=March 11, 1993|page=G-2|first=Barry|last=Garron|title=Channel 9 clearly leads news pack|newspaper=The Kansas City Star|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=February 9, 2023|archive-date=February 9, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230209060450/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118271393/channel-9-clearly-leads-news-pack/|url-status=live}} particularly among more desirable younger viewers.{{r|Kans930701}} As part of a major overhaul of the station's news programming, in 1993, longtime sportscaster Don Fortune and reporter Marty Lanus were let go.{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118270874/dismissals-reflect-changes-kctv/|date=July 1, 1993|page=F-1, [https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118270860/dismissals-shake-kctv-newsroom/ F-2]|first=Barry|last=Garron|title=Dismissals reflect changes: KCTV terminations may signal trend favoring younger audience|newspaper=The Kansas City Star|location=Kansas City, Missouri|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=February 11, 2023|archive-date=February 11, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230211073711/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118270874/dismissals-reflect-changes-kctv/|url-status=live}} At that time, the station also launched weekend morning newscasts, becoming the second Kansas City outlet to do so behind WDAF-TV and complementing the launch of weekday morning news a year earlier.{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118401956/catch-it-while-its-still-on-the-air/|date=June 20, 1992|page=E-2|first=Barry|last=Garron|title=Catch it while it's still 'On the Air'|newspaper=The Kansas City Star|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=February 11, 2023|archive-date=February 11, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230211073711/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118401956/catch-it-while-its-still-on-the-air/|url-status=live}}{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118270795/channel-5-to-drop-cartoons-for-news/|date=August 13, 1993|page=F-2|first=Barry|last=Garron|title=Channel 5 to drop cartoons for news|newspaper=The Kansas City Star|location=Kansas City, Missouri|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=February 11, 2023|archive-date=February 11, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230211073712/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118270795/channel-5-to-drop-cartoons-for-news/|url-status=live}} However, ratings continued to slide to their lowest numbers since 1985.{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118402081/kctv-news-takes-a-plunge-nielsens-refle/|date=June 1, 1994|page=F-1, [https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118402107/sweeps/ F-2]|title=KCTV news takes a plunge: Nielsens reflect shift in viewer preferences|newspaper=The Kansas City Star|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=February 11, 2023|archive-date=February 11, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230211073713/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118402081/kctv-news-takes-a-plunge-nielsens/|url-status=live}} Though figures improved to the point where channel 5 narrowly edged out channel 9 in 1996,{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118402166/country-club-revelers-are-nearly-gone-wi/|date=June 11, 1996|page=E-2|first=Hearne Jr.|last=Christopher|title=Country club revelers are nearly gone with the wind|newspaper=The Kansas City Star|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=February 11, 2023|archive-date=February 11, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230211073714/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118402166/country-club-revelers-are-nearly-gone/|url-status=live}} KCTV ceded most of that ground in most time periods during 1998.{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/117709476/more-and-more-the-early-viewer-is-catch/|date=May 30, 1998|page=E-4|first=Aaron|last=Bernhart|title=More and more, the early viewer is catching the morning news|newspaper=The Kansas City Star|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=February 11, 2023|archive-date=February 11, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230211074234/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/117709476/more-and-more-the-early-viewer-is/|url-status=live}}

