CatholicTV
Encyclopedia
CatholicTV is a Catholic
television network based in Watertown, Massachusetts
. It is distributed on cable systems in eight U.S. states and via the internet.
CatholicTV broadcasts programming relevant to Catholic viewers, including live religious services, talk shows, devotional programs, educational programming, entertainment, and children's programs. It also presents coverage of special events at the Vatican and of papal journeys.
The current president of CatholicTV is Father Robert Reed.
was produced on the morning of January 1, 1955 when Archbishop Richard J. Cushing celebrated a Pontifical Low Mass
in studios at 25 Granby Street near Kenmore Square
in Boston. From that studio, equipped with three RCA TK31 cameras, the Center produced live and tape-recorded programs, and it purchased time from local commercial television stations to air the Sunday Mass each week. Live programs were transmitted to the broadcasting stations through a leased-line telephone connection. In 1961 the Catholic Television Center's studios became the temporary home of educational broadcaster WGBH-TV
when that station's studios were destroyed in a fire.
In 1957 the Catholic Television Center acquired a license to operate its own broadcasting station in Boston on channel 38 in the new UHF range of television channels. It adopted the callsign WIHS, and put WIHS-TV into service on October 12, 1964, with transmitting facilities on the Prudential Tower
in Boston. It was the first full-time Catholic television station in the world employing a general entertainment format along with the daily and Sunday Mass. On July 27, 1966, Storer Broadcasting
acquired WIHS for $2,276,513.16 and renamed it as WSBK-TV
.
With funds from the station sale, the Catholic Television Center built an Instructional Television Fixed Service
(ITFS) system for distributing programs to Catholic schools, and it continued to produce live broadcasts of the Sunday Mass under the name Boston Catholic Television (BCTV). In 1970 BCTV moved into leased studios at 55 Chapel Street in Newton, Massachusetts
.
In April 1983 BCTV began offering programs to home viewers several hours a day through its own channel carried by cable television
providers, at first in Massachusetts, then elsewhere in New England, and also as far away as Montreal
, Quebec. In addition to the Sunday Mass broadcast on conventional (over-the-air) television, weekday Masses were also presented Monday to Friday, originating from a chapel in the Archbishop's residence in Brighton.
In 2006 the channel adopted the brand name CatholicTV and the slogan America's Catholic Television Network. By 2007 it had entered into a programming exchange agreement with the Canadian channel Salt + Light Television
. The channel converted its video format to HDTV on October 13, 2010.
CatholicTV relocated its studios and offices to Watertown, Massachusetts
in 2007.
satellite, via AMC 11, and for on-line viewing through Internet streaming video and Sky Angel
IPTV. Select programs are available for download at iTunes
. Video-on-demand service is available on Sky Angel IPTV (nationally) and Verizon FiOS
in most markets. An iPhone app is available.
, catechetical programs, music shows, entertainment/variety shows, youth and children's programming such as WOW: The CatholicTV Challenge
. CatholicTV also broadcasts programming and special coverage from Vatican Television
of live coverage of world Catholic events from the Vatican, including the journeys of Pope Benedict XVI
.
A partial listing of CatholicTV programs:
Catholic
The word catholic comes from the Greek phrase , meaning "on the whole," "according to the whole" or "in general", and is a combination of the Greek words meaning "about" and meaning "whole"...
television network based in Watertown, Massachusetts
Watertown, Massachusetts
The Town of Watertown is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 31,915 at the 2010 census.- History :Archeological evidence suggests that Watertown was inhabited for thousands of years before the arrival of settlers from England...
. It is distributed on cable systems in eight U.S. states and via the internet.
CatholicTV broadcasts programming relevant to Catholic viewers, including live religious services, talk shows, devotional programs, educational programming, entertainment, and children's programs. It also presents coverage of special events at the Vatican and of papal journeys.
The current president of CatholicTV is Father Robert Reed.
