LA 18 broadcast the Russian nightly news program, Vremya, for the first time on U.S. television. TV Guide called Vremya “the most watched and most influential television news program in the world.” Vremya provided information from major news centers of the world via satellite and became a regular program on LA 18.

IMG launched the International Channel, the first 24-hour national cable network with programming in more than 10 languages.

Pei Pei’s Time, produced by LA 18 and hosted by Cheng Pei-pei, the world’s first leading martial arts actress, became the first Mandarin talk show to be produced in the U.S. for international syndication. Pei Pei’s Time received a Los Angeles Emmy Award nomination for Best Informational Public Affairs Show (in-studio) in 1992 and 1994. The show was later re-named as Tea Time with new hosts, Juliette Zhou and Bin Li, ran for 14 years. The show was the longest running Chinese-language TV talk show in the U.S. with over 2,500 episodes.

In January, LA 18 broadcast the first California State-of-the-State-Address in California which was simultaneously translated in Mandarin Chinese. The telecast launched LA 18’s “Election Watch,” a yearlong public service campaign that educated viewers on the importance of voting and helped them make informed decisions about candidates and issues on the ballot.

In April, LA 18 produced and aired the first bilingual Mandarin/English forum for political candidates. Eight of the nine candidates running for City Council in Monterey Park participated in the forum.

Prior to the election, LA 18 televised the debate between California U.S. Senate candidates and simultaneously translated it into Korean and Mandarin Chinese.

American Seoul, produced by LA 18, became the first Korean talk show in Los Angeles that dealt with issues specific to the Korean American community. Celebrities, community leaders and other guests completed the ensemble. The show changed its name to LA Seoul in 1995 and continued to air for 10 more years.

That same year, LA 18 produced The Johnny Yune Show, the first locally produced Korean variety show.

LA 18 presented a three-hour telethon to raise relief funds for survivors of the January 17 Kobe earthquake in Japan. Hosted by George Takei, Amy Hill, and Mario Machado, the program presented live musical performances, interviews and special features that highlighted the human tragedies and the heroes of the earthquake. All proceeds from the telethon went to the American Red Cross Kobe Earthquake Relief Fund.

U.S. Citizenship: A Dream Come True, a locally produced instructional program, aired in five languages (Cantonese, English, Korean, Mandarin, and Vietnamese). The program guided immigrants through the step-by-step process of becoming citizen. For its efforts, the station was awarded the prestigious Los Angeles Emmy Award for Best Instructional Programming.

SportsRap, LA 18’s weekly program highlighted sports news from around the globe. Aired in both Korean and Mandarin Chinese language versions, the show was nominated for a Los Angeles Best Sports Series Emmy Award.

LA 18 launched Election Watch ‘96, a two-month long campaign that convinced more Asian Americans in Southern California to cast ballots for the upcoming election. The campaign consisted of special on-air editorials in Mandarin, Korean, Vietnamese and Tagalog (Filipino) urging eligible Asian Americans to register to vote and to vote on Election Day.

The world watched the transfer of Hong Kong from Britain to China, and LA 18 presented live coverage of this historic event in an unprecedented 7 ½ hour special. The special, originated in Hong Kong and aired in Mandarin on LA 18 featured coverage of the festivities which included parties and celebrations held throughout the territory that led up to the actual hand-over at midnight (9:00am, PDT).

LA 18 presented six hours of continuous live coverage of returns from the South Korean presidential election. The coverage originated in the studios of Korean Broadcasting System in Seoul.

LA 18 saluted the Los Angeles Annual Nisei Week Festival in a prime time special Nisei Week: A Japanese Happening. The broadcast highlighted many of the unique and special events of the nine-day festival. Yuko Sakamoto and Vic “The Brick” Jacobs hosted the special. Actors George Takei (“Mr. Sulu” from Star Trek), Tamilyn Tomita (“Waverly” in The Joy Luck Club), and KABC-TV sportscaster Rob Fukuzaki were guest commentators.

For the first time, LA 18 produced and aired the Los Angeles Golden Dragon Lunar New Year Parade. Hosted by Bin Li and Juliette Zhuo in Mandarin, the special celebrated the most festive Asian holiday with a behind-the-scenes look at the parade preparations and the parade itself.

LA 18 produced and broadcast the Miss Los Angeles Chinatown Pageant in a primetime for the first time. An annual event organized by the Chinese Chamber of Commerce, the pageant celebrated the accomplishments, aspirations and beauty of young Chinese-American women.

LA 18 presented a two-hour telethon to aid victims of the devastating earthquake in Nantou, Taiwan. The telethon, presented in both Cantonese and Mandarin, targeted more than 500,000 Chinese Americans in Southern California. Following the telethon, LA 18 presented a Channel 18 News Special that featured reports on the earthquake recovery efforts, as well as a review of events in Taiwan since the quake.

In September LA 18 participated in the annual Asian American Festival at Raging Waters. Winners of the station’s “Bridging Both Worlds” essay campaign were honored at the festival. The essay campaign, sponsored by the Office of National Drug Control Policy and LA 18, invited Cambodian, Chinese, Korean, and Vietnamese students to write a poem, song or essay on maintaining a drug-free lifestyle. Each participant received a signed certificate from the Office of the President of the United States.