KUSM
Encyclopedia
Montana PBS is the Public Broadcasting Service
(PBS) member Public television state network
for Montana
. It is a joint venture between Montana State University
(MSU) and the University of Montana-Missoula (UM). The network is headquartered in the Visual Communications Building on the MSU campus in Bozeman, Montana
, with a separate studio on the UM campus in Missoula.
The network comprises four stations — flagship KUSM-TV channel 9 in Bozeman; full-power satellites KUFM-TV, channel 11 in Missoula, KBGS-TV, channel 16 in Billings
, KUGF, channel 21 in Great Falls
, and a network of 60 low-powered repeaters in Montana. KUSM is licensed to MSU, KUFM to UM, and KBGS and KUGF to The Board of Regents of the Montana University System.
became the last state east of the Mississippi River
with a PBS station within its borders. The transmitter was donated by Montana broadcasting pioneer Joe Sample. MSU didn't have enough funding at the time to support a public television station, and the Gallatin Valley didn't have nearly enough people at the time for viewer-supported public television. Station engineers switched to and from the signal of KUED
in Salt Lake City for most PBS programming until 1987. Prior to 1984, Montana received PBS programming from KSPS-TV
in Spokane
; Prairie Public Television
in North Dakota
; KRMA-TV in Denver; and KUED. KSPS and Rocky Mountain PBS
(formerly KRMA) still operate translators in Montana. Additionally, some commercial stations in Montana, including KTVQ
in Billings and KFBB in Great Falls
, carried Sesame Street
and may have carried other PBS programs besides.
Also in 1987, KUSM was added to TCI's cable systems in central and eastern Montana, completely replacing KUED in that part of the state by 1990.
UM had won a construction permit for KUFM-TV in 1992, but had trouble getting on the air until 1996. UM and MSU joined forces to form Montana PBS, which broadcast for the first time as a network on New Year's Day
1997.
Montana PBS's third full-powered station, KBGS-TV in Billings, signed on in late-2009. This UHF, station, however, is licensed to broadcast at 29.8 kW, lower than Montana PBS's repeater for Billings, K20HB channel 20, which broadcasts at 58 kW. The fourth full-powered satellite, KUGF, digital channel 21, signed on in fall 2010.
The network has expanded rather slowly, relying mainly on cable coverage for its viewership. This didn't pose as much of a problem as it may seem at first glance, as cable and satellite are all but essential for acceptable television in most of Montana.
Some of the Montana-made programming is also available on-line.
Notes:
Montana State University holds licenses for:
Montana State University has also applied for translators on channels 16 (5 watts, Kalispell
) and 51 (150 kW, Great Falls
).
on AMC 21 (125°W) Ku-band satellite television
.
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 state network
State network
A State Network in the United States broadcasting industry is a term which refers to a miniature television network serving an entire state or multiple states...
for Montana
Montana
Montana is a state in the Western United States. The western third of Montana contains numerous mountain ranges. Smaller, "island ranges" are found in the central third of the state, for a total of 77 named ranges of the Rocky Mountains. This geographical fact is reflected in the state's name,...
. It is a joint venture between Montana State University
Montana State University - Bozeman
Montana State University – Bozeman is a public university located in Bozeman, Montana. It is the state's land-grant university and primary campus in the Montana State University System, which is part of the Montana University System...
(MSU) and the University of Montana-Missoula (UM). The network is headquartered in the Visual Communications Building on the MSU campus in Bozeman, Montana
Bozeman, Montana
Bozeman is a city in and the county seat of Gallatin County, Montana, United States, in the southwestern part of the state. The 2010 census put Bozeman's population at 37,280 making it the fourth largest city in the state. It is the principal city of the Bozeman micropolitan area, which consists...
, with a separate studio on the UM campus in Missoula.
The network comprises four stations — flagship KUSM-TV channel 9 in Bozeman; full-power satellites KUFM-TV, channel 11 in Missoula, KBGS-TV, channel 16 in Billings
Billings, Montana
Billings is the largest city in the U.S. state of Montana, and is the principal city of the Billings Metropolitan Area, the largest metropolitan area in over...
