KLCS
Encyclopedia
KLCS, digital channel 41 and virtual channel 58 via PSIP, is a member station of the Public Broadcasting Service
, and is owned by the Los Angeles Unified School District
. KLCS is known on the air as "The Education Station for all Generations" and is based in downtown Los Angeles. It is the fifth most-watched Public television station in the country and one of three PBS stations serving the Los Angeles television market, alongside KVCR-TV
in San Bernardino
and KOCE in nearby Orange County
. KCET
(also based in Los Angeles), the former primary PBS station for the Los Angeles market, voluntarily severed ties with PBS effective January 1, 2011. PBS has announced that KOCE will then serve as the primary PBS television station in the Los Angeles area.
In 1963, the LAUSD began the application process to acquire a license from the Federal Communications Commission and launch its own TV station, with UHF channel 58 its designated location on the dial. The district also applied for in 1967 and later received state and federal grants to build and equip a broadcast facility for the new station. In the summer of that year, advocates for the LAUSD testified before the FCC on the benefits of an instructional TV station for students, staff and the local community. Five years later, on March 3, 1972, the FCC granted the district a license to broadcast on channel 58, and the new station began operations on November 5, 1973 as KLCS, the call letters an apparent acronym for Los Angeles City Schools.
system. It is one of five television stations licensed in the City of Los Angeles that continue to utilize their original call signs, the other stations being KTLA
, KTTV
, KCET
, and KMEX.
Since 1984, KLCS has produced Homework Hotline, a weekday after-school call-in program where students receive homework help from LAUSD teachers and other faculty who appear on the show. In its first year Homework Hotline was featured in a Time magazine article titled "Education: Help from the Hotline", and over the years it has won many Los Angeles Area Emmy Awards, including two in 1986 for Best Instructional Program and Creative Technical Crafts.
Unlike most public television stations, KLCS neither holds an annual pledge drive
nor simulcasts its programming in High Definition alongside a Standard Definition signal. However, its website lists special premiums and discounts given to subscribers who support the station at various levels, including recognition on air and in KLCS' monthly viewer magazine.
Instead of broadcasting a 24-hour program schedule, KLCS still signs off at the end of each broadcast day, ceasing programming on some or all of its four subchannels
at either 1:00 or 2:00 a.m. and resuming its schedule the next morning at either 5:00 or 6:00 a.m. One subchannel may continue overnight programming, such as for PBS Create or regular meetings of the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors, while the others have individually signed off. In lieu of a test pattern
, a overnight-themed title card is aired reminding viewers to tune in the next morning when programming resumes. This makes KLCS one of the largest-market TV stations in the United States to still have traditional sign-on and sign-off procedures.
* The Annenberg Channel
originally aired on channel 58.4 until October 1, 2008, when that service was discontinued.
. Its short farewell video was a montage of the station's on-air logos over the years, set to the song It's The End of the World as We Know It (And I Feel Fine) by the American alternative rock band R.E.M.
, then the signal was shut off in a flash cut. This song was also used by other stations to commemorate the transition to digital broadcasting, including Los Angeles station KTLA
.
The station remained on its pre-transition channel 41, using PSIP to display its virtual channel
as 58.
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....
, and is owned by the Los Angeles Unified School District
Los Angeles Unified School District
Los Angeles Unified School District is the largest public school system in California. It is the 2nd largest public school district in the United States. Only the New York City Department of Education has a larger student population...
. KLCS is known on the air as "The Education Station for all Generations" and is based in downtown Los Angeles. It is the fifth most-watched Public television station in the country and one of three PBS stations serving the Los Angeles television market, alongside KVCR-TV
KVCR-TV
KVCR-DT digital channel 26 is a member of the Public Broadcasting Service, and is owned by the San Bernardino Community College District. The District also operates sister station KVCR-FM. KVCR-TV began broadcasting on September 11, 1962, making it the first successful UHF television channel for...
in San Bernardino
San Bernardino, California
San Bernardino is a city located in the Riverside-San Bernardino metropolitan area , and serves as the county seat of San Bernardino County, California, United States...
and KOCE in nearby Orange County
Orange County, California
Orange County is a county in the U.S. state of California. Its county seat is Santa Ana. As of the 2010 census, its population was 3,010,232, up from 2,846,293 at the 2000 census, making it the third most populous county in California, behind Los Angeles County and San Diego County...
. KCET
KCET
KCET, channel 28, is an independent, non-commercial public television station licensed to Los Angeles, California, USA. KCET's studio is located on West Sunset Boulevard in Hollywood, and its transmitter is atop Mount Wilson. Al Jerome is the current CEO and President, serving since 1996.KCET was...
(also based in Los Angeles), the former primary PBS station for the Los Angeles market, voluntarily severed ties with PBS effective January 1, 2011. PBS has announced that KOCE will then serve as the primary PBS television station in the Los Angeles area.
Pre-KLCS Years, 1957-1973
In October 1957, the Los Angeles Unified School District began producing televised instructional programs to be viewed in school by its students. By the 1966-67 school year, it was producing over 700 TV programs per year for broadcast on various local stations in the Los Angeles area and leasing airtime to broadcast 40 hours of instructional programming Monday through Friday each week. Over the years the district earned the support of teachers and administrators who were impressed with the effectiveness of the programs on the learning experience in the classroom.In 1963, the LAUSD began the application process to acquire a license from the Federal Communications Commission and launch its own TV station, with UHF channel 58 its designated location on the dial. The district also applied for in 1967 and later received state and federal grants to build and equip a broadcast facility for the new station. In the summer of that year, advocates for the LAUSD testified before the FCC on the benefits of an instructional TV station for students, staff and the local community. Five years later, on March 3, 1972, the FCC granted the district a license to broadcast on channel 58, and the new station began operations on November 5, 1973 as KLCS, the call letters an apparent acronym for Los Angeles City Schools.
