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==History== |
==History== |
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In 1959, the board of trustees of [[San Bernardino Valley College]] gave approval for an exploratory study on activating [[ultra high frequency]] (UHF) channel 24, which had been allocated for educational television use by the [[Federal Communications Commission]] (FCC) in 1952 but was never assigned; recent changes in state law had allowed the community college to set up and finance its own TV station.<ref name="SanB590117">{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-san-bernardino-county-sun-investigat/126710879/|date=January 17, 1959|pages=B-1, [https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-san-bernardino-county-sun-college-ma/126710905/ B-5]|title=Investigation Approved: College May Try For TV Channel|newspaper=The San Bernardino County Sun|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=June 20, 2023}}</ref><!-- Sat --> The college applied for a [[construction permit]] on August 12, 1960.<ref name="hc">{{Cite web|url=https://enterpriseefiling.fcc.gov/dataentry/api/download/attachment/07738948-4a5d-0f7d-5ea9-fe8ab2d173cb|title=History Cards for KVCR-DT|publisher=[[Federal Communications Commission]]}}</ref> even though trustees were at first lukewarm about the concept. One trustee wanted to merely apply for the permit to keep the college's hold on the channel.<ref name="SanB610617">{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-san-bernardino-county-sun-valley-col/126710933/|date=June 17, 1961|page=B-1|title=Valley College To Apply for TV License|newspaper=The San Bernardino County Sun|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=June 20, 2023}}</ref><!-- Sat --> The FCC granted the permit on July 6, 1961,{{r|hc}} but trustees initially rejected funds to build the station in a 3–2 vote. The chairman of the board of trustees, in casting the deciding vote, stated, "I personally believe it is not our function to take education beyond the campus, here."<ref name="SanB610812">{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-san-bernardino-county-sun-valley-col/126711008/|date=August 12, 1961|pages=1-B, [https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-san-bernardino-county-sun-tv-station/126711025/ 5-B]|first=Al|last=Bruton|title=Valley College Board Rejects TV Station: Chairman Casts Deciding Vote As Trustees Split|newspaper=The San Bernardino County Sun|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=June 20, 2023}}</ref><!-- Sat --> |
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'''KVCR-TV''' first signed on the air on September 11, 1962; it became the first successful [[ultra high frequency|UHF]] television station in the [[Inland Empire Metropolitan Area|Inland Empire]] area. The station was also the first [[non-commercial educational station|non-commercial]] [[public television]] station in [[Southern California]]—predating the launches of [[KCET]] (channel 28) by two years; [[KPBS (TV)|KPBS]] in [[San Diego]] by five years; [[KOCE-TV]] (channel 50) in [[Huntington Beach, California|Huntington Beach]] by 10 years; and [[KLCS]] (channel 58) by 11 years—and the third in the entire state—preceded only by [[KQED (TV)|KQED]] in [[San Francisco]] and [[KVIE]] in [[Sacramento, California|Sacramento]]. |
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Less than a month after that vote, with high community interest in the project, trustees changed their minds and unanimously voted to build out KVCR-TV, which would be the first educational television station in the state to be run by a junior college.<ref name="Redl610906">{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/redlands-daily-facts-valley-college-plan/126711055/|date=September 6, 1961|page=5|title=Valley College plans educational TV channel|newspaper=Redlands Daily Facts|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=June 20, 2023}}</ref><!-- Wed --> It was seen as more cost-effective to broadcast on campus than to wire campus buildings for a closed-circuit system.<ref name="Colt611106">{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-colton-courier-valley-college-will-u/126711095/|date=November 6, 1961|page=2|title=Valley College Will Use Closed, Open Circuit ETV|newspaper=The Colton Courier|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=June 20, 2023}}</ref><!-- Mon --> Construction of the facility was complete by June 12, 1962, when the first [[test pattern]] was sent out,<ref name="Redl620613">{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/redlands-daily-facts-sbvc-tv-station-ope/126711133/|date=June 13, 1962|page=6|title=SBVC TV station opens with Channel 24|newspaper=Redlands Daily Facts|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=June 20, 2023}}</ref><!-- Wed --> but the first program was not broadcast until September 11. KVCR-TV was the only educational station to broadcast in Southern California at the time of its creation. In addition to educational programs for schools and college telecourses, the station also presented educational programs from [[National Educational Television]], forerunner to PBS.<ref name="SanB620911">{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-san-bernardino-county-sun-channel-24/126711194/|date=September 11, 1962|page=15|title=Channel 24 Inaugural: Valley College's UHF-TV Goes on Air at 7 p.m.|newspaper=The San Bernardino County Sun|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=June 20, 2023}}</ref><!-- Tue --> |
