KETC
Encyclopedia
KETC is the Public Broadcasting Service
(PBS) member Public television station in St. Louis, Missouri
. Owned by St. Louis Regional Public Media, the call letters KETC represent the St. Louis Educational Television Comission, the former name of the organization responsible for bringing public television to St. Louis.
The station broadcasts in stereo and broadcasts a secondary audio program (SAP
) channel, used for descriptive video service (DVS
). The station's digital signal operates on UHF channel 39, using the station's former analog VHF channel 9 as its virtual channel
via PSIP.
Some of the programs produced by KETC for nationwide consumption include The Letter People
, an instructional program about reading, which was seen on many PBS and educational television stations in mid-1970s, A Time for Champions
an hour long documentary chronicling the St. Louis University soccer dynasty of the 1960s and 1970s, and Homeland and upcoming limited series examining the topic of immigration in the United States.
KETC's digital signal on UHF 39 is multiplexed:>
Channel
Video
Aspect
Programming
9.1
720p
16:9
Main KETC programming / PBS
9.2
480i
4:3
Nine Kids
9.3
Nine World
9.4
Nine Create
KETC began broadcasting on September 20, 1954. Its first general manager was the well-known Shelby Storck
, who also emceed the station's first evening of broadcasting. It was the first community-licensed educational station in the United States. It originally broadcast from the Baer Memorial Building on the campus of Washington University in St. Louis
, the first facility specifically built for educational television. In 1998, it moved to the Dale Brown Communications Center in the Grand Center district.
During the 2004 elections, KETC partnered with area NBC
affiliate KSDK
, to provide St. Louisans with the comprehensive and up-to-date local and national election results. This partnership was first utilized to simulcast a gubernatorial debate between Missouri Secretary of State Matt Blunt
(R) and State Auditor Claire McCaskill
(D). On election night, KSDK aired NBC's primetime election coverage with Tom Brokaw
and Tim Russert
as well as segments of local results. Meanwhile, KETC ran three hours of local election results hosted by KSDK anchors Mike Bush
and Karen Foss
. Viewers could also watch election results online on the stations' Websites.
The successful KETC/KSDK partnership was used again in September 2005 when, along with radio partners KYKY
(y98, 98.1FM) and KEZK
(Soft Rock, 102.5FM), a telethon for Hurricane Katrina
relief was simulcast that raised more than $5 million. The telethon featured an appearance by John Goodman
, a native of Affton, Missouri
who now calls New Orleans home and whose family was actually missing for a time during the storm's peak. Sheryl Crow
, a native of Kennett, Missouri
, and her fiancé Lance Armstrong
urged viewers to call when they were interviewed by phone from the region.
After being known for most of its history as "KETC 9," the station rebranded itself as "The Nine Network" in 2010.
KETC has acquired a certain infamy among viewers in St. Louis for preempting a large number of PBS programs to air library shows or less controversial programs, such as WQED
's doo-wop specials, on a regular basis, preferring to air the network shows at late hours. However, KETC has been known to cave in to pressure regarding this: when St. Louis Post-Dispatch
columnist Eric Mink wrote an editorial about how they would show a Stars on Ice
show over a September 11, 2001 documentary, KETC announced the next day that they would change and air the scheduled network program.
In May 2008, the E!
cable network
contracted with KETC to film two episodes of weekly pop culture series The Soup
at their studios to accommodate host Joel McHale
's filming of The Informant! in the St. Louis area http://www.eonline.com/uberblog/the_soup/b136364_make_up_smell_coiffure.html.
The station has recently been partnered with the Saint Louis Beacon, an online-only, non-profit news publication, to form the Public Insight Network, a citizen journalism
initiative created in conjunction with American Public Media
. As of October 13, 2010
Public Broadcasting Service
The Public Broadcasting Service is an American non-profit public broadcasting television network with 354 member TV stations in the United States which hold collective ownership. Its headquarters is in Arlington, Virginia....
