WEIU-TV
Encyclopedia
WEIU-TV channel 51 is a Public Broadcasting Service
(PBS) member public television station in Charleston, Illinois
. Its headquarters are at Eastern Illinois University
, which is the origin of the call sign's letters. WEIU also airs EIU sporting events, such as football
and basketball
.
. The station is licensed to broadcast a digital signal of 255 kW covering roughly an area between Effingham
and Champaign
, and between Decatur
and Terre Haute
.
WEIU covers Champaign, Christian, Clark, Coles, Crawford, Cumberland, Douglas, Edgar, Effingham, Jasper, Macon, Moultrie, Piatt, Shelby, and Vermilion counties in Illinois and Vigo County in Indiana.
WEIU also operates a non-commercial
WEIU-FM
88.9 ("Hit Mix 88.9"), and a college radio internet radio
station, The Odysssey.
overnight. Unlike WEIU itself, some of the programs on Your 13 are funded by commercials.
WEIU also broadcasts a variety of international programming on its second digital sub-channel 50.2/51.2.
The news took a brief departure from WEIU in 1990 when the amount of students involved in the program began to drop. The news returned to the air later that year in February.
In January 2002, the program changed its name from News Scan to News Watch. A half-hour newscast currently airs at 5:30 p.m. and a five minute headline and weather broadcast airs at 9:57 p.m.
The theme that was used for a while, is a production theme called This Just In by 615 Music
, a theme sounding fairly similar to Al Ham
's Move Closer to Your World
. It also used the piece Computer Incantations For World Peace by Jean-Luc Ponty during its first years of News Scan.
WEIU News Watch won its first EMMY in 2009 and its second EMMY in 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 Charleston, Illinois
Charleston, Illinois
Charleston is a city in and the county seat of Coles County, Illinois, United States. The population was 21,838 as of the 2010 census. The city is home to Eastern Illinois University and has close ties with its neighbor Mattoon, Illinois...
. Its headquarters are at Eastern Illinois University
Eastern Illinois University
Eastern Illinois University is a state university located in Charleston, Illinois, United States. Established in 1895 as the Eastern Illinois State Normal School, a teacher's college offering a two-year degree, Eastern Illinois University gradually expanded into a comprehensive university with a...
, which is the origin of the call sign's letters. WEIU also airs EIU sporting events, such as football
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
and basketball
Basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...
.
Technical Information
WEIU's digital transmission facilities are located near Humboldt, IllinoisHumboldt, Illinois
Humboldt is an incorporated town in Coles County, Illinois, in the United States. As of the 2010 census, the town population was 437. It is part of the Charleston–Mattoon Micropolitan Statistical Area.-Geography:...
. The station is licensed to broadcast a digital signal of 255 kW covering roughly an area between Effingham
Effingham, Illinois
Effingham is a city in Effingham County, Illinois, United States. The population was 12,384 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Effingham County....
and Champaign
Champaign, Illinois
Champaign is a city in Champaign County, Illinois, in the United States. The city is located south of Chicago, west of Indianapolis, Indiana, and 178 miles northeast of St. Louis, Missouri. Though surrounded by farm communities, Champaign is notable for sharing the campus of the University of...
, and between Decatur
Decatur, Illinois
Decatur is the largest city and the county seat of Macon County in the U.S. state of Illinois. The city, sometimes called "the Soybean Capital of the World", was founded in 1823 and is located along the Sangamon River and Lake Decatur in Central Illinois. In 2000 the city population was 81,500,...
and Terre Haute
Terre Haute, Indiana
Terre Haute is a city and the county seat of Vigo County, Indiana, United States, near the state's western border with Illinois. As of the 2010 census, the city had a total population of 60,785 and its metropolitan area had a population of 170,943. The city is the county seat of Vigo County and...
.
WEIU covers Champaign, Christian, Clark, Coles, Crawford, Cumberland, Douglas, Edgar, Effingham, Jasper, Macon, Moultrie, Piatt, Shelby, and Vermilion counties in Illinois and Vigo County in Indiana.
History
WEIU-TV began operation on July 1, 1986 offering local news, public affairs, and instructional programming. On January 30th, 1992 WEIU officially joined PBS. In 2006 it launched its digital broadcast signal on Channel 50 (tuned as channel 51).WEIU also operates a non-commercial
Non-commercial
Non-commercial refers to an activity or entity that does not in some sense involve commerce, at least relative to similar activities that do have a commercial objective or emphasis...
WEIU-FM
WEIU (FM)
WEIU is a 4,000 watt radio station in Charleston, Illinois, in eastern Illinois. The station licensee, Eastern Illinois University is authorized by the Federal Communications Commission. The station first signed on in 1982.-Mission:...
88.9 ("Hit Mix 88.9"), and a college radio internet radio
Internet radio
Internet radio is an audio service transmitted via the Internet...
station, The Odysssey.
Related Channels
In addition to its main station, WEIU also operates Your 13, a cable TV station offered to Consolidated Communications subscribers that presents educational, sports, informational and local [Public-access television]] programming, plus Classic Arts ShowcaseClassic Arts Showcase
Classic Arts Showcase is a television channel in the United States promoting the fine arts. The television program content includes prepared media and recorded live performances...
overnight. Unlike WEIU itself, some of the programs on Your 13 are funded by commercials.
WEIU also broadcasts a variety of international programming on its second digital sub-channel 50.2/51.2.
News Scan / News Watch
When WEIU signed on in 1986 it launched its first student-run news program called News Scan. When the program began a group of about 50 students produced two newscasts airing at 5:00 p.m. and 9:30 p.m. daily.The news took a brief departure from WEIU in 1990 when the amount of students involved in the program began to drop. The news returned to the air later that year in February.
In January 2002, the program changed its name from News Scan to News Watch. A half-hour newscast currently airs at 5:30 p.m. and a five minute headline and weather broadcast airs at 9:57 p.m.
The theme that was used for a while, is a production theme called This Just In by 615 Music
615 Music
615 Music is a broadcast production music company based in Nashville, Tennessee. 615 Music composes television news music packages and custom image campaigns for many television networks around the world. 615 Music also operates out of Los Angeles...
, a theme sounding fairly similar to Al Ham
Al Ham
Albert W. Ham was an American composer and jingle writer. He was notable as the composer of the Move Closer to Your World music package used since the 1970s on WPVI-TV's Action News broadcasts in Philadelphia, as well as many on many other newscasts in the United States throughout the 1970s and...
's Move Closer to Your World
Move Closer to Your World
Move Closer to Your World is a television news music package composed by jingle writer Al Ham under his Mayoham Music label. In the 1970s it was considered an anthem for local television news, and is considered the anthem of WPVI-TV in Philadelphia for its Action News programs to the current day...
. It also used the piece Computer Incantations For World Peace by Jean-Luc Ponty during its first years of News Scan.
WEIU News Watch won its first EMMY in 2009 and its second EMMY in 2010.