KRCB
On two lines, a red star and the word NORTHERN in black above the word CALIFORNIA in black. Overlapping the word California is a green shape suggestive of hills, on which the words "Public Media" are displayed in white off to the right.
CityCotati, California
Channels
BrandingKRCB North Bay
Programming
Affiliations
Ownership
Owner
KRCB-FM, KRCG-FM, KPJK
History
First air date
December 2, 1984 (1984-12-02)
Former call signs
KRCB-TV (1984–1995)
Former channel number(s)
  • Analog: 22 (UHF, 1984–2009)
  • Digital:
  • 23 (UHF, 2003–2009)
  • 22 (UHF, 2009–2020)
Call sign meaning
"Rural California Broadcasting"
Technical information[1]
Licensing authority
FCC
Facility ID57945
ERP18.6 kW
HAAT463.3 m (1,520 ft)
Transmitter coordinates37°45′19″N 122°27′10″W / 37.75528°N 122.45278°W / 37.75528; -122.45278
Links
Public license information
Websitenorcalpublicmedia.org

KRCB (channel 22) is a PBS member television station licensed to Cotati, California, United States, serving the San Francisco Bay Area. Owned by Northern California Public Media (the Rural California Broadcasting Corporation), it is a sister station to NPR members KRCG-FM (91.1) and KRCB-FM (104.9) and independent noncommercial station KPJK (channel 60). The stations share studios on Labath Avenue in Rohnert Park; the TV station's transmitter is located at Sutro Tower in San Francisco.

KRCB began broadcasting on December 2, 1984. Its sign-on culminated years of effort to bring a public television station to the North Bay, which was underserved in local programming and signal coverage by San Francisco public station KQED. In 1994, KRCB expanded to FM radio broadcasting. After agreeing to sell its spectrum for $72 million in the 2016 incentive auction, it rapidly expanded, moving its transmitter to San Francisco; buying San Jose public station KCSM-TV (now KPJK); and rebranding as Northern California Public Media. KRCB continues to serve as a secondary member of PBS and produces programming of local interest to the North Bay as well as regional programming for the Bay Area.

History

Construction

In 1963, at the request of the Sonoma State College Foundation, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) allocated educational channel 16 to Cotati.[2] This channel was changed to 22 in a national overhaul of the ultra high frequency (UHF) table of allocations in 1966.[3]

In the late 1970s, John Kramer, a professor at Sonoma State University, served in the White House Office of Telecommunications Policy and discovered that the Cotati educational allotment was still available.[4] As a result, in 1981, John Kramer founded the Rural California Broadcasting Corporation (RCBC) to file for, construct, and operate the educational station. The station would broadcast from Sonoma Mountain and serve North Bay communities; the founders envisioned it primarily rebroadcasting KVIE from Sacramento with local programming and using studios at Sonoma State.[5][6] Kramer envisioned the station as serving, first and foremost, rural and agricultural communities, providing North Bay coverage not produced by the San Francisco stations.[7] However, Sonoma State did not provide support for the station; the two split when president Peter Diamandopoulos declared, "If I don't control the board of directors, it cannot be on campus."[8]

Another group also applied for the Cotati channel: the Black Television Workshop. Its proposal, filed on the last day to do so and without any public notice in local newspapers, envisioned using channel 22 to broadcast subscription television programming for the Black community in the Bay Area.[9] It also forced Rural California Broadcasting into comparative hearing to adjudicate who would get the channel. During prolonged FCC hearings, Kramer approached Nancy Dobbs-Dixon to be the station manager; she stayed, ultimately married Kramer after her previous marriage ended, and had a child.[10][8] However, facing an expensive case at the FCC, the two parties agreed to settle, with RCBC paying the Workshop in exchange for its withdrawal and the Workshop instead seeking channel 62 in Santa Rosa.[lower-alpha 1] The FCC granted a construction permit in September 1982.[11] The station slated a mid-1983 launch and began to receive grant funds from the National Telecommunications and Information Administration to finance construction;[12][13] by the end of 1982, the station needed to raise funds and find permanent studio space to support its local programming plans. These included programs in Spanish; the station manager of bilingual radio station KBBF sat on Rural California Broadcasting's first board of directors.[14]

