KMTP-TV
Encyclopedia
KMTP-TV, channel 32, is an independent, non-commercial television station located in San Francisco, California, USA
. Owned and operated by the Minority Television Project, KMTP's has its main studio and offices in Palo Alto, California
, and transmitter situated atop Mount Sutro
.
KMTP airs a large amount of multilingual, ethnic programming. The station produces and broadcast a daily news show, 5 Day News, and also broadcasts programming from Deutsche Welle
TV, Russia Today TV
, and the Classic Arts Showcase
. KMTP is one of the few non-PBS
-affiliated public television stations in the United States, and one of two such stations in the San Francisco Bay Area (The other is KCSM-TV
in San Mateo).
TV stations in the United States in 1954 as KSAN-TV, owned by the Patterson family, operators of KSAN radio
, showing an amalgam of boxing and wrestling matches, medical conferences, and old movies. The station went off the air in 1958.
The TV station was purchased by Metromedia
in 1968, when the call sign was moved to an FM station and the station re-christened KNEW-TV, to match its co-owned KNEW radio
and to compliment Metromedia's flagship station in New York, WNEW-TV (Now Fox-owned WNYW-TV). KNEW-TV ran the syndicated Metromedia talk shows and variety programming of such stars as shock-talker Joe Pyne
, and others.
This format was unsuccessful, and by 1970 channel 32 was given to leading public broadcaster KQED (channel 9) and re-christened once again, this time as KQEC, a member station of the Public Broadcasting Service
(PBS). KQED held onto the station until 1988 when the FCC revoked the license, ruling that it had been off the air too much to remain in the hands of the KQED ownership (KQED kept KQEC off the air for most of 1972 through 1977, and then again for several months in 1979-80), and reassigned the license to Minority Television Project, one of the challengers of the KQEC license.http://www.current.org/ptv/ptv888kqed.shtml
and similar stations to show underwriters' messages that resemble commercials, it is illegal for educationally-licensed stations, like KMTP, to show advertisements that do not meet the standards for underwriting announcements.http://www.fcc.gov/mb/audio/decdoc/public_and_broadcasting.html#UNDERWRITING,http://www.fcc.gov/mb/audio/nature.html KMTP appealed the decision in 2005, but the fine was upheld, prompting KMTP to file a lawsuit against the FCC in U.S. District Court the following year.
In suing the FCC, KMTP felt it was unfairly penalized by the FCC's rules concerning underwriting and not taking into account foreign language broadcasting. There are a number of independent non-PBS public television stations in the United States; other such stations include KCSM-TV
in nearby San Mateo
, KCET
in downstate Los Angeles
, the WNVC/WNVT MHz Networks
group in Northern Virginia
, WNYE-TV
in New York City
and WYBE
in Philadelphia
. The underwriting rules do not take into account foreign languages and the variations in pronunciations and meanings. KMTP carried out research to find out what the public interpreted a commercial to be. Using a numerical grading system certain aspects of a video clip were found by the public to "feel" like a commercial or not like a commercial. These findings were presented to the FCC as it did not depend on any particular words or phrases which can be misinterpreted when foreign languages are used. The FCC rejected KMTP's attempt to clarify the underwriting rules leaving KMTP with no choice but to take the matter to the courts.
The ultimate outcome of KMTP's lawsuit could have far reaching affects as it could re-define the very definition of what a public television station is. One of the main points is freedom of political speech, as the current underwriting rules have a chilling effect on KMTP accepting political spots as they could be interpreted as violating the current rules when broadcast in a foreign language. The Ninth Circuit Court is due to make its initial brief in March 2010 .
Digital channels>
Subchannel
Programming
32.1
KMTP Digital
32.2
IDOtv (Wedding fashion, food, honeymoon and resources.)
32.4
I-AMTV (Independent Asian Music Television)
32.5
NTD TV
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. Owned and operated by the Minority Television Project, KMTP's has its main studio and offices in Palo Alto, California
Palo Alto, California
Palo Alto is a California charter city located in the northwest corner of Santa Clara County, in the San Francisco Bay Area of California, United States. The city shares its borders with East Palo Alto, Mountain View, Los Altos, Los Altos Hills, Stanford, Portola Valley, and Menlo Park. It is...
, and transmitter situated atop Mount Sutro
Sutro Tower
Sutro Tower is a three-pronged antenna tower near Clarendon Heights in San Francisco, California. Rising from a hill between Twin Peaks and Mount Sutro, it is a prominent part of the city skyline and a landmark for city residents and visitors...
.
KMTP airs a large amount of multilingual, ethnic programming. The station produces and broadcast a daily news show, 5 Day News, and also broadcasts programming from Deutsche Welle
Deutsche Welle
Deutsche Welle or DW, is Germany's international broadcaster. The service is aimed at the overseas market. It broadcasts news and information on shortwave, Internet and satellite radio on 98.7 DZFE in 30 languages . It has a satellite television service , that is available in four languages, and...
TV, Russia Today TV
Russia Today TV
RT, previously known as Russia Today, is a global multilingual television news network based in the Russian Federation run by the state-owned state-run RIA Novosti....
, and the Classic Arts Showcase
Classic Arts Showcase
Classic Arts Showcase is a television channel in the United States promoting the fine arts. The television program content includes prepared media and recorded live performances...
. KMTP is one of the few non-PBS
Public Broadcasting Service
The Public Broadcasting Service is an American non-profit public broadcasting television network with 354 member TV stations in the United States which hold collective ownership. Its headquarters is in Arlington, Virginia....
-affiliated public television stations in the United States, and one of two such stations in the San Francisco Bay Area (The other is KCSM-TV
KCSM-TV
KCSM-TV, virtual channel 60, is an independent, non-commercial television station located in San Mateo, California, USA. Until 2009, KCSM-TV was a PBS member station...
in San Mateo).
History
The station on channel 32 began commercially as one of the first UHFUltra high frequency
Ultra-High Frequency designates the ITU Radio frequency range of electromagnetic waves between 300 MHz and 3 GHz , also known as the decimetre band or decimetre wave as the wavelengths range from one to ten decimetres...
TV stations in the United States in 1954 as KSAN-TV, owned by the Patterson family, operators of KSAN radio
KSAN (AM)
One of the first "rhythm and blues" radio stations in the United States, KSAN , known later as KSOL , was located in San Francisco, California...
, showing an amalgam of boxing and wrestling matches, medical conferences, and old movies. The station went off the air in 1958.
The TV station was purchased by Metromedia
Metromedia
Metromedia was a media company that owned radio and television stations in the United States from 1956 to 1986 and owned Orion Pictures from 1986-1997.- Overview :...
in 1968, when the call sign was moved to an FM station and the station re-christened KNEW-TV, to match its co-owned KNEW radio
KNEW (AM)
KNEW is a radio station in San Francisco, Oakland, and San Jose, CA, USA. The station is owned by Clear Channel. Prior to the format change, the station operated as CNET Radio, offering business and technology news 24 hours a day...
and to compliment Metromedia's flagship station in New York, WNEW-TV (Now Fox-owned WNYW-TV). KNEW-TV ran the syndicated Metromedia talk shows and variety programming of such stars as shock-talker Joe Pyne
Joe Pyne
Joe Pyne was an American radio and television talk show host, who pioneered the confrontational style in which the host advocates a viewpoint and argues with guests and audience members...
, and others.
This format was unsuccessful, and by 1970 channel 32 was given to leading public broadcaster KQED (channel 9) and re-christened once again, this time as KQEC, a member station of the Public Broadcasting Service
Public Broadcasting Service
The Public Broadcasting Service is an American non-profit public broadcasting television network with 354 member TV stations in the United States which hold collective ownership. Its headquarters is in Arlington, Virginia....
(PBS). KQED held onto the station until 1988 when the FCC revoked the license, ruling that it had been off the air too much to remain in the hands of the KQED ownership (KQED kept KQEC off the air for most of 1972 through 1977, and then again for several months in 1979-80), and reassigned the license to Minority Television Project, one of the challengers of the KQEC license.http://www.current.org/ptv/ptv888kqed.shtml
Controversy
In 2004, the FCC levied a $10,000 fine against KMTP for showing paid commercials on a station with an educational license.http://www.fcc.gov/eb/Orders/2005/FCC-05-180A1.html While it is commonplace for PBSPublic Broadcasting Service
The Public Broadcasting Service is an American non-profit public broadcasting television network with 354 member TV stations in the United States which hold collective ownership. Its headquarters is in Arlington, Virginia....
and similar stations to show underwriters' messages that resemble commercials, it is illegal for educationally-licensed stations, like KMTP, to show advertisements that do not meet the standards for underwriting announcements.http://www.fcc.gov/mb/audio/decdoc/public_and_broadcasting.html#UNDERWRITING,http://www.fcc.gov/mb/audio/nature.html KMTP appealed the decision in 2005, but the fine was upheld, prompting KMTP to file a lawsuit against the FCC in U.S. District Court the following year.
In suing the FCC, KMTP felt it was unfairly penalized by the FCC's rules concerning underwriting and not taking into account foreign language broadcasting. There are a number of independent non-PBS public television stations in the United States; other such stations include KCSM-TV
KCSM-TV
KCSM-TV, virtual channel 60, is an independent, non-commercial television station located in San Mateo, California, USA. Until 2009, KCSM-TV was a PBS member station...
in nearby San Mateo
San Mateo, California
San Mateo is a city in San Mateo County, California, United States, in the San Francisco Bay Area. With a population of approximately 100,000 , it is one of the larger suburbs on the San Francisco Peninsula, located between Burlingame to the north, Foster City to the east, Belmont to the south,...
, KCET
KCET
KCET, channel 28, is an independent, non-commercial public television station licensed to Los Angeles, California, USA. KCET's studio is located on West Sunset Boulevard in Hollywood, and its transmitter is atop Mount Wilson. Al Jerome is the current CEO and President, serving since 1996.KCET was...
in downstate Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
, the WNVC/WNVT MHz Networks
MHz Networks
MHz Networks is a Northern Virginia based independent, non-commercial educational broadcaster operated by Commonwealth Public Broadcasting Corporation. The legal broadcast callsigns for the two stations of MHz Networks are WNVC and WNVT...
group in Northern Virginia
Northern Virginia
Northern Virginia consists of several counties and independent cities in the Commonwealth of Virginia, in a widespread region generally radiating southerly and westward from Washington, D.C...
, WNYE-TV
WNYE-TV
WNYE-TV, channel 25 is an non-commercial educational, independent television station located in New York City, USA. WNYE-TV is part of the NYC Media Group and has its studios located in Brooklyn and Manhattan, and transmitter at the Conde Nast Building....
in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
and WYBE
WYBE
WYBE, channel 35, is an independent, non-commercial educational public television station located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA. Owned and operated by Independence Public Media of Philadelphia , WYBE's transmitter and offices are located at 8200 Ridge Avenue in the Roxborough section of...
in Philadelphia
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Philadelphia is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Philadelphia County, with which it is coterminous. The city is located in the Northeastern United States along the Delaware and Schuylkill rivers. It is the fifth-most-populous city in the United States,...
. The underwriting rules do not take into account foreign languages and the variations in pronunciations and meanings. KMTP carried out research to find out what the public interpreted a commercial to be. Using a numerical grading system certain aspects of a video clip were found by the public to "feel" like a commercial or not like a commercial. These findings were presented to the FCC as it did not depend on any particular words or phrases which can be misinterpreted when foreign languages are used. The FCC rejected KMTP's attempt to clarify the underwriting rules leaving KMTP with no choice but to take the matter to the courts.
The ultimate outcome of KMTP's lawsuit could have far reaching affects as it could re-define the very definition of what a public television station is. One of the main points is freedom of political speech, as the current underwriting rules have a chilling effect on KMTP accepting political spots as they could be interpreted as violating the current rules when broadcast in a foreign language. The Ninth Circuit Court is due to make its initial brief in March 2010 .
Digital television
The station's digital channel, UHF 33, is multiplexed:External links
- Image available from: http://www.kmtp.tv/images/kmtplogo-png.png
- KMTP Homepage
- UHF Nocturne: KNEW 32
