WGBH

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WGBH-TV / WGBX-TV
Boston, Massachusetts
Branding	WGBH Boston
Channels	2 (WGBH) (VHF) 44 (WGBX) (UHF) analog, 19 (WGBH) (UHF) 43 (WGBX) (UHF) digital
Affiliations	PBS (see article for digital offerings)
Owner	WGBH Educational Foundation
Founded	1951 (FM) May 2, 1955 (TV)
Call letters meaning	W Great Blue Hill — see below
Former affiliations	NET (1956-1970)
Website	www.wgbh.org

WGBH is an established public television and public radio broadcast service located in Boston, Massachusetts. It operates over ten stations -- primarily WGBH 2 and WGBX 44 (television), and WGBH 89.7 FM (radio). WGBH is a member of PBS in regard to its television broadcasts, and both a member of NPR and an affiliate of PRI for its radio broadcasts. The license-holder is the WGBH Educational Foundation.

WGBH produces many shows for the above organizations, including nearly a third of PBS's national prime-time TV. Programs produced for PBS include NOVA, Frontline, American Experience, The Victory Garden and This Old House.

Recognized for its contributions to non-commercial educational television programming, WGBH is also a leader in services for people who are deaf, hard-of-hearing, blind, or visually impaired. WGBH invented television closed captioning and the Descriptive Video Service (DVS); they provide these access services to commercial and public TV producers, and to home video, Web sites, and movie theaters nationwide.

Contents 1 History 2 Logo and ID 2.1 Scare Factor 2.2 Viewer Friendly Changes 3 Transmission facilities 4 Studios 5 Callsign history 6 Channels and digital services 6.1 WGBH-TV 6.2 WGBX-TV 6.3 Other services 7 Major WGBH productions 7.1 Television 7.2 Radio 7.3 Online 8 Footnote 9 External links

[edit] History

For more of a history of the Lowell Institute Cooperative Broadcasting Council see the article on John Lowell, Jr.

WGBH received its first broadcasting license in 1951 under the auspices of the Lowell Institute Cooperative Broadcasting Council, a consortium of local universities and cultural institutions, whose collaboration stems from an 1836 bequest by textile manufacturer John Lowell, Jr. calling for free public lectures for the citizens of Boston.

The original construction permit for Channel 2 in Boston went to Raytheon, an electronics company based in neighboring Waltham, Massachusetts, who would have launched a commercial television station under the call letters WRTB-TV (for Raytheon Television Broadcasting). WRTB never made it on the air, opening the way for the FCC to allocate Channel 2 for noncommercial purposes and for WGBH to receive a license to operate on that channel.

WGBH-TV Channel 2 went on the air on May 2, 1955, at 5:20 p.m. with studios located at 84 Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge. When a fire destroyed the studios in the early morning hours of October 14, 1961, WGBH-TV Channel 2 and WGBH 89.7 FM signed-on from their new studios located at 125 Western Avenue in Allston on August 29, 1964.

WGBH was New England's first non-commercial television station and a pioneer in what is now known as Public Television. Many programs seen on National Educational Television and later, the Public Broadcasting Service, originated at the facilities of WGBH or were otherwise produced by the station.

[edit] Logo and ID

WGBH 's distinctive, synthesized audio "sounder" (accompanied by differing animated visuals) has appeared in the open or close of its national TV programs for more than 30 years. The ID is among the most famous and longest lasting station signatures on television, public or commercial, along with the former "radar" signature of WNET and the animated shapes of the Public Broadcasting Service closing ID. The first such logo appeared in 1974. The seven-second ID begins with a white or yellow background, and then the letters WGBH (in black or blue) zoom out (emerging from the front) to the center of the screen and to the vanishing point. It is then followed by the word BOSTON zooming in from the center and taking up the whole screen (similar to Viacom's V of Doom), which then goes black or blue. The logo concludes with the word PRESENTS (in white or gold) slowly zooming in from the center. This logo is now believed to be extinct, though it is occasionally seen in reruns of very old WGBH programming, particularly Julia Child's The French Chef (which in the case of this program used the official colors of France when they did the intros on some of her shows).

The same music is also used in the current synth-animation signature. The original seven-second piece began appearing at the beginning of WGBH's national shows in late 1978, accompanied by different visuals—including the "outline" design that is the WGBH emblem. The WGBH national sounder/ID now appears as a three- or four-second stinger at the end of its PBS programs, based on the national web's request that station IDs be as succinct as possible.

