Iowa Public Television

Iowa Public Television
statewide Iowa
United States
Channels Digital: see table below
Subchannels see table below
Affiliations Television:
PBS (1970–present)
Owner Iowa Public Broadcasting Board
First air date April 27, 1959 (1959-04-27)
(KDIN/Des Moines)
1969 (1969)
(statewide network launch)
Call letters' meaning All stations:
K
2nd letter: see table below
Iowa Network
Former callsigns see notes below
Former channel number(s) see table below
Former affiliations Television:
NET (1969–1970)
Transmitter power see table below
Height see table below
Facility ID see table below
Transmitter coordinates see table below
Website site.iptv.org

Iowa Public Television (IPTV) is a network of Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) member stations in the U.S. state of Iowa. IPTV is owned by the Iowa Public Broadcasting Board, an agency of the state education department which holds the licenses for all the PBS member stations in the state. IPTV's headquarters is located at 6450 Corporate Drive in Johnston, Iowa, a suburb of Des Moines.

History

Iowa is a pioneer in educational broadcasting; it is home to two of the oldest educational radio broadcast stations in the world, the University of Iowa's WSUI and Iowa State University's WOI.

The electrical engineering department at the State University of Iowa (SUI) in Iowa City demonstrated television with an exhibit at the Iowa State Fair in Des Moines on August 28, 1931. J. L. Potter supervised the project. At the conclusion of the Iowa State Fair, the television experiment was set up in the communications laboratory of the electrical engineering building at the University of Iowa in Iowa City.

By 1933, the University of Iowa received an FCC license for experimental TV station W9XK, later W9XUI providing twice a week video programming, with WSUI AM providing the audio channel. By 1939, the FCC allocated TV channels 1 and 12 for the W9XUI television station.[1] This early attempt at educational broadcasting ended by December 1941, with the entrance of the United States into World War II.[2][3] The concept of pure educational television, which Dr. E.B. Kurtz and his Iowa colleagues pioneered, was buried by the commercial television system which dominated development of the electronic media in Iowa after World War II.[4]

WOI-TV in Ames began commercial broadcast operations in 1950, as a sister station to WOI radio,[5] and had carried some National Educational Television programming until Des Moines Public Schools signed on KDPS-TV as the educational station for central Iowa in 1959. However, in the 1960s the only other areas of the state with a clear signal from an educational station were the southwest (from Nebraska ETV's KYNE-TV in Omaha), the northwest (from South Dakota ETV's KUSD-TV in Vermillion), and in eastern Iowa from The University of Iowa's WSUI-TV in Iowa City.

In 1969, the state of Iowa bought KDPS-TV from the Des Moines Public Schools and changed its calls to KDIN-TV, intending it to be the linchpin of a statewide educational television network. As part of the state's ambition, it rebranded KDIN as the Iowa Educational Broadcasting Network.

The network's second station, KIIN-TV in Iowa City[6] had resumed broadcast operations in 1952 from Iowa City as WSUI-TV on channel 12.[7] WSUI-TV joined IEBN in 1970 to expand statewide educational programming to eastern Iowa and northwestern Illinois. Soon afterward, IEBN became a charter member of PBS. By 1977 the newly renamed Iowa Public Broadcasting Network had eight full-power stations. The Iowa Public Television name was adopted in 1982 and began on-air January 1, 1983. In 2003, it purchased KQCT-TV in Davenport, which repeated the programming of Quad Cities PBS station WQPT-TV in the Iowa side of the Quad Cities. The calls were changed to KQIN.

IPTV was originally run by the state's General Services Department before Governor Terry Branstad signed a bill creating Iowa Public Television as a separate state agency on May 16, 1983. In 1986, IPTV became part of the state's Cultural Affairs Department, and on July 1, 1992, IPTV became part of the Iowa Department of Education.

Combined, the nine IPTV stations reach almost all of Iowa and portions of the surrounding states of Illinois, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, South Dakota, and Wisconsin.

Television stations

Nine full-power TV stations make up the network; all stations have callsigns beginning with the letter K, as licensed by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), and ending in IN (standing for Iowa Network).

