CKCO serves as the flagship station for CTV's broadcasts of the Kitchener-Waterloo Oktoberfest parade, which is held each Thanksgiving Day in the Twin Cities. CKCO-DT presently broadcasts 20½ hours of locally produced newscasts each week (with 3½ hours each weekday and 1½ hours each on Saturdays and Sundays). Prior to 1998, when Baton Broadcasting rebranded all the CTV stations identically, CKCO's newscast was called "CKCO Action News". In the past, the station's newscasts were branded as "Scan NewsHour" and "Ontario Report". The station operates a news bureau in Chatham, Ontario, and also had a bureau in Windsor at the corner of Park Street and Victoria Avenue, on the ground floor of the Victoria Park Place apartments. This bureau was shut down in 1994, shortly after the launch of independent station/semi-BBS affiliate CHWI. The spot was abandoned for several years, still showing the faded "CKCO-TV 42" banners atop its storefront for a few years (it is now home to a convenience store). News veterans who had their start at the station include Jeff Hutcheson, Lisa LaFlamme and Ron Johnston. Bill Inkol was a long-time sportscaster for not only the station, but often for CTV's national sports broadcasts. He was also a host of "Bowling for Dollars". "Big Al" ("Al" Elwood Jones) was the long-time host of after-school "Big Al's Ranch Party", "Big Als Talent Showcase", "Big Als Cartoon Capers", "Big Al and the Flintstones", as well as other children's programs at the station. Oopsy the Clown, a children's performer portrayed by St. Thomas native Bob McNea (1929–2005), moved to CKCO after appearing for several years on Detroit NBC affiliate WWJ-TV (now WDIV-TV), where he served as Detroit's "Bozo the Clown." During the 1970s, it was found that the cartoons seen on "Bozo" were too violent and WWJ executives offered Bob the opportunity to create a new clown show. During a "Bozo" episode it was announced that Bozo was leaving television to go back and join the circus. He phoned his clown cousin "Oopsy" and during a split screen conversation (with Bob playing both Bozo and Oopsy) Oopsy agreed to replace him. "The Oopsy the Clown Show" aired for a while on WWJ as McNea decided to move back to Canada and joined CKCO-TV.