History
The first program of the Catholic Television Center of the Archdiocese of BostonRoman Catholic Archdiocese of Boston
The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Boston is an ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Roman Catholic Church in the New England region of the United States. It comprises several counties of the state of Massachusetts...
was produced on the morning of January 1, 1955 when Archbishop Richard J. Cushing celebrated a Pontifical Low Mass
Low Mass
Low Mass is a Tridentine Mass defined officially in the Code of Rubrics included in the 1962 edition of the Roman Missal as Mass in which the priest does not chant the parts that the rubrics assign to him...
in studios at 25 Granby Street near Kenmore Square
Kenmore Square
Kenmore Square is a square in Boston, Massachusetts, United States, consisting of the intersection of several main avenues as well as several other cross streets, and Kenmore Station, an MBTA subway stop. Kenmore Square is close to or abuts Boston University, Fenway Park, and Lansdowne Street, a...
in Boston. From that studio, equipped with three RCA TK31 cameras, the Center produced live and tape-recorded programs, and it purchased time from local commercial television stations to air the Sunday Mass each week. Live programs were transmitted to the broadcasting stations through a leased-line telephone connection. In 1961 the Catholic Television Center's studios became the temporary home of educational broadcaster WGBH-TV
WGBH-TV
WGBH-TV, channel 2, is a non-commercial educational public television station located in Boston, Massachusetts, USA. WGBH-TV is a member station of the Public Broadcasting Service , and produces more than two-thirds of PBS's national prime time television programming...
when that station's studios were destroyed in a fire.
In 1957 the Catholic Television Center acquired a license to operate its own broadcasting station in Boston on channel 38 in the new UHF range of television channels. It adopted the callsign WIHS, and put WIHS-TV into service on October 12, 1964, with transmitting facilities on the Prudential Tower
Prudential Tower
The Prudential Tower, also known as the Prudential Building or, colloquially, The Pru, is a skyscraper in Boston, Massachusetts. The building, a part of the Prudential Center complex, currently stands as the 2nd-tallest building in Boston, behind the John Hancock Tower. The Prudential Tower was...
in Boston. It was the first full-time Catholic television station in the world employing a general entertainment format along with the daily and Sunday Mass. On July 27, 1966, Storer Broadcasting
Storer Broadcasting
Storer Broadcasting, Inc. was an American company which owned several television and radio stations in the northeast United States. It was incorporated in Ohio in 1927, and sold its broadcasting properties in 1983.-1920s—1940s:...
acquired WIHS for $2,276,513.16 and renamed it as WSBK-TV
WSBK-TV
WSBK-TV is a MyNetworkTV television station for eastern Massachusetts and southern New Hampshire that is licensed to Boston. It broadcasts a high definition digital signal on UHF channel 39 from a transmitter along the Needham and Wellesley town line southwest of the MA 9 and I-95 / MA 128...
.
With funds from the station sale, the Catholic Television Center built an Instructional Television Fixed Service
Instructional Television Fixed Service
The Educational Broadband Service was formerly known as the Instructional Television Fixed Service . ITFS was a band of twenty microwave channels available to be licensed by the U.S. Federal Communications Commission to local credit granting educational institutions...
(ITFS) system for distributing programs to Catholic schools, and it continued to produce live broadcasts of the Sunday Mass under the name Boston Catholic Television (BCTV). In 1970 BCTV moved into leased studios at 55 Chapel Street in Newton, Massachusetts
Newton, Massachusetts
Newton is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States bordered to the east by Boston. According to the 2010 U.S. Census, the population of Newton was 85,146, making it the eleventh largest city in the state.-Villages:...
.
In April 1983 BCTV began offering programs to home viewers several hours a day through its own channel carried by cable television
Cable television
Cable television is a system of providing television programs to consumers via radio frequency signals transmitted to televisions through coaxial cables or digital light pulses through fixed optical fibers located on the subscriber's property, much like the over-the-air method used in traditional...
providers, at first in Massachusetts, then elsewhere in New England, and also as far away as Montreal
Montreal
Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...
, Quebec. In addition to the Sunday Mass broadcast on conventional (over-the-air) television, weekday Masses were also presented Monday to Friday, originating from a chapel in the Archbishop's residence in Brighton.
In 2006 the channel adopted the brand name CatholicTV and the slogan America's Catholic Television Network. By 2007 it had entered into a programming exchange agreement with the Canadian channel Salt + Light Television
Salt + Light Television
Salt + Light Television is a Canadian category 2 digital cable specialty channel. Launched in July 2003, it is the first Catholic national television channel in Canada...
. The channel converted its video format to HDTV on October 13, 2010.
