Buffalo Broadcasters Association
Buffalo Broadcasters Association
About
The Buffalo Broadcasters Association (BBA) was founded in 1995 by a group of veteran Western New York broadcasters. Its mission is to preserve Buffalo’s broadcasting history and honor those who have contributed to its success. In addition, the Association has developed programs to support, guide and encourage new generations of broadcasters. It is a 501c3 non- profit organization.
The BBA is currently in possession of thousands of reels of newsfilm dating back to the 1960s. The film originated from WBEN-TV, now WIVB-TV, the CBS affiliate in Buffalo, and from WGR-TV, now WGRZ-TV, the NBC affiliate in Buffalo. The other major commercial station in Buffalo, WKBW-TV, is in possession of its own film archive.
Since the mid-1960s, the film has been stored in many locations, and, at times, was at risk of being discarded because of a lack of storage space. Some of its rescuers were founding members of the BBA, who arranged for donated space. Currently, the BBA is renting climate-controlled warehouse space from the Niagara Frontier Transportation Authority.
At present, WIVB-TV and WKBW-TV have granted the BBA licensing rights to digitize their news film and early ¾ inch video tapes for the purpose of bringing Buffalo’s moving image history back to life. Selected clips have begun being posted on the New York Heritage Digital website, making them available to schools and universities, libraries and museums, and the general public. Their use is for educational purposes only.
It is the BBA’s belief that journalists provide society with its first draft of history. By retrieving Buffalo’s moving image history, the goal is to learn lessons from the past while preserving the region’s rich cultural heritage for generations to come.
Buffalo Broadcasters Association is a member of the Western New York Library Resources Council.
Collections
This is a collection of WIVB-TV archival news clips, stories, and programs primarily spanning a period from the mid-1960s through the early 1990s. The collection is drawn from the station’s news film and 3/4 inch videotape archives. The items chronicle three decades of life in the greater Buffalo region selected by the Buffalo Broadcasters Association based on their interest and historical relevance to Western New York and New York State.
This is a collection of WKBW-TV videotape segments highlighting the last 60 years of television news. The segments are primarily economic, political and featured segments produced by the Buffalo New York television station WKBW-TV since 1958. They document the beginning of television broadcasts, as well as world events with a Buffalo connection, the tumultuous 1960s and 70s up to the present day.