California Public Television
California Public Television (CPT) is a consortium of California’s public media television organizations from the larger PBS network of member stations. These 12 nonprofit media groups come together as a collective to enhance the quality of life in the state. The trusted programs and services of public television inspire and educate people of all ages and provide essential and trusted information.
California Public Television (CPT) is a consortium of California’s public media television organizations from the larger PBS network of member stations. These 12 nonprofit media groups come together as a collective to enhance the quality of life in the state. The trusted programs and services of public television inspire and educate people of all ages and provide essential and trusted information.
Our Reach
Our CPT stations reach well over 90% of Californians with its broadcast network. Our stations also make extensive use of apps, social media platforms, internet streaming television and radio services to reach and serve Californians. CPT stations’ presence in schools, community centers and other local partner organizations provide connections in-person across the state. And CPT stations provide resources and services for free and are accessible to everyone, especially in the communities that need these services the most.
Our Services
California Public Television stations serve the people of California with independent and community-supported media.
We have a deep commitment to addressing the learning needs of California’s children—at home, in the classroom and in their communities. Recognizing that academic achievement gaps appear at early ages, CPT media stations provide content, community programs, camps, classroom and caregiver resources, and more to close those gaps for underserved children and families.
CPT stations become an important partner during times of crisis, providing timely and trusted information to Californians. To strengthen CPT’s capabilities to support first responders during natural disasters and emergencies, public televison stations have been fortifying their broadcast facilities against wildfires, electricity outages, and more, thanks to the support of the Department of Homeland Security.
We provide the people of California with the content and information they need to make informed decisions and to inspire public discourse and civic participation. In our work, our productions and newsrooms maintain the highest editorial standards and are nonpartisan.
Our content both entertains and encourages community engagement. We provide experiences that share community stories, convene Californians to help them get to know their neighbors, and connect people to the arts, service opportunities, and local resources.
Example of Our Collaborative Approach
Throughout the pandemic, California’s public media stations have answered the call to provide educational services to families, educators, and schools. Stations have delivered enhanced educational content, focused on specific subject areas, and have provided it for free to all on broadcast and digital channels.
In March of 2020, California’s community-based public media stations came together quickly to support educators and parents with the California At-Home Learning Education Partnership. Working with the curriculum team at Los Angeles Unified School District, PBS SoCal, KCET and KQED developed a suite of TV and digital learning resources, free for all schools, districts and county offices of education across the state to ensure equitable access to at-home learning opportunities during school closures, as well as resources for parents and young children. This initiative became a national model that was replicated across the state of California and by more than 100 stations across the country.
CPT Educational Services
Public media has invested heavily in addressing the learning needs of California’s children—at home, in the classroom and in their communities. Understanding that academic achievement gaps appear at an early age, public media stations provide content, community programs, camps, classroom and caregiver resources, and more to close that gap for underserved children and families.
With state support and partnerships, CPT stations aim to ensure that all young children across California have the resources and opportunities to be school ready. One way we do this is by supporting the largest body of early childhood providers—Family, Friend, and Neighbors (FFNs)—with necessary resources and tools. For the crucial years in development from birth to five, only 25% of children from working families have access to a licensed child care space in California. The majority of the remaining 75% seek care through a family member, friend, or neighbor. In California, most FFN providers are immigrants, Limited English Proficient (LEP), low income, women of color, and families living in poverty disproportionally rely on FFNs for childcare.
Public media stations—with our experience in bilingual and multi-platform content, and our evaluation-proven impact—have the well-earned trust of and ability to reach this key part of the state’s childcare provider network.
Disaster & Emergency Preparedness
Public television stations also fulfill our public service mission by being an important partner during times of crisis. Thanks to the support of the Department of Homeland Security, public television stations across the country have been fortifying broadcast towers to better support first responders during natural disasters and emergencies. Using a technology called datacasting, stations can send targeted, encrypted data via a television signal. Stations reallocate a portion of their broadcast signal to send video and data (e.g., building blueprints, live security video) directly to first responders.
California Public Television has already worked with CalOES to pilot this technology in the early earthquake warning space. In 2018, five PBS stations were connected to the CalOES Early Earthquake Warning System as part of a successful pilot. With the pilot, CPT demonstrated the effectiveness of public television datacasting technology. The latency of public television datacasting is remarkable—it takes 1-2 seconds from the time the USGS sends out the alert to the time the datacasting is deployed. This means that in an event of an earthquake, once the PBS station technology is deployed, instantaneously an alert could be sent via a receiver box to a fire station, triggering fire station doors to roll up. Or, it could allow first responders to share information regarding wildfires.
Additionally, all public TV broadcasting towers in the state have been fortified to FEMA standards, are high-powered infrastructure, and would not be vulnerable in an earthquake or flood in the way a cell tower, cell transmission location, or radio frequencies might be.
California Public Television aims to grow it’s partnership with CalOES and the state to onboard the remaining California PBS stations with this technology to better support first responders across the state during emergency response incidents.
CPT Leadership
- Andrew Russell, President & CEO, Public Media Group of Southern California – Chair
- Kurt Mische, President & CEO, PBS Reno - Vice Chair
- Darren LaShelle, President & CEO, Northern California Public Media – Secretary
- David Lowe, President & General Manager, PBS KVIE - Treasurer