"Flash of Doom" logo	End of "Flash of Doom" logo (version 1)	End of "Flash of Doom" logo (version 2)	Modified version of the "Flash of Doom" logo showing the PBS logo at the end
"Neon Tube" logo, used as a station id	End of "Neon Tube" logo

With these ID’s, there have been vartitions that include and do not include voiceovers

Voice Over

Name of Logo	Voiceover
Flash of doom	You’re Watching WGBH Boston (local) A Production of WGBH Boston (endcap)
Modified Flash of Doom	You’re Watching WGBH Boston (local) A Production of WGBH, Produced In Boston, Shared With The Nation (endcap, particularly for national shows seen locally)
Neon Tube	WGBH, Boston (local)

[edit] Scare Factor

While not intending to be scary, the 1978 version frightened many viewers because it was random and unpredictable for the first time. The WGBH jingle and logo were considered surreal, abstract, and subtly psychedelic because of its characteristics:

1. Starting with a black screen or "background", the outline slowly forms and eerie, space-like moog synthesizer beeps pop in.
2. The moog synthesizer then makes a slow violin like sound.
3. The WGBH letters and the shadow outline form as the tone builds up. Then, in the last two or three seconds, the outline logo (while looking very real) "bursts" or "catches fire".
4. The neon blurs out and fades into the words "Boston Presents" (with "Boston" being bigger and on top of "Presents") as the moog synthesizer tone reaches its crescendo.

• Note: This is only for the 7-second signature. Most commonly, the tail end of the outline forming around WGBH is seen, the letters "flash" and "Boston Presents" is seen (the first two descriptions above are removed and the jingle lasts approximately 3-4 seconds).

Arguably, the most disturbing element of the jingle has been the overwhelming synth music. The music, combined with the black background, bright colors and seemingly life-like animation has scared many viewers over the years. However, others have found it strangely fascinating and consider it a classic.

[edit] Viewer Friendly Changes

Circa 1994, a more "viewer-friendly" jingle was created. This new jingle moved from the very beginning of a program (when viewers might not expect it) to the very end after the credits. Also, the music wasn't as intense or long and the animation wasn't as eerie. The theme songs of some shows even overrode the "sting" of the jingle, presumably so young children wouldn't be frightened. Examples of the music being overridden by the show's music itself are Arthur, Between the Lions and Postcards from Buster . Suprisingly, the children's television show ZOOM plays this sting at the end without being overridden, which could possibly be to establish continuity with the original ZOOM series. FETCH! with Ruff Ruffman is another show in which the jingle plays unimpeded.

Other shows have practically eliminated the animation and music, opting for a simple black and white or neon-orange logo. The American version of Antiques Roadshow has changed from having the jingle at the very end to displaying a stationary "neon" WGBH logo for the last 5-10 seconds of the program. There is no longer an animated jingle and the closing theme is playing while the logo is on the screen (the WGBH sounder/stinger is not heard). Shows such as The New Yankee Workshop and This Old House (which originally featued the animation and music in the beginning, and later the end, of each program) have basically dropped it altogether albeit a stationary WGBH logo in black and white at the end of This Old House and Ask This Old House. As with Antiques Roadshow, both of these programs have their closing music playing while the logo is on the screen and no sounder/stinger is heard.

Currently, the first and only WGBH-produced program to not use the jingle/logo in some way on public television is The New Yankee Workshop. It still features the WGBH Educational Foundation in the closing credits and "offer made by WGBH" during the information to buy the episode on home video, but the logo and jingle have been non-existent for quite some time.

[edit] Transmission facilities

"GBH" stands for Great Blue Hill, the location of WGBH's FM transmitter, as well as the original location of WGBH-TV's transmitter. Great Blue Hill in Milton, Massachusetts, has an elevation of 635 feet (193 m) and is the highest point in the Boston area. Today, WGBH-TV's and WGBX-TV's transmitters are located at the CBS digital television facility in Needham, Massachusetts, where channel 44 originally signed on September 25, 1967; channel 2 moved there on June 18, 1966. WGBX-TV's digital service on channel 43 shares the master antenna at the very top of the tower with the commercial stations. Analog channel 44 has a separate antenna lower down that is shared with WGBH-DT on channel 19.

WGBH operates a CANCOM satellite uplink facility which provides Boston broadcast television stations to Canadian cable and satellite TV distributors. As a Canadian company, CANCOM is not legally entitled to operate an uplink facility in the United States. Hence, it pays WGBH to perform this service on its behalf. This facility is also located at the CBS (WBZ-TV) tower in Needham.

WGBH also owns three stations in the Cape Cod and Islands area, licensed to Woods Hole (WCAI), Nantucket (WNAN), and Brewster (WZAI). All simulcast National Public Radio programming but are programmed separately from WGBH. A fourth station, WNCK, is owned by Nantucket Public Radio, but simulcasts WGBH-FM programming.

All of WGBH's radio signals are available as Internet radio, and WGBH-FM and WGBH-HD2 were added to the iTunes online radio channel lineup in August 2006.