(PBS) member Public television station in St. Louis, Missouri
St. Louis, Missouri
St. Louis is an independent city on the eastern border of Missouri, United States. With a population of 319,294, it was the 58th-largest U.S. city at the 2010 U.S. Census. The Greater St...
. Owned by St. Louis Regional Public Media, the call letters KETC represent the St. Louis Educational Television Comission, the former name of the organization responsible for bringing public television to St. Louis.
The station broadcasts in stereo and broadcasts a secondary audio program (SAP
Second audio program
Second audio program , also known as secondary audio programming, is an auxiliary audio channel for analog television that can be broadcast or transmitted both over the air and by cable TV.-Usage:...
) channel, used for descriptive video service (DVS
Descriptive Video Service
The Descriptive Video Service is a major United States producer of video description, which makes visual media, such as television programs, feature films, and home videos, more accessible to people who are blind or otherwise visually impaired...
). The station's digital signal operates on UHF channel 39, using the station's former analog VHF channel 9 as its virtual channel
Virtual channel
In telecommunications, a logical channel number , also known as virtual channel, is a channel designation which differs from that of the actual radio channel on which the signal travels....
via PSIP.
Some of the programs produced by KETC for nationwide consumption include The Letter People
The Letter People
The Letter People is the name of a children's literacy program and the television series based on that program. The term also refers to the various characters depicted in the program and television show.-Original program:...
, an instructional program about reading, which was seen on many PBS and educational television stations in mid-1970s, A Time for Champions
A Time for Champions
A Time for Champions is a 2009 documentary film produced by Bud Greenspan's Cappy Productions and St. Louis PBS affiliate KETC. It chronicles the St. Louis University soccer dynasty of the 1960s and 1970s. It includes interviews with 1950 US World Cup team members Frank Borghi, Harry Keough, and...
an hour long documentary chronicling the St. Louis University soccer dynasty of the 1960s and 1970s, and Homeland and upcoming limited series examining the topic of immigration in the United States.
Digital television
Aspect ratio
The aspect ratio of a shape is the ratio of its longer dimension to its shorter dimension. It may be applied to two characteristic dimensions of a three-dimensional shape, such as the ratio of the longest and shortest axis, or for symmetrical objects that are described by just two measurements,...
720p
720p is the shorthand name for 1280x720, a category of High-definition television video modes having a resolution of 1080 or 720p and a progressive scan...
16:9
16:9 is an aspect ratio with a width of 16 units and height of 9. Since 2009, it has become the most common aspect ratio for sold televisions and computer monitors and is also the international standard format of HDTV, Full HD, non-HD digital television and analog widescreen television ...
480i
480i is the shorthand name for a video mode, namely the US NTSC television system or digital television systems with the same characteristics. The i, which is sometimes uppercase, stands for interlaced, the 480 for a vertical frame resolution of 480 lines containing picture information; while NTSC...
PBS Kids
PBS Kids is the brand for children's programming aired by the Public Broadcasting Service in the United States founded in 1993. As with all PBS programming, PBS Kids programming is non-commercial. It is aimed at children ages 2 to 10...
PBS World
PBS World is a 24-hour United States over-the-air digital subchannel showing public TV non-fiction, science, nature, news, public affairs and documentaries...
History
Shelby Storck
Shelby William Storck was an American newscaster, actor, writer, journalist, public relations specialist, and motion picture and television producer-director. He was a radio actor on The Air Adventures of Jimmie Allen and other programs, and appeared in the feature films The Delinquents and The...
, who also emceed the station's first evening of broadcasting. It was the first community-licensed educational station in the United States. It originally broadcast from the Baer Memorial Building on the campus of Washington University in St. Louis
Washington University in St. Louis
Washington University in St. Louis is a private research university located in suburban St. Louis, Missouri. Founded in 1853, and named for George Washington, the university has students and faculty from all fifty U.S. states and more than 110 nations...
, the first facility specifically built for educational television. In 1998, it moved to the Dale Brown Communications Center in the Grand Center district.