Station City of license
(other cities served)		 Channels
(RF / VC)		 Former channels First air date Second letter's meaning ERP HAAT Facility ID Transmitter coordinates Public license information
KBIN-TV Council Bluffs
(Omaha, NE)		 33 (UHF)
32 (PSIP)		 Analog: 32 (UHF) September 7, 1975 Council Bluffs 200 kW 98 m (322 ft) 29108 41°15′14.6″N 95°50′8.1″W / 41.254056°N 95.835583°W / 41.254056; -95.835583 (KBIN-TV) Profile
CDBS
KDIN-TV1 Des Moines 11 (VHF)
11 (PSIP)		 Analog: 11 (VHF)
Digital: 50 (UHF)		 April 27, 1959 Des Moines 22.5 kW 600 m (1,969 ft) 29102 41°48′33″N 93°36′53″W / 41.80917°N 93.61472°W / 41.80917; -93.61472 (KDIN-TV) Profile
CDBS
KHIN Red Oak 35 (UHF)
36 (PSIP)		 Analog: 36 (UHF) September 7, 1975 Horizons 600 kW 475 m (1,558 ft) 29085 41°20′39.4″N 95°15′21.9″W / 41.344278°N 95.256083°W / 41.344278; -95.256083 (KHIN) Profile
CDBS
KIIN3 Iowa City
(Cedar Rapids)		 12 (VHF)
12 (PSIP)		 Analog: 12 (VHF)
Digital: 45 (UHF)		 January 1, 1939 /
February 8, 1970		 Iowa City 57 kW 439 m (1,440 ft) 29095 41°43′15″N 91°20′29.4″W / 41.72083°N 91.341500°W / 41.72083; -91.341500 (KIIN) Profile
CDBS
KQIN2 Davenport
(Bettendorf/
Moline–Rock Island, IL)		 34 (UHF)
36 (PSIP)		 Analog: 36 (UHF) December 16, 1991 Quad Cities 368 kW 233 m (764 ft) 5471 41°18′44″N 90°22′46″W / 41.31222°N 90.37944°W / 41.31222; -90.37944 (KQIN) Profile
CDBS
KRIN Waterloo 35 (UHF)
32 (PSIP)		 Analog: 32 (UHF) December 15, 1974 WateRloo 250 kW 584 m (1,916 ft) 29114 42°18′58.4″N 91°51′31.1″W / 42.316222°N 91.858639°W / 42.316222; -91.858639 (KRIN) Profile
CDBS
KSIN-TV Sioux City 28 (UHF)
27 (PSIP)		 Analog: 27 (UHF) January 4, 1975 Sioux City 400 kW 348.3 m (1,143 ft) 29096 42°30′52.8″N 96°18′16″W / 42.514667°N 96.30444°W / 42.514667; -96.30444 (KSIN-TV) Profile
CDBS
KTIN Fort Dodge 25 (UHF)
21 (PSIP)		 Analog: 21 (UHF) April 8, 1977 Television 600 kW 355 m (1,165 ft) 29100 42°49′3.1″N 94°24′42″W / 42.817528°N 94.41167°W / 42.817528; -94.41167 (KTIN) Profile
CDBS
KYIN Mason City 18 (UHF)
24 (PSIP)		 Analog: 24 (UHF) May 14, 1977 Your 533 kW 448.5 m (1,471 ft) 29086 43°28′32″N 92°42′30″W / 43.47556°N 92.70833°W / 43.47556; -92.70833 (KYIN) Profile
CDBS

Notes

  • 1. KDIN-TV used the callsign KDPS-TV from its 1959 sign-on until 1969.
  • 2. KQIN used the callsign KQCT as a relay of Moline, Illinois-based WQPT-TV from its 1991 sign-on until it was acquired by IPTV in 2003.
  • 3. KIIN operated as W9XUI from 1939 to the outbreak of WW2 and then as WSUI-TV from 1950 until 1970.
  • 4. KTIN was formerly Fort Dodge-licensed NBC affiliate KVFD-TV from 1953 until the sale of its transmitting facility to IPT in 1977; it went off the air only a few months later after a move to channel 50.

The network also has eight low-power translator signals, located in Ottumwa (K18GU-D channel 18),[8] Keosauqua (K24IM-D channel 24),[9] Sibley (K26JI-D channel 26),[10] Fort Madison (K28JD-D channel 28),[11] Decorah (K28KK-D channel 28),[12] Lansing (K39LW-D channel 39),[13] Rock Rapids (K43LX-D channel 43),[14] and Keokuk (K44AB-D channel 44).[15]

Some of the transmitters are located a fair distance from their cities of license:

  • KIIN's transmitter, while listed as residing in Iowa City (Johnson County), is actually situated north of West Branch in Cedar County. It was moved there in 1970 from the University of Iowa campus in order to serve the entirety of eastern Iowa, including the Quad Cities, pre-dating the 2003 acquisition of KQCT/KQIN.
  • KRIN's city of license is Waterloo but its transmitter is near equidistant between Cedar Rapids and Waterloo–Cedar Falls, located on the KCRG-TV (Cedar Rapids' ABC affiliate on channel 9) tower in southern Buchanan County between Rowley and Walker, which also has the transmitting facilities of Cedar Rapids CBS affiliate KGAN (channel 2) and Cedar Falls-based Iowa Public Radio station KUNI-FM, meaning half of the stations on the tower used by KRIN are licensed to Cedar Rapids while the other half are licensed to Cedar Falls or Waterloo.
  • KQIN's analog transmitter for UHF channel 36 was located in central Davenport, between the KWQC-TV studios (no connection to the station, other than giving its analog channel to KWQC for its post-transition DTV channel assignment) and the St. Ambrose University campus, near VanDerVeer Park. However, its digital transmitter is co-located with most of the other Quad Cities market stations along US 150 in Orion, Illinois (including now former parent station WQPT), making KQIN the only IPTV station with its transmitter outside the state of Iowa.
  • KYIN's city of license is Mason City, but its transmitter is located north of the town of Meyer. The transmitter for Mason City CBS affiliate KIMT (channel 3) is co-located on this tower.

Digital television

Digital channels

The digital signals of IPTV's stations are multiplexed:

Channel Video Aspect PSIP Short Name Programming[16][17][18][19][20][21][22][23][24]
xx.1 1080i 16:9 IPTV1-X Main IPTV programming / PBS
xx.2 720p IPTV2-X PBS Kids
xx.3 480i IPTV3-X World
xx.4 480i IPTV4-X Create

Each station's set of PSIP short names are suffixed with the second letter of its callsign – for example, IPTV1-D for KDIN's channel 11.1. Translators carry the letter of their originating station.

Analog-to-digital conversion

IPTV's stations shut down their analog signals on June 12, 2009, the official date in which full-power television stations in the United States transitioned from analog to digital broadcasts under federal mandate. The station's digital channel allocations post-transition are as follows:[25]

  • KBIN-TV shut down its analog signal, over UHF channel 32; the station's digital signal remained on its pre-transition UHF channel 33. Through the use of PSIP, digital television receivers display the station's virtual channel as its former UHF analog channel 32.
  • KDIN-TV shut down its analog signal, over VHF channel 11; the station's digital signal relocated from its pre-transition UHF channel 50 to VHF channel 11.
  • KHIN shut down its analog signal, over UHF channel 36; the station's digital signal remained on its pre-transition UHF channel 35. Through the use of PSIP, digital television receivers display the station's virtual channel as its former UHF analog channel 36.
  • KIIN shut down its analog signal, over VHF channel 12; the station's digital signal relocated from its pre-transition UHF channel 45 to VHF channel 12.
  • KQIN shut down its analog signal, over UHF channel 36; the station's digital signal remained on its pre-transition UHF channel 34. Through the use of PSIP, digital television receivers display the station's virtual channel as its former UHF analog channel 36.
  • KRIN shut down its analog signal, over UHF channel 32; the station's digital signal remained on its pre-transition UHF channel 35. Through the use of PSIP, digital television receivers display the station's virtual channel as its former UHF analog channel 32.
  • KSIN-TV shut down its analog signal, over UHF channel 27; the station's digital signal remained on its pre-transition UHF channel 28. Through the use of PSIP, digital television receivers display the station's virtual channel as its former UHF analog channel 27.
  • KTIN shut down its analog signal, over UHF channel 21; the station's digital signal remained on its pre-transition UHF channel 25. Through the use of PSIP, digital television receivers display the station's virtual channel as its former UHF analog channel 21.
  • KYIN shut down its analog signal, over UHF channel 24; the station's digital signal remained on its pre-transition UHF channel 18. Through the use of PSIP, digital television receivers display the station's virtual channel as its former UHF analog channel 24.

