February 17^th Digital Transition

As I am sure you are aware by now, as of Tuesday, February 17^th, all full power television stations in the U.S. must be broadcasting by digital transmission. This means that except in a very few cases, all current (analog) transmitters will be turned off on or before that day. How will this affect you as a viewer and member of KRCB, Channel 22? The short answer is, for the most part, not at all. Since we know that most of you do not receive our over-the-air signals, but use cabled or satellite, there will be almost no change. If you watch us on Comcast Cable, AT&T U-verse, Dish and Direct TV satellite services you should notice no change or interruption in KRCB programming. Those services will continue to re-transmit our primary channel 22 as before. If you do notice any change in reception of KRCB after February 17^th, please notify those services directly.

If you are receiving KRCB with an over-the-air antenna, either indoor or rooftop, you will no longer receive us unless you have purchased and correctly installed a digital-analog converter box or a new TV with a digital tuner. Additional information on purchasing proper digital equipment is available at www.krcb.org/Digital-Conversion, or by calling 1-888.DTV.2009 (388.2009). You may also need to install a better UHF antenna. If your over-the-air-antenna is of the directional type, it should be pointing toward Sonoma Mountain for best reception of KRCB.

While those of you watching on cable or satellite will notice no change in our programming for the time being, if you watch KRCB over-the-air, you will have access to three new digital services:

KRCB-DT-22-1 is our primary channel with all of the great national and local programming you see listed each month in our Open Air Program Guide. Some of it will now be in High Definition.

KRCB-DT-22-2 will continue to bring you The Create Channel, the 24 hour TV channel for cooking, arts & crafts, gardening, home improvement, and travel. More information on this exciting “how-to” program service is available at.www.createtv.com

KRCB-DT-22-3 will bring you the programming of our sister radio station, KRCB-FM-91. More information on those programs is in Open Air.

As we enter this new digital age of KRCB television broadcasting, be watching for more changes, additions and improvements in our program services over the next months and years. There are enormous opportunities coming down the digital highway. Your continued support of KRCB will allow us to bring them to you.

DECEMBER 31ST DEADLINE TO APPLY!

I’d like to express a big thank you to everybody who either joined KRCB for the first time, or renewed your membership, during our recent Winter Pledge Drive!  All my best wishes for a happy holiday season and a great 2009!

 

Speaking of which…On February 17, 2009, KRCB and all other full power TV stations, will turn off their analog transmitters and will continue broadcasting as digital TV stations.  If you currently receive KRCB via cable TV or satellite, you should not notice anything changing.  Your reception should stay the same. 

 

If you currently receive us over the air using rabbit ears or a rooftop antenna, you will need to do one of three things –

 

Purchase a new television with a digital tuner.

Subscribe to a cable or satellite service.

Purchase a set-top converter box for your current TV.

 

The reason that I’m telling you this now is that the FCC recommends that you apply to receive your $40.00 discount coupon to purchase your digital conversion box before December 31, 2008. 

 

Here’s what you do to get your TV Box Conversion Coupon.

 

Visit dtv2009.org or call 1-888.DTV.2009 (388.2009). Along with your coupon you will receive a list of retailers who carry the boxes and accept the coupons. Don't delay. Coupons are limited.

 

According to Acting NTIA Administrator Meredith Baker. "It takes approximately six weeks to apply for the coupon, buy the box and try it out so it is imperative that consumers take action by December 31 or look at other options to make the transition prior to February 17, 2009."

 

So onward to digital television. KRCB will look and sound better and will soon provide you with additional digital programming services. Watch this blog and KRCB for more about that in the New Year.

 

Stan Marvin

 

 

Winter Pledge Drive

As Program manager here at KRCB, I wanted every viewer to know what we’re doing for our December Pledge Drive

With the tough times affecting us all, we’ve added something new for this important Winter Pledge Drive allowing for greater community engagement and a chance to make even more of a difference! Through a partnership among KRCB and local organizations, Project Open Hand, Food for Thought, Napa Food Bank, and the Marin Community Food Bank, there will be an opportunity for new members and renewing members to help feed the hungry.

Scheduled daily among national pledge specials are four, short, locally-produced episodes titled "KRCB: Telling Our Stories - Connecting Our Communities". These four, quarter-hour-long programs will showcase the local programming made possible on KRCB by member support.

As an important addition to each episode, there will be an opportunity for new members and renewing members to help feed the hungry in their communities. Watch the programs on air or on line at krcb.org for details on how a pledge of support can become a holiday gift of a bag of groceries for a needy family.

These programs will also kick off our Silver Anniversary celebrating twenty five years of KRCB Public Television in the Bay Area and highlight the Station’s future as a digital and on-line service! Join the celebration, join public television, and join with others in the community to help alleviate hunger locally.

Digital Conversion

I want to assure you that we are very aware that February 17^th; the digital conversion date, is getting closer. In addition to short public service announcements airing with frequency, you’ll notice broadcasts of a 30-minute program Get Ready for Digital TV. Norm Abram and Kevin O’Connor of This Old House share their expertise and help us all prepare for the “Digi-Day” coming soon. Be looking for many broadcasts of that helpful show from now thru February. You can also find the information you need right here at krcb.org.

Happy Holidays

I want to wish everyone a happy holiday season ahead, and a great New Year filled with great challenges and great promise. Thank you for your support, your feedback, and enthusiastic responses over the past year. You make all the difference to our work here at the station, and we appreciate it tremendously.

Hello Everyone,

 

         In addition to being the Program Director for KRCB Channel 22, I also play the role of Underwriting Sales Manager. Some of you out there may be scratching your heads wondering what exactly underwriting means and why it is so important for the livelihood of KRCB.

As you watch or listen to KRCB FM Radio 91 or Channel 22 you will notice the businesses and organizations that underwrite our programming costs. The sponsors are the names after the words, “Made possible by…” Our underwriting staff at KRCB is a small, dedicated group of folks who work closely with businesses and organizations throughout the North Bay that benefit from becoming program underwriting partners with KRCB radio, television, and our website.

 Our current group of underwriting sponsors can be found on the  website under, “Radio and television sponsors”. If you represent a business and are interested in becoming a sponsor please contact me at (707) 584-2010.

 

Here are 5 reasons why your company or organization should become a program sponsor on KRCB.

 

1. To Enhance Your Image and Build Brand

Program support on KRCB builds brand identification and strengthens your community and quality image. KRCB underwriters benefit from the "halo effect" of being associated with public broadcasting.

 

2. To Achieve Greater Impact Through More Credible and Memorable Messages

KRCB support messages have greater impact in the quiet, low-clutter environment found only on public broadcasting.  This non-commercial approach to on-air support is appreciated and respected by our viewers.

 

3. To Build Relationships

On KRCB, program underwriters are building a relationship with the community they serve by making high-quality, award-winning programming available. KRCB can offer unique marketing opportunities that commercial broadcasters or cable networks cannot match.

 

4. To Do Something Good for the Community

KRCB program underwriters make their commitment to community involvement absolutely clear. The community appreciates it, remembers it and reciprocates with their business.

 

5. To Increase Cost-Effectiveness of your Advertising

Because underwriting on public broadcasting costs just a fraction of commercial advertising, you can easily afford the frequency and consistency that provides results.

 

 

 

Now as I put my programming director hat back on, here is a look ahead at our TV line up for the month of November.

 

This particular November is an exciting time, especially with election coverage right around the corner. Here at KRCB we take election coverage very seriously and want to give our audience the best experience possible, as we have for over 20 years. So join us on Election night, Nov. 4, for live coverage of the results here in the North Bay, on both television and radio. Following national reporting starting at 6pm from the NewsHour team, KRCB’s Bruce Robinson and Dick Spotswood take over with local television coverage beginning at 8:30 pm. They’ll share results from the North Bay counties as they come in, and talk with candidates and analysts across the political spectrum. Watch for results on key California ballot measures too, as well as any late-breaking developments on the national scene.

 

One show I am particularly excited about is the extremely controversial broadcast film premier of Citizen McCaw. The producers of Citizen McCaw have chosen KRCB to debut this film to the public television audience. Citizen McCaw is a film that chronicles events since July 2006, when editor Jerry Roberts and five of his colleagues quit the Santa Barbara News-Press, citing owner and co-publisher Wendy McCaw's abandonment of journalistic ethics, which McCaw denied. Since then, McCaw and dozens of her former staffers have been engaged in a fierce clash of wills that raises important national questions of journalistic ethics and media ownership. The premier of Citizen McCaw will be on November 2^nd at 8pm. 

 

Another exclusive premier airing on KRCB in November is a film called Hidden Bounty of Marin. The documentary reveals the depth of commitment and passion of the cattle, dairy, and sheep ranchers, oyster farmers, cheese makers, and vegetable producers, who provide us with high-quality, local, and organic food. It showcases land stewardship practices, innovative farm succession stories, direct marketing transitions, and the importance of knowing and supporting the individuals who bring you farm-to-table fare. Hidden Bounty of Marin will be airing on November 10^th from 7:30 - 8pm.

 

We will also be airing special programming for Veterans Day to honor the men and women who have courageously fought in past wars. We have assembled three programs specially suited to the occasion for the night of November 9th.

The first is American Veterans: A Musical Tribute, which will air at 8pm. The show will present the United States Air Force Band with full orchestra and the Singing Sergeants chorus, who will be joining internationally known stars for a dazzling performance at one of the nation's newest and finest concert halls, the Music Center at Strathmore, in Bethesda, Maryland. This breathtaking show will honor all five branches of the military and promises to become a centerpiece of the nation's annual Veterans Day celebrations.

Next is Flying the Secret Sky at 9 pm. Flying the Secret Sky tells a story of passionate risk-taking, of young men braving dangerous flights in primitive conditions, in aircraft never built for the job. These “cowboys of the air” are forgotten heroes of WW II: men who flew without guns and embodied an improvisational spirit that many historians agree was key to Allied victory.

The final program we will be showing in honor of Veterans Day is called Citizen Tanouye. This award-winning documentary is about a group of high school students that discover the story of a Japanese American soldier who was awarded the Medal of Honor over 50 years after his death. Citizen Tanouye will air at 10 pm and will conclude our special programming in honor of Veteran’s Day.

 

           

As always, thank you for taking the time to read my blog and for supporting KRCB Channel 22 and FM 91.

 

Stan Marvin