On November 29, 1948, KOB-TV began operations after Albuquerque Journal owner and publisher Tom Pepperday received a television license on his second attempt. Pepperday, who also owned KOB radio (770 AM), had filed for one earlier in 1943. It is the oldest television station in New Mexico and the third-oldest between the Mississippi River and the West Coast (after WBAP-TV (now KXAS-TV) in Fort Worth and KDYL-TV (now KTVX) in Salt Lake City). Channel 4 first broadcast programming from all four networks—NBC, ABC, CBS, and DuMont. However, because to its radio sister's lengthy relationship with NBC radio, it has always been a key NBC affiliate.