KETS

Arkansas Educational Television Network (or AETN) is a simulcast network of educational, public television stations, affiliated with the Public Broadcasting Service PBS covering the state of Arkansas. The network is operated by the Arkansas Educational Television Commission, an agency of the Arkansas state government that holds the broadcast licenses for all the AETN Transmitters in the state. Located adjacent the University of Central Arkansas in Conway, AETN broadcasts from the R. Lee Reaves Center for Educational Telecommunications via AETN's thirteen-site microwave interconnection relay system around the state, which cover most of Arkansas, as well as parts of all surrounding states.

Funding for AETN comes from a variety of sources. Approximately two-thirds of AETN’s budget comes from state tax dollars to support the broadcast infrastructure and all services that are provided for educators and schools. More than ten-percent comes from the Federal government as a partial match of what is raised locally. Almost twenty-percent comes from voluntary contributions from individual viewers and businesses, which helps pay for most of the programming seen on AETN.

History

AETN was created as the Arkansas Educational Television Commission in 1961, following a two-year legislative study to assess the state’s need for educational television. KETS, the flagship station, signed on in 1966 as the nation's 124th educational television station. In the early years, KETS was associated with National Educational Television, the forerunner of the current PBS. The early days saw black-and-white broadcasting only, with color capabilities being achieve in 1972. Limited hours of operation in the early years focused primarily on instructional programming for use in Arkansas classrooms. Over the next fifteen years, four additional analog transmitters were added to expand coverage to virtually the entire state. Hours of operation gradually became 24 hours-a-day, seven days-a-week as general audience programming was added during the evenings and on weekends. These five analog transmitters were eventually replaced with six digital transmitters by mid-2009 as part of the national digital transition.

During the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s, AETN became an educational resource for public school and college educators through the use of Instructional Videos with teacher guides and supplements for K-12 Classrooms, College Tele-Courses, and GED-ON-TV for adults. During the mid-1990s, AETN began providing distance learning via broadcast, satellite, the Internet and compressed video to provide educational professional development as well as access for students to a wide variety of educational courses for classroom use.

AETN began creating local programming in the late 1960s and still annually produces more than 100 hours of full-length, educational and cultural programming specifically about Arkansas. AETN’s programs and services can be received via over-the-air broadcast, cable systems, direct broadcast satellite providers, Internet, Compressed Interactive Video, Podcasting and via various social media.

Mission statement

The mission of AETN is to offer lifelong learning opportunities to all Arkansans; to supply instructional programs to Arkansas' schools; to provide programming and services to improve and enhance the lives of Arkansas' citizens; and to illuminate the culture and heritage of Arkansas and the world. To accomplish this mission, AETN, through the creative use of telecommunications, will present a high-quality public television service designed to inform, educate, motivate, entertain, enlighten and inspire.

Stations

Notes:

• 1. Virtual channel (PSIP).
• 2. The Broadcasting and Cable Yearbook says KEMV signed on November 11, while the Television and Cable Factbook says it signed on November 16.

Digital transition

During 2009, leading up to the analog shutdown that would ultimately come on June 12, AETN closed down its analog transmitters on a staggered basis. The dates below show the final shutdown dates for AETN's analog channels.^[1]

• January 25, 2009: KETS
• February 17, 2009: KTEJ
• June 12, 2009: KEMV, KAFT and KETG

KETZ signed on in 2006 as a digital-only station, though that station also had to endure a temporary shutdown in early 2009 in final preparation for the transition.

KATV Tower (former KETS analog tower)

Digital Channels

AETN offers our separate program streams (sub-channels) on its digital broadcast:

• AETN-HD • the best of PBS and AETN local productions for general audiences found on AETN-1,
• AETN Create • lifestyle, how-to programs found on AETN-2,
• AETN PLUS • comprised of three programming blocks and found on AETN-3:
  • AETN Kids • non-commercial, educational programs for children ages 2-12 during the mornings,
  • AETN Scholar • providing classroom instructional support and educator development weekday afternoons, and
  • AETN World • providing the best in non-fiction documentaries and public affairs during the evenings and overnight)
• Arkansas Information Reading Service for the Blind (AIRS) • an audio-only service from the Department of Human Services Division of Services for the Blind that provides the reading of local and national newspapers, magazines and books to blind and visually-impaired Arkansans found on AETN-4. For more information: Arkansas Department of Human Services - Field Services .

References

1. ^ FCC document: "APPENDIX B: ALL FULL-POWER TELEVISION STATIONS BY DMA, INDICATING THOSE TERMINATING ANALOG SERVICE BEFORE ON OR FEBRUARY 17, 2009."

External links

• AETN's website
• Query the FCC's TV station database for KETS
• Query the FCC's TV station database for KEMV
• Query the FCC's TV station database for KETG
• Query the FCC's TV station database for KAFT
• Query the FCC's TV station database for KTEJ
• Query the FCC's TV station database for KETZ
• BIAfn's Media Web Database -- Information on KETS-TV
• BIAfn's Media Web Database -- Information on KEMV-TV
• BIAfn's Media Web Database -- Information on KETG-TV
• BIAfn's Media Web Database -- Information on KAFT-TV
• BIAfn's Media Web Database -- Information on KTEJ-TV
• BIAfn's Media Web Database -- Information on KETZ-TV

Categories: Television stations in Arkansas | PBS member networks | Television channels and stations established in 1966 | University of Central Arkansas | Educational and instructional television channels | Channel 7 digital TV stations in the United States | Channel 13 digital TV stations in the United States | Channel 9 digital TV stations in the United States | Channel 20 digital TV stations in the United States | Channel 10 digital TV stations in the United States