In February 1984, the city of Rohnert Park approved the station to build studios and offices at a city-owned site on LaBath Avenue, to which the station would move buildings once used by Synanon in Marin County and donated by the San Francisco Foundation.[15] By that time, the station appeared to be headed for a launch in mid-1984.[16] Capital fundraising efforts in the community reached a crescendo as the station needed to raise matching funds from the community for the grants it had received.[17]

A wide, tall rocky mountain with a mountaintop broadcast tower barely visible
KRCB originally broadcast from Sonoma Mountain, providing public television service to households unable to receive San Francisco's KQED.

KRCB began broadcasting on December 2, 1984, providing service to more than a million people, including many in the North Bay that could not receive KQED from San Francisco.[18][19] One local child wrote a thank you to the new station, containing 35 cents and a handwritten card claiming, "Now I can get Sesame Street."[10] The length of time it took to put the station on the air left its finances in a precarious condition: it had to nearly immediately refinance its studios to raise money that would count as matching funds for its original 1982 grant.[20] Where it had once proposed 15 hours a week of local programs,[7] it was airing short interstitial items instead.[21] However, its local programming steadily grew over the next several years. This was a service not matched by KQED, though the San Francisco public station continued to have a far wider base of support and a far larger operating budget. In Sonoma, Marin, and Napa counties alone, KQED had some 12,000 members in 1988; KRCB had 2,800 members total. The station also struggled with poor placement on local cable systems.[22]

In 1991, KRCB obtained a construction permit to launch a new radio station at 91.1 MHz after a religious group that had held such a permit failed to put its station on the air.[23] It would provide the first English-language public radio station for the area.[24] KRCB-FM began broadcasting on September 1, 1994.[25]

By 1997, KRCB was a member of the PBS Program Differentiation Plan, only airing about 25 percent of the network schedule with most shows on an eight-day delay from when they aired on KQED.[26]

Growth

KRCB debuted on the Comcast cable system in San Francisco in 2003, the first time it had been broadcast there.[27] In 2004, it acquired the land on which it was located from the city of Rohnert Park after it faced a budget crunch; the city sold the site of Rohnert Park Stadium for development and the adjacent KRCB site to the station.[28]

KRCB began digital telecasting in late 2003, participating in a pilot program to use bandwidth to provide internet service to households in rural Sonoma County;[29] shut down its analog signal, over UHF channel 22, on June 12, 2009, as part of the federally mandated transition from analog to digital television. The station's digital signal relocated from its pre-transition UHF channel 23 to channel 22.[30]

Repack and transmitter move to San Francisco

KRCB agreed to move frequencies to the very high frequency (VHF) band in the 2016 United States wireless spectrum auction for $72 million on February 10, 2017. The proceeds were used to start an endowment and upgrade the Rohnert Park studios.[31][32][33] On September 7, 2017, KRCB announced that it would acquire KCSM-TV in San Mateo from the San Mateo County Community College District for $12 million, using some of the money earned in the auction; the acquisition allowed KRCB to expand its reach into the Bay Area, as KCSM-TV's transmitter is located at the Sutro Tower in San Francisco.[34] KRCB relaunched KCSM-TV as KPJK on July 31, 2018; the station was named in honor of John Kramer, who had died in 2014.[35] Concurrently with the launch of KPJK, the stations came under the Northern California Public Media banner.[36] After the auction, Northern California Public Media's annual budget swelled from $2.8 million to $4.1 million.[37]

One result of the change to VHF channel 5 was that, to remain on Sonoma Mountain, the tower would have to be replaced; it was at capacity with existing uses. Sonoma County told RCBC that it would have to pay the full cost of a new tower and was considering evicting it from the site. As a result, in December 2018, the station applied to the FCC to relocate its transmitter to Sutro Tower, whose operator had approached the station and suggested it relocate to co-site KRCB with KPJK.[38] The frequency change took place on April 29, 2020.[39]