[edit] Studios

WGBH's original studios were located at 84 Massachusetts Avenue in Cambridge, Massachusetts (presently Stratton Student Center) on the campus of MIT until the building burned down in a 1961 fire. Three years later, after being based in temporary offices and using the studios of Boston's commercial television stations to produce local programming, the station moved to 125 Western Avenue in the Allston neighborhood of Boston. The ZIP code of the station and its post-office box—PO Box 350, Boston, Mass 02134—was made famous in a recurring jingle on its 1970s and late 1990s children's program, ZOOM. Due to Harvard University planning new buildings for the land the studios sit on (which is currently owned by Harvard), in 2006, WGBH will move to new studios under construction in Boston's Brighton neighborhood.

[edit] Callsign history

WGBH's original transmitter was located on Great Blue Hill in Milton, Massachusetts (thus the choice of WGBH as a callsign) and the FM radio transmitter is still there. As a result, all of WGBH's TV stations have the WGB* form; channel 44 in Boston has WGBX (supposedly for Great Blue Experimental), while channel 57 in Springfield, Massachusetts has WGBY for Great Blue Yonder. There was to be a WGBW in Adams, Massachusetts at one point that would have operated on channel 35; its W was to stand for West. The callsign has since been reassigned to a Christian radio station in Florida.

The original Cape Cod and Islands stations are WCAI for CApe and Islands and WNAN for NANtucket; WZAI seems to be derived from the 'CAI callsign.

WNCK is derived from a shortening of NantuCKet as well.

WGBH's callsign is occasionally jokingly expanded as "God Bless Harvard", although the station's connections with the university are at best indirect. (Harvard was one of several Boston-area universities which took part in the Lowell Institute Cooperative Broadcasting Council, and provided land on Western Avenue in Allston for the station's studios.)

[edit] Channels and digital services

[edit] WGBH-TV

• WGBH-TV 2/DT 19 Boston (also on Comcast cable channels 2 and 97)
• WGBH High Definition (WGBH-DT 2.2 and Comcast Digital Cable channel 802 — runs a different schedule than the SD channel)

[edit] WGBX-TV

• WGBX-TV 44/DT 43 Boston (also on Comcast cable channel 16)
• WGBH World (WGBX-DT 44.2 and Comcast Digital Cable channel 209)
• WGBH Create (WGBX-DT 44.3 and Comcast Digital Cable channel 237)
• 'GBH Kids (WGBX-DT 44.4 and Comcast Digital Cable channel 217)

[edit] Other services

• WGBH On Demand (Comcast On Demand)
• Boston Kids & Family TV (Comcast channel 22 and RCN channel 3, only available in Boston)
• WGBY-TV 57/DT 58 Springfield
• WGBH 89.7 Boston
  • in Nantucket heard on WNCK 89.5
  • in East Cambridge heard on W242AA 96.3
  • WGBH-HD2 — classical music stream available over the Web and on HD Radio
• Cape and Islands NPR www.cainan.org
  • WCAI 90.1 Woods Hole
  • WNAN 91.1 Nantucket
  • WZAI 94.3 Brewster

WGBH is one of six local Boston TV stations seen in Canada on the Bell ExpressVu satellite provider.

At one point, WGBH operated a Hyannis translator on channel 8 that had the W08CH call sign, which later ceased operations. It was deleted by the FCC in 2004.^[1]

[edit] Major WGBH productions

[edit] Television

• All About You
• American Experience
• Antiques Roadshow
  • Antiques Roadshow FYI
• Arthur
• Basic Black (formerly Say Brother)
• Between the Lions
• Curious George
• Destinos: An Introduction to Spanish
• Discovering Psychology
• Evening at Pops
• FETCH! with Ruff Ruffman
• French in Action
• The French Chef
• Frontline
  • Frontline/World
• The Fool of the World and the Flying Ship
• Greater Boston
• La Plaza
• Masterpiece Theatre
• Mystery!
• NOVA
  • NOVA scienceNOW
• Peep and the Big Wide World
• Postcards from Buster
• Rebop
• Simply Ming
• This Old House
• Time Warp Trio
• The Victory Garden
• The Western Tradition
• Where in the World Is Carmen Sandiego? (in partnership with WQED in Pittsburgh)
• ZOOM

[edit] Radio

• Open Source
• A Celtic Sojourn
• Says You!
• Sound & Spirit
• The World (co-produced with the BBC)
• The Changing World
• From the Top
• Arts and Ideas

[edit] Online

• FFFBI
• Teachers' Domain
• The WGBH Forum Network

[edit] Footnote

1. ^ Call Sign History. CDBS Public Access. Federal Communications Commission. Retrieved on 2006-02-19.

Forum Network

[edit] External links

• Screen capture of the Flash of Doom at retrojunk.com
• WGBH Educational Foundation
• Cape and Islands NPR (covers WCAI, WNAN, and WZAI)
• Query the FCC's TV station database for WGBH
• Query the FCC's TV station database for WGBX
• Query the FCC's FM station database for WGBH
• Query the FCC's FM station database for WCAI
• Query the FCC's FM station database for WNAN
• Query the FCC's FM station database for WZAI
• Query the FCC's FM station database for WNCK