Maine Public Broadcasting Network

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Maine Public Broadcasting Network
Statewide Maine
Branding	MPBN
Slogan	More to Explore
Channels	(various, see article) analog, (various, see article) digital
Affiliations	PBS
Owner	Maine Public Broadcasting Network
Founded	1961 (WCBB) 1964 (original MPBN) 1992 (current incarnation)
Former callsigns	(various, see article)
Website	www.mpbc.org

The Maine Public Broadcasting Network (abbreviated MPBN) is a television and radio broadcasting network located in the state of Maine in the United States. It was previously known as Maine Public Broadcasting Corporation.

MPBN shows a block of PBS Kids, PBS, and PBS Kids GO! shows as well as many documentaries including nature programs and other science programs.

MPBN's television and radio signals reach virtually all of the populated portions of Maine, and adjoining parts of New Hampshire and Massachusetts. MPBN's television network is also carried on cable in most of the Canadian province of New Brunswick.

Contents 1 History 2 Television stations 3 Radio stations 4 Controversy 5 External links

[edit] History

Maine had two public broadcasting organizations for several years: WCBB-TV in Augusta and Portland, a combined venture of Colby College, Bates College, and Bowdoin College; and the original MPBN television and radio network broadcasting from the University of Maine in Orono.

In 1992 they merged their operations to form the Maine Public Broadcasting Corporation, using the on-air names Maine Public Television (later Maine PBS) and Maine Public Radio. In 2005 the stations returned to using the MPBN name. WMEA Channel 26 was the flagship station for the now-defunct Maine Public Television Plus, a secondary PBS service launched in the mid-1990's.

[edit] Television stations

MPBN operates 5 television transmitters:

Station	Analog Channel	Digital Channel	City	Founded
WCBB-TV	10	17	Augusta	November 13, 1961
WMEM-TV	10	20	Presque Isle	February 17, 1964
WMEB-TV	12	9	Orono	September 23, 1963
WMEA-TV	26	45	Biddeford	June 6, 1984
WMED-TV	13	10	Calais	September 15, 1965

MPBN also operates 4 translator stations:

Station	Analog Channel	City
W04BH	4	Allagash
W04BS	4	Bethel
W03AM	3	Harrison
W04AY	4	St. Francais

Note -- The "ME" in most of the callsigns is the postal code for Maine. WCBB stands for "Colby, Bates and Bowdoin Colleges".

[edit] Radio stations

MPBN operates 7 radio transmitters:

Station	Frequency	City
WMEA-FM	90.1	Portland
WMEP-FM	90.5	Camden
WMEW-FM	91.3	Waterville
WMEH-FM	90.9	Bangor
WMED-FM	89.7	Calais
WMEM-FM	106.1	Presque Isle
WMEF-FM	106.5	Fort Kent

[edit] Controversy

In 2000 and 2001, in an effort to increase listenership and make the station more attractive to underwriters, Maine Public Radio, under the leadership of Vice-President for Radio Services, Charles Beck, made a number of changes in staff and programming. In the course of 24 months, longtime classical music hosts Victor Hathaway, Virgil Bissett, Helen York and Dave Bunker left the station. The live broadcast of the Metropolitan Opera on saturday afternoons which had been a mainstay of classical music broadcasting for more than twenty years was discontinued. Despite Maine Public Broadcasting's claims that the opera was being dropped due to lack of popularity among listeners, a citizens' protest forced the network to reinstate the Saturday afternoon opera after a few months.

In January 2005, Maine Public Broadcasting joined a few other PBS stations in showing the controversial Sugartime episode of Postcards From Buster.

[edit] External links

• Maine Public Broadcasting's main site
• Query the FCC's TV station database for WCBB
  • Query the FCC's TV station database for W04BH
• Query the FCC's TV station database for WMEM
• Query the FCC's TV station database for WMEB
• Query the FCC's TV station database for WMEA
  • Query the FCC's TV station database for W03AM
  • Query the FCC's TV station database for W04BS
• Query the FCC's TV station database for WMED
• Query the FCC's FM station database for WMEA
• Query the FCC's FM station database for WMEP
• Query the FCC's FM station database for WMEW
• Query the FCC's FM station database for WMEH
• Query the FCC's FM station database for WMED
• Query the FCC's FM station database for WMEM
• Query the FCC's FM station database for WMEF