In 2019, Nancy Dobbs retired after running KRCB for all 35 years of its history. She was replaced by Northern California Public Media content manager Darren LaShelle.[40]

Local programming

KRCB airs local programs about the North Bay as well as environmental issues in the Bay Area with series such as Bay Area Bountiful. Series such as Fly Brother and Common Ground with Jane Whitney are packaged for national distribution.[41]

Subchannels

The station's signal is multiplexed:

Subchannels of KRCB[42]
Channel Res. Aspect Short name Programming
22.1 1080i16:9KRCB-DTMain KRCB programming / PBS
22.2 480iKRCB-CCreate
22.3 720pNHKWORLNHK World-Japan

Notes

  1. ↑ For more information on the Black Television Workshop, see KEEF-TV.

References

  1. ↑ "Facility Technical Data for KRCB". Licensing and Management System. Federal Communications Commission.
  2. ↑ "The FCC last week...". Broadcasting. February 18, 1963. p. 45. ProQuest 1014481956.
  3. ↑ "Where the FCC would put TV stations". Broadcasting. February 14, 1966. pp. 70–72. ProQuest 1014497628.
  4. ↑ Swartz, Susan (September 12, 1982). "Cotati's Channel 22 gets OK to build". The Press Democrat. p. 15A. Retrieved June 23, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  5. ↑ "Sonoma may set a TV first". The Press Democrat. March 11, 1981. p. 11C. Retrieved June 23, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  6. ↑ "Sonoma County may get second TV station". The Press Democrat. June 24, 1981. p. 16A. Retrieved June 23, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  7. 1 2 "The Local Beat: Oakland's 'Children of Violence'". The San Francisco Examiner and Chronicle. August 29, 1982. pp. Datebook 56, 66. Retrieved June 23, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  8. 1 2 Lebaron, Gaye (February 25, 2017). "Public broadcaster KRCB's shoestring success story tied to CEO Nancy Dobbs". The Press Democrat. ProQuest 1871946028.
  9. ↑ "Cotati TV plan stymied". The Press Democrat. October 27, 1981. p. 10A. Retrieved June 23, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  10. 1 2 Boynton, Suzanne (September 10, 1989). "Helping others catch 22: Dobbs-Dixon a prime mover in birth of our PBS station". The Press Democrat. pp. D1, D6. Retrieved June 23, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  11. ↑ "Cotati TV station gets construction OK". Petaluma Argus-Courier. September 11, 1982. pp. 1, 2. Retrieved June 23, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  12. ↑ "Cotati-based TV station funded". Petaluma Argus-Courier. October 6, 1982. p. 1. Retrieved June 23, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  13. ↑ "Channel 22 gets another boost". Sebastopol Times. January 28, 1983. p. 2. Retrieved June 23, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  14. ↑ Samson, Chris (December 31, 1982). "Plans escalate for new public TV station". Petaluma Argus-Courier. p. 5. Retrieved June 23, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  15. ↑ "Channel 22 moving ahead with TV plans". The Press Democrat. February 16, 1984. p. 1C. Retrieved June 23, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  16. ↑ "Channeling the community's energy at KRCB-TV". Petaluma Argus-Courier. February 29, 1984. pp. 2B, 3B. Retrieved June 23, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  17. ↑ Connell, Mary (July 11, 1984). "Tuning in to the community with Channel 22". Petaluma Argus-Courier. p. 1B. Retrieved June 23, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  18. ↑ "PBS station begins broadcasting Sunday: Channel 22 finally goes on the air". Petaluma Argus-Courier. November 30, 1984. p. 3B. Retrieved June 23, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  19. ↑ Smith, Chris (December 1, 1984). "Finally: After three-year wait, Channel 22 to start broadcasting Sunday". The Press Democrat. p. 10A. Retrieved June 23, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  20. ↑ McCoy, Mike (March 17, 1985). "Channel 22 