staff members at the time. News operation As soon as Cox took over KFOX-TV, it became apparent that a local newscast was in the works. Work occurred through 1997 on ordering new equipment, building a newsroom, and hiring talent; KFOX News at Nine, an hour long on weeknights and 30 minutes on weekends, debuted on September 15, 1997, as the market's first prime time local newscast. Most of the original on-air anchors were hired from outside of the market. In January 2004, KFOX started a morning newscast, the KFOX Morning News; Ben Swann, previously a reporter in the station's Las Cruces bureau, was tapped as one of the first anchors. Originally three hours in length, a fourth hour was added in January 2016. The station's first early evening newscast, at 6 p.m., started in 2008 before changing to 5 p.m. in 2010. Technical information Subchannels The station's digital signal is multiplexed: Analog-to-digital conversion KFOX-TV began transmitting a digital television signal in January 2003. KFOX-TV shut down its analog signal, over UHF channel 14, at midnight on June 12, 2009, the official date in which full-power television stations in the United States transitioned from analog to digital broadcasts under federal mandate. The station's digital signal remained on its pre-transition UHF channel 15. As part of the SAFER Act, KFOX kept its analog signal on the air until July 12 to inform viewers of the digital television transition through a loop of public service announcements from the National Association of Broadcasters. References External links Official website Fox network affiliates Comet (TV network) affiliates Charge! (TV network) affiliates Sinclair Broadcast Group Television channels and stations established in 1979 FOX-TV 1979 establishments in Texas