[1] Television news gathering originally involved crews using 16 mm film (or, at lower-budget stations, Super 8 mm film)[4] that would be processed at the station and had to be edited before it could be aired.
[5] The purpose of these "Film at 11" promotions was to attract viewers and increase the program's ratings.
However, news broadcasts were not counted in ratings during the time 16mm film was used in newsgathering and hence promotions typically took the form of "newsflashes" or "special reports" that conveyed the facts of the story.
Whether or not he is to be credited with originating the phrase, in West Coast local news the phrase is commonly attributed to Jerry Dunphy during his time with KABC-TV in Los Angeles.
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