The Times from Shreveport, Louisiana • Page 16

Local 4B MONDAY, MAY 26, 2008 THE TIMES shreveporttimes.com Small television stations struggling with digital conversion Office report released last week said about 91 percent of the television stations surveyed said they are already airing digital signals and most of them are transmitting that signal at full strength. But other stations reported they still had a lot of work to do. James Smith, general manager of KSLA. a CBS affiliate in Shreve-port that reaches more than 900,000 viewers, said his station is among those already transmitting digital signals at full strength. He's hoping for a smooth conversion, but he's concerned about some of his viewers who don't have late-model televisions and can't afford or secure cable or satellite service.

He said the viewers who are most likely to have their television screens go black are the poor, the elderly and rural residents. By Ana Radelat aradelatgns.gannett.com For the average viewer, the transition to digital television will result in clearer pictures and better sound. But for Chad Giddens and other owners and managers of small, low-powered television stations, the conversion could force them to fade to black for many viewers. Giddens, general manager of Shreveport's KADO-LP, which airs on channel 40, said the future of the station that broadcasts religious and family programs is unclear. The small station's vulnerability was underscored when a bolt of lightning knocked it off the air last week.

Giddens hoped to repair the damage and be back on the air soon but doesn't know what the station will do when most of the industry goes completely digital by the congressional deadline of Feb. 17. One obstacle is the high cost of technology. Trying to come up with $150,000 or $250,000 to convert the station is a big feat for us," Giddens said. Low-power stations like KADO-LP are exempt from the requirement to adapt digital technology.

But many of KADO-LFs viewers are buying converter boxes so they will be able to view other television stations when they go digital. These viewers have older televisions that aren't equipped to receive digital broadcasts and don't subscribe to cable or satellite services that would allow their old television sets to receive digital programming. But most of the converter boxes ital and Congress' help would come too late. "It's putting a small bandage on a huge wound," he said. Ralph Davis, station manager of KNTS-LP, a low-power station in Natchitoches that transmits on channel 17, said he's considering converting to digital.

The station broadcasts local church services and sporting events. Davis is the station's only full-time employee and he's found it difficult to actively solicit sponsors to help pay for the conversion. "It's a juggling act," Davis said. "We have a few pieces of (conversion) equipment, but we're nowhere near where we should be." Some large, network-affiliated stations also may be facing challenges. A Government Accountability will block the analog broadcasts used by KADO-LP and nearly 7,000 other low-power stations.

"One day our viewers will see us and the next day they won't," Giddens said. Greg Herman, the Community Broadcasters Association's vice president in charge of technology, is furious at what he calls Congress' "ineptitude" at handling the conversion of the U.S. television industry from analog to digital, a move aimed at freeing up a large segment of the airwaves for wireless services and public safety communications. "We serve the underserved, but Congress has done nothing but harm to us," Herman said. Most low-powered stations air religious and Spanish-language programs or are linked to universities and colleges.

There are also thousands of low-powered translator stations that retransmit the programming of other stations to rural areas. Herman wants the federal government to stop giving the public $40 coupons to purchase converter boxes that block these stations' analog signals. The Commerce Department's National Telecommunications and Information Administration already has given out about 1 million coupons. The Senate this week approved legislation that would provide $65 million to reimburse low-powered stations for the costs of converting to digital. The reimbursements would begin after the Feb.

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