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{{short description|Television studios in Manhattan, New York}}
The '''CBS Broadcast Center''' is a television and radio production facility located in [[New York City]]. It's [[CBS]]'s main East Coast production center, much as [[Television City]] in Los Angeles is the West Coast hub.
{{Use mdy dates|date=July 2023}}
{{More citations needed|date=July 2009}}
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| owner = [[Paramount Global]]
| current_tenants = [[CBS News]]<br>[[CBS Sports]]<br>[[WCBS-TV]]<br>[[WLNY-TV]]
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| location = 524 W. [[57th Street (Manhattan)|57th Street]]<br /> [[New York City|New York]], [[New York (state)|NY]] 10019<br />U.S.
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The '''CBS Broadcast Center''' is a television and radio production facility located on the [[West Side (Manhattan)|West Side]] of [[Midtown Manhattan|Midtown]] [[Manhattan]] in [[New York City]]. It is [[CBS]]'s main [[East Coast of the United States|East Coast]] production hub, similar to [[Radford Studio Center|CBS Studio Center]] in [[Los Angeles]] as the [[West Coast of the United States|West Coast]] hub. The Broadcast Center is one of three production facilities in Manhattan utilized by [[Paramount Global]]. The other two are the [[Ed Sullivan Theater]], which hosts ''[[The Late Show with Stephen Colbert]]'', along with the Times Square studios for ''[[CBS Mornings]]'', located in the company's headquarters at [[One Astor Plaza]].
The nearly block long facility at 524 West 57th Street, in the [[Hell's Kitchen]] section of [[Manhattan]], serves as the headquarters of [[CBS News]] and the main broadcast facility for [[WCBS-TV]], [[CBS News]], and [[CBS Sports]]. [[Black Entertainment Television]] also uses the Broadcast Center for ''[[106 & Park]]'' and some news programming.


==Description==
The Broadcast Center is also the production base for the [[CBS Radio Network]]. The network's Master Control (aka Central Control) on the first floor also serves as the routing center for other programming distributed by [[Westwood One]]. The radio network's flagship station, [[WCBS (AM)]], moved into the CBS Broadcast Center in 2000, after being located for more than three decades at Black Rock, CBS's corporate headquarters at 524 West 52nd Street.
The nearly block-long facility at 524 [[57th Street (Manhattan)|West 57th Street]] in the [[Hell's Kitchen, Manhattan|Hell's Kitchen]] section of [[Manhattan]] serves as the [[headquarters]] of [[CBS News]] and its [[CBS News (streaming service)|live streaming news channel]], and is the main broadcast facility for CBS News, [[CBS Sports]], New York City flagship [[Owned-and-operated station|O&O]] station [[WCBS-TV]] and CBS-owned independent station [[WLNY]]. In 2001, [[BET]] previously used studios for ''[[106 & Park]]'' and other in-studio shows (both BET and CBS were part of [[Viacom (1971–2005)|Viacom]] until their 2006 separation by the Viacom/CBS split, later [[ViacomCBS|re-merged in 2019]]). [[CBS Media Ventures]]'s nationally syndicated newsmagazine ''[[Inside Edition]]'' is also produced at the Broadcast Center.


The building in which the Broadcast Center is located housed formerly served as a dairy depot for Sheffield Farms. CBS, which had been using studios at [[Grand Central Terminal]] and other theatres throughout Manhattan, purchased the production center in 1952 and began using it regularly for TV in 1963. The radio network, which had been based in the old CBS corporate headquarters at 485 [[Madison Avenue]], moved to the Broadcast Center in July 1964, while the television network's master control moved from Grand Central to the Broadcast Center in late 1964.
The Broadcast Center is also the production base for [[CBS News Radio]]. The network's Master Control (aka Central Control) on the first floor also serves as the routing center for other programming distributed by [[Westwood One (1976–2011)|Westwood One]] (formerly [[Dial Global]]). The radio network's flagship station [[WCBS (AM)]] was housed in the Broadcast Center from 2000 (moving from [[CBS Building|Black Rock]], CBS's corporate headquarters at 51 West [[52nd Street (Manhattan)|52nd Street]]) until 2011 when it relocated to 345 Hudson Street in lower Manhattan, billed on-air as "The Audacy Hudson Square Broadcast Center."


