San Diego television station KFMB-TV first signed on the air on May 16, 1949; it was the first television station to sign on in the San Diego market.

The west coast station (K) was founded by Jack O. Gross and named (F)or (M)ary and (B)urnham, his daughter and son.

 

and talk show host Regis Philbin.

KFMB-TV discontinued analog service on February 17, 2009.

On December 18, 2017, Tegna Inc. announced that it would acquire the KFMB-TV and radio stations for $325 million. The sale was completed on February 15, 2018, ending the Meyer family’s ownership of the stations after 53 years.

On March 12, 2019 Elisabeth Kimmel, 57, of La Jolla, California, and the president of Midwest Television Inc. until KFMB was sold in 2018 was arrested in 2019.  She allegedly committed fraud to increase her son’s chances to get admission into college.  She pled guilty, paid a fine, and received a six-week prison sentence.

There are about 184 million TV viewers in the United States.  For 2021, San Diego is the 27^th largest television market in the United States.  KFMB-TV often leads the market in daily viewership.