KFOR receives historical marker for 76 years of broadcast news
OKLAHOMA CITY (KFOR) - KFOR has received a historical marker, representing 76 years of broadcast news in Oklahoma.
News 4 held a dedication ceremony on Friday, June 6, 2025, to recognize the station's history.
June 6, 1949. Eight miles east of Oklahoma City. What looked like a stately home sitting along Highway 66 was the WKY transmitting plant. It was a modern marvel in the 1940’s that would help send Channel’s Four’s signal to new fangled hardware that was popping up in neighborhoods across the state.
The plan was the brainchild of E.K. Gaylord – a media mogul in his time and owner of two newspapers and WKY Radio. For this businessman, television was a natural switch to flip. After years of preparation, Channel Four’s signal was sent from a state in downtown Oklahoma City from what is now known as the Civic Center. Oklahoma television was born and with it one of the hottest selling items of the 1950’s.
“There were no TV sets left in Oklahoma City, and so what a few learned to do was they said, ‘Well, we’ll buy a tv set and put it in our window of our restaurant or our laundromat or our place of business, and people will gather to watch,” Oklahoma historian Dr. Bob Blackburn said.
In June 2009, KFOR-TV was the first in Oklahoma to broadcast in high definition.
“WKY really set the standard for television not just in Oklahoma City, but in the nation,” Blackburn said.