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The station's transmitter was originally located on the campus of [[San Bernardino Valley College]], where the channel 24 studios are still located. In the 1980s, KVCR's transmitter facilities were moved to [[Box Springs Mountain]], overlooking [[Moreno Valley, California|Moreno Valley]]. The higher location along with increased [[effective radiated power]] greatly increased the station's grade A and grade B signal coverage. During the summers of 2005 and 2006, separate [[transmitter]] failures knocked both the KVCR television and radio stations off the air for extended periods. |
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The station grew quickly. Originally broadcasting 10 to 15 hours a week, it doubled its output to 30 hours in 1963.{{r|SanB620911}}<ref name="LosA630730">{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-los-angeles-times-no-sell-but-chann/126711314/|date=July 30, 1963|page=IV:11|first=Addie|last=Greene|title=No Sell, But Channel 24 Still Grows|newspaper=The Los Angeles Times|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=June 20, 2023}}</ref><!-- Tue --> By 1965, KVCR-TV was broadcasting daytime instructional television for 23 school districts in [[San Bernardino County, California|San Bernardino County]], including on translators to rebroadcast its signal.<ref name="SanB650502">{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-san-bernardino-county-sun-follis-hea/126711576/|date=May 2, 1965|page=C-2|title=Follis Heads Educational TV Inland Group|newspaper=The Sun-Telegram|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=June 20, 2023}}</ref><!-- Sun --> KVCR-TV also served as an extension of the broadcasting program at Valley College. The station was entirely student-operated and aired 10 to 15 hours a week of local programs, including a weekly public affairs program as well as a daily newscast during the school year.<ref name="SanB670909">{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-san-bernardino-county-sun-kvcr-tv-is/126712064/|date=September 9, 1967|pages=B-1, [https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-san-bernardino-county-sun-kvcr-tv-d/126712046/ B-5]|first=Carl|last=Yetzer|title=KVCR-TV Is Discriminating Viewer's 'Alternative'|newspaper=Sun-Telegram|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=June 20, 2023}}</ref><!-- Sat --> Even though National Educational Television began feeding programs on network lines to stations in 1967, KVCR-TV continued to receive all its NET and PBS programming through [[KCET]] in Los Angeles until it was directly connected to the network in June 1972.<ref name="SanB720629">{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-san-bernardino-county-sun-sbvc-tv-no/126712264/|date=June 29, 1972|page=B-5|title=SBVC TV Now Linked With PBS|newspaper=The San Bernardino County Sun|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=June 20, 2023}}</ref><!-- Thu --> |
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With a small signal originating from the Valley College campus, the station's coverage was limited for most of the first 20 years of its history. In 1973, a translator was activated near the campus of the [[University of California, Riverside]]; this expanded KVCR-TV coverage to [[Riverside, California|Riverside]], which was blocked from the main San Bernardino signal by terrain. The university also had television production capabilities and could produce programs for air on the station.<ref name="Redl731103">{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/redlands-daily-facts-translator-station/126712419/|date=November 3, 1973|page=6|title=Translator station: Valley College TV linked to UCR|newspaper=Redlands Daily Facts|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=June 20, 2023}}</ref><!-- Sat --> A volunteer support group for KVCR radio and television, Friends of KVCR, was formed in 1973;<ref name="Redl731208">{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/redlands-daily-facts-valley-board-member/126712445/|date=December 8, 1973|page=3|title=Valley Board members delay action on accepting pay|newspaper=Redlands Daily Facts|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=June 20, 2023}}</ref><!-- Sat --> the next year, the station received a federal grant that allowed it to upgrade to all-color broadcasting.<ref name="SanB770911">{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-san-bernardino-county-sun-kvcr-tv-ce/126712520/|date=September 11, 1977|pages=D-1, [https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-san-bernardino-county-sun-kvcr-celeb/126712540/ D-2]|title=KVCR-TV celebrates its 15th year of broadcasting|newspaper=Sun-Telegram|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=June 20, 2023}}</ref><!-- Sun --> |
