PEORIA -- Here's a sad commentary on our times: Peoria's public TV station is now dark overnight, but only for viewers without cable.
WTVP-TV, Channel 47, has stopped its overnight over-the-air broadcasting to save money. That occurred when Ameren/CILCO, the local electric provider freed from state regulation of its rates, raised them by mega-amounts in January.
Broadcasting over-the-air overnight would cost the station an extra $100,000 not in its budget, according to Linda Miller, vice president for programming. The station's electric bill would go up by 60 percent, she said.
"We just frankly couldn't afford it," she said.
"We felt there would be some relief by the (state) legislature but it didn't happen," she said.
At least not yet. The Illinois General Assembly is still debating what to do, as anguished homeowners and businesses complain loudly about the rate increases.
Will the Democratic party be finished in Illinois if it doesn't act on this issue?
True, the Republican-controlled state government set the utilities free from regulation, but they're not in power now, and likely won't get the blame from the public.
Meanwhile, WTVP has lost its overnight audience. Miller suggested that many people watch those shows as they return home from the late shift or take time for themselves from caring for children or others.
Viewers without cable TV make up about one-fourth of the audience, she said.
The station set up a special arrangement with the local cable provider to send out the signals overnight via cable, and the station's digital signals also operate overnight.
WTVP's move could be a foretaste of what's coming in Feb. 2009, when all analogue TV signals are scheduled to end in the U.S.
Millions of TV sets without a cable hookup won't work any more, though converter boxes may be available.
Most people don't yet understand that all those cheap analogue TV sets they are buying now may not work two years from now, she said. "It's a really interesting issue," she added.
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