Wisconsin Public Television
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Wisconsin Public Television | |
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| Type | Terrestrial state public broadcasting network |
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| First air date | May 3, 1954 |
| Slogan | A place to grow through learning |
| Broadcast area | |
| Owner | Wisconsin Educational Communications Board, University of Wisconsin-Extension |
| Past names | Wisconsin Educational Television Network (1975-1986) |
| Digital channel | 6 full-power television stations |
| Analog channel | 6 full-power television stations, 6 translator stations |
| Affiliates | Milwaukee Public Television WDSE-TV (Duluth, MN) |
| Affiliation | PBS |
| Website | WPT.org |
Wisconsin Public Television is a network of non-commercial and non-profit PBS stations that are mostly run by the Educational Communications Board and University of Wisconsin Extension.
The network is carried in most of the state via cable television and satellite, and Wisconsin Public Television's major six stations also carry separate digital television signals.
WPT had also aired same-day tape coverage (usually after 10:30pm) of some home games for Wisconsin Badgers football since 1960, along with men's/women's basketball and hockey, which was produced in association with UW's athletic department, with highlights usually distributed to local commercial stations for use in their sportscasts. However, due to exclusivity agreements with the new Big Ten Network launching in September 2007, WPT will no longer be able to air tape-delayed game broadcasts of football and men's basketball [1].
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WPT's flagship station, WHA-TV, went on the air on May 3, 1954. It was named after WHA, the radio station owned by the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and was one of the stations considered to be the oldest radio station regularly broadcasting.
In 1971, the state legislature created the Wisconsin Educational Communications Board, activating five stations during the 1970s--WPNE in Green Bay in 1972; WHWC in Menomonie and WHLA in La Crosse in 1973; WHRM in Wausau in 1975 and WLEF in Park Falls in 1977--as satellites of WHA-TV. The stations adopted the on-air name of Wisconsin Public Television in 1986.
There are six full-power stations in the network, spread throughout the major cities within the state, along with two affiliates who carry only the instructional programming from the network;
| Call sign | Analog Channel | Digital Channel | Location | Founding date | Ownership | Call Letter meaning/add. notes |
| WHA-TV ¹ | 21 | 20 | Madison | May 3, 1954 | UW Board of Regents | Randomly assigned by FCC; network flagship |
| WHLA-TV | 31 | 30 | La Crosse | March 17, 1975 | WECB | WHA LA Crosse |
| WHRM | 20 | 24 | Wausau | January 20, 1976 | WECB | WHA Rib Mountain |
| WHWC ² | 28 | 27 | Menomonie/Eau Claire | June 10, 1975 | WECB | WHA West Central Wisconsin |
| WLEF | 36 | 47 | Park Falls | December 15, 1976 | WECB | W Lee E. Franks, former WECB executive director |
| WPNE | 38 | 42 | Green Bay | September 12, 1972 | WECB | W Public Broadcasting for NorthEastern Wisconsin |
| WMVT ³ | 36 | 35 | Milwaukee | January 28, 1963 | Milwaukee Area Technical College | W Milwaukee Vocational and Technical Schools |
| WDSE-TV / WRPT-DT ³ | 8 | 38 / 31 | Duluth-Superior-Hibbing | 1964 | Duluth-Superior Area Educational Television Corporation | W Duluth-Superior Educational Television W Range Public Television |
¹ - WHA's signal is imported into the Milwaukee area via basic and digital cable to provide a second PBS choice for viewers.
² - WHWC is within and also serves portions of the Minneapolis-St. Paul television market, and is carried by some cable systems in southeastern Minnesota, providing a second PBS choice to viewers besides TPT's stations.
³ - WMVT and WDSE are independent stations within the network that carry WPT's instructional programming, and also work with WPT and the WECB on joint statewide projects. WDSE also carries WPT's "Here and Now" and "In Wisconsin" most weeks, while WMVT's sister station WMVS simulcasts WPT's Teen Connection, a quarterly teen issues program which airs in primetime.
The network carries five digital subchannels on all six of their full-power stations, as follows;
| Subchannel (## = local channel) |
Programming Service | Programming Description | Hours of Operation |
|---|---|---|---|
| ##.1 | WPT † | Standard definition simulcast of Wisconsin Public Television | 24 hours, 7 days a week |
| ##.2 | WPT Cable or WPT2 | Instructional and children's programming from WHA's Madison area cable channel | Daily, 6am-7pm |
| ##.3 | WPT Create | Airs public television digital network Create | Daily, 6am-7pm |
| ##.4 | Wisconsin PBS Kids | Children's programming | Daily, 6am-7pm |
| ##.5 | WPT HDTV | Carries a full HDTV signal, replacing digital subchannels .2-.4 | Evenings only, 7pm-6am |
† - During the summer months and public school holidays and recesses, WPT's main analog signal is off the air from 1am-6am daily.
