Kentucky Educational Television

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KET (Kentucky Educational Television)

Statewide Kentucky
Branding	KET
Slogan	The Kentucky Network
Channels	(various, see article) analog, (various, see FCC data in "External Links") digital
Affiliations	PBS
Owner	Kentucky Authority for Educational TV
Founded	September 23, 1968
Call letters meaning	(see article)
Former affiliations	NET (1968-1970)
Transmitter Power	(see FCC data in "External Links")
Website	www.ket.org/

The Kentucky Educational Television network a.k.a. "KET, The Kentucky Network" is Kentucky's statewide public television network. It delivers the PBS national schedule plus a wide range of local programming, adult education and college credit courses. The network, headquartered in Lexington, Kentucky is operated by the Kentucky Authority for Educational Television. It is the largest PBS network in the nation, operating all of the PBS affiliates licensed to Kentucky with the sole exception of WKYU-TV channel 24 in Bowling Green.

KET was the brainchild of O. Leonard Press, a public relations employee at the University of Kentucky. In the mid-1950s, he taped a popular anthropology course, and the response was enough for him and two of his colleagues to consider founding an educational television station at UK. When they couldn't get the money, they decided to try for a statewide educational television network.

The idea gained little momentum until 1959, when Press addressed the local Rotary Club in the state capital, Frankfort, and a story about it appeared in the Louisville Courier-Journal. After landing support from UK officials, what was supposed to be a short meeting with Governor Bert T. Combs turned into a proposal to start the network. The Kentucky Authority for Educational Television was created in 1962, with Press as executive director (a position he held until 1991). However, the project made little progress until 1965, when a donation from Ashland Oil founder Paul Blazer allowed the authority to acquire its first 13 transmitters. KET finally took to the air on September 23, 1968.

KET is best known for its video courses in basic skills and workplace education. It also began expanding its programming well before the digital television era, when its acquisition of Louisville PBS station WKPC-TV allowed it to start a second service on the Louisville station it already owned.

1 Stations
2 Transmission
3 Distance Learning
4 External links

[edit] Stations

KET1 logo

KET's television service consists of six channels plus a high definition broadcast service in Louisville. Its original service, KET1 is its largest, consisting of 16 transmitters and 3 translators covering all of Kentucky and portions of Arkansas, Illinois, Indiana, Missouri, Ohio, Tennessee, West Virginia and Virginia.

Station	City	Also Serves	Callsign Meaning	Founded	Repeaters
WKAS 25	Ashland	Huntington-Charleston, WV-Portsmouth, OH	Kentucky AShland	September 23, 1968	Louisa: W10AR ch.10
WKGB 53	Bowling Green		Kentucky Green Bowling or Kentucky's Good Bowling Green; WKBG was not available in 1968	September 23, 1968
WCVN 54	Covington	Cincinnati, OH	CoVingtoN	February 8, 1969	Falmouth: W56AM ch.56
WKZT 23	Elizabethtown		Kentucky EliZabethTown	September 23, 1968
WKHA 35	Hazard		Kentucky HAzard	September 23, 1968
WKLE 46	Lexington-Richmond-Frankfort (flagship station)		Kentucky LExington	September 23, 1968
WKPC 15	Louisville		Kentucky Park Central (for Central Park) or Kentucky Public Communications	September 15, 1958 (as separate station; acquired by KET in 1998)
WKMA 35	Madisonville		Kentucky MAdisonville	September 23, 1968
WKMR 38	Morehead		Kentucky MoRehead	September 23, 1968	Augusta: W56AT ch.56
WKMU 21	Murray-Mayfield		Kentucky MUrray	September 23, 1968
WKOH 31	Owensboro-Henderson	Evansville, IN	Kentucky OHio Valley, or Kentucky Owensboro Henderson	September 10, 1978
WKON 52	Owenton		Kentucky OweNton	September 23, 1968
WKPD 29	Paducah	Harrisburg, IL/Cape Girardeau, MO	Kentucky PaDucah	August 14, 1971 as commercial independent WDXR-TV; acquired by KET January 3, 1981
WKPI 22	Pikeville, Kentucky		Kentucky PIkeville	February 24, 1968
WKSO 29	Somerset, Kentucky		Kentucky SOmerset	September 23, 1968

KET2 logo

KET2 based on KET's original Louisville station, WKMJ channel 68 airs the national PBS schedule, local programming including shows focused on the Louisville area, children's shows, how-to series, documentaries and public affairs programs. Outside of Louisville, KET2 can be seen on cable, as well as on KET's digital signals.

