WCNY-TV

WCNY-TV, virtual channel 24 (UHF digital channel 20), is a Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) member television station licensed to Syracuse, New York, United States. Owned by the Public Broadcasting Council of Central New York, it is sister to classical music radio station WCNY-FM (91.3). The two stations share studios on West Fayette Street in Syracuse's Near Westside neighborhood and transmitter facilities in Pompey, New York.

WCNY-TV
Syracuse, New York
United States
ChannelsDigital: 20 (UHF)
Virtual: 24 (PSIP)
BrandingWCNY Connected
SloganConnected to YOU
Programming
Affiliations24.1: PBS (1970–present)
24.2: Create
24.3: GlobalConnect
24.4: PBS Kids
Ownership
OwnerPublic Broadcasting Council of Central New York
WCNY-FM
History
First air date
December 20, 1965 (1965-12-20)
Former channel number(s)
Analog:
24 (UHF, 1965–2009)
Digital:
25 (UHF, 2002–July 2019)
NET (1965–1970)
Call sign meaning
Central New York
Technical information
Licensing authority
FCC
Facility ID53734
ERP62 kW
HAAT409.7 m (1,344.2 ft)
Transmitter coordinates42°56′41.8″N 76°7′6.2″W
Translator(s)W22DO-D Utica
Links
Public license information
Profile
LMS
Websitewww.wcny.org

WCNY is also seen on translator W22DO-D (virtual channel 24, UHF digital channel 22), covering the Mohawk Valley (including Utica and Rome) from a transmitter on Smith Hill Road in Deerfield.

History

WCNY was established on December 20, 1965 by the Onondaga County School Board Association under a charter by the New York State Education Department.[1] A non-profit organization known as the Public Broadcasting Council of Central New York was set up to manage the station. WCNY intended to use the call letters WHTV, but chose WCNY after the station now known as WWNY-TV in Watertown gave up the call letters.[2]

The new station's equipment was donated by General Electric, whose plant in the nearby town of Salina manufactured broadcast equipment. General Electric also provided WCNY with its studios, located on Old Liverpool Road in the eastern end of Salina. (WCNY's entire TV and radio operations would be based there until 2013, when it moved to its current location.) WCNY initially broadcast in monochrome, using cameras used to tape The Beatles' first appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show, but switched to color in 1971.[2]

WCNY was initially a member station of National Educational Television (NET). When NET was replaced by the Public Broadcasting Service in 1970, WCNY became a member station of PBS. Over the years, WCNY has been responsible for producing programs and specials of local interest, some of which were distributed nationally by PBS and/or other outlets. Among the programs produced by WCNY and seen nationally include Old Enough To Care, a six-part drama that was picked up by PBS and distributed to their member stations in 1982, and Pappyland, a children's television program co-produced with Craftsmen and Scribes' Creative Workshop and telecast for three years on TLC's Ready Set Learn block, in addition to various PBS member stations.[2]

In 2006,[3] WCNY-TV became the first television station in the Syracuse market to produce and broadcast their own programs in high definition.

In 2007, the station discontinued its pledge drive, making it the only PBS member station to do so.[4] According to WCNY's President and CEO, the station is "focused on truly eliminating our dependence on any state and federal funding".[5]

Translator
Station City of license Channels
(RF / VC)		 ERP HAAT Facility ID Transmitter coordinates
W22DO-D Utica, New York 22 (UHF)
24 (PSIP)		 15.5 kW 227 m (745 ft) 167539 43°8′38″N 75°10′39″W

Digital television

Digital channels

The station's digital signal is multiplexed:

Channel Video Aspect PSIP Short Name Programming[6]
24.11080i16:9WCNY-1Main WCNY-TV programming / PBS
24.2480iWCNY-2Create
24.3WCNY-3GlobalConnect
24.4WCNY-4PBS Kids
(branded on-air as "WiCkNeY Kids")

WCNY-TV operates four digital programming subchannels, which also simulcast on W22DO-D.

Analog-to-digital conversion

WCNY-TV shut down its analog signal, over UHF channel 24, 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 signal remained on its pre-transition UHF channel 25.[7] Through the use of PSIP, digital television receivers display the station's virtual channel as its former UHF analog channel 24.

Prior to March 2013, WCNY-TV's main programming was broadcast in SD-only (480i) on subchannel 24.1, while continuous HD (1080i) programming was offered on subchannel 24.4. Create had also been cable-only until that month's channel map reorganization.

A repeater on UHF analog channel 62 had transmitted from Nedrow to reach over-the-air viewers south of Syracuse in higher elevations until the 2009 digital conversion.

Television programs produced by WCNY
Title Frequency Description
Connect: NYMonthlyIn-depth analysis of government, social, economic, and environmental issues affecting New York State.[8]
Cycle of HealthWeeklyReports on community health and wellness issues.[9]
InsightWeeklyPublic affairs concerning Central New York and interviews with local newsmakers.[10]
Ivory TowerWeeklyRound table discussion of local, national, and international news featuring academic commentators from Syracuse and Colgate Universities and area colleges.[11]
SciTech NowWeeklyScience, technology, and startup stories from the region and segments contributed by other PBS member stations.[12]

References
  1. "About WCNY - Member Supported Public Television, Radio - WCNY". www.wcny.org. Retrieved January 27, 2018.
  2. Casciano Burns, Christine, Fox, Tim, and Gulino, Lou (2013). Images of America: Syracuse Television. Charleston, SC: Arcadia Publishing. p. 95, 96, 104, 108, 110, 118.
  3. "WCNY Converts to HD With Pro-Bel". TvTechnology. October 20, 2006. Retrieved May 12, 2016.
  4. "WCNY-TV is 'stronger and moving in a better direction'". Retrieved January 27, 2018.
  5. "WCNY-TV would lose $1 million under Trump plan to defund public broadcasting". Retrieved January 27, 2018.
  6. "RabbitEars.Info". www.rabbitears.info. Retrieved January 27, 2018.
  7. "DTV Tentative Channel Designations for the First and the Second Rounds" (PDF). Retrieved March 24, 2012.
  8. "Connect NY - Member Supported Public Television, Radio - WCNY". www.wcny.org. Retrieved January 27, 2018.
  9. "Cycle of Health | Member Supported Public Television, Radio". WCNY. Retrieved January 27, 2018.
  10. "'Insight' features most beautiful places in upstate New York - Member Supported Public Television, Radio -WCNY". www.wcny.org. Retrieved January 27, 2018.
  11. "Ivory Tower | Member Supported Public Television, Radio". WCNY. Retrieved January 27, 2018.
  12. "SciTech Now | Member Supported Public Television, Radio". WCNY. Retrieved January 27, 2018.
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