KCTV's news presentation underwent a major overhaul under Kirk Black, whom Meredith promoted from WNEM-TV to serve as KCTV's general manager in 2001,{{cite web|title=Black joins KCTV as new general manager|url=http://www.bizjournals.com/kansascity/stories/2001/07/30/daily9.html|website=Kansas City Business Journal|publisher=American City Business Journals|date=July 31, 2001|access-date=December 5, 2016|archive-date=December 20, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161220201059/http://www.bizjournals.com/kansascity/stories/2001/07/30/daily9.html|url-status=live}} and news director Regent Ducas, hired in April 2002. The goal was to overtake KMBC-TV as the top-rated television news operation in Kansas City.{{cite web|title=Back on Track, Thanks to Black|url=http://www.broadcastingcable.com/news/news-articles/back-track-thanks-black/75584|first=Allison|last=Romano|periodical=Broadcasting & Cable|publisher=Reed Business Information|date=September 2, 2005|access-date=December 10, 2016|archive-date=December 21, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161221030054/http://www.broadcastingcable.com/news/news-articles/back-track-thanks-black/75584|url-status=dead}} The major changes included the assignment of the station's news anchors to conduct field reports, the expansion of its weekday morning newscast to a then-unusual 4:30 a.m. in December 2001, and the debut of a late-afternoon newscast at 4:30 p.m. on March 4, 2002.{{cite news|title=KCTV-5 refocuses its efforts on becoming No. 1 station in Kansas City|url=http://www.bizjournals.com/kansascity/stories/2002/02/25/smallb1.html|newspaper=Kansas City Business Journal|publisher=American City Business Journals|date=February 24, 2002|access-date=December 5, 2016|archive-date=December 20, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161220201034/http://www.bizjournals.com/kansascity/stories/2002/02/25/smallb1.html|url-status=live}} Six months after Ducas's hiring, KCTV adopted "Live. Late-Breaking. Investigative." as its new slogan and unveiled a new, darker-colored news set and new logo with a larger 5.{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118271583/changes-continue-at-kctv-as-reed-black-d/|date=September 14, 2002|page=F-5|first=Aaron|last=Barnhart|title=Changes continue at KCTV as Reed Black departs|newspaper=The Kansas City Star|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=February 9, 2023|archive-date=February 11, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230211074215/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118271583/changes-continue-at-kctv-as-reed-black/|url-status=live}} After a severe weather outbreak in May 2003 where the station opted to continue with live coverage helmed by meteorologist Katie Horner, KCTV became aggressive in preempting regular programming for severe weather coverage, sparking the ire of some viewers.{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118403051/kctv-5-meteorologist-katie-horner-takin/|date=May 3, 2007|page=E1, [https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118403026/horner-2003-tornadoes-set-our-policy/ E2]|first=Aaron|last=Barnhart|title=KCTV-5 meteorologist Katie Horner: Taking KC by storm|newspaper=The Kansas City Star|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=February 11, 2023}}