CatholicTV relocated its studios and offices to Watertown, Massachusetts
Watertown, Massachusetts
The Town of Watertown is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 31,915 at the 2010 census.- History :Archeological evidence suggests that Watertown was inhabited for thousands of years before the arrival of settlers from England...
in 2007.
Distribution
CatholicTV's programming service is seen on cable systems in Massachusetts, Rhode Island, New Hampshire, Maine, Michigan, Ohio, Tennessee, California, Louisiana and the U.S. Virgin Islands. It is also available by digital C bandC band
The C band is a name given to certain portions of the electromagnetic spectrum, including wavelengths of microwaves that are used for long-distance radio telecommunications. The IEEE C-band - and its slight variations - contains frequency ranges that are used for many satellite communications...
satellite, via AMC 11, and for on-line viewing through Internet streaming video and Sky Angel
Sky Angel
Sky Angel U.S. LLC. describes itself as a "Christian-owned and operated multi-channel television service specializing in Christian and family-friendly TV and radio programming." It is one of the first niche-oriented television providers in the United States....
IPTV. Select programs are available for download at iTunes
ITunes
iTunes is a media player computer program, used for playing, downloading, and organizing digital music and video files on desktop computers. It can also manage contents on iPod, iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad....
. Video-on-demand service is available on Sky Angel IPTV (nationally) and Verizon FiOS
Verizon FiOS
Verizon FiOS is a bundled Internet access, telephone, and television service which operates over a fiber-optic communications network. It is offered in some areas of the United States by Verizon Communications. Verizon was one of the first major U.S...
in most markets. An iPhone app is available.
Programming
CatholicTV presents Sunday Mass live from the University of Notre Dame and the weekday and Saturday Mass from its own chapel, as well as a wide variety of Catholic educational and inspirational programming. This includes live talk shows such as "This is the Day", and devotional programming such as the Holy Rosary, the Divine Mercy Chaplet and BenedictionBenediction
A benediction is a short invocation for divine help, blessing and guidance, usually at the end of worship service.-Judaism:...
, catechetical programs, music shows, entertainment/variety shows, youth and children's programming such as WOW: The CatholicTV Challenge
WOW: The CatholicTV Challenge
WOW: The CatholicTV Challenge is a game show that has aired on CatholicTV, plus other channels in the United States and Canada, since September 6, 2004...
. CatholicTV also broadcasts programming and special coverage from Vatican Television
Vatican Television Center
The Vatican Television Center is the national broadcaster of the state of Vatican City. Vatican Central Television was first aired in 1983.-History of the channel :...
of live coverage of world Catholic events from the Vatican, including the journeys of Pope Benedict XVI
Pope Benedict XVI
Benedict XVI is the 265th and current Pope, by virtue of his office of Bishop of Rome, the Sovereign of the Vatican City State and the leader of the Catholic Church as well as the other 22 sui iuris Eastern Catholic Churches in full communion with the Holy See...
.
A partial listing of CatholicTV programs:
Religious services and devotional prayers
- Daily Mass
- Sunday Mass Live from the University of Notre Dame
- Divine Mercy Chaplet
- English Novena
- The Rosary
Spanish-language programs
- AHTV (Apostolado Hispano Television)
- Buena Nueva
- Spanish Novena
- Sunday Mass from San Fernando Cathedral in San Antonio (bilingual)
Programs for youth
- Bugtime AdventuresBugtime AdventuresBugtime Adventures is an American children's animated series that began airing in 2006. Episodes air on Christian TV stations like TBN. The entire series is also available on DVD.-Synopsis:...
- CatholicTV Kids’ Club
- Sacred Hearts Kids Club
- Real Faith TV (teen catechism, from the Diocese of Trenton)
- WOW: The CatholicTV ChallengeWOW: The CatholicTV ChallengeWOW: The CatholicTV Challenge is a game show that has aired on CatholicTV, plus other channels in the United States and Canada, since September 6, 2004...
Music
- The Commons (contemporary Catholic music)
- The Joy of Music (organist Diane BishDiane BishDiane Joyce Bish, born on May 25, 1941, in Kansas, is an organist and composer as well as executive producer of the Joy of Music television series. As a concert organist, she performs frequently at recitals throughout North America and Europe....