In addition to the Broadcast Center, CBS has one other major studio in Manhattan — the [[Ed Sullivan Theater]] (CBS-TV Studio 50) at 1697 Broadway, the home of ''[[The Late Show with Stephen Colbert]]''. The [[General Motors Building (New York)|General Motors Building]] (CBS-TV Studio 58), on [[Fifth Avenue]] and 58th Street, was the home of ''[[The Early Show]]'' until December 31, 2011. ''The Early Show''{{'}}s successor, the second incarnation of ''[[CBS This Morning]]'' (predecessor of ''[[CBS Mornings]]''), premiered from newly constructed Studio 57 at the Broadcast Center on January 9, 2012.
Until the 1990s, the Broadcast Center was home to CBS-TV's soap opera, ''[[As the World Turns]]''. Another soap, ''[[Guiding Light]]'' recently returned to the Broadcast Center, after a number of years at another studio on the east side of Manhattan, while ''As the World Turns'' is recorded in [[Brooklyn]].


The ''[[CBS Evening News]]'' moved into Studio 57 from Studio 47 (previously sharing space with the CBS News newsroom) in December 2016.<ref>{{cite web|title=A look back at 'CBS Evening News' in Studio 47 |url=https://www.newscaststudio.com/2016/12/07/CBS-Evening-News-studio-47/ |work=Newscast Studio |last=Hill |first=Michael P. |date=December 7, 2016 |accessdate=September 13, 2018}}</ref> It relocated from New York to [[Washington, D.C.]] in December 2019.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/life/tv/2019/05/06/CBS-keeps-Gayle-King-but-makes-sweeping-anchor-changes-elsewhere/1111056001/ |title=CBS News keeps Gayle King on 'CBS This Morning' as Norah O'Donnell shifts to 'CBS Evening News' |work=USA Today |date=May 5, 2019 |last=Levin |first=Gary}}</ref> ViacomCBS announced in May 2021 that ''CBS This Morning'' would vacate the Broadcast Center for the MTV Studios.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Johnson|first=Ted|date=May 20, 2021|title='CBS This Morning' To Move To Times Square Studio At ViacomCBS Headquarters|url=https://deadline.com/2021/05/cbs-this-morning-times-square-studio-1234761371/|url-status=live|access-date=May 27, 2021|website=Deadline|language=en-US|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210520201503/https://deadline.com/2021/05/cbs-this-morning-times-square-studio-1234761371/ |archive-date=May 20, 2021 }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|last=Steinberg|first=Brian|date=December 8, 2020|title=CBS Has Considered Times Square Studio for Morning Show (EXCLUSIVE)|url=https://variety.com/2020/tv/news/cbs-this-morning-times-square-tv-news-1234848704/|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201208202853/https://variety.com/2020/tv/news/cbs-this-morning-times-square-tv-news-1234848704/ |archive-date=December 8, 2020 |access-date=January 7, 2021|website=Variety|language=en-US}}</ref> The move was completed on September 7, 2021, when ''CBS This Morning'' rebranded to ''[[CBS Mornings]]''.<ref name="var-mornings-launch">{{cite web|url=https://variety.com/2021/tv/news/cbs-news-morning-franchise-nate-burleson-jane-pauley-1235052499/|title=CBS News to Launch 'Mornings' in Bid to Capture A.M. Viewers Across The Week|first=Brian|last=Steinberg|work=[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]|date=August 31, 2021|access-date=August 31, 2021}}</ref>
In addition to the Broadcast Center, CBS has two other major studio centers in Manhattan -- the [[Ed Sullivan Theater]] (CBS-TV Studio 50) at 1697 Broadway, the home of the ''[[Late Show with David Letterman]]''; and the [[General Motors]] Building (CBS-TV Studio 58) on [[Fifth Avenue]] and 58th Street, in which ''[[The Early Show]]'' is produced.


==History==
[[Category:Buildings and structures in Manhattan]]
===Early history===
[[Category:CBS television network]]

The building in which the Broadcast Center is located formerly served as a dairy depot for [[Sheffield Farms]].<ref name="Rebong 2023 v333">{{cite web | last=Rebong | first=Kevin | title=CBS Mulls Sale of Midtown Broadcast Center | website=The Real Deal | date=June 12, 2023 | url=https://therealdeal.com/new-york/2023/06/12/cbs-mulls-sale-of-midtown-broadcast-center/ | access-date=June 28, 2023}}</ref> CBS purchased the site in 1952. The Center opened as the CBS Production Center in the late 1950s, when the network's master control, film and videotape facilities, and four studios were located in the [[Grand Central Terminal]] building.