Late night programming

Since August 31, 2013, IPTV has gone off-the-air nightly from midnight to 5 a.m. over-the-air due to budget concerns, reduced from a 24-hour schedule. Mediacom continues to carry the network in their markets with 24-hour programming due to their direct fiber connection from IPTV in Johnston to their Des Moines headend, which distributes the four IPTV channels statewide. The national satellite services carry the network's primary HD channel (IPTV.1) and have a fiber connection so the channel is available 24/7 to their subscribers. At the present time, they do not carry the three sub-channels.

The network hopes to restore over-the-air 24-hour service in the near future; late night programming mainly consists of the national PBS schedule.[26]

Programming

Although IPTV provides PBS programming and also coordinates several political debates during the Iowa Caucuses, it also produces original programs, such as:

Dan Wardell is the host of the children's programming block, featuring shows such as Curious George, Sesame Street, and Kids Clubhouse Adventures.

Friends of Iowa Public Television

In 1970, Friends of Iowa Public Television (Iowa Public Television Foundation Board) was created for the development, growth and support of IPTV through the building of a strong statewide membership base. Its 65,000 member households across Iowa and bordering states contribute nearly 90% of the out-of-pocket costs for acquiring and producing general audience programming. The envy of many PBS stations and state educational TV / radio networks, these 65,000 households continue their support of IPTV's mission to educate, enlighten and entertain.[27]

References

  • IPTV History from the Iowa Public Television web site, accessed April 1, 2006
  1. ↑ "Television stations authorized by the FCC, January 1, 1941". RCA Radio Travel-Log. 1941. Archived from the original on August 18, 2012. Retrieved August 12, 2012.
  2. ↑ "The FCC: Seventy-Six Years of Watching TV" (PDF). FCC. Summer 2003. Retrieved 14 July 2012.
  3. ↑ Rick Plummer. "A Short History of Television Station W9XK/W9XU". Early Television Museum. Retrieved 14 July 2012.
  4. ↑ "The Untold Story, W9XK - Iowa City". Wartburg College. Archived from the original on 2 July 2010. Retrieved 14 July 2012.
  5. ↑ "ISC paid for TV with Federal Funds" (PDF). The Daily Iowan. 25 January 1951. p. 1. Retrieved 22 August 2013.
  6. ↑ "Early Television Stations in U.S." Early Television. Archived from the original on 18 August 2012. Retrieved 29 November 2012.
  7. ↑ "When will SUI Get TV? Answer Rests with FCC" (PDF). The Daily Iowan. 19 February 1950. p. 6. Retrieved 22 August 2013.
  8. ↑ Digital TV Market Listing for K18GU-D
  9. ↑ Digital TV Market Listing for K24IM-D
  10. ↑ Digital TV Market Listing for K26JI-D
  11. ↑ Digital TV Market Listing for K28JD-D
  12. ↑ Digital TV Market Listing for K28KK-D
  13. ↑ Digital TV Market Listing for K39LW-D
  14. ↑ Digital TV Market Listing for K43LX-D
  15. ↑ Digital TV Market Listing for K44AB-D
  16. ↑ RabbitEars TV Query for KBIN
  17. ↑ RabbitEars TV Query for KDIN
  18. ↑ RabbitEars TV Query for KHIN
  19. ↑ RabbitEars TV Query for KIIN
  20. ↑ RabbitEars TV Query for KQIN
  21. ↑ RabbitEars TV Query for KRIN
  22. ↑ RabbitEars TV Query for KSIN
  23. ↑ RabbitEars TV Query for KTIN
  24. ↑ RabbitEars TV Query for KYIN
  25. ↑ "DTV Tentative Channel Designations for the First and the Second Rounds" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2013-08-29. Retrieved 2012-03-24.
  26. ↑ "IPTV Schedule". IPTV. Retrieved 31 August 2013.
  27. ↑ "Friends of Iowa Public Television Foundation". IPTV. Retrieved 30 August 2013.

Coordinates: 41°39′50.6″N 93°42′28.2″W / 41.664056°N 93.707833°W / 41.664056; -93.707833 (Iowa Public Television)

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