WDAF-TV was the first television station in Kansas City and the second in Missouri. It launched on October 16, 1949, as an affiliate of all four major television networks operating at the time: NBC, CBS, ABC, and DuMont; the station was originally owned by the Kansas City Star newspaper, along with WDAF radio (at the time operating at 610 AM, now occupied by KCSP; now at 106.5 FM).
1950–1951
1951–1952
1952–1953
1953–1954
Programming from the CBS and DuMont networks moved to KMBC-TV (VHF channel 9) when it signed on in August 1953. The ABC affiliation was split between WDAF and KMBC until September of that year when KCMO-TV (VHF channel 5, now KCTV) signed on as Kansas City's original ABC affiliate. Shortly after the DuMont network folded, both KMBC and KCMO swapped network affiliations in 1955. As a result, WDAF remained the Kansas City area's exclusive NBC affiliate for the next four decades.
1954–1957
1957–1958
1958–1960
In 1958, WDAF-AM-TV was sold to National-Missouri Broadcasters.
1960–1963
In 1960, National-Missouri merged with Transcontinent Broadcasting of Buffalo, New York.
Variant from NBC's "Proud as a Peacock" campaign (1980–1981)
30th anniversary logo (1979)
1981–1986
Station ID used in news open (1981–1983)
Action 4 News open (1981–1983)
Variant from NBC's "Just Watch Us Now" campaign (1982–1983)
Action 4 News 5 p.m. open (1983–1985)
Station ID used in news open (1983–1985)
Action 4 News 10 p.m. open (1983–1985)
Variant from NBC's "Be There" campaign (1983–1984)
Variant from NBC's "Let's All Be There" campaign (1984–1985)
Variant from NBC's "Let's All Be There" campaign (1985–1986)
Station ID with Taft Broadcasting logo
Action 4 News 5 p.m. open (1985–1987)
Action 4 News 10 p.m. open (1985–1987)
Station ID bug (1985–1986)
WDAF logo on billboard at Royals Stadium
WDAF "Congrats to Royals" promo (1985)
1986–1992
Regular logo with the peacock
Print Logo
Variant from NBC's "Come Home" campaign (1986–1987)
WDAF Royals promo (1986–1987)
Variant from NBC's "Come Home" campaign (1987–1988)
Station ID used in news open (1987–1989)
Action 4 News 10 p.m. open (1987–1989)
Variant from NBC's "Come Home to the Best" campaign (1988–1989)
Station ID used in news open (1989–1992)
Action 4 News 10 p.m. slide (1989–1990)
WDAF 4 News 10 p.m. slide (1990–1992)
WDAF Emmy ID
WDAF incorporated NBC's current six-feathered peacock into its logo in 1986 (like most other NBC affiliates at the time). However, the "Proud N" logo was still present on their ID bug until the summer 1987.
Taft Broadcasting (the then-owners of WDAF) was renamed Great American Broadcasting on October 12, 1987. By that year, WDAF had overtaken KMBC-TV as the dominant station in Kansas City, as was the trend at many NBC affiliates at that time. The title of WDAF's newscasts Action 4 News remained until the fall of 1990 when it became WDAF 4 News.
1992–1997
3D version
Station ID (1992–1994)
Newschannel 4 morning open (1992–1994)
Station ID with time and temperature (Early 1990s)
Station ID, as seen in newscast intros (1994–1995)
45th anniversary station ID (1994)
Newschannel 4 10:00 p.m. end-of-intro title logo (1994–1995)
Station ID with Fox searchlights (1994–1995)
Station ID, as seen in newscast intros (1995–1997)
Numerical logo, as seen in news open (1995–1997)
Newschannel 4 10:00 p.m. end-of-intro title logo (1995–1997)
Station ID with Fox searchlights (1995–1997)
Generic Newschannel 4 logo
Outdoor marquee at Signal Hill (1994–1997)
On April 17, 1992, WDAF-TV rebranded itself as Newschannel 4 (both as the title of its newscasts and for general station promotion). The slogan was "Kansas City's 24-Hour Newschannel" during a period when WDAF and other television stations around the country ran news updates each hour. Then-owners Great American Broadcasting became Citicasters in 1993, which in turn sold WDAF to New World Communications in 1994. Once the Fox network won the broadcast rights to the National Football Conference of the NFL, New World signed a long-term deal to convert most of its stations to Fox. On September 12, 1994, WDAF switched its network affiliation from NBC to Fox, swapping affiliations with KSHB-TV. The Fox network's branding was not incorporated into the station's logo, due to WDAF's contractual obligations with New World to keep the Newschannel 4 name.
1997–present
This streched-out version of the 1976-97 '4' logo, is similar to those used by KCNC-TV in Denver until 2003, KNBC in Los Angeles, WNBC in New York City, WRC-TV in Washington, D.C., and WTVJ in Miami–Fort Lauderdale until 1995, all owned-and-operated by NBC at the time.
1997–2003
"Fox 4 Kansas City" variant
Fox 4 News logo (1997–2003)
Fox 4 News open (1997–1999)
Fox 4 News 5 p.m. open (1999–2003)
Station slogan
In January 1997, then-owners New World Communications was acquired by News Corporation, effectively turning WDAF-TV into a Fox owned-and-operated station, until its sale to Local TV, LLC in 2008. Upon the buyout by News Corporation, all former New World stations that switched affiliation to Fox between 1994 and 1996 began incorporating "Fox" into their on-air branding with WDAF changing its branding from NewsChannel 4 to "Fox 4" for general entertainment purposes and Fox 4 News for newscasts. WDAF later adopted its current slogan "Working for You" in 1999.
2003–2007
Newscast Logo
Station ID during news open (2003–2007)
Fox 4 News 5 p.m. open (2003–2007)
Breaking news open
2007–present
Print logo
Horizontal version of logo
Alternative horizontal logo
News logo #1 (2007–2010)
News logo #2 (2007–2010)
News logo (2010–2019)
News logo (2019–present)
Android/iPhone app logo
Android/iPhone weather app logo
Fox 4 News open (2007–2010)
Fox 4 News open (2010–2013)
Fox 4 News open (2013–2019)
Fox 4 News 9:00 p.m. open (2019–present); the opening sequence is shared with sister stations KTXL in Sacramento, and until 2020, WITI in Milwaukee.
1Nexstar operates these stations owned by Mission Broadcasting. 2Nexstar operates this station owned by Cunningham Broadcasting. 3Nexstar operates this station owned by White Knight Broadcasting through an SSA. 4Nexstar operates this station owned by Vaughan Media. 5Predecessor company of LIN Media. 6Currently a repeater for WWLP. 7Joint venture with Warner Bros. Discovery in which Nexstar owns 31% while Warner Bros. Discovery owns the remaining 69%.