CBS began using the 57th Street facility regularly for TV in 1963. The radio network, with offices at 1 East 53rd Street and studios at 49 East 52nd Street, near the old CBS corporate headquarters at 485 [[Madison Avenue]], moved to the Broadcast Center in July 1964, while the television network's master control moved from Grand Central to the Broadcast Center in late 1964. The company spent $14.5 million to create what was, at the time, "the largest 'self-contained' radio and television production center in the United States and the most modern broadcasting plant of its kind in the world," as the ''New York Tribune'' put it in 1961.<ref name=Montopoli/>

From the 1950s to 1970s, another prominent CBS stage in New York was Studio 52 (now the disco-theater [[Studio 54]]) at 254 West [[54th Street (Manhattan)|54th Street]], around the corner from Studio 50. CBS also leased the Himan Brown studios at 221 West 26th Street, now [[Chelsea Studios]], for several shows in the 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s.

===CBS Broadcast Center and soap operas===
Until January 2000, the Broadcast Center was home to CBS-TV's soap opera ''[[As the World Turns]]'', which moved to [[JC Studios]] in Brooklyn. Former serials ''[[Love of Life]]'', ''[[Search for Tomorrow]]'', ''[[The Edge Of Night]]'' before moving to ABC in December of 1975 ''[[Love is a Many Splendored Thing (TV series)|Love is a Many Splendored Thing]]'', ''[[Secret Storm]]'', and ''[[Where the Heart Is (American TV series)|Where the Heart Is]]'' were also produced at the Broadcast Center.

After a 37-year absence, ''[[Guiding Light]]'' returned to the Broadcast Center in September 2005, after 17 years at [[EUE/Screen Gems]] studios, 222 East 44th Street and 20 years at the [[Chelsea Studios|CBS/Himan Brown studios at 221 West 26th Street]]. The show had been produced in Studio 45 at the CBS Broadcast Center from 1965 to 1968 before moving to West 26th Street. ''GL'' used Studios 42 and 45 until its final broadcast on September 18, 2009.

===''"From the ABC Broadcast Center..."''===
In 1996, [[Brillstein Entertainment Partners|Brillstein-Grey Entertainment]] produced ''[[The Dana Carvey Show]]'' at the Broadcast Center for [[American Broadcasting Company|ABC]]. As a jab at CBS ([[American Broadcasting Company|ABC]]'s competition), the show's opening credits had a man with a paper version of the [[American Broadcasting Company logos|ABC logo]] on a ladder outside of the Broadcast Center covering over the [[CBS Eye logo]] while the announcer proclaimed "From the ABC Broadcast Center...".

===Recent history===
In early 2012, it was announced ''[[The Nate Berkus Show]]'' would not be renewed. After a few months it was announced that [[Anderson Cooper]]'s talk show would move into Studio 42 leaving its home in the [[Time Warner Center]].

Also in 2012, CBS acquired the [[Riverhead, New York|Riverhead]], [[Long Island]]-licensed [[WLNY-TV]] (Channel 55, cable channel 10), setting up a duopoly with WCBS-TV. Following the merger, CBS moved that station's employees to the CBS Broadcast Center. Their former [[Melville, New York|Melville]] facility was maintained as the WCBS/WLNY Long Island bureau offices until 2020 when it was taken over by an independent production company.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Robinson |first1=Pam |title=Drake Media Network Takes Over Melville Studios |url=https://huntingtonnow.com/drake-media-network-takes-over-melville-studios/ |website=Huntington Now |date=December 2, 2020 |publisher=Huntington Now Media Inc. |access-date=June 7, 2023}}</ref> WLNY currently carries one program from Broadcast Center: a 9pm newscast with WCBS's news personnel from Broadcast Center. ''Live from the Couch'', a morning show airing parallel to ''CBS This Morning'' on WCBS, was broadcast on WLNY from 2012 until early 2014, when it was canceled due to low ratings.

HBO satire show ''[[Last Week Tonight with John Oliver]]'', [[Showtime (TV network)|Showtime]] talk show ''[[Desus & Mero (2019 TV series)|Desus & Mero]]'' are also recorded at the Broadcast Center. TBS news satire show ''[[Full Frontal with Samantha Bee]]'' recorded from the Broadcast Center from its 2016 premiere until the pandemic, before moving to home taping for several months. After that, the latter show moved to Connecticut and a smaller studio without an audience.