Another radical change occurred on November 17, 2003, when the station announced that it would shut down its in-house sports department and enter into an outsourcing agreement with local cable sports channel Metro Sports. Metro Sports produced sportscasts for KCTV's evening newscasts, as well as sports specials and Kansas City Chiefs–related programs, from its facility at Swope Park. Sports anchors William Jackson and Leif Lisec and sports reporter Neal Jones were terminated by KCTV after sports production transferred to Metro Sports on February 9, 2004. Though Kirk Black cited research that indicated that most news viewers were not interested in sports, the move was criticized by many local sports radio hosts, who thought that Black's decision to shutter the sports department showed his lack of understanding of the market's rabid sports fanbase, and by the station's union, as the non-union Metro Sports replaced KCTV's own employees.{{cite web|title=Kansas City's KCTV5 to outsource local sports coverage to cable|url=http://www.tvtechnology.com/news/0086/kansas-citys-kctv-to-outsource-local-sports-coverage-to-cable/228829|website=TVTechnology|publisher=Cahners Business Information|date=November 17, 2003|access-date=December 12, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161221025057/http://www.tvtechnology.com/news/0086/kansas-citys-kctv-to-outsource-local-sports-coverage-to-cable/228829|archive-date=December 21, 2016}}{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118402260/kctv5-to-outsource-its-sports-metro-spo/|date=November 7, 2003|page=D-1, [https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118402296/tv-channel-5-to-replace-its-sports-depa/ D-5]|first=Aaron|last=Barnhart|title=KCTV5 to outsource its sports: Metro Sports will handle coverage on telecasts|newspaper=The Kansas City Star|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=February 11, 2023|archive-date=February 11, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230211074216/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118402260/kctv5-to-outsource-its-sports-metro/|url-status=live}}{{cite web|title=KCTV to Drop Sports, Use Metro Cable Reports; CBS Affiliate Eliminating In-House Department, Partnering With Time Warner Unit|url=http://www.tvweek.com/in-depth/2003/11/kctv-to-drop-sports-use-metro/|periodical=TelevisionWeek|date=November 17, 2003|access-date=December 12, 2016|archive-date=December 20, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161220212249/http://www.tvweek.com/in-depth/2003/11/kctv-to-drop-sports-use-metro/|url-status=live}}{{cite journal|title=K.C. rivals teaming up.(Metro Sports Channel and CBS affiliate KCTV are now teaming to capture Kansas City sports viewers)|url=https://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-113299340.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181119204718/https://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-113299340.html|archive-date=November 19, 2018|first=Mike|last=Reynolds|periodical=Multichannel News|publisher=Cahners Business Information|date=February 9, 2004|access-date=December 5, 2016}} The Metro Sports arrangement ended in 2009 and was supplanted by a deal with Kansas City sports radio station WHB.{{cite web|title=Kansas City TV Station, Radio Station Partner For Sports Coverage|url=http://www.adweek.com/tvspy/kansas-city-tv-station-radio-station-partner-for-sports-coverage/2911|first=Andrew|last=Gauthier|periodical=TVSpy|publisher=Prometheus Global Media|date=August 6, 2009|access-date=December 5, 2016|archive-date=December 21, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161221225744/http://www.adweek.com/tvspy/kansas-city-tv-station-radio-station-partner-for-sports-coverage/2911|url-status=live}}{{cite web|title=KCTV, WHB-AM Partner To Cover Sports|url=http://www.tvnewscheck.com/article/34482/kctv-whbam-partner-to-cover-sports|website=TVNewsCheck|publisher=NewsCheck Media|date=August 5, 2009|access-date=December 5, 2016}}{{cite news|title=KCTV-5 finds a new sports partner: 810 WHB|url=http://www.kansas.com/news/article1009404.html|first=Aaron|last=Barnhart|newspaper=The Kansas City Star|publisher=The McClatchy Company|via=The Wichita Eagle|date=August 5, 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161220165429/http://www.kansas.com/news/article1009404.html|archive-date=December 20, 2016}} The outsourcing of sports ended in 2010, when KCTV reestablished a sports department by hiring Lawrence, Kansas, native Michael Coleman as sports director; he remained at the station until 2017.{{cite news|title=KCTV5 Hires Michael Coleman As Sportscaster|url=http://www.kctv5.com/story/14782717/kctv5-hires-michael-coleman-as-sportscaster-4-12-2010|website=KCTV|publisher=Meredith Corporation|date=April 12, 2010|access-date=December 12, 2016|archive-date=December 20, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161220131502/http://www.kctv5.com/story/14782717/kctv5-hires-michael-coleman-as-sportscaster-4-12-2010|url-status=live}}{{cite news|title=Michael Coleman, out at KCTV, has had a rough six months|url=http://www.kansascity.com/sports/spt-columns-blogs/for-petes-sake/article143145339.html|first=Pete|last=Grathoff|newspaper=The Kansas City Star|publisher=The McClatchy Company|date=April 6, 2017|access-date=April 7, 2017|archive-date=April 7, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170407234538/http://www.kansascity.com/sports/spt-columns-blogs/for-petes-sake/article143145339.html|url-status=live}}{{cite web|title=KCTV Sports Director Tells Viewers His Contract Wasn't Renewed|url=http://www.adweek.com/tvspy/kctv-sports-director-tells-viewers-his-contract-wasnt-renewed/188350|first=Kevin|last=Eck|website=TVSpy|publisher=Prometheus Global Media|date=April 6, 2017|access-date=April 7, 2017|archive-date=April 8, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170408001745/http://www.adweek.com/tvspy/kctv-sports-director-tells-viewers-his-contract-wasnt-renewed/188350|url-status=live}}

