KLAS-TV (CBS) To Host “Countdown to 2018: Live From Las Vegas” Television Special Featuring Live Music, Special Guests and Fireworks
NEW YEAR’S EVE PROGRAMMING SPECIAL TO BE SYNDICATED IN ELEVEN NEXSTAR MARKETS REACHING NEARLY 10 MILLION U.S. HOUSEHOLDS
LAS VEGAS, Nevada – KLAS-TV, Nexstar Media Group’s CBS affiliate serving Las Vegas DMA (#40), announced today that it will host Countdown to 2018: Live from Las Vegas, a live New Year’s Eve special on Sunday, December 31, 2017 from 8:00 p.m. to 12:30 a.m. (PST). KLAS-TV and Nexstar stations in 11 cities across nine states will broadcast the show live, reaching nearly 10 million U.S. households. The four-and-a-half-hour broadcast will ring in 2018 with viewers in Nevada, California, Oregon, New Mexico, Arizona, Colorado, Utah, Texas and Hawaii. KLAS-TV’s award-winning broadcast will feature musical performances from Las Vegas headliners, a unique countdown across all four-time zones and fireworks from seven hotel casino rooftops along the Vegas strip, as well as a fireworks display from Phoenix, AZ.
The New Year’s Eve Special will be hosted by KLAS-TV 8 News Anchors Brian Loftus and Kirsten Joyce and will originate at the Hard Rock Café. There, viewers and VIP party guests will ring-in the new year with music from Groove Martini, who will be performing live from the Hard Rock Café on the Las Vegas strip. The exclusive, three-time Emmy Award-winning broadcast will also feature special performances and live reporting from multiple locations including the Las Vegas Strip, South Point Hotel, the Fremont Street Experience and Gilley’s at Treasure Island where more than 300,000 revelers will be ringing-in 2018.
The KLAS-TV New Year’s Eve broadcast is a local tradition that has continued for nearly a quarter of a century and is the marquee event on the Las Vegas strip. New in 2018, the KLAS-TV New Year’s Eve television special will be broadcast across four different time zones including live countdowns from New York (EST), Dallas (CST), Phoenix, (MST) and Las Vegas (PST). There will also be a unique social element, giving partygoers the opportunity to share their own personal New Year’s Eve experience and holiday wishes by using #VEGASNYE on Twitter or Facebook.
The KLAS-TV broadcast event will air live in 11 other Nexstar television cities across the country including San Francisco, Fresno and Bakersfield, CA; Portland, OR; Honolulu, HI; Albuquerque, NM; Phoenix, AZ; Grand Junction and Colorado Springs, CO; Salt Lake City, UT; and El Paso, TX.
“For over two decades, Nexstar has cultivated an organization-wide commitment to deliver exceptional local programming and service to the local communities where we operate. We are thrilled to continue the longstanding tradition of KLAS-TV’s exclusive New Year’s Eve television special, live from Las Vegas, while also expanding the reach of this exciting celebration with other Nexstar stations,” said Perry Sook, Chairman, CEO and President of Nexstar Media Group, Inc. “As one of the nation’s largest local media companies, we remain focused on extending our legacy of local content leadership by delivering unprecedented viewing experiences and local event coverage to our viewers. Countdown to 2018: Live from Las Vegas is the perfect way to bring family and friends together to experience the excitement of the new year and will be broadcast is coast-to-coast with special live countdowns across all four U.S. time zones. We look forward to delivering an extraordinary night of unforgettable entertainment to nearly 10 million households throughout the Southwest, Pacific Northwest and California.”
