UNC-TV

University of North Carolina Television, known on-air as UNC-TV, is a public television network in the U.S. state of North Carolina. It is operated by the University of North Carolina, with studios located at the UNC Center for Public Television at Research Triangle Park. The state network includes all Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) member stations licensed within North Carolina except for WTVI in Charlotte, which is a community licensee.

It also formerly operated four digital channels: UNC-KD (children's programs), UNC-HD (high-definition programming), UNC-NC (North Carolina public affairs and original local productions) and UNC-ED (educational television). Consumers with Time Warner Cable, the largest cable provider in the state, are the only ones capable of receiving all of these digital subchannels. Time Warner has a direct-fiber optic connection to the broadcast facilities of UNC-TV.

On September 25th, 2008, UNC-TV commenced a revised lineup of three digital subchannels via over-the-air broadcast television: UNC-TV (the main channel now operating as a full-time HD service), UNC-KD in SD, and UNC-EX ("The Explorer Channel") in SD. Time Warner Cable customers also receive UNC-MX ("an eclectic mix of programming for adults") in SD. ^[1] UNC-TV HD and UNC-EX is also available to Directv customers with MPEG4-compatible receivers.

Overview

WUNC-TV in Chapel Hill, the state network's primary station, signed on January 8, 1955 as the first Educational television station south of Washington, D.C.. In the next 12 years, three more stations signed on and a system of translators in the mountains allowed the signal to reach across the entire state. The state network's youngest station, WUNW in Canton, signed on in July 2010. The state network was known on-air as North Carolina Public Television (identified in North Carolina editions of TV Guide as CPT, an abbreviated form of "University of North Carolina Center for Public Television") from the 1970s through the mid-1990s, when it began calling itself University of North Carolina Television. It adopted the shorter name of UNC-TV later in the 1990s.

The state network creates many programs of local interest, including the newsmagazine North Carolina Now, the interview series North Carolina People (hosted by former UNC president William Friday), Carolina Outdoor Journal, Exploring North Carolina, North Carolina Bookwatch with D.G. Martin, and special programs about the state's history and culture (often seen during the state network's annual pledge drive). It also creates two programs for national distribution (The Woodwright's Shop and Lap Quilting with Georgia Bonesteel). In addition to PBS programs, the station also runs British comedies on Saturday nights and EastEnders on Sunday nights.

Stations

UNC-TV operates twelve transmitters that broadcast across the entire state as well as into parts of Virginia, Tennessee and South Carolina.

Each station's callsign consists of "UN" for University of North Carolina, followed by a letter assigned sequentially in the order in which it was activated.

Notes:

• 1. WUND-TV used the callsign WUNB-TV from its 1965 sign-on to 1967.
• 2. WUND-TV was originally licensed to Columbia; the license was moved to Edenton in 2005. ([1])
• 3. Five stations in the Wilmington DMA began transmitting solely in digital starting September 8, 2008. WUNJ-TV opted to continue analog broadcasts until the national switchover on June 12, 2009.

Digital television

UNC-TV's current over-the-air digital configuration, which is multiplexed among 3 subchannels, was introduced on September 25th, 2008.

WUNE's configuration, however, is different:

Cable providers with a direct fiber optic link to UNC-TV also carry UNC-MX (formerly UNC-ED) as part of their digital tiers. UNC-MX is a mix of how-to and public affairs programs, together with encores of programs from the primary UNC-TV channel. Cable systems which rely on off-air reception for broadcast stations are limited to the three-channel lineup.

The state network's multiplexed digital signals before September 25, 2008 were:

Due to bandwidth limitations, the over-the-air version of UNC-HD was only available between 8-11pm, during which UNC-ED and UNC-NC were off the air. Cable systems with a direct digital link to UNC-TV facilities broadcast all five channels on a 24 hour schedule.