, KUGF, channel 21 in Great Falls
Great Falls, Montana
Great Falls is a city in and the county seat of Cascade County, Montana, United States. The population was 58,505 at the 2010 census. It is the principal city of the Great Falls, Montana Metropolitan Statistical Area, which encompasses all of Cascade County...
, and a network of 60 low-powered repeaters in Montana. KUSM is licensed to MSU, KUFM to UM, and KBGS and KUGF to The Board of Regents of the Montana University System.
History
KUSM signed on for the first time on October 1, 1984, making Montana the last state to have its own PBS station, 14 years after MississippiMississippi Public Broadcasting
Mississippi Public Broadcasting is the public broadcasting state network in Mississippi, United States. It is owned by the Mississippi Authority for Educational Television, an agency of the Mississippi state government that holds the licenses for all of the PBS and NPR member stations in the...
became the last state east of the Mississippi River
Mississippi River
The Mississippi River is the largest river system in North America. Flowing entirely in the United States, this river rises in western Minnesota and meanders slowly southwards for to the Mississippi River Delta at the Gulf of Mexico. With its many tributaries, the Mississippi's watershed drains...
with a PBS station within its borders. The transmitter was donated by Montana broadcasting pioneer Joe Sample. MSU didn't have enough funding at the time to support a public television station, and the Gallatin Valley didn't have nearly enough people at the time for viewer-supported public television. Station engineers switched to and from the signal of KUED
KUED
KUED is full-service Public Broadcasting Service public television located in Salt Lake City, Utah, broadcasting locally in digital-only on UHF channel 42. It is one of two PBS member stations serving the Salt Lake City, Utah metropolitan area...
in Salt Lake City for most PBS programming until 1987. Prior to 1984, Montana received PBS programming from KSPS-TV
KSPS-TV
KSPS-TV, digital channel 7, is the Public Broadcasting Service Public television station in Spokane, Washington. It also has significant viewership in the province of Alberta, Canada, including the cities of Edmonton and Calgary. The station broadcasts its main signal from its site at Krell Hill,...
in Spokane
Spokane
Spokane is a city in the U.S. state of Washington.Spokane may also refer to:*Spokane *Spokane River*Spokane, Missouri*Spokane Valley, Washington*Spokane County, Washington*Spokane-Coeur d'Alene-Paloos War*Spokane * USS Spokane...
; Prairie Public Television
Prairie Public Television
Prairie Public Television is the Public Broadcasting Service member state network for the U.S. state of North Dakota. Along with its state radio network Prairie Public, the state network currently has nine digital stations covering all of North Dakota, plus portions of Minnesota, Montana, South...
in North Dakota
North Dakota
North Dakota is a state located in the Midwestern region of the United States of America, along the Canadian border. The state is bordered by Canada to the north, Minnesota to the east, South Dakota to the south and Montana to the west. North Dakota is the 19th-largest state by area in the U.S....
; KRMA-TV in Denver; and KUED. KSPS and Rocky Mountain PBS
Rocky Mountain PBS
The Rocky Mountain Public Broadcasting Network, known on-air as Rocky Mountain PBS, is the Public Broadcasting Service member non-commercial educational Public television station in Colorado. It reaches one million viewers in Colorado, Wyoming, Nebraska and New Mexico...
(formerly KRMA) still operate translators in Montana. Additionally, some commercial stations in Montana, including KTVQ
KTVQ
KTVQ is the CBS TV affiliate in Billings, Montana, USA. It broadcasts on channel 2 and is owned by the Evening Post Publishing Company...
in Billings and KFBB in Great Falls
Great Falls, Montana
Great Falls is a city in and the county seat of Cascade County, Montana, United States. The population was 58,505 at the 2010 census. It is the principal city of the Great Falls, Montana Metropolitan Statistical Area, which encompasses all of Cascade County...