“Our talented local team here at 8 News Now and Las Vegas Now is busy making the final preparations for our annual New Year’s Eve programming special and we are excited to bring local viewers our most spectacular event yet with this year’s celebration,” added Lisa Howfied, VP and General Manager of KLAS-TV. “Broadcasting live from the iconic Hard Rock Café, with additional reporting from several other locations throughout the city, Countdown to 2018: Live from Las Vegas will feature celebrity guests and show-stopping musical performances from some of the biggest headliners on the Vegas strip, including Frankie Moreno, Blue Man Group, Zowie Bowie and many more. We are our proud to share this community tradition with our Las Vegas audience and with millions of other viewers in surrounding states. Recognized as one of the industry’s as best local productions, Countdown to 2018: Live from Las Vegas will again bring high-quality entertainment and exclusive local content to our viewers for an unforgettable celebration to ring in 2018.”
Countdown to 2018: Live from Las Vegas
Nexstar and KLAS-TV New Year’s Eve Programming Special
Sunday, December 31, 2017 | 8:00 p.m. PST – 12:30 a.m. PST
Anchor Location:
Hard Rock Café (3771 South Las Vegas Boulevard #120, Las Vegas, NV 89109)
| Hosts: | Brian Loftus, KLAS 8 News Now Anchor | @BrianLoftus8 |
| Kirsten Joyce, KLAS 8 News Now Anchor | @KirstenJoyce |
Additional Locations:
South Point Hotel (9777 South Las Vegas Boulevard, Las Vegas, NV 89183)
| Reporters: | Mercedes Martinez, Las Vegas Now Host | @MercedesInTheAM |
| Courtney Perna, Las Vegas Now Host | @CourtneyPerna | |
| JC Fernandez, Las Vegas Now Host | @jctheproducer |
Fremont Street, Gilley’s at Treasure Island and the Las Vegas Strip
| Reporters: | Tedd Florendo, KLAS 8 News Now Meteorologist | @TeddFlorendo |
| Anthony Bailey, KGPE CBS47 Meteorologist | @AnthonyBaileyTV | |
| Shakala Alvaranga, KLAS 8 News Reporter | @SMAlvaranga |
| Station/Network | Region | Operator |
| KLAS-TV (CBS) | Las Vegas, NV | Nexstar |
| KRON-TV (IND) | San Francisco, CA | Nexstar |
| KGPE-TV (CBS) | Fresno, CA | Nexstar |
| KGET-TV (CW) | Bakersfield, CA | Nexstar |
| KOIN-TV (CBS) | Portland, OR | Nexstar |
| KHON-TV (FOX) | Honolulu, HI | Nexstar |
| KRQE-TV (CBS) | Albuquerque, NM | Nexstar |
| KASW-TV (CW) | Phoenix, AZ | Nexstar |
| KGJT-CD (MyNet) | Grand Junction-Montrose, CO | Nexstar |
| KXTU-LD (CW) | Colorado Springs, CO | Nexstar |
| KUCW-TV (CW) | Salt Lake City, UT | Nexstar |
| KSTM-TV (NBC) | El Paso, TX | Nexstar |
Note: Please check local listings for additional information
For more information on 8 News Now, please visit LasVegasNow.com and follow the station on Facebook and Twitter. For additional interactive content during the Las Vegas NYE: Countdown to 2018 programing special, use #VEGASNYE on social media.
About Nexstar Media Group, Inc.
Nexstar Media Group is a leading diversified media company that leverages localism to bring new services and value to consumers and advertisers through its traditional media, digital and mobile media platforms. Nexstar owns, operates, programs, or provides sales and other services to 170 television stations and related digital multicast signals reaching 100 markets or approximately 39% of all U.S. television households. Nexstar’s portfolio includes primary affiliates of NBC, CBS, ABC, FOX, MyNetworkTV and The CW. Nexstar’s community portal websites offer additional hyper-local content and verticals for consumers and advertisers, allowing audiences to choose where, when and how they access content while creating new revenue opportunities. For more information please visit www.nexstar.tv.
Contact:
Chris Berg
Senior Director of Local Content Development
Nexstar Media Group, Inc.
972/373-8800
or
Jennifer Neuman/Joe Jaffoni
JCIR
212/835-8500 or nxst@jcir.com