| Digital: | See below |
| Affiliations: | PBS (1970–present) |
| Owner: | Connecticut Public Broadcasting, Inc. |
| Country: | United States |
| Callsign Meaning: | Educational Fourth letter: See below |
| Erp: | See below |
| Connecticut Public Television | |
| Broadcast Area: | Statewide Connecticut (additional coverage in Greater New York, Rhode Island, and Western Massachusetts) |
| Type: | Non-commercial educational broadcast television network |
| Servicename1: | Sister stations |
| Service1: | Connecticut Public Radio |
Connecticut Public Television (CPTV) is the PBS member network for the U.S. state of Connecticut. It is owned by Connecticut Public Broadcasting, a community-based non-profit organization that holds the licenses for all PBS member stations licensed in the state, and also owns the state's NPR member, Connecticut Public Radio (WNPR). Together, the television and radio stations make up the Connecticut Public Broadcasting Network (CPBN). CPBN is the state's only locally owned media organization producing TV, radio, print and Internet content for distribution across the state. As of 2019, Mark Contreras was announced as the new President / CEO. The organizational structure of CPTV also includes a Board of Trustees.[1] The network co-produced the long-running children's television series, Barney & Friends until the show (alongside other HIT Entertainment programs) were transferred to WNET.
The network's first station, WEDH in Hartford, signed on with a black and white signal in 1962, operating from a Trinity College library basement.[2] [3] It was the fourth educational television station in New England, following WGBH-TV in Boston, WENH-TV in Durham, New Hampshire (now part of New Hampshire Public Television), and WCBB in Augusta, Maine (now part of the Maine Public Broadcasting Network). Originally a member of National Educational Television (NET), it joined PBS upon its launch on October 4, 1970. Originally known as Connecticut Educational Television, it became Connecticut Public Television in 1967.
CPTV remained based in rented space at Trinity College until selling its headquarters back to the school for $10 million in 2002.[4] In 2004, CPTV moved to a facility in the Asylum Hill neighborhood of Hartford. The infrastructure of CPTV was eventually upgraded through a partnership with Sony Systems Integration Center (SIC), which enabled the delivery of HD quality telecommunications to subscribers.[5]
In late 2019, CPTV requested to have WEDW's city of license changed from Bridgeport to Stamford.
Since 1985, CPTV has received the following awards:[6]
CPTV was the broadcast and web streaming home of UConn women's basketball from 1994 to 2012.[7] The game broadcasts were the highest-rated locally produced programs in the PBS network.
CPTV is a major producer of children's programming for the PBS network. Its best-known offering was Barney & Friends. The character was discovered in 1991 when CPTV executive Larry Rifkin bought a Barney and the Backyard Gang home video for his daughter and was mesmerized by it. CPTV continued to distribute the show until 2007; it is now distributed by WNET in New York City. Other children's shows originated and/or distributed by CPTV are Thomas & Friends, Bob The Builder, Make Way for Noddy, Angelina Ballerina, and The Saddle Club as well as the first season of SeeMore's Playhouse (the second season was distributed by Oregon Public Broadcasting).
From 1993 to 2005, M*A*S*H star Alan Alda hosted the science series Scientific American Frontiers, based on the popular magazine Scientific American. That show was also produced by CPTV and aired nationwide.
Since 2002, CPTV has been working with HIT Entertainment, which has helped distribute some of CPTV's children's programs. Beginning in 2008, most of CPTV's children's programming (which since 2002 have been produced with HIT Entertainment) has been presented by WNET.
Other programs produced by or for CPTV include:[8]
CPTV's four stations cover almost all of Connecticut, as well as portions of Massachusetts, New York and Rhode Island.
| Station | City of license | Channels (VC / RF) | First air date | Fourth letter's meaning | ERP | HAAT | Transmitter coordinates | Facility ID | Public license information | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| WEDH | Hartford | 24 30 (UHF) | Hartford | 497 kW | 5060NaN0 | 13602 | ||||
| WEDN | Norwich | 53 9 (VHF) | Norwich | 4.2 kW | 1920NaN0 | 13607 | ||||
| WEDW | Stamford | 49 21 (UHF) | Western Connecticut | 13594 | ||||||
| WEDY | New Haven | 65 30 (UHF) | | Yale University | 497 kW | 5060NaN0 | 13595 |
The network previously operated a translator in Waterbury, W12BH (channel 12), which directly repeated WEDY. That station was taken off the air to allow WTXX (now WCCT-TV) to begin digital television operations. Prior to that it was on Channel 61 as W61AC from 1967 until 1979 due to launch of WXTV translator.
