48 Hours (TV series)

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48 Hours is a documentary and news program broadcast on the CBS television network since January 19, 1988. The program originally took a forty eight hour slice of a single topic and put it into a one hour program.

The show drew its name, inspiration and original format from the September 2, 1986, CBS News documentary 48 Hours on Crack Street, about the drug crisis plaguing a number of American neighborhoods. The special attracted some 15 million viewers.

Like the original documentary, the series originally focused on showing events occurring within a 48 hour span of time - hence the name. This format was eventually phased out by the early 1990s

One of the contributors to that program, CBS News Correspondent Harold Dow, has been a member of the 48 Hours air staff since its premiere as a regular series.

It was revamped in 2002 when Lesley Stahl took over hosting duties from Dan Rather and the name was changed to 48 Hours Investigates. The name was changed to 48 Hours Mystery in 2004, and with its single-topic format, does not use a single host, but is moderated by the reporter assigned to the story.

The current format of the documentary primarily deals with real life mysteries and crime stories, again with just one mystery per episode, owing to its single topic per show heritage.

The program has received over 20 Emmy awards, a George Foster Peabody Award, and an Ohio State Award. Susan Zirisnky is the executive producer.