WPBS-TV

Infobox_Broadcast
call_letters = WPBS-TV / WNPI-TV
city =
station_
station_slogan = The two-nation station
station_branding = WPBS Television
analog =
WPBS: 16 (UHF)
WNPI: 18 (UHF)
digital =
WPBS: 41 (UHF)
WNPI: 23 (UHF)
subchannels = 16/18.1: WPBS-TV/WNPI-TV
16/18.2: Create, ThinkBright
16/18.3: PBS-HD
other_chs =
affiliations = PBS
network =
founded =
airdate = WPBS: August 1971 [The "Broadcasting and Cable Yearbook" says August 5, while the "Television and Cable Factbook" says August 9.]
WNPI: 1971 [The "Broadcasting and Cable Yearbook" says August 30, while the "Television and Cable Factbook" says September 5.]
location = WPBS: Watertown, New York
WNPI: Norwood, New York
callsign_meaning = WPBS:
Watertown
Public
Broadcasting
Service
WNPI:
Watertown/
Norwood
Public
Instruction
former_callsigns = WPBS:
WNPE-TV (1971-1998)
WNPI: none
former_channel_numbers =
owner = St. Lawrence Valley Educational Television Council, Inc.
licensee =
sister_stations =
former_affiliations =
effective_radiated_power = WPBS:
617 kW (analog)
40 kW (digital)
WNPI:
661 kW (analog)
40 kW (digital)
HAAT = WPBS:
370 m (both)
WNPI:
243 m (analog)
241.6 m (digital)
class =
facility_id = WPBS: 62136
WNPI: 62137
coordinates = WPBS:
coord|43|51|45.6|N|75|43|38.6|W|type:landmark_scale:2000
WNPI:
coord|44|29|29.1|N|74|51|26.2|W|type:landmark_scale:2000|name=WNPI-TV
homepage = [http://www.wpbstv.org/ www.wpbstv.org]

WPBS is a PBS member station in New York state, serving Watertown/Potsdam as well as south western Quebec and most of eastern/southeastern Ontario, including Kingston, Pembroke, and Ottawa, although only on cable in the northwestern part of that market.

Like San Diego, California's KPBS, WPBS-TV is a border station—in this case, serving viewers in both the US and Canada.

WPBS programming

WPBS-produced TV series

*"The Gardener", produced in conjunction with [http://www.canadascapital.gc.ca/corporate/media_room/news_releases/details_e.asp?ArticleID=802&CatId=16&archive=y National Capital Commission] experts.
*"Bill Saiff's Rod & Reel"
*"Cabin Country"
*"From A Country Garden"
*"The Artists' World"
*"Streamside"
*"Classical Stretch"
*"Whiz Quiz" / "Whiz Quiz Canada"

WPBS videos

*"The Remington Legacy"
*"Lighthouses Of The Seaway Trail"
*"Lumberjack Sky Pilot"
*"Boldt Castle: A Tribute To Love"
*"The 1000 Islands"
*"Ottawa: Capital Insights"
*"Tour of Singer Castle"
*"Winterlude at 25"
*"WPBS-TV's 40th Anniversary Video"

WPBS-TV books

*"From a Country Garden Book"
*"Vegetables From A Country Garden"
*"Bill Saiff's Rod & Reel Cookbook"
*"No Price Too High"

History

The St. Lawrence Valley Educational Television Council, which was organized in 1958, originally produced educational programming to be carried by local commercial broadcaster WWNY. In 1971, it established an independent PBS station at Champion Hill, using its original studios, as WWNY had already relocated to a larger facility in Watertown. Outgrowing the Champion Hill location itself, WNPE moved to a new building in Watertown in 1978. Until the late 1990s, the station was known as WNPE-TV. Because of its large Canadian viewership, WNPE was considered one of the most successful PBS stations in America, with fundraising totals often exceeding those of stations in much larger markets. WNPI is a rebroadcaster and programming is identical on both stations. The station identified as "WNPE Channel 16 in Watertown, and WNPI Channel 18 in Norwood".

For a minor sum, the rights to use the WPBS call letters were purchased from a small radio station in Conyers, Georgia in the late 1990s, and the callsign change took effect on September 1 1998.

About WPBS

Despite its distinctive call letters, WPBS-TV is not considered as part of the famed "big three" group of New York network flagship stations (WCBS-TV, WNBC and WABC-TV).

WPBS-TV can be seen by a total of 2.2 million viewers, largely because the signal from its twin towers reaches far enough to serve Ottawa/Pembroke via cable. This market, with over 1.5 million people is the fourth-largest in the nation.

Due to its location far upstate, however, its New York audience is relatively small. New York is served by various other PBS stations, including New Jersey-licensed WNET 13 and New York-licensed WLIW-TV (Long Island). WCNY-TV (Syracuse), WXXI-TV (Rochester) or WCFE-TV (Plattsburgh) are available to small portions of WPBS-TV's New York viewing area.

WPBS's transmitter is located in Copenhagen, while WNPI's is located near Potsdam (in Colton off Route 56). Both the U.S. and Canadian national anthems are played on station sign-on and sign-off.

Call letters:
*WPBS-TV 16 - Watertown Public Broadcasting Service (full-power, serving Kingston/Watertown and the St. Lawrence Valley region - established as WNPE in 1971.)
*WNPI-TV 18 - Watertown / Norwood Public Instruction (full-power serving Potsdam, most of eastern Ontario (including Ottawa) and south western Quebec)

Digital subchannels

Both stations are available in 40 kW ATSC digital format, as WPBS-DT 41 and WNPI-DT 23. They will be remaining on these frequencies after 2009's analog shutdown and (according to FCC-issued construction permits) plan to increase digital power to 60kW from each broadcast transmitter site.

The three digital subchannels are identical for both WPBS-DT and WNPI-DT:
# Simulcast of existing analogue programming (480i)
# Create/ThinkBright TV (480i)
# HDTV (1080i)

The digital channels remain active after the two analog transmitters sign-off in the early morning, distributing national PBS feeds to Time-Warner cable subscribers and terrestrial DTV viewers.

Vital statistics

Owner: St. Lawrence Valley Educational Television Council, Inc. (a not-for-profit community organization)
*Home DMA: Kingston–Watertown (177th US, 24th Canadian)
*Also serving Ottawa–Gatineau (4th largest, behind Toronto, Montréal and Vancouver)
*Slogan: "The two-nation station"

External links

* [http://www.wpbstv.org WPBS-TV]
*TVQ|WPBS
*TVQ|WNPI
*BIA|WPBS|TV|TV
*BIA|WNPI|TV|TV
* [http://www.wxxi.org/about/signals/2003/v01pbhit.htm New York] launch of educational Video On-Demand service.
* [http://www.westnet.com/watpa/mail/0288.html PBS educational video-on-demand]
* [http://www.cnymedia.com/call-letters.cfm?Band=TV&Market=Watertown CNY-media]

References