DTV Switch: Are You Ready?

Dtv Fcc WKRG goes digital. It's easy to find out if you're ready.

by Jessica Taloney

Published: Fri, June 12, 2009 - 5:05 pm CST

WKRG has seen a lot of changes since we signed on the air in 1955.

Just nine years after our first broadcast, WKRG made the switch from black and white to color programming.

Tonight, at 11:59:59 we'll be a part of another big transition... The switch from analog to digital.

"Our analog signal that we've used for 54 years is going away, and you need to do something," said Joe Goleniowksi, WKRG General Manager, who calls the transition historic. "You can either have a new television set with a digital tuner or a converter box that will take the digital signal, modify it and put it into your set."

Analog is, simply put, the way TV signals have always been transmitted, until tonight when WKRG and stations across the country go digital. For people ready for the switch, it will mean a better picture, better sound and more channels, but for people who aren't ready it will mean a screen full of "snow."

"It's going to be great or it's going to be frustrating," said Keith Vrazel, a WKRG engineer.

Since 9 a.m. Friday, WKRG has been broadcasting a DTV infomercial for our viewers who are still not digital. If you were able to watch WKRG's regular programming on Friday, then your TV is ready, but if you or someone you know know has a TV showing the infomercial, you're not.

The Nielson Company estimates 2.8 million American households, the equivalent of 2.5%, are not ready for the transition.

For more information on the switch click HERE.

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