PBS Appalachia Virginia

Southwestern Virginia had previously been served by two retransmitters of Roanoke's WBRA-TV Blue Ridge PBS: WSVN-TV (later known as WSBN-TV) in Norton and WMSY-TV in Marion. The two stations were shut down in 2013 due to Virginia state budget cuts to public television, but returned in 2014 (on the two stations and WBRA-DT2) as Southwest Virginia Public Television (SWVAPTV).{{cite news |last1=Berrier Jr. |first1=Ralph |date=October 26, 2014 |title=Media notes: Blue Ridge PBS launches new channel |language=en |work=Roanoke Times |url=http://www.roanoke.com/arts_and_entertainment/media-notes-blue-ridge-pbs-launches-new-channel/article_b6e5d4f8-7d41-5853-a3e3-16d8a292a5f0.html}}{{Cite web |date=October 4, 2014 |title=Blue Ridge PBS announces Southwest Virginia Public Television |url=https://heraldcourier.com/news/blue-ridge-pbs-announces-southwest-virginia-public-television/article_cb921548-4be0-11e4-8b49-0017a43b2370.html |access-date=June 13, 2023 |website=The Bristol Herald Courier |language=en}} In 2017, the two stations went off the air permanently as a result of the FCC's spectrum reallocation auction (where Blue Ridge PBS sold the two stations' broadcast spectrum for $5.8 million).{{cite web |date=April 13, 2017 |title=FCC Broadcast Television Spectrum Incentive Auction |url=http://transition.fcc.gov/Daily_Releases/Daily_Business/2017/db0413/DA-17-314A2.pdf |accessdate=April 13, 2017 |publisher=Federal Communications Commission |page=1 |archive-date=April 14, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170414174258/http://transition.fcc.gov/Daily_Releases/Daily_Business/2017/db0413/DA-17-314A2.pdf |url-status=live }}{{Cite web |last=Wyllie |first=Julian |date=September 8, 2022 |title=An all-digital public TV station for Southwest Virginia is slated to launch next year |url=https://current.org/2022/09/an-all-digital-public-tv-station-for-southwest-virginia-slated-to-launch-next-year/ |access-date=June 13, 2023 |website=Current |language=en-US |archive-date=February 9, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230209033405/https://current.org/2022/09/an-all-digital-public-tv-station-for-southwest-virginia-slated-to-launch-next-year/ |url-status=live }} While other PBS member stations were theoretically available in the region, the Appalachian Mountains' terrain makes reception difficult.

In September 2022, after securing new funding from the Virginia Department of Education, Blue Ridge PBS announced that it would form a new member station for the region known as PBS Appalachia (later rebranded as PBS Appalachia Virginia at launch).{{Cite web|date=June 10, 2023|title=PBS Appalachia Officially Launches|work=The Southwest Virginia Sun|url=https://swvasun.com/pbs-appalachia-officially-launches/|access-date=June 16, 2023|language=en-US}} The new venture—which was scheduled to launch by June 2023—planned to distribute its programming exclusively via over-the-top streaming platforms rather than broadcast television. While nominally operated as a unit of Blue Ridge PBS, the organization planned to treat PBS Appalachia Virginia as a separate operation with its own membership and hoped that it would qualify as a separate station with the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.

It initially announced plans to operate from a studio at the Southwest Virginia Cultural Heritage Center in Abingdon, Virginia. However, the combination of two non-profit organizations under one roof led to insurmountable logistical challenges and was abandoned. In June 2023, PBS Appalachia Virginia announced a partnership with Hard Rock Cafe to construct a {{Convert|4000|sqft|m2|0|adj=on}}, glass-enclosed studio at the then-upcoming Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Bristol, which would open on March 24, 2025. It was promoted as being the first network television affiliate in the United States to operate from a casino.{{Cite web |last=Wagner |first=Rick |date=2025-03-24 |title=Betting on new studio: PBS TV station at Bristol casino marks a first nationwide |url=https://www.timesnews.net/living/arts-entertainment/betting-on-new-studio-pbs-tv-station-at-bristol-casino-marks-a-first-nationwide/article_00202ea5-2c3e-4d60-b7c3-b44239de0243.html |access-date=2025-04-01 |website=Kingsport Times News |language=en}}

PBS Appalachia Virginia launched on June 10, 2023; the service is distributed primarily via its website and apps, those of PBS itself, and on cable providers in the region.{{Cite web |last=Winslow |first=George |date=June 9, 2023 |title=PBS Appalachia Virginia Launches First All-Digital Public TV Station |url=https://www.tvtechnology.com/news/pbs-appalachia-virginia-launches-first-all-digital-public-tv-station |access-date=June 13, 2023 |website=TVTechnology |language=en |archive-date=June 11, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230611035637/https://www.tvtechnology.com/news/pbs-appalachia-virginia-launches-first-all-digital-public-tv-station |url-status=live }} It also distributes local feeds of Create, the PBS Kids channel, and World Channel via its distribution platforms and cable providers.{{Cite web |last=Cameron |first=Susan |date=June 8, 2023 |title=PBS Appalachia, which will cover Southwest Virginia, launches Saturday |url=http://cardinalnews.org/2023/06/08/new-bristol-casino-will-house-pbs-appalachia-virginia-nations-first-all-digital-public-tv-station/ |access-date=June 13, 2023 |website=Cardinal News |language=en-US |archive-date=June 10, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230610020513/https://cardinalnews.org/2023/06/08/new-bristol-casino-will-house-pbs-appalachia-virginia-nations-first-all-digital-public-tv-station/ |url-status=live }} At the time of its launch, it was branded as the first "all-digital" public television station in the United States due to the lack of terrestrial signals.{{cite news |title=PBS Appalachia Virginia Launches First All-Digital Public TV Station in Partnership with Hard Rock Bristol |url=https://www.einnews.com/pr_news/638510859/pbs-appalachia-virginia-launches-first-all-digital-public-tv-station-in-partnership-with-hard-rock-bristol |website=EIN News |access-date=June 16, 2023 |date=June 9, 2023}}

General Manager Julie Newman stated that PBS Appalachia Virginia would aim to "create content from the region, about the region and for the region—not just to provide viewers with mainstream PBS programming". Three of its first original programs—French Magnolia Cooks, Hometowns, and The Life of a Musician—were released ahead of the outlet's official launch. All three shows are locally produced.{{cite web |title=PBS Appalachia Virginia launching as first all-digital PBS member station |url=https://www.newscaststudio.com/2023/06/12/pbs-appalachia-virginia/ |website=NewscastStudio |access-date=June 16, 2023 |date=June 12, 2023 |archive-date=June 12, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230612163526/https://www.newscaststudio.com/2023/06/12/pbs-appalachia-virginia/ |url-status=live }}

• Knowledge Network, a public broadcaster in British Columbia, Canada, that uses a similar distribution model

{{reflist}}

{{Tri-Cities TV}}

{{PBS Virginia}}

{{Public broadcasting in the United States}}

Category:2023 establishments in Virginia

Category:PBS member stations

Category:Television channels and stations established in 2023

Category:Television stations in the Tri-Cities, Tennessee–Virginia, market

Category:Television stations in Virginia