The station's change in direction under Black saw several additional talent exits, and newsroom turnover was heavy.{{cite news|first=Stephen|last=Roth|work=Kansas City Business Journal|title=KCTV's changes bring lukewarm reception|page=6|date=February 21, 2003|id={{ProQuest|234375051}} }} In addition to veterans Stan Cramer, Anschutz, and others who were among 170 company employees to take voluntary retirement packages in 2001,{{Cite news|url=https://www.bizjournals.com/kansascity/stories/2002/01/21/daily39.html|date=January 24, 2002|title=KCTV-5 news director leaves station|work=Kansas City Business Journal|first=Stephen|last=Roth|access-date=February 11, 2023|archive-date=May 11, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150511183258/http://www.bizjournals.com/kansascity/stories/2002/01/21/daily39.html|url-status=live}} several veteran reporters, including 23-year employee Reed Black and 29-year reporter Geri Gosa, departed in 2002;{{r|Kans020914}}{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118271649/hope-for-sweeps-redemption-kctv-and-ksh/|date=November 1, 2002|page=E-1, [https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118271631/channel-5-pushing-on-the-scene-shots/ E-5]|first=Aaron|last=Barnhart|title=Hope for sweeps redemption: KCTV and KSHB made big changes in pursuit of better ratings|newspaper=The Kansas City Star|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=February 9, 2023|archive-date=February 11, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230211074216/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118271649/hope-for-sweeps-redemption-kctv-and/|url-status=live}} while anchor Russell Kinsaul had his contract not renewed in 2004 and was hired at KMOV in St. Louis,{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118271772/kctv-weighs-in-on-new-anchor/|date=August 25, 2004|pages=F-1, [https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118271759/christopher-entertainment-district-welc/ F-7]|first=Christopher Jr.|last=Hearne|title=KCTV weighs in on new anchor|newspaper=The Kansas City Star|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=February 11, 2023|archive-date=February 11, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230211074214/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118271772/kctv-weighs-in-on-new-anchor/|url-status=live}} KCTV saw its news ratings increase to their best competitive position in years.{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-kansas-city-star-live-late-breaking/160352508/|date=December 2, 2004|pages=E-1, [https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-kansas-city-star-kctv-its-live-la/160352484/ E-7]|first=Aaron|last=Barnhart|title=Live, late-breaking... and the leader|newspaper=The Kansas City Star|location=Kansas City, Missouri|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=December 5, 2024}}

There were also controversies around the newsroom, some caused by the station's investigative reports. A series of reports conducted in partnership with Perverted Justice in the style of the later NBC series To Catch a Predator created legal issues: of the 16 people lured by KCTV's sting, none could be arrested, but three filed defamation complaints and another sued Meredith and Perverted Justice alleging entrapment.{{cite web|title=Controversy Surrounds Sex-Predator Sting|url=http://www.broadcastingcable.com/news/news-articles/controversy-surrounds-sex-predator-sting/102505|first=Steve|last=McClellan|periodical=Broadcasting & Cable|publisher=Reed Business Information|date=March 21, 2004|access-date=December 5, 2016|archive-date=December 21, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161221012839/http://www.broadcastingcable.com/news/news-articles/controversy-surrounds-sex-predator-sting/102505|url-status=live}} The Columbia Journalism Review chided reporter Dave Helling for a 2004 report in which he misrepresented the type of ammonium nitrate he bought in a report about illegal sales of the fertilizer in Kansas.{{cite web|title=Journalism publication chastises TV station about investigative story on Tonganoxie fertilizer business|url=http://www.tonganoxiemirror.com/news/2005/mar/16/journalism_publication_chastises/|first=Lisa|last=Scheller|newspaper=Tonganoxie Mirror|publisher=The World Company|date=March 16, 2005|quote="Ammonium nitrate," said KCTV 5 reporter Dave Helling. "It's a cheap and common fertilizer and when mixed with diesel fuel in the right proportions ... it could cause an explosion."|access-date=May 1, 2016|archive-date=June 3, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160603085512/http://www.tonganoxiemirror.com/news/2005/mar/16/journalism_publication_chastises/|url-status=live}}{{cite news|title=Channel 5's fertilizer bomb story keeps growing|url=http://www.pitch.com/news/article/20607580/late-breaking|first=Tony|last=Ortega|author-link=Tony Ortega|website=The Pitch|date=March 24, 2005|access-date=December 5, 2016|archive-date=December 20, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161220092605/http://www.pitch.com/news/article/20607580/late-breaking}} KCTV was enjoined by Kansas courts from using information it had obtained about patients of a plastic surgeon in Mission Hills, Kansas, who had discarded a computer containing private patient data only for it to be found by a scavenger and the data turned over to the station; however, it did broadcast a report featuring one anonymous patient, and the doctor faced a class action lawsuit from the patients.{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118404064/patients-sue-doctor-over-old-computer/|date=July 14, 2005|page=B2|first=Dan|last=Margolies|title=Patients sue doctor over old computer|newspaper=The Kansas City Star|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=February 11, 2023|archive-date=February 11, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230211074214/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118404064/patients-sue-doctor-over-old-computer/|url-status=live}}

In 2007, a longtime newscast director sued Meredith and charged that the company had engaged in systematic harassment and dismissal of older employees. A judge denied KCTV's move to dismiss the suit; station management later reached a monetary settlement with the plaintiff.{{cite news|title=Live. Late-Breaking. Litigation.: Lawsuits reveal a time of turbulence at KCTV|url=http://blogs.kansascity.com/tvbarn/2007/05/live_latebreaki.html|website=The Kansas City Star|first=Aaron|last=Barnhart|publisher=The McClatchy Company|date=May 30, 2007|access-date=February 28, 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090706025103/http://blogs.kansascity.com/tvbarn/2007/05/live_latebreaki.html|archive-date=July 6, 2009}}

As part of the acquisition of KSMO-TV, Meredith promised to add a newscast to its lineup for its first time.{{r|Kans050127}} The 30-minute KCTV 5 News at 9:00 debuted in October 2005, after the purchase closed, promising the same experience "lock, stock, and barrel" as the station offered at 10 p.m. even though KCTV general manager Kirk Black had previously declared it would have its own presentation style.{{r|Kans050127}}{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/117993667/whats-new-on-the-wb-the-news/|date=October 19, 2005|page=F6|first=Aaron|last=Barnhart|title=What's new on The WB? The news|newspaper=The Kansas City Star|location=Kansas City, Missouri|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=February 5, 2023|archive-date=February 11, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230211074219/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/117993667/whats-new-on-the-wb-the-news/|url-status=live}} By 2010, the station was also airing a 7 a.m. morning newscast and simulcasting a noon newscast also aired on KCTV.{{Cite news|title=Market profile: Kansas City|work=Mediaweek|id={{ProQuest|612718904}}|date=June 28, 2010|page=22|first=Katy|last=Bachman}} Though the station also experimented with a 6:30 p.m. newscast on KSMO in 2014,{{cite news|title=KCTV-5 to launch 6:30 p.m. newscast on KSMO|url=http://www.kansascity.com/entertainment/tv/article846413.html|first=Tim|last=Engle|newspaper=The Kansas City Star|publisher=The McClatchy Company|date=August 1, 2014|access-date=August 15, 2014|archive-date=August 19, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140819082547/http://www.kansascity.com/entertainment/tv/article846413.html|url-status=live}} this newscast had been canceled by 2018, when channel 62 shifted to airing news in the 7 p.m. hour.{{cite web|url=https://publicfiles.fcc.gov/api/manager/download/43616a34-854c-1269-3bd2-2160f303b6ae/890d1e6c-26fb-436e-8ff7-8eb7824e229c.pdf|publisher=Federal Communications Commission|website=Online Public Inspection File|date=March 31, 2018|title=KSMO (Kansas City) Issues/Program Report, 1st Quarter 2018|access-date=February 11, 2023|archive-date=February 11, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230211074213/https://files.fcc.gov/download/890d1e6c-26fb-436e-8ff7-8eb7824e229c.pdf|url-status=live}}

Black left in 2009 when Meredith promoted him to run its largest and most troubled television station, WGCL-TV in Atlanta.{{cite news|title=Black Takes Over WGCL|url=http://www.broadcastingcable.com/news/programming/black-takes-over-wgcl/35306|first=Michael|last=Malone|periodical=Broadcasting & Cable|publisher=Reed Business Information|date=August 19, 2009|access-date=December 5, 2016|archive-date=December 21, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161221021511/http://www.broadcastingcable.com/news/programming/black-takes-over-wgcl/35306|url-status=live}} Citing research showing that the station was perceived as "annoying", his successor, Brian Totsch, moved to tone down the station's style, ditching the "live, late-breaking, investigative" tagline he called a "punchline"; reducing the number of severe weather cut-ins; and dismissing lead investigative reporter Ash-har Quraishi.{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118404483/once-again-newsroom-changes-roil-kctv-5/|date=May 29, 2010|pages=C-1, [https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118404475/tv-am-show-changes-stir-anger/ C-9]|first=Aaron|last=Barnhart|title=Once again, newsroom changes roil KCTV-5|newspaper=The Kansas City Star|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=February 11, 2023|archive-date=February 11, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230211074216/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118404483/once-again-newsroom-changes-roil-kctv-5/|url-status=live}} Ratings fell, and KCTV was in third place again by 2011.{{cite news|title=KMBC's frosty, fabulous February|first=Aaron|last=Barnhart|url=http://www.kansascity.com/2011/03/03/2696195/kmbcs-frosty-fabulous-february.html|newspaper=The Kansas City Star|publisher=The McClatchy Company|date=March 3, 2011|access-date=March 4, 2011|archive-date=March 7, 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110307180811/http://www.kansascity.com/2011/03/03/2696195/kmbcs-frosty-fabulous-february.html|url-status=live}} However, the station's performance outside of news continued to be strong: in 2013, it won total-day ratings, especially prime time, despite not winning any of the local news races, which were split among WDAF-TV and KMBC-TV.{{Cite news|url=https://www.nexttv.com/news/market-eye-sprint-finish-line-44026|work=Broadcasting & Cable|first=Michael|last=Malone|date=May 5, 2013|title=Market Eye: A Sprint to the Finish Line|access-date=February 11, 2023|archive-date=July 31, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210731090836/https://www.nexttv.com/news/market-eye-sprint-finish-line-44026|url-status=live}}

After being abruptly let go in 2015, former news anchor Karen Fuller sued Meredith, alleging age discrimination specific to female anchors, though Meredith cited poor performance as the reason for her dismissal. Though a district judge in Kansas refused to dismiss the case, before it was to go to trial in Kansas City, Kansas, the two parties settled in 2018.{{Cite news|url=https://www.kcur.org/news/2018-12-18/former-kctv-anchor-karen-fuller-settles-her-discrimination-lawsuit-against-meredith-corp#stream/0|first=Dan|last=Margolies|work=KCUR|date=December 18, 2018|title=Former KCTV Anchor Karen Fuller Settles Her Discrimination Lawsuit Against Meredith Corp.|access-date=February 11, 2023|archive-date=September 1, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220901090252/https://www.kcur.org/news/2018-12-18/former-kctv-anchor-karen-fuller-settles-her-discrimination-lawsuit-against-meredith-corp#stream/0|url-status=live}}

As KCMO-TV, the station won a Peabody Award in 1978 for a documentary, "Where Have All The Flood Cars Gone?", on the sale of damaged cars after a flood hit the Kansas City area. The story was reported by investigative reporter John Ferrugia.{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118205677/kcmo-tv-wins-award-for-flood-documentary/|date=April 23, 1978|page=3A|agency=Associated Press|title=KCMO-TV Wins Award For Flood Documentary|newspaper=The Kansas City Star|location=Kansas City, Missouri|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=February 11, 2023}}

File:Andy Reid and Dani Welniak.JPG in 2017|alt=A reporter in a KCTV-branded jacket and writing in a notepad talking to Andy Reid on a football field]]

From 2003 through 2019, KCTV was the preseason television home of Kansas City Chiefs football and associated coaches shows, complementing its carriage of most of the team's regular-season games as part of CBS's NFL rights.{{cite web|title=KCTV will broadcast Chiefs preseason games|url=http://www.bizjournals.com/kansascity/stories/2002/09/30/daily22.html|website=Kansas City Business Journal|publisher=American City Business Journals|date=October 1, 2002|access-date=December 5, 2016|archive-date=December 20, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161220201113/http://www.bizjournals.com/kansascity/stories/2002/09/30/daily22.html|url-status=live}} On September 21, 2019, the Chiefs announced that KSHB-TV and KMCI-TV would become their official broadcast partners, replacing KCTV after 17 years.{{cite news|title=Chiefs drop KCTV-5, announce new broadcast partnership with KSHB-TV|url=https://chiefswire.usatoday.com/2019/09/17/kansas-city-chiefs-drop-kctv-5-announce-new-broadcast-partnership-with-kshb-tv/|first=Charles|last=Goldman|newspaper=USA Today|publisher=Gannett Company|date=September 17, 2019|access-date=February 5, 2020|archive-date=February 5, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200205233401/https://chiefswire.usatoday.com/2019/09/17/kansas-city-chiefs-drop-kctv-5-announce-new-broadcast-partnership-with-kshb-tv/|url-status=live}}

In 2025, sister station KSMO-TV, as well as Gray-owned stations in the Kansas City Royals TV territory, will broadcast 10 Sunday games simulcast with FanDuel Sports Network Kansas City, with KCTV to air at least six of the contests.{{Cite web|url=https://www.kctv5.com/2025/02/04/kansas-city-royals-simulcast-10-regular-season-games-kctv5ksmo/|website=KCTV|title=Kansas City Royals to simulcast 10 regular season games on KCTV5/KSMO|date=February 4, 2025}}

KCTV previously produced the talk and lifestyle program Better Kansas City, which aired weekday mornings at 9 a.m. and was produced independently from the station's news department. The program, which initially debuted in 2012, was formatted after the national Meredith-distributed lifestyle program Better.{{cite news|title=KCTV-5 creating a 9 a.m. show|url=http://www.kansascity.com/2012/05/04/3593773/kctv-5-creating-a-9-am-show.html|newspaper=Kansas City Star|publisher=The McClatchy Company|date=May 4, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120524052311/http://www.kansascity.com/2012/05/04/3593773/kctv-5-creating-a-9-am-show.html|archive-date=May 24, 2012}}{{cite web|title=Kelly Jones Out, 'Better Kansas City' on Hiatus at KCTV|url=http://www.adweek.com/tvspy/kelly-jones-out-at-kctv-better-kansas-city-goes-on-hiatus/93989?red=ts|first=Merrill|last=Knox|website=TVSpy|publisher=Mediabistro Holdings|date=June 6, 2013|access-date=August 22, 2015|archive-date=June 12, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150612101338/http://www.adweek.com/tvspy/kelly-jones-out-at-kctv-better-kansas-city-goes-on-hiatus/93989?red=ts|url-status=live}}

• Karen Foss – anchor, 1978–1979{{r|Kans021103}}
• Don Harrison – reporter and anchor, 1962–1973{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118404313/don-harrison-news-anchor-at-cnn-and-cha/|date=May 3, 1998|page=B-3|first=Charles R. T.|last=Crumpley|title=Don Harrison, news anchor at CNN and Channel 5, dies|newspaper=The Kansas City Star|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=February 11, 2023|archive-date=February 11, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230211074219/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118404313/don-harrison-news-anchor-at-cnn-and/|url-status=live}}
• Doug McKelway – weekend anchor, 1983–1988{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-kansas-city-star-channel-19-gets-a-c/165038612/|date=January 26, 1988|page=2C|first=Barry|last=Garron|title=Channel 19 gets a car to auction|newspaper=The Kansas City Star|location=Kansas City, Missouri|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=February 9, 2025}}

The station's signal is multiplexed:

{{legend|#DFEBF6|Broadcast on behalf of another station}}

KCTV transmits the main channel of KSMO-TV, one of Kansas City's two ATSC 3.0 (NextGen TV) stations; channel 62 began broadcasting an ATSC 3.0 signal in August 2021.{{Cite news|url=https://tvnewscheck.com/tech/article/eight-stations-launch-nextgen-tv-in-kansas-city/|date=August 24, 2021|work=TVNewsCheck|title=Eight Stations Launch NextGen TV In Kansas City|access-date=February 1, 2023|archive-date=September 24, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210924090816/https://tvnewscheck.com/tech/article/eight-stations-launch-nextgen-tv-in-kansas-city/|url-status=live}}

KCTV signed on its digital signal on October 15, 2002,{{Cite web|url=https://worldradiohistory.com/Archive-BC-YB/2006-Factbook/TV-Factbook-2006-Vol%20I.pdf|work=Television Factbook|title=KCTV-DT|date=2006|via=World Radio History|page=A-1294|access-date=February 11, 2023|archive-date=January 31, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230131092724/https://worldradiohistory.com/Archive-BC-YB/2006-Factbook/TV-Factbook-2006-Vol%20I.pdf|url-status=live}} but it was not until November 2003 that the station began broadcasting network programming in high definition.{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118404733/three-more-nails-for-2003s-coffin/|date=December 31, 2003|page=D8|first=Aaron|last=Barnhart|title=Three more nails for 2003's coffin|newspaper=The Kansas City Star|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=February 11, 2023|archive-date=February 11, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230211074215/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118404733/three-more-nails-for-2003s-coffin/|url-status=live}} The station ended analog broadcasts on VHF channel 5, at 9 a.m. on June 12, 2009, the official date on which full-power television stations in the United States transitioned from analog to digital broadcasts under federal mandate. The station's digital signal continued to broadcast on its pre-transition UHF channel 24, using virtual channel 5.{{cite web|title=DTV Tentative Channel Designations for the First and Second Rounds|url=http://hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/DA-06-1082A2.pdf|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130829004251/http://hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/DA-06-1082A2.pdf|archive-date=August 29, 2013|publisher=Federal Communications Commission|access-date=March 24, 2012}}{{cite news|title=KCTV5 Going Digital On June 12|url=http://www.kctv5.com/technology/18682648/detail.html|website=KCTV|publisher=Meredith Corporation|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090219122916/http://www.kctv5.com/technology/18682648/detail.html|archive-date=February 19, 2009}}