During the 2004 elections, KETC partnered with area NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
affiliate KSDK
KSDK
KSDK, Channel 5, is the NBC-affiliated television station in St. Louis, Missouri. KSDK is owned and operated by Gannett Company, and the station's transmitter is located in Marlborough, Missouri. The station broadcasts a digital signal on UHF channel 35, using its former analog channel assignment...
, to provide St. Louisans with the comprehensive and up-to-date local and national election results. This partnership was first utilized to simulcast a gubernatorial debate between Missouri Secretary of State Matt Blunt
Matt Blunt
Matthew Roy Blunt served as the 54th Governor of Missouri from 2005 to 2009. Before his election as governor, Blunt served ten years in the United States Navy, was elected to serve in the Missouri General Assembly in 1998 and as Missouri's Secretary of State in 2000.A Republican, Blunt was elected...
(R) and State Auditor Claire McCaskill
Claire McCaskill
Claire Conner McCaskill is the senior United States Senator from Missouri and a member of the Democratic Party. She defeated Republican incumbent Jim Talent in the 2006 U.S. Senate election, by a margin of 49.6% to 47.3%. She is the first woman elected to the U.S. Senate from Missouri in her own...
(D). On election night, KSDK aired NBC's primetime election coverage with Tom Brokaw
Tom Brokaw
Thomas John "Tom" Brokaw is an American television journalist and author best known as the anchor and managing editor of NBC Nightly News from 1982 to 2004. He is the author of The Greatest Generation and other books and the recipient of numerous awards and honors...
and Tim Russert
Tim Russert
Timothy John "Tim" Russert was an American television journalist and lawyer who appeared for more than 16 years as the longest-serving moderator of NBC's Meet the Press. He was a senior vice president at NBC News, Washington bureau chief and also hosted the eponymous CNBC/MSNBC weekend interview...
as well as segments of local results. Meanwhile, KETC ran three hours of local election results hosted by KSDK anchors Mike Bush
Mike Bush
Mike Bush is a veteran, award winning news anchor/reporter for KSDK-TV in St. Louis, Missouri.- Biography :At the time of this writing, he is the anchor for Newschannel5's 5, and 10pm newscasts...
and Karen Foss
Karen Foss
Karen Foss, born Karen Colleen Graham in Kansas City, Missouri on February 2, 1944, was a television anchorwoman on KSDK in St. Louis, Missouri from 1979 until December 28, 2006. Foss won six Emmys, two for best anchor, named media personality of the year, and acquired the highest “Q” rating as the...
. Viewers could also watch election results online on the stations' Websites.
The successful KETC/KSDK partnership was used again in September 2005 when, along with radio partners KYKY
KYKY
KYKY, originally known as KSTL-FM, KRCH and later, KSLQ-FM prior to October 1, 1982, is an FM radio station serving the St. Louis, Missouri radio market. The current format of the station is Adult Top 40. It operates at 98.1 MHz. KYKY is owned by CBS Radio, which also owns soft rock station...
(y98, 98.1FM) and KEZK
KEZK
KEZK-FM is a radio station broadcasting a Adult Contemporary format. Licensed to St. Louis, Missouri, USA, the station serves the St. Louis and southwestern Illinois areas. The station is currently owned by CBS Radio. and features programing from Westwood One...
(Soft Rock, 102.5FM), a telethon for Hurricane Katrina
Hurricane Katrina
Hurricane Katrina of the 2005 Atlantic hurricane season was a powerful Atlantic hurricane. It is the costliest natural disaster, as well as one of the five deadliest hurricanes, in the history of the United States. Among recorded Atlantic hurricanes, it was the sixth strongest overall...
relief was simulcast that raised more than $5 million. The telethon featured an appearance by John Goodman
John Goodman
John Stephen Goodman is an American film, television, and stage actor. He is best known for his role as Dan Conner on the television series Roseanne for which he won a Best Actor Golden Globe Award in 1993, and for appearances in the films of the Coen brothers, with prominent roles in Raising...
