[opendtv] Re: Louisiana governor blasts faulty wireless networks
- From: "John Shutt" <shuttj@xxxxxxxxx>
- To: <opendtv@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Tue, 6 Sep 2005 15:03:58 -0400
WWL is on AM 870, the same frequency as our daytime-only AM station here at
Michigan State. Here is a report on the state of TV and Radio in the New
Orleans area.
<
http://www.nola.com/newslogs/breakingtp/index.ssf?/mtlogs/nola_Times-Picayune/archives/2005_09.html#077118
>
Local TV stations scramble to keep signals up
By Dave Walker
TV columnist
One week after the world awoke to terrible pictures of Gulf Coast
devastation wrought by Hurricane Katrina, New Orleans broadcasters are
covering the continuing story from locations ranging from Baton Rouge to
Orlando.
Of the four New Orleans news-providing TV stations, only WWL-Channel 4 is
broadcasting on its normal frequency.
Anticipating hurricane flooding, the station elevated its transmitter
several years ago when upgrading equipment for the digital-television
transition.
Though the West Bank site has not flooded, the facility's sturdy
construction and backup power has allowed the city's most-watched news
provider to do around-the-clock coverage of the storm and its aftermath.
During the past week, WWL news programming has originated from the station's
French Quarter studios, the Manship School of Mass Communication at LSU and
even from a makeshift studio at the station's transmitter site.
WWL's news operation is currently based at Baton Rouge PBS affiliate WLPB.
In addition to its over-the-air signal (faintly visible in Baton Rouge,
refuge for thousands of New Orleans area residents), WWL's coverage is also
carried on cable TV in Baton Rouge, and, for one hour each day at 4:30 p.m.,
by WLPB.
Transmitter flooding in Katrina's wake, knocked WDSU-Channel 6, WVUE-Channel
8 and WGNO-Channel 26 off the air, though antenna towers for all three
survived the storm.
The stations have been discussing sharing a temporary transmitter until
their own signals can be restored, a process expected to take several weeks
due to floodwater damage to electronic gear.
"Anything that had water in it -- for 10 minutes or five days -- we expect
is gone," said WGNO General Manager Larry Delia.
A sign-on date for the co-op broadcast has not been set.
"We are hopeful to at least be making progress by the end of (this week),"
WVUE General Manager Jeff West said.
"It's a matter of getting delivery of the transmitter and being able to get
it where we need it."
To cover Katrina, WDSU relocated staffers to both WAPT-TV in Jackson, Miss.,
and WESH-TV in Orlando, both owned by WDSU's parent company, Hearst-Argyle
Television. WDSU's signal has been carried in the New Orleans area on Pax
affiliate WPXL-Channel 49.
WDSU News Director Anzio Williams said the station's Central Business
District studio and newsroom was not flooded or damaged last week by the
storm.
"The building is in perfect shape," he said. "The station is functional and
ready to go."
WVUE's Mid-City studio and newsroom were flooded by Katrina or the
subsequent levee failures, and likely won't be usable as a base of operation
when the station fires up again, date undetermined. A portion of the station's
news staff is stationed at WALA-TV in Mobile, Ala., owned by WVUE parent
Emmis Communications. Some staffers have contributed reports to cable's Fox
News Channel and WALA.
WGNO has teamed with Baton Rouge ABC affiliate WBRZ-TV (both are owned by
Tribune Co.) to provide
Katrina coverage. Damage to WGNO's studio and newsroom, recently relocated
to the top floor of the New Orleans Centre shopping mall, is believed to be
minimal.
On radio -- likely the most accessible news medium in parishes where
electricity remains knocked out -- two national station groups with New
Orleans clusters, Entercom and Clear Channel, have combined forces to
broadcast a signal at WWL AM-870. Now based in Baton Rouge, the cooperative
enterprise is providing round-the-clock Katrina news and talk using
personalities from numerous Entercom and Clear Channel stations.
TV columnist Dave Walker can be reached at davewala@xxxxxxxxxx
----------------------------------------------------------------------
You can UNSUBSCRIBE from the OpenDTV list in two ways:
- Using the UNSUBSCRIBE command in your user configuration settings at
FreeLists.org
- By sending a message to: opendtv-request@xxxxxxxxxxxxx with the word
unsubscribe in the subject line.
Other related posts:
