KLMD-TV

KLMD-TV (channel 27) is a television station licensed to, United States, serving as the NBC outlet for the area. It is owned and operated by the network's NBC Owned Television Stations division alongside Telemundo outlet WDTM-TV (channel 44); it is also sister to regional sports network NBC Sports Michigan. KLMD-TV and WDTM-TV share studios in the NBCU Detroit Media Center on Town Center Drive in (adjacent to ) and transmission facilities on Lincoln Drive in.

KLMD-TV is carried on channel 3 by most local cable television providers; hence the station's on-air branding (since 2018) as NBC 3 Detroit.

Origins in Montana (2003-2013)
Founded on December 19, 2000, KLMN signed on in mid-2003 as a Fox affiliate, with additional programming from UPN. When Helena-based NBC affiliate KTVH bought a low-power repeater station in the Great Falls area in 2005, it caused an affiliation shake-up. Long-time NBC affiliate KTGF (now KJJC-TV) became an affiliate of Fox, leaving KLMN with only UPN programming. KLMN became a MyNetworkTV affiliate in September 2006. In May 2007, Fox programming abruptly returned to KLMN after nearly two years on KTGF, which might have been coincidental with KTGF's parent, Destiny Communications, entering a Joint Sales Agreement with KLMN.

The KLMN callsign was once used by what is now KFTA-TV in Fort Smith, Arkansas. Ironically, KLMN was not the only station in Great Falls whose callsign was once used in Arkansas, as its competitor KRTV carries the callsign of a now-defunct station in Little Rock, Equity Media Holdings's hometown.

In 2007, a Federal Communications Commission (FCC) inquiry was launched to determine whether Equity's control of KLMN violated the multiple ownership rules; a local competitor subsequently filed a petition to deny the station's license renewal application. Processing of other FCC license assignment and modification applications involving Equity had been delayed pending resolution of these issues.

At auction on April 16, 2009, PMCM TV (whose principals own six Jersey Shore radio stations in Monmouth and Ocean counties as Press Communications, LLC) bought the Fox Montana system from Equity.

On July 17, 2011, KLMN dropped Fox in exchange for. The Fox affiliation went to a digital subchannel of ABC affiliate (channel 5).

Move to Michigan (2013)
Soon after taking over, PMCM sought permission to reallocate KLMN to, in the television market (PMCM was also looking to move sister stations KJWY (now ) and KVNV (now ) to  and , respectively, under a legal loophole that allows any VHF station that moves to a state with no FCC-licensed commercial VHF stations to receive automatic permission to move). The FCC denied the request in a December 18, 2009 letter. The full commission denied PMCM's application for review in a memorandum opinion and order released on September 15, 2011; however, this denial was reversed by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit on December 14, 2012. KLMN applied for a construction permit to move on May 28, 2013 to (though its transmitter is in, where the transmitters for most Detroit television stations are located).

KLMN signed off from Great Falls for the last time on August 11, 2013 in anticipation of the move. The station continued to carry MeTV following the move, and on November 18, 2013, KLMN signed on its upconverted 720p high-definition television signal from its new location at Southfield, now using virtual channel 27 to avoid interference with in nearby,. On February 27, 2014, KLMN changed it's call letters to KLMD-TV (making it one of the few television stations east of the with a "K" callsign) and officially launched in the Detroit area. In the months preceding the official launch, KLMD-TV was added to Detroit-market cable systems through must-carry, and also began being carried on -market cable systems.

As MeTV Detroit (2013-2016)
In August 2014, the station hired longtime Detroit television personality Oliver Kwasny as public affairs director. Kwasny began hosting ...And One More Thing, a general news and commentary program, for the station.

Sale and switch to NBC (2017-present)
On October 27, 2016, Valari Staab, president of NBC Owned Television Stations, confirmed that NBC had "amicably declined" to renew WDIV-TV's NBC affiliation beyond the end of 2017, and would launch NBC Detroit on January 1, 2018. Graham Media Group and NBC both reassured industry onlookers that the Detroit switch would not affect Graham's NBC affiliate in, (, channel 2). As a compromise for the switch, WDIV would replace WADL as Detroit's secondary NBC affiliate, and would air NBC programming pre-empted by NBC Detroit for events such as news, sports and/or severe weather coverage.

On March 3, 2017, the Detroit Free Press reported that NBCUniversal was considering acquiring either locally-owned independent station (channel 38), which had served as a long-time secondary NBC affiliate, or  owned-and-operated station WFTH-TV (channel 58). As WADL's signal does not reach the western and southern portions of the market, acquiring WADL to use as its O&O would have theoretically required NBCUniversal to lease a subchannel of another station in the market in order for NBC Detroit to reach the whole market over-the-air. On January 11, the Free Press suggested NBC could purchase or trade for longtime ABC affiliate (channel 7; and of which WFTH-TV currently shares spectrum with) to use as its O&O instead (which would cause WDIV-TV to theoretically switch from NBC to ABC).

On August 25, 2017, PMCM TV agreed to sell KLMD-TV to NBCUniversal's Station Venture Operations subsidiary for $100,000. The sale was approved by the FCC on October 22, 2017 and completed on November 1, 2017.

Launch
On November 10, 2017, KLMD-TV began to carry a transitional programming service branded as Countdown NBC Detroit. The service was designed to promote the switch and assist viewers in locating NBC Detroit's over-the-air channels, it featured NBC Detroit's future syndicated programming, programs from, and a Detroit-specific "interim" newscast entitled Countdown Update produced by sister station.