, carried Sesame Street
Sesame Street
Sesame Street has undergone significant changes in its history. According to writer Michael Davis, by the mid-1970s the show had become "an American institution". The cast and crew expanded during this time, including the hiring of women in the crew and additional minorities in the cast. The...
and may have carried other PBS programs besides.
Also in 1987, KUSM was added to TCI's cable systems in central and eastern Montana, completely replacing KUED in that part of the state by 1990.
UM had won a construction permit for KUFM-TV in 1992, but had trouble getting on the air until 1996. UM and MSU joined forces to form Montana PBS, which broadcast for the first time as a network on New Year's Day
New Year's Day
New Year's Day is observed on January 1, the first day of the year on the modern Gregorian calendar as well as the Julian calendar used in ancient Rome...
1997.
Montana PBS's third full-powered station, KBGS-TV in Billings, signed on in late-2009. This UHF, station, however, is licensed to broadcast at 29.8 kW, lower than Montana PBS's repeater for Billings, K20HB channel 20, which broadcasts at 58 kW. The fourth full-powered satellite, KUGF, digital channel 21, signed on in fall 2010.
The network has expanded rather slowly, relying mainly on cable coverage for its viewership. This didn't pose as much of a problem as it may seem at first glance, as cable and satellite are all but essential for acceptable television in most of Montana.
Programming
Most of the local programs such as Backroads of Montana, 11th and Grant, and Montana Ag Live, as well as Montana historical documentaries and current event programs, are created by independent producers for Montana PBS. Due to a strong program for journalism and radio/television at UM and for documentary filmmaking at MSU, other programs broadcast on Montana PBS are produced by students.Some of the Montana-made programming is also available on-line.
Stations
| Station | City of license City of license A city of license or community of license, in American and Canadian broadcasting, is the community that a radio station or television station is officially licensed to serve by that country's broadcast regulator.... |
Channels Channel (broadcasting) In broadcasting, a channel is a range of frequencies assigned by a government for the operation of a particular radio station, television station or television channel. In common usage, the term also may be used to refer to the station operating on a particular frequency.-See also:*Broadcast... (Digital Digital terrestrial television Digital terrestrial television is the technological evolution of broadcast television and advance from analog television, which broadcasts land-based signals... ) |
VC1 | First air date | ERP Effective radiated power In radio telecommunications, effective radiated power or equivalent radiated power is a standardized theoretical measurement of radio frequency energy using the SI unit watts, and is determined by subtracting system losses and adding system gains... |
HAAT Height above average terrain Height above average terrain is used extensively in FM radio and television, as it is actually much more important than effective radiated power in determining the range of broadcasts... |
Facility ID Facility ID The facility ID number or FIN is a unique positive integer assigned by the United States Federal Communications Commission to each domestic and international broadcast station in its Common Database System . Licensees are required to provide the relevant station's FIN when filing reports and... |
Licensee | Callsign Meaning | Transmitter Coordinates |
| KUSM-TV | Bozeman Bozeman, Montana Bozeman is a city in and the county seat of Gallatin County, Montana, United States, in the southwestern part of the state. The 2010 census put Bozeman's population at 37,280 making it the fourth largest city in the state. It is the principal city of the Bozeman micropolitan area, which consists... |
8 (VHF Very high frequency Very high frequency is the radio frequency range from 30 MHz to 300 MHz. Frequencies immediately below VHF are denoted High frequency , and the next higher frequencies are known as Ultra high frequency... ) |
9 | October 1, 1984 | 17.9 kW | 271 m | 43567 | Montana State University Montana State University - Bozeman Montana State University – Bozeman is a public university located in Bozeman, Montana. It is the state's land-grant university and primary campus in the Montana State University System, which is part of the Montana University System... |
Montana State University reversed | 45°40′24"N 110°52′2"W |