A translator network also serves portions of the state where over-the-air reception for a regular station is poor. Currently, all of the listed translators have applied for construction permits for digital channels with the FCC, and will flash-cut to their current analog channel positions after the February 2009 digital television transition.
| Call sign | Translator channel (NTSC-M) |
Location | Ownership |
| W18CU | 18 | Sister Bay | WECB |
| W22CI | 22 | Bloomington | WECB |
| W24CL | 24 | Grantsburg | WECB |
| W45CD | 45 | Fence | WECB |
| W47CO | 47 | River Falls | WECB |
| W48DB | 48 | Coloma | WECB |
- Wisconsin Public Television Website
- Query the FCC's TV station database for WHA-TV
- Query the FCC's TV station database for WHLA
- Query the FCC's TV station database for WHRM
- Query the FCC's TV station database for WHWC
- Query the FCC's TV station database for WLEF
- Query the FCC's TV station database for WPNE
- Query the FCC's TV station database for W18CU
- Query the FCC's TV station database for W22CI
- Query the FCC's TV station database for W24CL
- Query the FCC's TV station database for W45CD
- Query the FCC's TV station database for W47CO
- Query the FCC's TV station database for W48DB
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WISC 3 (CBS) (MNTV on DT2) - WMTV 15 (NBC) (AccuWeather on DT2) - WHA 21 (PBS/WPT) - W23BW 23 (3ABN) Local cable television channels |
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| Local television stations | |
| Regional cable television channels (Availibility varies by localtion) |
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| See also | Broadcast television stations in Milwaukee, Wausau, Marquette, Northern Michigan and Madison |
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Metro stations |
| See also: Broadcast television in the Fargo/Grand Forks and Rochester/Austin markets |
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| Local television stations |
WTMJ 4 (NBC, WX+ on DT2) - WITI 6 (FOX) - WMKE-CA 7 (A1) - WMVS 10 (PBS/MPTV) - WISN 12 (ABC) - W16BS 16 (Silent) - WVTV 18 (The CW) - WCGV 24 (MNTV) - WVCY 30 (FN) - |
| Cable-only out-of-market stations | |
| Local cable television channels | |
| See also |
Broadcast television stations in Madison, Green Bay, Chicago and Grand Rapids, MI |
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KDLH 3 (CBS) (The CW on DT2) - KBJR 6 / KRII 11 (NBC, MNTV on KBJR DT2, NBC WX+ on KBJR-DT3) - |
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KGAN 2 (CBS) - KWWL 7 (NBC, WX+ on DT2) - KCRG 9 (ABC) - KIIN 12 / KRIN 32 (PBS/IPTV) - K17ET 17 / K44FK 44 (TBN) - |
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WQFL-CA 8 (Ind/Rel) - WREX 13 (NBC)(The CW on DT2) - WTVO 17 (ABC)(MNTV on DT2) - W19BH 19 / WDYR-LP 25 (TBN) - WIFR 23 (CBS, The AccuWeather Channel on DT2) - WFBN-LP 33 (Ind) - WQRF 39 (FOX) - WCFC 51 (TLN) |
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KIMT 3 (CBS/MNTV) - KAAL 6 (ABC) - KTTC 10 (NBC) (The CW on DT2) - KSMQ 15 (PBS) - KYIN 24 (PBS/IPTV) - WHLA 31 (PBS/WPT) - KXLT 47 (FOX) - K56HW 56 (TBN) - K58GC 58 (3ABN) Out-of-market stations available on cable only |
| See also: Television in the Minneapolis-St. Paul market |
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| Wisconsin Public Television |
WHRM 20 (Wausau) · WHA 21 (Madison) · WHWC 28 (Menomonie/Eau Claire)
WHLA 31 (La Crosse) · WLEF 36 (Park Falls) · WPNE 38 (Green Bay) |
| Milwaukee Public Television | |
| See also: ABC, CBS, CW, Fox, MNTV, NBC and Other stations in Wisconsin | |
Categories: Television stations in Madison | Television stations in Green Bay / Appleton | Television stations in Wausau/Rhinelander | Television stations in La Crosse and Eau Claire | Television stations in Minneapolis-Saint Paul | Television stations in Milwaukee | Television stations in Duluth / Superior | Television stations in Cedar Rapids | Television stations in Rockford | Television stations in Rochester / Mason City / Austin | Television stations in Wisconsin | PBS member stations
