Jerry Birdwell—the station's original vice president and general manager, who had previously served as news director for Los Angeles sister station KTLA—opted to utilize an all-news format in part because it seemed a viable alternative to the traditional programming offered by other independent stations, and as a means to contain programming costs by not acquiring more expensive syndicated programs. Plans called for KAUT to eventually extend the news block to 14 hours per day. Ultimately though, the news format struggled to build an audience (averaging a 1 ratings share point, with most of its viewers watching in waiting areas of local businesses, which neither Nielsen nor Arbitron factored into their local television viewership totals) and never became truly profitable. After 10 months on the air, KAUT shuttered its news department on September 4, 1981, resulting in the layoffs of all but three members of its 23-person news staff; the time period allocated to "Newswatch 43" was replaced with syndicated series and movies. In analyzing the failure of the format, Birdwell suggested that Oklahomans did not catch onto "this type of live, extended, locally produced news," and that the increased station competition hampered its ability to attract viewers.