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[[File:'M' from RCC (cropped).JPG|right|thumb|alt=A mountain with a large painted M and several telecommunications towers on top|KVCR-TV moved its transmitter to [[Box Springs Mountain]] in 1983, greatly increasing its coverage area]] |
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In 1980, KVCR-TV began planning for a major power increase and transmitter site relocation. This would replace the original facility, which used a transmitter 10 years older than KVCR-TV itself, with a site on higher terrain. Several sites, including Sunset Ridge (used by [[KHOF-TV]]), were analyzed,<ref name="SanB800518">{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-san-bernardino-county-sun-kvcr-seeki/126712586/|date=May 18, 1980|page=B-4|first=Carl|last=Yetzer|title=KVCR seeking lots more watts|newspaper=The San Bernardino County Sun|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=June 20, 2023}}</ref><!-- Sun --> but planning soon focused on [[Box Springs Mountain]] near the University of California, Riverside campus.<ref name="HiDe800806">{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/hi-desert-star-kvcr-is-trying-public-tv/126712628/|date=August 6, 1980|page=12|first=Lyn|last=Cothren|title=KVCR is trying: Public TV in future?|newspaper=Hi-Desert Star|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=June 20, 2023}}</ref><!-- Wed --> After receiving a $650,000 federal grant in December 1981<ref name="SanB811203">{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-san-bernardino-county-sun-college-di/126712674/|date=December 3, 1981|page=B-7|title=College district received grant for TV transmitter|newspaper=The San Bernardino County Sun|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=June 20, 2023}}</ref><!-- Thu --> and awarding contracts for construction work in September 1982,<ref name="SanB820924">{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-san-bernardino-county-sun-college-bo/126712702/|date=September 24, 1982|page=B-5|first=Barbara|last=Anderson|title=College board OKs bids on TV facilities|newspaper=The San Bernardino County Sun|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=June 20, 2023}}</ref><!-- Fri --> the new facility came into use on December 5, 1983, adding an expected 1 million viewers to the station's coverage area.<ref name="SanB831206">{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-san-bernardino-county-sun-channel-24/126712742/|date=December 6, 1983|page=B-7|title=Channel 24 begins serving huge area|newspaper=The San Bernardino County Sun|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=June 20, 2023}}</ref><!-- Tue --> With the new coverage area, KVCR also began increasing its on- and off-air fundraising activities, hiring its first development director and campaigning for donations on the air.<ref name="LosA831117">{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-los-angeles-times-inside-tv-pbs-sta/126711699/|date=November 17, 1983|page=VI:12|first=Lee|last=Margulies|title=Inside TV: PBS Station Boosting Power|newspaper=The Los Angeles Times|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=June 20, 2023}}</ref><!-- Thu --> |
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During the summers of 2005 and 2006, separate [[transmitter]] failures knocked both the KVCR television and radio stations off the air for extended periods. |
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===Rebrand=== |
===Rebrand=== |
Revision as of 18:00, 20 June 2023
| |
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City | San Bernardino, California |
Channels | |
Branding | KVCR PBS |
Programming | |
Affiliations | |
Ownership | |
Owner | San Bernardino Community College District |
KVCR | |
History | |
First air date | September 11, 1962 |
Former call signs | KVCR-TV (1962–2009) |
Former channel number(s) |
|
NET (1962–1970) | |
Call sign meaning | Valley College Radio (nothing to do with the videocassette recorder) |
Technical information[1] | |
Licensing authority | FCC |
Facility ID | 58795 |
ERP | 25.8 kW |
HAAT | 540 m (1,772 ft) |
Transmitter coordinates | 33°57′57.4″N 117°17′9.1″W / 33.965944°N 117.285861°W |
Translator(s) | K09XW-D Palm Springs KJHP-LD 22 Morongo Valley |
Links | |
Public license information | |
Website | www |
KVCR-DT (channel 24) is a PBS member television station in San Bernardino, California, United States. It is owned by the San Bernardino Community College District alongside NPR member KVCR (91.9 FM). The two stations share studios at the San Bernardino Valley College campus on North Mt. Vernon Avenue in San Bernardino; KVCR-DT's transmitter is located atop Box Springs Mountain.
