Denver station rebrands with ‘Local’ name

KCDO, a Scripps owned station in Denver, Colorado, has rebranded as “KCDO Local3.”

Scripps bought KCDO in November 2020, making it a duopoly with its ABC affiliate KMGH.

The new name, which went live along with a new schedule on Jan. 11, 2021, is designed to reinforce the station’s local news offerings that are mixed in between a schedule that’s heavy on syndicated talk, game shows and courtroom programs.

Starting Jan. 11, the station began offering an expanded version of “Denver7 News on Local3” from 7 to 9 a.m, produced by KMGH.

There’s also an hourlong 1 p.m. newscast. 

The station also uses the tagline “Denver’s Hometown Station.”

Along with the changes, the station dropped its longtime red “K3” centric logo that had been around since 2010.

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A new design features a color scheme inspired by the Colorado flag — as well as introducing a “C” that echos the icon found on that same banner.

The virtual channel number is now a sharp, geometric glyph with the call letters placed in the top horizontal bar (including a “V” in “TV” that’s been tweaked to match the angle of the number).

The “Local (channel number)” branding was a longtime fixture at the stations once owned by The Washington Post, though it fell out of favor over the years and the company has since became a separate company unrelated to the newspaper, Graham Media.

Today, one of the most prominent stations that still uses the “Local” branding is WPLG in Miami — which is known as “Local 10” — but is no longer part of the Graham group. 

KCDO’s signal continues to include subchannels that include Grit, TheGrio, This TV and Jewelry Television as well as a simulcast of the KMGH feed.

Previously KCDO carried Grit programming on its main feed.

KCDO and KMGH are also sister stations with KZCO-LD, which is a translator for KMGH. Scripps also owns KOAA in Pueblo, Colorado.