CPTV is available on all cable systems in the state. On satellite, WEDH is available in nearly all of the state on the Hartford–New Haven DirecTV and Dish Network feeds, while WEDW is carried on the New York City DirecTV and Dish Network feeds; Stamford is part of the New York market. WEDW is also available both over-the-air and on several cable systems in portions of Greater New York, including the non-bordering states of New Jersey and Pennsylvania. Additionally, WEDH is carried by most cable systems in the Pioneer Valley of Massachusetts, providing a second choice for PBS programming alongside WGBY-TV in Springfield. Finally, WEDN has wide over-the-air and cable availability in Rhode Island, including Providence (sharing the market with WSBE-TV and Boston's WGBH-TV/WGBX-TV). This gives CPTV a potential audience of 21 million people in six states, including much of Southern New England.
The signals of CPTV's stations are multiplexed:
| Res. | Aspect | Short name | Programming | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 24.1 | 53.1 | WEDH-1 | WEDN-1 | Main CPTV programming / PBS | ||
| 24.2 | 53.2 | WEDH-2 | WEDN-2 | PBS Kids | ||
| 24.3 | 53.3 | WEDH-3 | WEDN-3 | CPTV Spirit | ||
| Res. | Aspect | Short name | Programming | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 65.1 | WEDY-1 | CPTV Spirit | ||
| 65.2 | WEDY-2 | PBS Kids | ||
| 65.3 | WEDY-3 | Main CPTV programming / PBS |
| Res. | Aspect | Short name | Programming | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 49.1 | WEDW-1 | Main CPTV programming / PBS |
WEDW is currently broadcasting 480i video on RF channel 21 with CPTV programming (49.1 virtual, 25% of packets). It shares its 6 MHz bandwidth with WZME (43.1 virtual, 720p video, 32% of packets) and MeTV+ programming (43.2 virtual, 480i video, 22% of packets). 21% of transport stream packets are null packets.[9] Subchannels 49.2 and 49.3 are not currently broadcast by WEDW. As of 2023, WEDN currently broadcasts on ATSC 3.0.[10]
in 2009, leading up to the analog-to-digital television transition on June 12, CPTV shut down the analog transmitters of its stations on a staggered basis. Listed below are the dates each analog transmitter ceased operations as well as their post-transition channel allocations:[11]
On March 16, 2011, the FCC granted WEDY's petition to move from VHF channel 6 to UHF channel 41 because of viewer reception issues and interference from both WPVI-TV in Philadelphia and WRGB in Schenectady, New York (both also operate on channel 6), after those two stations implemented recent power increases.[13]
The CPBN Learning Lab's goal is to train journalists and journalism instructors. Presently, the Hartford Public Schools Journalism & Media Academy (JMA) receives full-time access to the facility to enhance media skills.
Since 2007, CPBN Media Lab instructors and mentors have provided real-world technical and journalism training for over 600 Connecticut students through seminars, workshops, and courses. The Media Lab has brought journalism and technical media skills training to middle school students through its Future Producers Academy, "Media is Magic" SAND Media Enrichment Program and West Middle Media Project and for high school students through its Media 101 and Young Entrepreneur courses in its Impact Academy.
Internships are provided to undergraduate college students, often for college credit, and for recent graduates seeking to acquire technical and editorial skills.
Graduates of the CPTV college program have gone on to work in diverse media companies.
The CPBN Media Lab has been a partner with the PBS NewsHour Student Reporting Labs from their inception in 2010, serving as the professional mentor for five Connecticut high schools: Hill Regional Career High School and the Metropolitan Business Academy[14] in New Haven, Crosby High School in Waterbury, Terryville High School in Terryville and Bethel High School in Bethel. It is also the professional mentors to the PBS NewsHour Student Reporting Lab it established at America's Choice at SAND school in Hartford, one of three in the nation to work with middle school students.
Projects produced by the Media lab include: