75 years of WOWT: 6 News celebrates milestone anniversary
OMAHA, Neb. (WOWT) - It’s an historic day here on 6 News. On Aug. 29, 1949 — 75 years ago — WOWT started broadcasting live.
We were the first TV station on the air in Nebraska or Iowa to do so, setting off a series of firsts.
In 1949, there were only around 1,500 televisions in Omaha living rooms, so not a lot of people saw our live programming that day. Back then, all the programming had to be live.
But the technology grew rapidly. It wasn’t long before WOWT said good-bye to black-and-white and brought color TV to the airwaves.
In 1982, we became the first Omaha TV station on the air 24 hours a day. In 1985, WOWT was one of 30 stations in the country to have a satellite truck, allowing us to broadcast live from anywhere we could drive.
In 1986, WOWT rejoined the NBC network. The next 30 years included even more firsts for WOWT: We were the first to switch from analog to digital TV in Omaha — in 2009.
As television went from a big piece of furniture in the living room to what you now hold in your hand to make phone calls, we kept evolving: We were also the first produce a website. And in 2022, we made the move to NEXTGEN TV.
We were also the first Omaha news station to be honored with a national Edward R. Murrow award for storytelling.
WATCH OUR SPECIAL REPORT
We’ll be airing a half-hour special report celebrating our 75th anniversary next month. It will air commercial-free at 6:30 p.m. Sept. 19 — and feature some never-before-seen footage of the people who made this station a success while covering some of the biggest stories to keep you safe.
6 News has spent seven decades keeping viewers safe, keeping an eye on every storm. WOWT has also given our viewers a front seat to history: from the deadly tornadoes in 1975 to the Iranian hostages being released; from the Kennedy assassination to five Nebraska football national championships.
Some of our promotions over the years also stood out. Here’s one thing you might not know: In the late 1970s, we had a jingle.
And of course, everyone knows our most famous alum. Yes, Johnny Carson one walked the halls at WOWT. He had just graduated from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, and had am AM radio show on WOW in the morning and a TV show on WOW-TV in the afternoon.
As we poured over our archives to put together our anniversary coverage, we found one live recording of a WOW-TV Carson program: “The Squirrel’s Next” Christmas Day episode from 1950.
“My name is Johnny Carson, and this is ‘The Squirrel’s Nest.’ A lot of you are probably watching this show for the first time with your Christmas television sets.”
Carson went on to poke fun, the way he did, at the station’s Christmas tree.
“We went shopping late and most of the nice trees were picked over. It’s fairly sturdy. Isn’t that nice.”
Carson spent just a little more than two years in Omaha, but his impact is still felt here 74 years later.
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Find more 75th Anniversary coverage — including vintage videos, promos, photos, and more — at WOWT.com/75.
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