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|---|---|
| Channels | |
| Branding | GBH 44 |
| Programming | |
| Affiliations |
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| Ownership | |
| Owner | WGBH Educational Foundation |
| History | |
First air date | September 25, 1967 (1967-09-25) |
Former channel numbers |
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| NET (1967–1970) | |
| Technical information[1] | |
Licensing authority | FCC |
| Facility ID | 72098 |
| ERP | 922 kW |
| HAAT | 388.3 m (1,274.0 ft) |
| Transmitter coordinates | 42°18′37″N71°14′12″W / 42.31028°N 71.23667°W /42.31028; -71.23667 (WGBX-TV) |
| Links | |
Public license information | |
| Website | www |
WGBX-TV (channel 44), brandedGBH 44, is the secondaryPBS membertelevision station inBoston, Massachusetts, United States. It is owned by theWGBH Educational Foundation alongsideWGBH-TV (channel 2) and originates from studios on Guest Street in northwest Boston'sBrighton neighborhood.[2] WGBX-TV's transmitter is located on Cedar Street (southwest ofI-95/MA 128) inNeedham, Massachusetts.
WGBX-TV began broadcasting in September 1967 as a source of experimental, alternative, and additional educational programming, in addition to repeats of shows aired by WGBH-TV. It also provided an outlet for specialty telecourses and instructional material. In the 1960s and 1970s, such programs asThe Most Dangerous Game,Catch 44, andClub 44 attracted national attention or moved to the parent station. WGBX-TV provided the first gavel-to-gavel telecast of an American state legislature in 1984 when theMassachusetts House of Representatives agreed to have their sessions televised in full, and it was a test bed for experimentation with new digital audio standards in the late 1980s. In the 1990s, WGBX-TV programming was revamped to feature themed nights and increase awareness of its identity.
WGBX-TV itself broadcasts standard-definition versions of WGBX and WGBH (both in high definition from the WGBH-TV multiplex) and several multicast services.WBTS-CD,NBC10 Boston, shares the channel, allowing the station to broadcast at high power to the Boston area.
Channel 44 had originally been allotted to Boston as a commercial television channel. Two companies, Integrated Communications Systems andUnited Artists Broadcasting, had each applied for the channel in 1963. They were soon joined by theWGBH Educational Foundation, which proposed anon-commercial educational station. All three applications were designated forcomparative hearing in February 1964,[3] but that July, the FCC reserved channel 44 for educational use in Boston and transferred channel 25 fromBarnstable to serve as a new commercial channel.[4] The two commercial applicants then switched their proposals to channel 25, leaving WGBH alone in its channel 44 application and allowing theFederal Communications Commission (FCC) to award the construction permit in October.[5]
TheDepartment of Health, Education and Welfare awarded a $725,000 grant for the construction of WGBX-TV in January 1966; the station was projected to provide specialized educational programming.[6] WGBX-TV began broadcasting on September 25, 1967,[7] two weeks after the station aired its firsttest pattern.[8]
In addition to replays and additionalPBS programs as well as college telecourses, WGBX has offered a wide range of experimental programs and services in its history. The very first program broadcast by the station was a teacherin-service program designed to help first-grade instructors teach drama.[9] OnThe Most Dangerous Game, an audience participation program telecast in 1967, viewers could call a telephone number to control the movement of a fictional country, Transania, in a hypothetical foreign policy crisis.[10] A monthly series on the intersection of law enforcement and critical justice was distributed to other educational stations.[11] In 1968, WGBX-TV andWBZ-TV broadcastRead Your Way Up: A TV Read-In, an adult literacy program.[12] In November 1970, the station debuted apublic-access show,Catch 44.[13] The program attracted widespread national and international interest; other public stations copied the format, as did theBBC, which launchedOpen Door in 1973.[14] In 1973, as part of an initiative by the WGBH Educational Foundation, it and nine other public stations in northeastern cities began airing an open-captioned version of theABC Evening News.[15]
WGBX began airing live, gavel-to-gavel (beginning to end) coverage of theMassachusetts House of Representatives in 1984, making it the first state legislative chamber to have full, unedited proceedings televised.[16] TheMassachusetts State Senate joined the House on WGBX in 1994.[17] Legislative coverage on channel 44 continued through 2006; the contracts with each chamber were not renewed for 2007.[18]
Beginning in 1986 and continuing through at least 1988, with special FCC permission, it was the only station in the United States authorized to broadcastpulse-code modulation (PCM) digital audio on its video signal; the audio programs, primarily simulcasts ofWGBH-FM aired overnight but also including specially recorded concerts, could then be decoded from the video tape by residents with the appropriate decoder equipment.[19][20][21]
In 1987, weekend programming on WGBX was expanded to add 18 additional hours, primarily replays of programs aired by WGBH, as part of celebrations for the 20th anniversary of channel 44.[22] However, brand recognition of WGBX remained low, and people perceived it as primarily airing repeats of WGBH programming. In January 1995, WGBH relaunched WGBX under the brand GBH44 to bring it closer to the main station.[23] It increased emphasis on independent and offbeat programming, including the use of themed nights, though it continued to air shows that had to be moved off the channel 2 schedule and to air the main WGBH lineup during the station's annual auction.[24][25] By 1997, WGBX-TV was the 26th-most-watched public television station inprime time, demonstrating that the changes had given channel 44 an identity and increased recognition.[23]
In 1999, the tower used by WGBX-TV in Needham, owned by WBZ-TV, was overhauled to support digital broadcasting for its tenants, including WBZ, WGBH and WGBX, andWCVB-TV. The work included removing the top 300 feet (91 m) and replacing it with a new 400-foot (120 m) section and the installation of new equipment.[26][27] However, WGBX-TV did not begin digital broadcasts on its own channel until January 1, 2003.[28]
WGBX-TV shut down itsanalog signal, overUHF channel 44, on April 23, 2009.[29] The WGBH Educational Foundation had previously warned that defective equipment might force the station to close prior to the June transition date.[30] The station's digital signal continued to be broadcast on its pre-transition UHF channel 43, usingvirtual channel 44.[31]
On January 16, 2017, WGBX switched its fourth subchannel from a locally programmed loop of children's programming to the relaunched nationalPBS Kids channel.[32]
On January 18, 2018, WGBX began achannel share withNashua, New Hampshire–licensed WYCN-CD (channel 15, nowWBTS-CD), which was acquired by theNBC Owned Television Stations subsidiary ofNBCUniversal. Though WBTS-CD is aClass A low-power station, it is broadcast by a full-power station. WYCN-CD had been a "zombie station" — a license without a transmitter — after selling its spectrum in the2016 United States wireless spectrum auction.[33] Moving WYCN-CD to the WGBX multiplex gaveNBC10 Boston full-market coverage.[34]
WGBX-TV and WBTS-CD transmit using WGBX-TV's spectrum from a tower on Cedar Street inNeedham, Massachusetts.[1] The stations' signals aremultiplexed:
| License | Channel | Res. | Aspect | Short name | Programming |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| WGBX-TV | 2.2 | 480i | 16:9 | World | World |
| 2.3 | WGBH-SD | PBS (WGBH-TV) | |||
| 44.2 | WGBX-SD | PBS | |||
| 44.3 | Create | Create | |||
| 44.4 | Kids | PBS Kids | |||
| WBTS-CD | 15.1 | 1080i | WBTS-CD | NBC | |
| 15.2 | 480i | Cozi | Cozi TV |
There is no channel 44.1 on the WGBX-TV multiplex, as it is broadcast by WGBH-TV.[36]
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