, a native of Affton, Missouri
Affton, Missouri
Affton is an unincorporated inner-ring suburb of St. Louis, located in St. Louis County, Missouri, USA. As of the 2010 census, the community had a total population of 20,307.-Geography:...
who now calls New Orleans home and whose family was actually missing for a time during the storm's peak. Sheryl Crow
Sheryl Crow
Sheryl Suzanne Crow is an American singer-songwriter, record producer, musician, and actress. Her music incorporates elements of rock, folk, hip hop, country and pop...
, a native of Kennett, Missouri
Kennett, Missouri
Kennett is a city in Dunklin County, Missouri, United States. The population was 11,260 at the 2000 census, but a 2008 estimate indicates a 4.9% decrease in population to 10,707. Kennett is the county seat of Dunklin County...
, and her fiancé Lance Armstrong
Lance Armstrong
Lance Edward Armstrong is an American former professional road racing cyclist who won the Tour de France a record seven consecutive times, after having survived testicular cancer. He is also the founder and chairman of the Lance Armstrong Foundation for cancer research and support...
urged viewers to call when they were interviewed by phone from the region.
After being known for most of its history as "KETC 9," the station rebranded itself as "The Nine Network" in 2010.
KETC has acquired a certain infamy among viewers in St. Louis for preempting a large number of PBS programs to air library shows or less controversial programs, such as WQED
WQED (TV)
WQED is a Public Broadcasting Service member Public television station based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Established April 1, 1954, it was the first community-sponsored television station in the United States as well as the fifth public TV station...
's doo-wop specials, on a regular basis, preferring to air the network shows at late hours. However, KETC has been known to cave in to pressure regarding this: when St. Louis Post-Dispatch
St. Louis Post-Dispatch
The St. Louis Post-Dispatch is the major city-wide newspaper in St. Louis, Missouri. Although written to serve Greater St. Louis, the Post-Dispatch is one of the largest newspapers in the Midwestern United States, and is available and read as far west as Kansas City, Missouri, as far south as...
columnist Eric Mink wrote an editorial about how they would show a Stars on Ice
Stars on Ice
Stars on Ice is a touring figure skating show produced by IMG. It was originally conceived in 1986 as a vehicle for IMG client Scott Hamilton, who had been released from his contract with Ice Capades, after being told that male skaters do not sell tickets...
show over a September 11, 2001 documentary, KETC announced the next day that they would change and air the scheduled network program.
In May 2008, the E!
E!
E! Entertainment Television is an American basic cable and satellite television network, owned by NBCUniversal. It features entertainment-related programming, reality television, feature films and occasionally series and specials unrelated to the entertainment industry.E! has an audience reach of...
cable network
Cable network
A cable channel is a television channel available via cable television. Such channels are usually also available via satellite television, including direct broadcast satellite providers such as DirecTV, Dish Network and BSkyB...
contracted with KETC to film two episodes of weekly pop culture series The Soup
The Soup
The Soup is an E! Entertainment Television weekly series; it is a revamped version of Talk Soup that focuses on recaps of various pop culture and television show moments of the week...
at their studios to accommodate host Joel McHale
Joel McHale
Joel Edward McHale is an American stand-up comedian, actor, writer, television producer, television personality, and voice artist. He is best known for hosting The Soup and for his role as Jeff Winger on Community....
's filming of The Informant! in the St. Louis area http://www.eonline.com/uberblog/the_soup/b136364_make_up_smell_coiffure.html.
The station has recently been partnered with the Saint Louis Beacon, an online-only, non-profit news publication, to form the Public Insight Network, a citizen journalism
Citizen journalism
Citizen journalism is the concept of members of the public "playing an active role in the process of collecting, reporting, analyzing and disseminating news and information," according to the seminal 2003 report We Media: How Audiences are Shaping the Future of News and Information...
initiative created in conjunction with American Public Media
American Public Media
American Public Media is the second largest producer of public radio programs in the United States of America after NPR. Its non-profit parent, American Public Media Group, also owns and operates radio stations in Minnesota, California, and Florida. Its station brands are Minnesota Public Radio,...
. As of October 13, 2010