It's been two decades since NBC26 started bringing the latest news to Northeast Wisconsin. On Tuesday, we celebrated the 20th anniversary of our first newscast on July 19, 1996.
The special, hour-long broadcast at 6 p.m. led into coverage of the 1996 Atlanta Olympics.
Cameron Moreland has forecasted the weather here since November of that year. Stacy Engebretson joined the team in 2000. Both agree that technology has been the biggest change over the years.
"When we first came on the air, if you wanted your weather or your sports or your news from NBC26, you had to watch us at 5, 6, and 10," Moreland explained. "Now, it's available 24/7."
"I remember looking for phone numbers out of a phone book and having to scroll through like this with the pages and get ink on your hands," Engebretson said. "Now, you just hop on your phone and do a white pages search."
Of the thousands of stories Engebretson has covered, one sticks out.
"My most memorable story here at NBC26 is when I traveled with the Appleton Boychoir to the Netherlands," she said. It was right at the outbreak of the Iraq war.
There have been some major changes from her start to now, she said.
"We have a virtual studio, a virtual set," Engebretson explained. "I never thought in a million years that the technology would come this far."
NBC26 isn't done changing yet.
"All I can say is I'm really excited about the next 20 years," said Moreland.