On March 12, 2020, one day after [[COVID-19]] was [[COVID-19 pandemic in New York City|declared a pandemic]], the CBS Broadcast Center was closed for [[disinfection]] after two employees tested positive for COVID-19. Production of WCBS newscasts was assumed by [[KCBS-TV]], while ''CBS This Morning'' was moved to CBS News's Washington studio (used for the ''[[CBS Evening News]]'' since December).<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://nypost.com/2020/03/11/cbs-closes-nyc-offices-after-two-employees-positive-for-coronavirus/|title=CBS closes NYC offices after two employees positive for coronavirus|last=Barone|first=Vincent|date=March 11, 2020|website=New York Post|language=en|access-date=March 13, 2020}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.newscaststudio.com/2020/03/12/wcbs-kcbs/?og=1|title=CBS New York turns local news over to Los Angeles as studios remain closed|website=NewscastStudio|last=Hill|first=Michael P.|date=March 12, 2020 |language=en-US|access-date=March 13, 2020}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/business/story/2020-03-11/CBS-News-New-York-coronavirus|title=Two CBS News workers in New York diagnosed with coronavirus|last=James|first=Meg|date=March 11, 2020|website=Los Angeles Times|language=en-US|access-date=March 13, 2020}}</ref> The Broadcast Center reopened on a limited basis on March 14, 2020, starting with the Saturday edition of ''CBS This Morning'' from Studio 57;<ref name="md-cbsbcreopens">{{cite news |title=CBS News getting NYC broadcast center back up and running |url=https://www.mixdexhq.com/tv-news/CBS-News-getting-NYC-broadcast-center-back-up-and-running/ |accessdate=March 18, 2020 |work=MixDex |date=March 14, 2020}}</ref> on March 18, [[ViacomCBS]] announced that its operations would again temporarily relocate from the Broadcast Center, with ''CBS This Morning'' moving to the set of ''[[The Late Show with Stephen Colbert]]'' at the [[Ed Sullivan Theater]]<ref name="thr-cbsbcclosedagain">{{cite news |last1=Barr |first1=Jeremy |title=CBS News to Film Morning Show From 'Late Show's' Ed Sullivan Theater |url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/cbs-news-film-morning-show-late-shows-Ed-Sullivan-Theater-1285179 |accessdate=March 18, 2020 |work=[[The Hollywood Reporter]] |date=March 18, 2020 |language=en}}</ref> and KCBS-TV again producing WCBS-TV's newscasts. From March 20, WCBS-TV newscasts were presented from the studios of [[New York Yankees]] and [[Brooklyn Nets]] broadcaster [[YES Network]] in [[Stamford, Connecticut]],<ref name="tvs-wcbsbacktokcbs">{{cite news |last1=Ariens |first1=Chris |title=KCBS Anchors Will Again Fill in on WCBS With Coronavirus Concerns Not Yet Contained |url=https://www.adweek.com/tvspy/kcbs-anchors-will-again-fill-in-on-WCBS-with-coronavirus-concerns-not-yet-contained/220062/ |accessdate=March 18, 2020 |work=TVSpy |date=March 18, 2020}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.broadcastingcable.com/news/cbs-owned-stations-pitch-in-with-national-newscasts|title=CBS' Owned Stations Pitch In With National Newscasts|last=Malone|first=Michael|website=Broadcasting & Cable|date=March 20, 2020 |language=en-us|access-date=March 22, 2020}}</ref> before moving back again to the Broadcast Center, beginning on April 17 with the morning newscast. On the June 21, 2020, broadcast of [[60 in 6]], [[Seth Doane]] partially covered the Broadcast Center's exposure to COVID-19 in a piece titled ''CBS News Battles COVID-19''.<ref name="quibicovid">{{cite AV media |date=June 22, 2020 |title=CBS News Battles COVID-19 60 in 6 FULL EPISODE Quibi |medium=Television production |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZRol8Rn2WMM |access-date=October 21, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201004010023/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZRol8Rn2WMM |archive-date=October 4, 2020 |location=United States |publisher=Quibi}}</ref> The piece mentions that CBS News flew in staffers, including those located in [[Seattle, Washington|Seattle]] and [[Rome, Italy|Rome]] in early March 2020 to begin filming promotional material for 60 in 6, which brought COVID-19 positive individuals in close contact with CBS employees which resulted in the shutdown of the CBS Broadcast Center.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://heavy.com/news/2020/03/cbs-building-coronavirus-evacuated-nyc/|date=March 11, 2020|title=CBS News Buildings Evacuated After Coronavirus Outbreak|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200312130601/https://heavy.com/news/2020/03/cbs-building-coronavirus-evacuated-nyc/|archive-date=March 12, 2020|website=heavy.com|publisher=Heavy, Inc.|last=Bicks|first=Emily}}</ref>