{{Main|KCTV Broadcast Tower}}

File:Kctv-tower1.jpg

Since February 1956, KCTV has been broadcast from a {{convert|1042|ft|m|0|adj=on}}, four-sided transmission tower located at its now-former studios at 31st and Grand streets in the Union Hill neighborhood, south of downtown Kansas City.{{r|Kans560223}} This replaced a shorter tower at the same site. Even after the move to Fairway, KCTV has continued to be broadcast from this facility,{{r|Kans181113}} though there were calls from Kansas City leaders to dismantle it as part of the move, citing the danger from falling ice in winter.{{r|Kans760813}} Falling ice from the tower has been known to damage nearby cars and homes and require police to block off adjacent streets.{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118405697/tower-casts-big-shadowand-more-falling/|date=March 8, 1990|page=Midtown This Week 1, [https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118405712/tower-disrupts-lives-as-falling-ice-dama/ 3]|first=James A.|last=Fussell|title=Tower casts big shadow—and more: Falling ice disrupts lives as it damages neighborhood homes|newspaper=The Kansas City Star|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=February 11, 2023|archive-date=February 11, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230211074220/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118405697/tower-casts-big-shadowand-more/|url-status=live}}

The tower has had several different lighting schemes in its history, mostly having been lit in white lights. It first went dark for a year during the 1973 energy crisis; it was flashed on in the evening and then turned off as a reminder to Kansas Citians to conserve electricity.{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118405275/the-two-channel-5-tower/|date=November 9, 1997|first=Tim|last=Engle|page=Star 12|title=The Two Towers: Channel 5 Tower|newspaper=The Kansas City Star|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=February 11, 2023|archive-date=February 11, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230211074216/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118405275/the-two-channel-5-tower/|url-status=live}} Beginning in 1989, the lights were flashed for a time in upward- or downward-moving patterns to suggest the day's weather forecast.{{r|Kans971109}} For a time after the September 11 attacks, the lights were changed to red, white, and blue.{{Cite news|title=Will the KCTV5 tower ever light up the KC skyline again? We answer your KCQ|first=Matt|last=Campbell|work=The Kansas City Star|date=November 13, 2018|url=https://www.kansascity.com/news/your-kcq/article221363865.html|access-date=June 28, 2020|archive-date=November 13, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181113193341/https://www.kansascity.com/news/your-kcq/article221363865.html|url-status=live}} The tower has not been lit since 2004, when it was turned off because most of the 1,360 light bulbs had burned out.{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118405222/alas-the-lights-are-out-of-sight/|date=January 25, 2006|page=B1|first=Mike|last=Hendricks|title=Alas, the lights are out of sight|newspaper=The Kansas City Star|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=February 11, 2023|archive-date=February 11, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230211074216/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/118405222/alas-the-lights-are-out-of-sight/|url-status=live}} Though a nonprofit organization called The Tower KC, Inc., proposed relighting the tower as an art piece in 2015 and converting the lights from incandescent bulbs to LEDs, the program did not materialize, and by 2018, the station had no plans to reactivate the lights.{{r|Kans181113}}{{Cite news|url=https://www.kansascity.com/news/local/article221711195.html|title=Group wants to relight the KCTV tower for 'tallest public art piece in the world'|date=November 17, 2018|first=Matt|last=Campbell|work=The Kansas City Starr|access-date=November 17, 2018|archive-date=November 17, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181117144720/https://www.kansascity.com/news/local/article221711195.html|url-status=live}}

The tower was originally nicknamed the "Eye-full Tower"; Kansas City's building commissioner had compared its design to the Eiffel Tower in Paris. It was taller than the Eiffel Tower when built, though a television antenna was later added to the Paris tower, increasing its height.{{r|Kans971109}}

{{Notelist}}

{{Reflist|30em}}

• {{Official website|http://www.kctv5.com/}}

{{Kansas City TV}}

{{Ottumwa TV}}

{{Missouri TV}}

{{Kansas TV}}

{{Gray TV}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kctv}}

Category:1953 establishments in Missouri

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Category:Television channels and stations established in 1953

Category:Television stations in the Kansas City metropolitan area