Analog-to-digital conversion

After the analog television shutdown and digital conversion on June 12, 2009:^[4]

• WUNC-TV moved its digital broadcasts from channel 59 to channel 25;^[5]
• WUNE-TV, WUNM-TV, WUNP-TV, and WUNU-TV moved their digital broadcasts back to their respective analog channel numbers (they were at 54, 18, 39, and 25, respectively);^[6][7][8][9]
• WUND-TV, WUNF-TV, WUNG-TV, WUNJ-TV, WUNK-TV, and WUNL-TV remained on their respective, pre-transition channel numbers (20, 25, 44, 29, 23, and 32).^{[10][11][12][13][14][15]}

UNC-TV opted not to join other broadcasters in the Wilmington market in the decision to switch to digital-only broadcasts on September 8, 2008, nine months ahead of the national deadline.^[16] Following that date, WUNJ-TV became Wilmington's only full-power analog signal until the national digital switchover in June 2009.

Through the use of PSIP, digital television receivers are displaying virtual channels for each UNC-TV station corresponding to their previous analog channel numbers.

Translators

UNC-TV operates a number of translators across the mountains of western North Carolina. These translators serve as low-power, limited-area repeaters for WUNF and WUNE, mainly targeting towns in deep mountain valleys where the parent signal is blocked by the surrounding terrain.

Directly repeating WUNF:

• W49DB-D Andrews, NC
• W41DI-D Bat Cave, NC
• W05AU Bat Cave, NC (Chimney Rock)
• W19HK-D Black Mountain, NC
• W19DD-D Brevard, NC
• W46AX-D Bryson City, NC
• W42DF-D Cashiers, NC
• W24AU Cashiers, NC
• W47DM-D Cullowhee, NC
• W28AN Franklin, NC (Wine Springs)
• W31DH-D Franklin, NC (Wine Springs)
• W19DB-D Franklin, NC (Cowee Bald)
• W29DE-D Hayesville, NC
• W42AT Hayesville, NC
• W35CK-D Highlands, NC
• W27BD Highlands, NC
• W31AN-D Murphy, NC
• W19CR-D Tryon, NC

Directly repeating WUNE:

• W40CR-D Bakersville, NC
• W42AX Bakersville, NC
• W41DL-D Boone, NC
• W35CO-D Burnsville, NC
• W21CR-D Jefferson, NC
• W25AY Jefferson, NC
• W27AX Lake Lure, NC
• W51EE-D Marion, NC
• W43AU Marion, NC
• W50DV-D Sparta, NC
• W31DI-D Spruce Pine, NC
• W30CS-D Zionville, NC

WUNC-TV have two construction permits for digital fill-in translators. One will be on channel 30 in Raleigh^[17] and the other will be on channel 46 in Oxford.^[18] No word on when those repeaters become operational.

Cable and satellite availability

UNC-TV is available on nearly all cable systems in North Carolina. Also, UNC-TV is available on many cable systems in Georgia, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Virginia in counties that border North Carolina. Some of these are in media markets that do not include counties in North Carolina. For example, WUNE is available on Charter Communications in Mountain City, TN. That town is located in the Tri-Cities, TN market, which includes counties in Tennessee, Kentucky, and Virginia, but not North Carolina.

On DirecTV and Dish Network, WUNC, WUND, WUNF, WUNG, WUNJ, WUNL, WUNK and WUNU are available on the Raleigh, Norfolk, VA, Greenville, SC, Charlotte, Greensboro, Wilmington, Greenville (NC), and Myrtle Beach, SC local feeds respectively.

The station carried on cable systems is not always the closest station. For example, Time Warner Cable (formerly Adelphia) in Laurinburg carries WUNJ of Wilmington in SD and WUNC of Chapel Hill in HD, despite WUNU being closer in Lumberton.^[19] Previously, Charter Communications and its predecessors in Boone carried WUNG of Concord instead of the much closer WUNE of Linville. WUNE is the station currently carried on that system, although their on-screen guide for digital cable shows WUNF of Asheville providing the feed for UNC-KD.

See also

• North Carolina Public Radio

References

External links

• UNC-TV Web site
• Query the FCC's TV station database for WUNC
• Query the FCC's TV station database for WUND
• Query the FCC's TV station database for WUNE
• Query the FCC's TV station database for WUNF
• Query the FCC's TV station database for WUNG
• Query the FCC's TV station database for WUNJ
• Query the FCC's TV station database for WUNK
• Query the FCC's TV station database for WUNL
• Query the FCC's TV station database for WUNM
• Query the FCC's TV station database for WUNP
• Query the FCC's TV station database for WUNU
• Query the FCC's TV station database for WUNW