KALB News Channel 5 history

KALB began broadcasting on September 29, 1954 with NBC's airing of the 1954 World Series.

In the early days of broadcast television, there were twelve VHF channels available and 69 UHF channels (later reduced to 55 in 1983). The VHF bands were more desirable because they carried longer distances.

KALB began broadcasting in stereo on November 28, 1986.

He owned an Alexandria shoe store, was an elected member and former president of the Rapides Parish Police Jury, and in 1987 became the executive director of the Louisiana Quarter Horse Breeders Association.

KALB was Media General's first station west of the Mississippi River and the only station to hold that title until its purchase of Spartan Communications in 2000.

Widely recognized from her lifetime of broadcasting, Odum retired from the station in 2002.

In January 2007, KALB launched a CBS affiliate on its second subchannel, then branded as CBS Alexandria.

On November 20, 2013, Hoak announced the sale of most of its stations, including KALB-TV, to Gray Television.

The sale was completed on June 13, 2014.

The subchannel is now branded as CBS 2 given it is carried on Suddenlink channel 2 and also uses the fictitious callsign NALB. Suddenlink carried both NALB and KLFY in Alexandria before dropping the latter on May 1, 2015.