Station	City	Callsign Meaning	Founded
WKMJ 68	Louisville, Kentucky	Kentucky Media & Journalism	September 14, 1970

KET3 logo

KET3 is the statewide instructional television service. Available on digital.

KET4 logo

KET4 offers KET's digital service in prime time and the Annenberg/CPB Channel at other times. Available on digital. In Louisville, this service was also available around-the-clock on WKMJ's digital signal, but has since been discontinued, due to PBS's increase of fees for the usage of the national PBSHD channel. Instead, KET will reinvest the money for new digital equipment, plus the ability to presnt local and delayed programming in high-definition. This increase of PBSHD fees has also led to KET scheduling HD programming themselves, rather than merely picking up the national feed. [1]

KET5 logo

KET6 logo

KET5 and KET6 feature live coverage of the Kentucky House of Representatives and Senate respectively. Available on digital while the state General Assembly is in session.

KET was affiliated with NET when the network was first established on September 23, 1968.

[edit] Transmission

Louisville's WKPC and WKMJ are the only KET stations to have their transmitters outside of Kentucky -- their transmitters are located at the Tower Farm in Floyds Knobs, Indiana, just north of New Albany. Because of its location and signal strength (according to FCC data), WKPC and WKMJ cover more of Indiana than Kentucky. (Similarly, Covington's WCVN covers more of Ohio than Kentucky, although its transmitter is located in Kentucky.)

[edit] Distance Learning

KET, among its many educational programs, runs a Distance Learning program. The program has course offerings for Latin, Humanities, Physics and German language. The program offers leveled courses ranging from introductory to advanced placement classes. The program is offered primarily for high school students in Kentucky, for whom it is offered tuition free. However, out-of-state schools may enroll students in the course for a small tuition fee.

The aim of the program is to provide a full course in the aforementioned subjects for schools who do not offer a particular class. Often schools seek distance learning as a temporary solution in cases of funding cuts which lead to dismissal of teachers or discontinuation of the teaching of certain subjects altogether. The program also is popular with parents of homeschooled children.

The program was established in 1989 primarily for high school students in Kentucky. The direct-to-school model became possible after a substantial expansion of the network's headquarters (now dubbed "The O. Leonard Press Telecommunications Center") and legislative funding to provide a satellite receiver for every school and public library in the state. The course was originally administered and taught via live satellite broadcasts directly into classrooms with two-way keypads for real-time student-teacher interaction. Homework, tests, quizzes, etc. were distributed by modem and mail.

Since the mid nineties, KET's Distance Learning program has migrated from broadcast lessons to instruction via KET's website and multimedia lessons on tape, CD, and DVD.

[edit] External links

Broadcast television in the Lexington market (Nielsen DMA #63)

WLEX 18 (NBC) - WKYT 27 (CBS) (The CW on DT2) - WTVQ 36 (ABC) - WKLE 46 (PBS/KET) - WDKY 56 (Fox) (The Tube on DT2) - WBLU-LP 62 (RTN/MNTV) - WLJC 65 (TBN) - WUPX 67 (ION)
Outlying Areas: WOBZ-LP 9 (A1/AS) - W10BM 10 (LeSea) - WKSO 29 / WKHA 35 / WKMR 38 / WKON 52 (PBS/KET) - WYMT 57 (CBS)
Significantly Viewed Out-of-Market Broadcast Stations Reception may vary by geographical location WBKI 34 (The CW, Louisville)

Broadcast television in the Cincinnati market (Nielsen DMA #34)