) - Revolution (Christian music videos and artist interviews)
History and biography
- Catholic Saints and Lay People (biography)
- Church History (Prof. Ann Orlando)
- The Little Flower
- 100 Years of Father Peyton
- Roots of Faith (history of the Church in Louisiana)
Scripture
- Experiencing Paul, Experiencing God (John Clabeaux on the Pauline epistles)
- The Gospel of Matthew (Prof. John Clabeaux)
- Looking at the Hebrew Scriptures with Rabbi Samuel Chiel
Other programs
- BLINK (magazine show)
- Body Matters (medical ethics and life issues)
- The Call (vocations to religious life and the priesthood)
- Catholic Corner (from Princeton, New Jersey)
- Catholic Destinations (travel)
- Catholic Focus (current affairs)
- Catholics Matter (from Phoenix, Arizona)
- CatholicTV Presents (specials)
- The Choices We Face (Catholic evangelist Ralph Martin)
- A Closer Walk (Fr. Jeff Bayhi)
- Conversations with Cardinal Seán
- Day of Discovery (RBC Ministries)
- Defenders of the Faith (Steve Ray)
- Discernment of Spirits (Fr. Timothy Gallagher, on IgnatianIgnatius of LoyolaIgnatius of Loyola was a Spanish knight from a Basque noble family, hermit, priest since 1537, and theologian, who founded the Society of Jesus and was its first Superior General. Ignatius emerged as a religious leader during the Counter-Reformation...
spiritual teaching) - Facing Life Head-On (life issues)
- Faith Cafe (evangelization)
- Feed My Sheep
- Focus (Abp. Philip HannanPhilip HannanPhilip Matthew Hannan was an American Roman Catholic Archbishop. Archbishop Hannan, in his episcopal career, served as Auxiliary Bishop of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Washington and later as the Eleventh Archbishop of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New Orleans from September 29, 1965 to...
) - From the Chair (conversations with Catholic bishops)
- The Future Depends on Love
- Going My Way (talk show)
- Good News with Monsignor Jim Vlaun
- Hope on Campus (campus ministry with the Brotherhood of HopeBrotherhood of Hope- History :Founded in 1980 by Fr. Phillip Merdinger a priest of the Archdiocese of Newark, New Jersey. Recognized as a Public Association of Christ's Faithful in 1998.- Lifestyle :...
) - House+Home (family life)
- Images of Jesus
- In & Out (the work of Catholic missionaries)
- Issues and Faith (religious news, from the Archdiocese of New Orleans)
- Listen Up (news and current events)
- Matters of Faith (from the Diocese of Buffalo)
- Mothering Full of Grace
- Nineveh’s Crossing
- Our Daily Bread with Father Paul Seil
- parishFAMILY (parish life and ministry)
- Real to Reel (magazine program, from the Diocese of Springfield, Massachusetts)
- Sacred Time (worship and liturgy)
- School of Faith (Frank DiVito on the basics of Christian faith)
- 7th Street Theatre (Drama meets Christianity)
- SpotLight (movie reviews)
- This is the Day (talk show)
- Travel and Traditions (Burt Wolf)
- The Way of Beauty (artist David Clayton)
- We’ve Got to Talk (Fr. Daniel O'Connell)
- Where God Weeps (Aid to the Church in NeedAid to the Church in Need' describes itself as "an international pastoral aid organization of the Catholic Church, which yearly offers financial support to more than 5,000 projects worldwide...
) - Witness with Father Thomas RosicaThomas RosicaRev. Thomas Rosica, C.S.B. is a Canadian Catholic priest and Basilian Father. He is the Chief Executive Officer of Canada's Catholic Salt + Light Television network, and frequent national newspaper columnist....
- Woman at the Heart of the Church
- Women in God’s Spirit (WINGS)
- Word For Word
- The Word in the World with Father Michael Manning
- Word on Fire with Father Robert Barron
See also
- Roman Catholic Archdiocese of BostonRoman Catholic Archdiocese of BostonThe Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Boston is an ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Roman Catholic Church in the New England region of the United States. It comprises several counties of the state of Massachusetts...
- International religious television broadcastersInternational religious television broadcastersInternational religious television broadcasters broadcast from a host nation to another nation or nations. Such operations are mostly operated from the United States of America in conjunction with a religious organization having links to many churches who produce their own programs...
- WOW: The CatholicTV ChallengeWOW: The CatholicTV ChallengeWOW: The CatholicTV Challenge is a game show that has aired on CatholicTV, plus other channels in the United States and Canada, since September 6, 2004...