struggling for financial survival". The Press Democrat. p. 11A. Retrieved June 23, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  21. ↑ Weber, Jeff (April 20, 1985). "Local TV, radio focus: regional coverage". Petaluma Argus-Courier. pp. 16A, 18A. Retrieved June 23, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  22. ↑ Cohen, Ronnie (January 31, 1988). "'Big Bird' may fly Channel 22's coop". The Press Democrat. pp. B1, B2. Retrieved June 23, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  23. ↑ "KRCB-TV expands into FM: New station due on air in year". The Press Democrat. November 8, 1991. p. B6. Retrieved June 23, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  24. ↑ Digitale, Robert (July 5, 1993). "KRCB will test new radio station". The Press Democrat. p. B1. Retrieved June 23, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  25. ↑ "Sonoma County's newest public radio station, KRCB 91.1 needs public support". Cloverdale Reveille. September 28, 1994. p. 10. Retrieved June 23, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  26. ↑ "Channel surfing: In public broadcasting, small stations get leftovers". The Press Democrat. October 10, 1997. p. B4. ProQuest 280694742.
  27. ↑ Hartlaub, Peter (June 5, 2003). "Sonoma public KRCB-TV now seen in S.F.". San Francisco Chronicle. p. F2.
  28. ↑ Mason, Clark (December 14, 2004). "Wrecking ball poised to bring down stadium; City offers qualified agencies last of equipment, structures before former home of Crushers makes way for commercial development". The Press Democrat. p. B1. ProQuest 282235938.
  29. ↑ Norberg, Bob (October 29, 2003). "Transmission tower has digital upgrade". The Press Democrat. p. B3. ProQuest 280983216.
  30. ↑ "DTV Tentative Channel Designations for the First and Second Rounds" (PDF). Federal Communications Commission. May 23, 2006. Archived from the original (PDF) on August 29, 2013. Retrieved August 29, 2021.
  31. ↑ Goldsmith, Jill (April 13, 2017). "Stations shape fundraising pleas amid funding threat, potential auction windfalls". Current. Archived from the original on May 17, 2017. Retrieved September 2, 2017.
  32. ↑ Atkinson, Rollie (February 13, 2017). "KRCB reaps $72 million windfall". Sonoma West Times and News. Archived from the original on September 28, 2017. Retrieved February 14, 2017.
  33. ↑ Sefton, Dru (February 14, 2017). "California station reaps $72M in spectrum auction proceeds". Current. Archived from the original on June 19, 2023. Retrieved June 23, 2023.
  34. ↑ Johnson, Julie (September 7, 2017). "KRCB TV to acquire a South Bay station, expand its reach across the Bay Area". Santa Rosa Press Democrat. Archived from the original on September 8, 2017. Retrieved September 8, 2017.
  35. ↑ Mibach, Emily (July 26, 2018). "KCSM-TV getting a new owner, new name". Palo Alto Daily Post. Archived from the original on August 2, 2018. Retrieved August 2, 2018.
  36. ↑ Sefton, Dru (July 26, 2018). "Bay Area pubcasters finalize sale, creating Northern California Public Media". Current. Archived from the original on August 7, 2018. Retrieved August 6, 2018.
  37. ↑ Porken, Penny (January 24, 2019). "The small public media company that could". The Press Democrat. Retrieved June 23, 2023.
  38. ↑ Rural California Broadcasting Corporation (December 10, 2018). "Statement of Justification for Relocation of KRCB Transmitter Site". Retrieved June 23, 2023.
  39. ↑ "ReScan Day for KRCB - April 29, 2020". Northern California Public Media. Retrieved June 23, 2023.
  40. ↑ "Northern California Public Media co-founder Nancy Dobbs plans to step away from company". North Bay Business Journal. September 19, 2019. Retrieved June 23, 2023.
  41. ↑ "2022 Local Content and Service Report" (PDF). Northern California Public Media. 2022. Retrieved June 23, 2023.
  42. ↑ "RabbitEars TV Query for KRCB". RabbitEars. Archived from the original on January 17, 2019. Retrieved January 16, 2019.
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