The change in affiliation officially took effect at 1:00 a.m. ET on January 1, 2017, as part of local New Years Day celebrations, where, after an area-wide 30-second countdown, Detroit Mayor pulled a prop switch that "turned on" NBC Detroit. Meanwhile, WDIV-TV carried its final night of NBC prime time programming on December 31, 2016, including the network's national New Year's coverage. This was followed later that morning by a segment on the Today show in which Al Roker introduced KLMD-TV's anchors.

Later developments
During 2018, the station referred to itself in most promotions as "NBC Detroit Channel 3", citing its cable channel number in most of the market rather than its virtual channel 27. On December 31, 2018, in conjunction with its New Years Night coverage, KLMD-TV introduced a new logo and brand designation as NBC 3 Detroit, and the slogan "3 is a Magic Number", to indicate its channel number on most area cable TV providers.

In August 2020, KLMD-TV was admonished by the FCC for deliberately airing political ads, especially attack ads, during lesser-viewed programs such as the E/I The More You Know children's programming block, Dateline NBC and certain local programming as an act of malicious compliance with FCC regulations requiring over-the-air commercial TV stations with licenses issued by the FCC to air political ads by both parties, whether it be attack ads or more traditional political ads. Station general manager Caleb Sands stated that the practice was "incredibly needed" as staff believed the majority of the attack ads were "forcing people how to think and feel."

Programming
Syndicated programs airing on KLMD-TV on weekdays and weekends are limited by the station's local and network schedule. It airs The Kelly Clarkson Show, Access Hollywood and Access Daily, which are all distributed by NBCUniversal's syndication division; as well as Forensic Files (which aired on NBC briefly in 2002 as a summer replacement series) and off-network repeats of Community and Will & Grace.

News operation
KLMD-TV broadcasts 43 hours, 55 minutes of locally produced newscasts each week (with 7 hours, 5 minutes each weekday, 3½ hours on Saturdays and five hours on Sundays); in addition, the station produces the half-hour lifestyle program On the Beat in Detroit, which airs weekday afternoons, and the weekly half-hour news & commentary program ...And One More Thing hosted by the station's public affairs director Oliver Kwasny, which airs Sunday evenings and is syndicated by NBCUniversal Television Distribution to other television stations. It also utilizes a news helicopter (SkyRanger), a storm-chaser satellite truck (Weather Warrior), mobile weather radar vehicles (StormRanger), a consumer affairs unit (NBC 3 Detroit Responds) and an investigative reporting unit (The Investigators).

News department history
As part of KLMD-TV becoming an NBC owned-and-operated station, NBCUniversal built a full-on news department for KLMD-TV. Initial reports suggested that NBC would move KLMD-TV/WDTM-TV to a facility in that had formerly served as the base of operations for Comcast SportsNet Michigan (now NBC Sports Michigan), since WDTM-TV's  facility was too small to house more than one station and a second news department. However, on July 9, KLMD-TV's news director Ben Hoogstraten, who recently arrived from sister station WTLV in, said that NBC would instead move KLMD-TV/WDTM-TV into an office building on the property in.

KLMD-TV hired former anchor Pete Saunier, and also brought in reporter Jerry Schneiderman from  ABC affiliate. KLMD-TV also brought back Chuck Elphicke (then having completed a tenure at KDO-TV in ) to the Detroit market (he was notorious during his tenure with WDIV-TV for his tabloid-style investigative journalism - most notoriously a investigative story that revealed that a local activist was running a Ponzi scheme called Detroit Citizens For Healthier Food, said "activist" fled Michigan after the story aired and later resurfaced in  running a similar scheme). Meteorologist K.B. Russell, a native, came from  in  (owned by his alma mater, the ). Russell became Detroit's first transgender (female to male) meteorologist when he was hired by KLMD-TV.

Notable current on-air staff

 * Pete Saunier - anchor
 * Yia Vang - anchor
 * Jerry Schneiderman - reporter
 * Delilah Shore - reporter
 * Major Hallissey - reporter
 * Chuck Elphicke - investigative reporter
 * K.B. Russell - meteorologist (AMS Seal of Approval)

Re-Unifying Families
On February 1, 2021, KLMD-TV aired a piece during it's 11 p.m. newscast entitled Re-Unifying Families, reported on by Major Hallissey, focusing on professional de-programmer Leonard Huhtamo who was hired to de-program members of a family who were "torn apart" by the social and partisan divide in the United States. A KLMD-TV news crew followed Leonard as he tried to de-program the family's 20-year old second-oldest daughter who was active in, a 25-year old daughter who was estranged from the family and involved in a far-left atheist group, and the family's patriarch who was involved in fundamentalist Christian groups. Much of the piece focused on Leonard's efforts to persuade them to reject their previous groups, with him telling the 25-year old daughter that her atheist group "has taken control of your mind and life." Leonard was able to "successfully de-program all three - he was able to convince the daughter to accept those with religious beliefs and convince them to change their depiction of God's view on the world, the daughter to give up Stanning, and the father to change his religious beliefs from fundamentalist to open and affirming." Later on in the story, the family psychologist assured the family's eldest son, who hired Leonard, that the family was "back together again now."

Fearing an advertiser boycott because of it's controversial content, KLMD-TV did not sell any advertising during the 11 p.m. newscast to local or national businesses, opting to instead air direct response national advertising and promos for local programming.