===Potential sale===
In June 2023, CBS chief George Cheeks told staff that the company was exploring a sale of the building.<ref name="Rebong 2023 v333"/><ref>{{cite web |last1=Weprin |first1=Alex |title=CBS Broadcast Center in New York Up For Sale From Paramount |url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/business/business-news/paramount-explores-sale-cbs-broadcast-center-new-york-1235508240/ |website=The Hollywood Reporter |date=June 6, 2023 |publisher=Penske Media Corporation |access-date=June 7, 2023}}</ref> At the time, the building covered {{Convert|1000000|ft2}} and had large amounts of [[air rights]], which permitted the development of skyscrapers on the site.<ref name="Hughes 2024 u844">{{cite web |last=Hughes |first=C. J. |date=September 4, 2024 |title=Who Owns the Block: Sale of CBS studio complex could shake up the West Side |url=https://www.crainsnewyork.com/who-owns-block/cbs-broadcast-center-sale-could-shake-up-west-side |access-date=September 5, 2024 |website=Crain&#039;s New York Business}}</ref> The Broadcast Center remains one of the last major pieces of CBS real estate still owned by Paramount; the company previously sold the [[CBS Building]] (also known as Black Rock),<ref>{{cite web |last=Goldsmith |first=Jill |date=August 16, 2021 |title=ViacomCBS Sells Black Rock Building In Midtown Manhattan To Harbor Group For $760 Million |url=https://deadline.com/2021/08/viacomcbs-black-rock-cbs-harbor-group-1234815841/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210816203017/https://deadline.com/2021/08/viacomcbs-black-rock-cbs-harbor-group-1234815841/ |archive-date=August 16, 2021 |access-date=August 16, 2021 |website=[[Deadline Hollywood]]}}</ref> as well as [[Television City]] in Los Angeles.<ref>{{cite web |last=Shanley |first=Patrick |date=December 10, 2018 |title=CBS Sells Iconic Television City Property for $750 Million |url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/tv/tv-news/cbs-sells-television-city-property-750-million-1168095/ |access-date=September 5, 2024 |website=The Hollywood Reporter}}</ref> By January 2024, CBS was also looking for an investment partner to buy a minority stake in the CBS Broadcast Center.<ref>{{cite web |last=Rothstein |first=Ethan |date=January 30, 2024 |title=Paramount Global Seeking Partner, Not Buyer, To Redevelop CBS Broadcast Center |url=https://www.bisnow.com/new-york/news/capital-markets/paramount-global-seeking-partner-to-redevelop-west-side-cbs-broadcast-center-122647 |access-date=September 5, 2024 |website=Bisnow}}</ref> CBS still had not found a buyer or partner {{As of|2024|09|alt=as of September 2024}}.<ref name="Hughes 2024 u844" />

==Studios==
* 33: ''[[60 Minutes]]'', former home of The ''CBS Evening News with Walter Cronkite''
* 41: ''[[The Drew Barrymore Show]]''
* 42: ''[[Last Week Tonight with John Oliver]]'', also used as the 2024 vice presidential debate spin room
* 43: [[CBS Sports]] / [[CBS Sports Network]] (CBS co-productions of [[NCAA March Madness (TV program)|NCAA March Madness]] coverage with [[TNT Sports (United States)|TNT Sports]])
* 44: CBS Sports Network
* 45: CBS Sports (mostly [[Paramount+]]) / [[CBS News Sunday Morning|CBS Sunday Morning]] (for special editions), former home of ''Inside Edition'', also used for the 2024 vice presidential debate
* 46: [[WCBS-TV]] & [[WLNY]]
* 47: Currently unused, former home of ''CBS Weekend News''
* 55: ''CBS News 24/7'' (10 a.m. ET)
* 57: ''[[CBS Evening News|CBS Weekend News]]'' / [[CBS News 24/7|''CBS News 24/7'']] (except from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. ET) / ''[[CBS News Mornings]]'' / ''[[CBS News Roundup]]'', former home of ''[[CBS This Morning]]''

== References ==
{{reflist | refs=
<ref name=Montopoli>{{cite web | title=Getting To Know The Broadcast Center | url=http://www.cbsnews.com/news/getting-to-know-the-broadcast-center/ | date=June 13, 2006 | last=Montopoli | first=Brian | website=CBS News | archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20160403125223/http://www.cbsnews.com/news/getting-to-know-the-broadcast-center/ | archivedate=April 3, 2016 |url-status=live | accessdate=April 3, 2016}}</ref>
}}