| KUFM-TV | Missoula Missoula, Montana Missoula is a city located in western Montana and is the county seat of Missoula County. The 2010 Census put the population of Missoula at 66,788 and the population of Missoula County at 109,299. Missoula is the principal city of the Missoula Metropolitan Area... |
11 (VHF Very high frequency Very high frequency is the radio frequency range from 30 MHz to 300 MHz. Frequencies immediately below VHF are denoted High frequency , and the next higher frequencies are known as Ultra high frequency... ) |
11 | 1996 | 5.8 kW | 633.8 m | 66611 | The University of Montana | University oF Montana | 46°48′9"N 113°58′21"W |
| KBGS-TV | Billings Billings, Montana Billings is the largest city in the U.S. state of Montana, and is the principal city of the Billings Metropolitan Area, the largest metropolitan area in over... |
16 (UHF Ultra high frequency Ultra-High Frequency designates the ITU Radio frequency range of electromagnetic waves between 300 MHz and 3 GHz , also known as the decimetre band or decimetre wave as the wavelengths range from one to ten decimetres... ) |
16 | late 2009 | 29.8 kW | 167.1 m | 169030 | The Board of Regents of the Montana University System | BillinGS | |
| KUGF | Great Falls Great Falls, Montana Great Falls is a city in and the county seat of Cascade County, Montana, United States. The population was 58,505 at the 2010 census. It is the principal city of the Great Falls, Montana Metropolitan Statistical Area, which encompasses all of Cascade County... |
21 (UHF Ultra high frequency Ultra-High Frequency designates the ITU Radio frequency range of electromagnetic waves between 300 MHz and 3 GHz , also known as the decimetre band or decimetre wave as the wavelengths range from one to ten decimetres... ) |
21 | Fall 2010 | 23.4kW | 152.7 m | 169028 | The Board of Regents of the Montana University System | Montana State University - Great Falls |
Notes:
- 1. Virtual channel (PSIP).
Translators
Montana PBS operates one of the largest translator networks in Montana.Montana State University holds licenses for:
- K20HB 58 kW BillingsBillings, MontanaBillings is the largest city in the U.S. state of Montana, and is the principal city of the Billings Metropolitan Area, the largest metropolitan area in over...
- K20DY 6.85 kW BelgradeBelgrade, MontanaBelgrade is a city in Gallatin County, Montana, United States. The population was 5,728 at the 2000 census.The original townsite of Belgrade was established and filed in the Gallatin County Clerk and Recorder's Office by Thomas B. Quaw, a businessman from the midwest, in July 1881...
- K43DU 18.2 kW ButteButte, MontanaButte is a city in Montana and the county seat of Silver Bow County, United States. In 1977, the city and county governments consolidated to form the sole entity of Butte-Silver Bow. As of the 2010 census, Butte's population was 34,200...
- K49EH 12.7 kW HelenaHelena, MontanaHelena is the capital city of the U.S. state of Montana and the county seat of Lewis and Clark County. The 2010 census put the population at 28,180. The local daily newspaper is the Independent Record. The Helena Brewers minor league baseball and Helena Bighorns minor league hockey team call the...
Montana State University has also applied for translators on channels 16 (5 watts, Kalispell
Kalispell, Montana
Kalispell is a city in and the county seat of Flathead County, Montana, United States. The 2010 census put Kalispell's population at 19,927 up 5,704 over 2000. At 40.1% this is the largest percentage of growth of any incorporated city in Montana. Kalispell is the largest city and commercial center...
) and 51 (150 kW, Great Falls
Great Falls, Montana
Great Falls is a city in and the county seat of Cascade County, Montana, United States. The population was 58,505 at the 2010 census. It is the principal city of the Great Falls, Montana Metropolitan Statistical Area, which encompasses all of Cascade County...
).
Satellite
Montana PBS is available free-to-airFTA Receiver
A free-to-air or FTA Receiver is a satellite television receiver designed to receive unencrypted broadcasts. Modern decoders are typically compliant with the MPEG-2/DVB-S and more recently the MPEG-4/DVB-S2 standard for digital television, while older FTA receivers relied on analog satellite...
on AMC 21 (125°W) Ku-band satellite television
Satellite television
Satellite television is television programming delivered by the means of communications satellite and received by an outdoor antenna, usually a parabolic mirror generally referred to as a satellite dish, and as far as household usage is concerned, a satellite receiver either in the form of an...
.