In addition to its main programming, KVCR also programs an alternate feed specifically for the Coachella Valley area known as KVCR PBS Desert Cities. This alternate feed is seen over-the-air in the Palm Springs area on low-power stations K09XW-D (channel 9) and KJHP-LD (channel 22),[2] and is carried on KVCR's third digital subchannel.
History
In 1959, the board of trustees of San Bernardino Valley College gave approval for an exploratory study on activating ultra high frequency (UHF) channel 24, which had been allocated for educational television use by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in 1952 but was never assigned; recent changes in state law had allowed the community college to set up and finance its own TV station.[3] The college applied for a construction permit on August 12, 1960.[4] even though trustees were at first lukewarm about the concept. One trustee wanted to merely apply for the permit to keep the college's hold on the channel.[5] The FCC granted the permit on July 6, 1961,[4] but trustees initially rejected funds to build the station in a 3–2 vote. The chairman of the board of trustees, in casting the deciding vote, stated, "I personally believe it is not our function to take education beyond the campus, here."[6]
Less than a month after that vote, with high community interest in the project, trustees changed their minds and unanimously voted to build out KVCR-TV, which would be the first educational television station in the state to be run by a junior college.[7] It was seen as more cost-effective to broadcast on campus than to wire campus buildings for a closed-circuit system.[8] Construction of the facility was complete by June 12, 1962, when the first test pattern was sent out,[9] but the first program was not broadcast until September 11. KVCR-TV was the only educational station to broadcast in Southern California at the time of its creation. In addition to educational programs for schools and college telecourses, the station also presented educational programs from National Educational Television, forerunner to PBS.[10]
The station grew quickly. Originally broadcasting 10 to 15 hours a week, it doubled its output to 30 hours in 1963.[10][11] By 1965, KVCR-TV was broadcasting daytime instructional television for 23 school districts in San Bernardino County, including on translators to rebroadcast its signal.[12] KVCR-TV also served as an extension of the broadcasting program at Valley College. The station was entirely student-operated and aired 10 to 15 hours a week of local programs, including a weekly public affairs program as well as a daily newscast during the school year.[13] Even though National Educational Television began feeding programs on network lines to stations in 1967, KVCR-TV continued to receive all its NET and PBS programming through KCET in Los Angeles until it was directly connected to the network in June 1972.[14]
With a small signal originating from the Valley College campus, the station's coverage was limited for most of the first 20 years of its history. In 1973, a translator was activated near the campus of the University of California, Riverside; this expanded KVCR-TV coverage to Riverside, which was blocked from the main San Bernardino signal by terrain. The university also had television production capabilities and could produce programs for air on the station.[15] A volunteer support group for KVCR radio and television, Friends of KVCR, was formed in 1973;[16] the next year, the station received a federal grant that allowed it to upgrade to all-color broadcasting.[17]
In 1980, KVCR-TV began planning for a major power increase and transmitter site relocation. This would replace the original facility, which used a transmitter 10 years older than KVCR-TV itself, with a site on higher terrain. Several sites, including Sunset Ridge (used by KHOF-TV), were analyzed,[18] but planning soon focused on Box Springs Mountain near the University of California, Riverside campus.[19] After receiving a $650,000 federal grant in December 1981[20] and awarding contracts for construction work in September 1982,[21] the new facility came into use on December 5, 1983, adding an expected 1 million viewers to the station's coverage area.[22] With the new coverage area, KVCR also began increasing its on- and off-air fundraising activities, hiring its first development director and campaigning for donations on the air.[23]
During the summers of 2005 and 2006, separate transmitter failures knocked both the KVCR television and radio stations off the air for extended periods.
Rebrand
In October 2017, Keith Birkfeld was named Interim General Manager at KVCR.[24] KVCR has recently completed a rebrand of the station, becoming the "Empire Network PBS", in an effort to re-imagine KVCR in the digital age.[25] It later rebranded simply as KVCR PBS.
