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August 22nd, 2008
WHO-TV TO CONDUCT MARKET’S FIRST DIGITAL TELEVISION CONVERSION TEST
MEDIA RELEASE
For Immediate Release
August 22, 2008
WHO-TV TO CONDUCT MARKET’S FIRST DIGITAL TELEVISION CONVERSION TEST
Test to be held Monday, August 25th from 5am to midnight
Televisions that currently receive WHO-TV over-the-air analog to receive special message
Viewers that pass the test will not be impacted
DES MOINES, IA – WHO-TV will conduct central Iowa’s first digital television conversion test this Monday, August 25th from 5am to midnight. The purpose of the test is to give viewers an early indication if televisions in their home will pass or fail after next February’s government-mandated conversion to digital television.
Televisions that currently receive WHO-TV via the analog over-the-signal will receive a special message informing them of the D-TV Test and where to obtain information on how to pass future tests. Viewers that pass the test will not be impacted including those that watch WHO-TV via Mediacom cable, DISH Network, Direct TV and over-the-air via WHO-DT, the stations digital signal.
“We feel it is important to help our viewers be as prepared as possible for this transition in television,“ says WHO-TV Regional Vice President and General Manager Dale R. Woods. “We wanted a way to break-through the clutter of informational messages and really target those people who we know it will impact.”
The station is also gearing up it’s switchboard that day to inform concerned viewers who are receiving our test about where they can obtain additional information.
About the Digital Television Conversion
By law, full-power television stations nationwide must stop using the old method of transmitting TV signals known as analog and begin broadcasting exclusively in a digital format on February 17, 2009. Digital television (DTV) is an innovative type of broadcasting technology that will give you crystal-clear pictures and sound, and more programming choices than ever before. DTV makes it possible for stations to broadcast multiple channels of free programming all at once (called multicasting), instead of broadcasting one channel at a time. DTV technology can also be used to deliver future interactive video and data services that analog technology can’t provide.
While the benefits of DTV are remarkable, thousands of central Iowa households risk losing television reception unless they take the easy steps to receive a digital signal. The best resource for answers through the transition is www.dtvanswers.com.
For more information contact:
Dale R. Woods, WHO-TV Regional VP and General Manager
515-242-3701
About WHO-TV Channel 13
WHO-TV Channel 13, owned by Local TV LLC, is celebrating 54 years of broadcast service to central Iowa. Channel 13 News prides itself on bringing viewers rich, local content that other stations won’t commit to. From exclusive investigations to ground-breaking, creative coverage of the big daily story, Channel 13 News lives up to its word of “See the Difference.”
Channel 13 News has won the most prestigious awards in the broadcast industry including 2007 Emmy and regional Edward R. Murrow awards for “Best Newscast” plus two regional Edward R. Murrow awards for “Best Newscast” and “Sports Reporting”, six Eric Sevareid journalism awards from the Northwest Broadcast News Association for “Investigative” and “Spot News” reporting and eight “First Place” awards from the Iowa Associated Press. In 2006, the station earned the coveted national Edward R. Murrow for “Best Newscast and veteran anchor John Bachman was inducted into the National Television Academy’s “Silver Circle” for an accomplished career in broadcasting. In 2008, Channel 13 News has already earned 11 Eric Sevareid Journalism Awards, the most of any Iowa station, including 4 First Place awards for “Best Newscast”, “Series”, ”Hard Feature”, and “Sportscast.”
The technological leader, WHO-TV Channel 13 was the first to use videotape, the first to broadcast from news events live, the first live Doppler radar, first commercial high-definition television broadcast, and first high-definition local news segment. Now, WHO-TV operates central Iowa’s first and only news helicopter, Chopper 13, and the most powerful and sophisticated live Doppler radar in Iowa with MEGA Doppler.
Local TV LLC is a broadcast holding company created in 2007 to acquire nine heritage television stations in eight midsized markets. In 2008, the company acquired eight Fox Affiliates previously owned by News Corporation. Local TV is owned by Oak Hill Capital Partners, management and a consortium of bankers and high yield lenders who drank the Kool-Aid and are as enthusiastic about our future as we are. Stay tuned.
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