{{Paramount Global}}
{{Grand Central Terminal}}

{{coord|40|46|9|N|73|59|24|W|type:landmark|display=title}}

{{Commons category}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cbs Broadcast Center}}
[[Category:CBS television studios]]
[[Category:Recording studios in Manhattan]]
[[Category:Hell's Kitchen, Manhattan]]
[[Category:Mass media company headquarters in the United States]]
[[Category:Television studios in the United States]]
[[Category:Entertainment companies based in New York City]]
[[Category:Grand Central Terminal]]
[[Category:57th Street (Manhattan)]]

Latest revision as of 05:21, 26 December 2024

CBS Broadcast Center
The broadcast center at 524 West 57th Street.
Map
General information
TypeTelevision studios
Location524 W. 57th Street
New York, NY 10019
U.S.
Current tenantsCBS News
CBS Sports
WCBS-TV
WLNY-TV
OwnerParamount Global

The CBS Broadcast Center is a television and radio production facility located on the West Side of Midtown Manhattan in New York City. It is CBS's main East Coast production hub, similar to CBS Studio Center in Los Angeles as the West Coast hub. The Broadcast Center is one of three production facilities in Manhattan utilized by Paramount Global. The other two are the Ed Sullivan Theater, which hosts The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, along with the Times Square studios for CBS Mornings, located in the company's headquarters at One Astor Plaza.

Description

[edit]

The nearly block-long facility at 524 West 57th Street in the Hell's Kitchen section of Manhattan serves as the headquarters of CBS News and its live streaming news channel, and is the main broadcast facility for CBS News, CBS Sports, New York City flagship O&O station WCBS-TV and CBS-owned independent station WLNY. In 2001, BET previously used studios for 106 & Park and other in-studio shows (both BET and CBS were part of Viacom until their 2006 separation by the Viacom/CBS split, later re-merged in 2019). CBS Media Ventures's nationally syndicated newsmagazine Inside Edition is also produced at the Broadcast Center.

The Broadcast Center is also the production base for CBS News Radio. The network's Master Control (aka Central Control) on the first floor also serves as the routing center for other programming distributed by Westwood One (formerly Dial Global). The radio network's flagship station WCBS (AM) was housed in the Broadcast Center from 2000 (moving from Black Rock, CBS's corporate headquarters at 51 West 52nd Street) until 2011 when it relocated to 345 Hudson Street in lower Manhattan, billed on-air as "The Audacy Hudson Square Broadcast Center."

In addition to the Broadcast Center, CBS has one other major studio in Manhattan — the Ed Sullivan Theater (CBS-TV Studio 50) at 1697 Broadway, the home of The Late Show with Stephen Colbert. The General Motors Building (CBS-TV Studio 58), on Fifth Avenue and 58th Street, was the home of The Early Show until December 31, 2011. The Early Show's successor, the second incarnation of CBS This Morning (predecessor of CBS Mornings), premiered from newly constructed Studio 57 at the Broadcast Center on January 9, 2012.

The CBS Evening News moved into Studio 57 from Studio 47 (previously sharing space with the CBS News newsroom) in December 2016.[1] It relocated from New York to Washington, D.C. in December 2019.[2] ViacomCBS announced in May 2021 that CBS This Morning would vacate the Broadcast Center for the MTV Studios.[3][4] The move was completed on September 7, 2021, when CBS This Morning rebranded to CBS Mornings.[5]

History

[edit]

Early history

[edit]

The building in which the Broadcast Center is located formerly served as a dairy depot for Sheffield Farms.[6] CBS purchased the site in 1952. The Center opened as the CBS Production Center in the late 1950s, when the network's master control, film and videotape facilities, and four studios were located in the Grand Central Terminal building.

CBS began using the 57th Street facility regularly for TV in 1963. The radio network, with offices at 1 East 53rd Street and studios at 49 East 52nd Street, near the old CBS corporate headquarters at 485 Madison Avenue, moved to the Broadcast Center in July 1964, while the television network's master control moved from Grand Central to the Broadcast Center in late 1964. The company spent $14.5 million to create what was, at the time, "the largest 'self-contained' radio and television production center in the United States and the most modern broadcasting plant of its kind in the world," as the New York Tribune put it in 1961.[7]

From the 1950s to 1970s, another prominent CBS stage in New York was Studio 52 (now the disco-theater Studio 54) at 254 West 54th Street, around the corner from Studio 50. CBS also leased the Himan Brown studios at 221 West 26th Street, now Chelsea Studios, for several shows in the 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s.