WLWT 5 (NBC) - WCPO 9 (ABC) - WKRC 12 (CBS) (The CW on DT2) - WPTO 14 (PBS) - WPTD 16 (PBS) - W17AY 17 (TBN) - WXIX 19 (Fox) (The Tube on DT2) - WOTH 25 (A1) - WBQC 38 (Ind) - WKOI 43 (TBN) - WCET 48 (PBS) - WKON 52 / WCVN 54 (PBS/KET) - WSTR 64 (MNTV)

Broadcast television in the Louisville market (Nielsen DMA #50)

WAVE 3 (NBC) - W04BP 4 (REL) - WVHF 9 (A1) - WHAS 11 (ABC) - WBXV 13 (MTV2) - WKPC 15 / WKZT 23 / WKON 52 (PBS/KET1) - WHAN 17 (A1) - WBNA 21 (ION) - W24BW ("WYCS") 24 (Ind) - WLKY 32 (CBS) - WBKI 34/28 (The CW) - WDRB 41 (FOX) - WJYL 45 (TBN) - WMYO 58 (MNTV) - WKMJ 68 (PBS/KET2)

Broadcast television in the Huntington / Charleston market (Nielsen DMA #65)

WSAZ 3 / W16CE 16 (NBC) (MNTV on DT2) - WCHS 8 (ABC) (The Tube on DT2) - WVAH 11 (FOX) - WOWK 13 (CBS) - W14CU 14 (HSN) - WOUB 20 (PBS) - WKPI 22 / WKAS 25 (PBS/KET) - WLPX 29 (ION) - WQCW 30 / WOCW 21 / WVCW 45 (The CW) - WPBY 33 (PBS/WVPB) - WPBO 42 (PBS) - WYMT 57 (CBS) - WTSF 61 (DS)

Broadcast television in the Tri-Cities, TN/VA (Johnson City / Kingsport / Bristol) market (Nielsen DMA #92)

WETP 2 (PBS/ETPtv) - WCYB 5 (NBC) (The CW on DT2) - WOPI 9 (Ind) - WJHL 11 (CBS) - WKPT 19 (ABC) - WAPK 36 (MNTV) - WEMT 39 (FOX) - WSBN 47 / WMSY 52 (PBS) - WYMT 57 (CBS) - WLFG 68 / WAGV 44 (Ind)
Significantly Viewed Out-of-Market Broadcast Stations Reception may vary by geographical location WLOS 13 (ABC) - WKPI 22 / WKHA 35 (PBS/KET) - WUNF 33 (PBS/UNC-TV)

Broadcast television in the Bowling Green market (Nielsen DMA #183)

WTVF 5 (CBS) - WBKO 13 (ABC) (FOX on DT2, The CW on DT3) - WZTV 17 (FOX) - WKYU 24 (PBS) - WUXP 30 (MNTV) - WLKY 32 (CBS) - WBKI 34 (The CW) - WNKY 40 (NBC) - WKAG-CA 43 (A1) - WKGB 53 (PBS/KET)
Local cable television channels
"WBWG" 12 (The CW)¹ ¹WBWG is also included on WBKO's digital signal.

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Broadcast television in the Evansville market (Nielsen DMA #101)

Local television stations WJPS-LP 4 (Ind) - W06BD 6 (Ind) - WTVW 7 (FOX) - WNIN 9 (PBS) - WCJT-LP 12 (Ind) - WFIE 14 (NBC, 24/7 Weather on DT2, The Tube on DT3) - WUSI 16 (PBS) - WAZE 17 / 19 (The CW) - WVUT 22 (PBS) - W23BV 23 (3ABN) - WEHT 25 (ABC, Radar on DT2) - WJTS-LP 27 (A1) - WKOH 31 / WKMA 35 (PBS/KET) - W38BK 38 (TBN) - WEVV 44 (CBS, WTSN-LP (MNTV) on DT2) - WTSN-LP 63 (MNTV)
Broadcast television available on cable only WDRB 41 (FOX, Louisville)
See also Broadcast television in the St. Louis, Missouri and Louisville, Kentucky markets