Eight/KAET hosts callers' questions for DTV

On Dec. 5, The Arizona Broadcasters Association (ABA) coordinated the statewide broadcast of a message about the upcoming digital television (DTV) transition on Feb. 17, 2009. The five-minute message pre-empted regular programming and encouraged viewers to take action on analog TV sets that rely on antennas to receive broadcast channels. The studios of Eight, Arizona PBS (KAET) hosted the ABA event where employees from local TV stations answered phone calls from viewers across Arizona. The message generated thousands of phone calls over two hours. A total of 949 phone calls were answered locally, and overflow calls were forwarded to the FCC’s DTV hotline. Another statewide message was broadcast Dec. 17, and a final five-minute test is scheduled for Jan. 17, 2009 at 6:25 p.m. Visit http://azpbs.org/digital for more information about DTV.

About Eight/KAET-TV
Eight, Arizona PBS specializes in the education of children, in-depth news and public affairs, lifelong learning, and the celebration of arts and culture — utilizing the power of noncommercial television, the Internet, educational outreach services, and community-based initiatives. The PBS station began broadcasting from the campus of Arizona State University on January 30, 1961. Now more than 80 percent of Arizonans receive the signal through a network of translators, cable and satellite systems. With more than 1.3 million viewers each week, Eight consistently ranks among the most-viewed public television stations per capita in the country.  Arizonans provide more than 60 percent of the station’s annual budget. For more information, visit www.azpbs.org.

Eight is a member-supported service of Arizona State University.