CBS Broadcast Center and soap operas

[edit]

Until January 2000, the Broadcast Center was home to CBS-TV's soap opera As the World Turns, which moved to JC Studios in Brooklyn. Former serials Love of Life, Search for Tomorrow, The Edge Of Night before moving to ABC in December of 1975 Love is a Many Splendored Thing, Secret Storm, and Where the Heart Is were also produced at the Broadcast Center.

After a 37-year absence, Guiding Light returned to the Broadcast Center in September 2005, after 17 years at EUE/Screen Gems studios, 222 East 44th Street and 20 years at the CBS/Himan Brown studios at 221 West 26th Street. The show had been produced in Studio 45 at the CBS Broadcast Center from 1965 to 1968 before moving to West 26th Street. GL used Studios 42 and 45 until its final broadcast on September 18, 2009.

"From the ABC Broadcast Center..."

[edit]

In 1996, Brillstein-Grey Entertainment produced The Dana Carvey Show at the Broadcast Center for ABC. As a jab at CBS (ABC's competition), the show's opening credits had a man with a paper version of the ABC logo on a ladder outside of the Broadcast Center covering over the CBS Eye logo while the announcer proclaimed "From the ABC Broadcast Center...".

Recent history

[edit]

In early 2012, it was announced The Nate Berkus Show would not be renewed. After a few months it was announced that Anderson Cooper's talk show would move into Studio 42 leaving its home in the Time Warner Center.

Also in 2012, CBS acquired the Riverhead, Long Island-licensed WLNY-TV (Channel 55, cable channel 10), setting up a duopoly with WCBS-TV. Following the merger, CBS moved that station's employees to the CBS Broadcast Center. Their former Melville facility was maintained as the WCBS/WLNY Long Island bureau offices until 2020 when it was taken over by an independent production company.[8] WLNY currently carries one program from Broadcast Center: a 9pm newscast with WCBS's news personnel from Broadcast Center. Live from the Couch, a morning show airing parallel to CBS This Morning on WCBS, was broadcast on WLNY from 2012 until early 2014, when it was canceled due to low ratings.

HBO satire show Last Week Tonight with John Oliver, Showtime talk show Desus & Mero are also recorded at the Broadcast Center. TBS news satire show Full Frontal with Samantha Bee recorded from the Broadcast Center from its 2016 premiere until the pandemic, before moving to home taping for several months. After that, the latter show moved to Connecticut and a smaller studio without an audience.

On March 12, 2020, one day after COVID-19 was declared a pandemic, the CBS Broadcast Center was closed for disinfection after two employees tested positive for COVID-19. Production of WCBS newscasts was assumed by KCBS-TV, while CBS This Morning was moved to CBS News's Washington studio (used for the CBS Evening News since December).[9][10][11] The Broadcast Center reopened on a limited basis on March 14, 2020, starting with the Saturday edition of CBS This Morning from Studio 57;[12] on March 18, ViacomCBS announced that its operations would again temporarily relocate from the Broadcast Center, with CBS This Morning moving to the set of The Late Show with Stephen Colbert at the Ed Sullivan Theater[13] and KCBS-TV again producing WCBS-TV's newscasts. From March 20, WCBS-TV newscasts were presented from the studios of New York Yankees and Brooklyn Nets broadcaster YES Network in Stamford, Connecticut,[14][15] before moving back again to the Broadcast Center, beginning on April 17 with the morning newscast. On the June 21, 2020, broadcast of 60 in 6, Seth Doane partially covered the Broadcast Center's exposure to COVID-19 in a piece titled CBS News Battles COVID-19.[16] The piece mentions that CBS News flew in staffers, including those located in Seattle and Rome in early March 2020 to begin filming promotional material for 60 in 6, which brought COVID-19 positive individuals in close contact with CBS employees which resulted in the shutdown of the CBS Broadcast Center.[17]

Potential sale

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In June 2023, CBS chief George Cheeks told staff that the company was exploring a sale of the building.[6][18] At the time, the building covered 1,000,000 square feet (93,000 m2) and had large amounts of air rights, which permitted the development of skyscrapers on the site.[19] The Broadcast Center remains one of the last major pieces of CBS real estate still owned by Paramount; the company previously sold the CBS Building (also known as Black Rock),[20] as well as Television City in Los Angeles.[21] By January 2024, CBS was also looking for an investment partner to buy a minority stake in the CBS Broadcast Center.[22] CBS still had not found a buyer or partner as of September 2024.[19]