Technical information
Subchannels
The station's digital signal is multiplexed:
Channel | Res. | Aspect | Short name | Programming |
---|---|---|---|---|
24.1 | 720p | 16:9 | KVCR-HD | Main KVCR-DT programming / PBS |
24.2 | 480i | KVCRFNX | First Nations Experience | |
24.3 | KVCR-DC | KVCR Desert Cities | ||
24.4 | KVCRCRE | Create |
Translators
City of license | Callsign | Channel | ERP | HAAT | Facility ID | Transmitter coordinates |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Morongo Valley | KJHP-LD | 22 | 15 kW | 182 m (597 ft) | 130845 | 33°51′56.7″N 116°26′1.2″W / 33.865750°N 116.433667°W |
Palm Desert, etc. | K09XW-D | 9 | 0.3 kW | 969 m (3,179 ft) | 12324 | 33°32′45.1″N 116°28′9″W / 33.545861°N 116.46917°W |
Analog-to-digital conversion
KVCR-TV shut down its analog signal, over UHF channel 24, on June 12, 2009, as part of the federally mandated transition from analog to digital television.[27] The station's digital signal remained on its pre-transition UHF channel 26, using PSIP to display KVCR-TV's virtual channel as 24 on digital television receivers. In 2019, UHF channel 26 was shut down and the digital signal was relocated once again to VHF channel 5.
References
- ^ "Facility Technical Data for KVCR-DT". Licensing and Management System. Federal Communications Commission.
- ^ "KVCR.org - Coverage Area".
- ^ "Investigation Approved: College May Try For TV Channel". The San Bernardino County Sun. January 17, 1959. pp. B-1, B-5. Retrieved June 20, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ a b "History Cards for KVCR-DT". Federal Communications Commission.
- ^ "Valley College To Apply for TV License". The San Bernardino County Sun. June 17, 1961. p. B-1. Retrieved June 20, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Bruton, Al (August 12, 1961). "Valley College Board Rejects TV Station: Chairman Casts Deciding Vote As Trustees Split". The San Bernardino County Sun. pp. 1-B, 5-B. Retrieved June 20, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Valley College plans educational TV channel". Redlands Daily Facts. September 6, 1961. p. 5. Retrieved June 20, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Valley College Will Use Closed, Open Circuit ETV". The Colton Courier. November 6, 1961. p. 2. Retrieved June 20, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "SBVC TV station opens with Channel 24". Redlands Daily Facts. June 13, 1962. p. 6. Retrieved June 20, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ a b "Channel 24 Inaugural: Valley College's UHF-TV Goes on Air at 7 p.m." The San Bernardino County Sun. September 11, 1962. p. 15. Retrieved June 20, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Greene, Addie (July 30, 1963). "No Sell, But Channel 24 Still Grows". The Los Angeles Times. p. IV:11. Retrieved June 20, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Follis Heads Educational TV Inland Group". The Sun-Telegram. May 2, 1965. p. C-2. Retrieved June 20, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Yetzer, Carl (September 9, 1967). "KVCR-TV Is Discriminating Viewer's 'Alternative'". Sun-Telegram. pp. B-1, B-5. Retrieved June 20, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "SBVC TV Now Linked With PBS". The San Bernardino County Sun. June 29, 1972. p. B-5. Retrieved June 20, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Translator station: Valley College TV linked to UCR". Redlands Daily Facts. November 3, 1973. p. 6. Retrieved June 20, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Valley Board members delay action on accepting pay". Redlands Daily Facts. December 8, 1973. p. 3. Retrieved June 20, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "KVCR-TV celebrates its 15th year of broadcasting". Sun-Telegram. September 11, 1977. pp. D-1, D-2. Retrieved June 20, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Yetzer, Carl (May 18, 1980). "KVCR seeking lots more watts". The San Bernardino County Sun. p. B-4. Retrieved June 20, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Cothren, Lyn (August 6, 1980). "KVCR is trying: Public TV in future?". Hi-Desert Star. p. 12. Retrieved June 20, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "College district received grant for TV transmitter". The San Bernardino County Sun. December 3, 1981. p. B-7. Retrieved June 20, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Anderson, Barbara (September 24, 1982). "College board OKs bids on TV facilities". The San Bernardino County Sun. p. B-5. Retrieved June 20, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Channel 24 begins serving huge area". The San Bernardino County Sun. December 6, 1983. p. B-7. Retrieved June 20, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Margulies, Lee (November 17, 1983). "Inside TV: PBS Station Boosting Power". The Los Angeles Times. p. VI:12. Retrieved June 20, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "KVCR names Keith Birkfeld interim general manager". October 21, 2017.
- ^ "Rebrand". Empire Network.
- ^ "RabbitEars TV Query for KVCR". www.rabbitears.info.
- ^ "List of Digital Full-Power Stations" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on August 29, 2013.