KLCS Today
KLCS is one of eight U.S. television stations licensed to a local school system, and today produces more than 700 hours of educational, informational, sports, and entertainment programming a year, including live telecourse instruction from the California State UniversityCalifornia State University
The California State University is a public university system in the state of California. It is one of three public higher education systems in the state, the other two being the University of California system and the California Community College system. It is incorporated as The Trustees of the...
system. It is one of five television stations licensed in the City of Los Angeles that continue to utilize their original call signs, the other stations being KTLA
KTLA
KTLA, virtual channel 5, is a television station in Los Angeles, California, USA. Owned by the Tribune Company, KTLA is an affiliate of the CW Television Network. KTLA's studios are on Sunset Boulevard in Hollywood, and its transmitter is located atop Mount Wilson...
, KTTV
KTTV
KTTV, channel 11, is an owned-and-operated television station of the News Corporation-owned Fox Broadcasting Company, located in Los Angeles, California. Serving the vast Los Angeles metropolitan area, KTTV is a sister station to KCOP , Los Angeles' MyNetworkTV station...
, KCET
KCET
KCET, channel 28, is an independent, non-commercial public television station licensed to Los Angeles, California, USA. KCET's studio is located on West Sunset Boulevard in Hollywood, and its transmitter is atop Mount Wilson. Al Jerome is the current CEO and President, serving since 1996.KCET was...
, and KMEX.
Since 1984, KLCS has produced Homework Hotline, a weekday after-school call-in program where students receive homework help from LAUSD teachers and other faculty who appear on the show. In its first year Homework Hotline was featured in a Time magazine article titled "Education: Help from the Hotline", and over the years it has won many Los Angeles Area Emmy Awards, including two in 1986 for Best Instructional Program and Creative Technical Crafts.
Unlike most public television stations, KLCS neither holds an annual pledge drive
Fundraiser
A fundraiser is an event or campaign whose primary purpose is to raise money for a cause. See also: fundraising. A fundraiser can also be an individual or company whose primary job is to raise money for a specific charity or non-profit organization...
nor simulcasts its programming in High Definition alongside a Standard Definition signal. However, its website lists special premiums and discounts given to subscribers who support the station at various levels, including recognition on air and in KLCS' monthly viewer magazine.
Instead of broadcasting a 24-hour program schedule, KLCS still signs off at the end of each broadcast day, ceasing programming on some or all of its four subchannels
Digital subchannel
In broadcasting, digital subchannels are a means to transmit more than one independent program at the same time from the same digital radio or digital television station on the same radio frequency channel. This is done by using data compression techniques to reduce the size of each individual...
at either 1:00 or 2:00 a.m. and resuming its schedule the next morning at either 5:00 or 6:00 a.m. One subchannel may continue overnight programming, such as for PBS Create or regular meetings of the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors, while the others have individually signed off. In lieu of a test pattern
Test Pattern
Test Pattern may refer to:* Test Pattern , a Canadian game show* Test Pattern , an album by Sonia Dada* Test pattern or test card, a television test signal...
, a overnight-themed title card is aired reminding viewers to tune in the next morning when programming resumes. This makes KLCS one of the largest-market TV stations in the United States to still have traditional sign-on and sign-off procedures.
Digital television
KLCS' digital signal is multiplexed:| Channels | Programming |
|---|---|
| 58.1 | Main KLCS programming / PBS |
| 58.2 | PBS Kids 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... |
| 58.3 | Create |
| 58.4 | Telecourses* |
Annenberg Foundation
The Annenberg Foundation is a private foundation that provides funding and support to non-profit organizations in the United States and around the world...
originally aired on channel 58.4 until October 1, 2008, when that service was discontinued.
Analog-to-digital conversion
KLCS shut down its analog signal on June 12, 2009 at 3:00 PM, as part of the DTV transition in the United StatesDTV transition in the United States
The DTV transition in the United States was the switchover from analog to exclusively digital broadcasting of free over-the-air television programming...
. Its short farewell video was a montage of the station's on-air logos over the years, set to the song It's The End of the World as We Know It (And I Feel Fine) by the American alternative rock band R.E.M.
R.E.M.
R.E.M. was an American rock band formed in Athens, Georgia, in 1980 by singer Michael Stipe, guitarist Peter Buck, bassist Mike Mills and drummer Bill Berry. One of the first popular alternative rock bands, R.E.M. gained early attention due to Buck's ringing, arpeggiated guitar style and Stipe's...
, then the signal was shut off in a flash cut. This song was also used by other stations to commemorate the transition to digital broadcasting, including Los Angeles station KTLA
KTLA
KTLA, virtual channel 5, is a television station in Los Angeles, California, USA. Owned by the Tribune Company, KTLA is an affiliate of the CW Television Network. KTLA's studios are on Sunset Boulevard in Hollywood, and its transmitter is located atop Mount Wilson...
.
The station remained on its pre-transition channel 41, using PSIP to display 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....
as 58.