Studios

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References

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  1. ^ Hill, Michael P. (December 7, 2016). "A look back at 'CBS Evening News' in Studio 47". Newscast Studio. Retrieved September 13, 2018.
  2. ^ Levin, Gary (May 5, 2019). "CBS News keeps Gayle King on 'CBS This Morning' as Norah O'Donnell shifts to 'CBS Evening News'". USA Today.
  3. ^ Johnson, Ted (May 20, 2021). "'CBS This Morning' To Move To Times Square Studio At ViacomCBS Headquarters". Deadline. Archived from the original on May 20, 2021. Retrieved May 27, 2021.
  4. ^ Steinberg, Brian (December 8, 2020). "CBS Has Considered Times Square Studio for Morning Show (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety. Archived from the original on December 8, 2020. Retrieved January 7, 2021.
  5. ^ Steinberg, Brian (August 31, 2021). "CBS News to Launch 'Mornings' in Bid to Capture A.M. Viewers Across The Week". Variety. Retrieved August 31, 2021.
  6. ^ a b Rebong, Kevin (June 12, 2023). "CBS Mulls Sale of Midtown Broadcast Center". The Real Deal. Retrieved June 28, 2023.
  7. ^ Montopoli, Brian (June 13, 2006). "Getting To Know The Broadcast Center". CBS News. Archived from the original on April 3, 2016. Retrieved April 3, 2016.
  8. ^ Robinson, Pam (December 2, 2020). "Drake Media Network Takes Over Melville Studios". Huntington Now. Huntington Now Media Inc. Retrieved June 7, 2023.
  9. ^ Barone, Vincent (March 11, 2020). "CBS closes NYC offices after two employees positive for coronavirus". New York Post. Retrieved March 13, 2020.
  10. ^ Hill, Michael P. (March 12, 2020). "CBS New York turns local news over to Los Angeles as studios remain closed". NewscastStudio. Retrieved March 13, 2020.
  11. ^ James, Meg (March 11, 2020). "Two CBS News workers in New York diagnosed with coronavirus". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved March 13, 2020.
  12. ^ "CBS News getting NYC broadcast center back up and running". MixDex. March 14, 2020. Retrieved March 18, 2020.
  13. ^ Barr, Jeremy (March 18, 2020). "CBS News to Film Morning Show From 'Late Show's' Ed Sullivan Theater". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved March 18, 2020.
  14. ^ Ariens, Chris (March 18, 2020). "KCBS Anchors Will Again Fill in on WCBS With Coronavirus Concerns Not Yet Contained". TVSpy. Retrieved March 18, 2020.
  15. ^ Malone, Michael (March 20, 2020). "CBS' Owned Stations Pitch In With National Newscasts". Broadcasting & Cable. Retrieved March 22, 2020.
  16. ^ CBS News Battles COVID-19 60 in 6 FULL EPISODE Quibi (Television production). United States: Quibi. June 22, 2020. Archived from the original on October 4, 2020. Retrieved October 21, 2020.
  17. ^ Bicks, Emily (March 11, 2020). "CBS News Buildings Evacuated After Coronavirus Outbreak". heavy.com. Heavy, Inc. Archived from the original on March 12, 2020.
  18. ^ Weprin, Alex (June 6, 2023). "CBS Broadcast Center in New York Up For Sale From Paramount". The Hollywood Reporter. Penske Media Corporation. Retrieved June 7, 2023.
  19. ^ a b Hughes, C. J. (September 4, 2024). "Who Owns the Block: Sale of CBS studio complex could shake up the West Side". Crain's New York Business. Retrieved September 5, 2024.
  20. ^ Goldsmith, Jill (August 16, 2021). "ViacomCBS Sells Black Rock Building In Midtown Manhattan To Harbor Group For $760 Million". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on August 16, 2021. Retrieved August 16, 2021.
  21. ^ Shanley, Patrick (December 10, 2018). "CBS Sells Iconic Television City Property for $750 Million". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved September 5, 2024.
  22. ^ Rothstein, Ethan (January 30, 2024). "Paramount Global Seeking Partner, Not Buyer, To Redevelop CBS Broadcast Center". Bisnow. Retrieved September 5, 2024.

40°46′9″N 73°59′24″W / 40.76917°N 73.99000°W / 40.76917; -73.99000

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