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This article has some serious problems. It looks like it was copied from somewhere, it reads like an advert, and wasn't WRAL first in HD? -- CFIF (talk to me) 13:30, 31 July 2006 (UTC)
It reads like a pamphlet the station released. WRAL isn't HD 24/7, but it reads as if it was "The first to broadcast in HD" ever. -- CFIF (talk to me) 19:15, 31 July 2006 (UTC)
This article has some serious problems. It looks like it was copied from somewhere, it reads like an advert, and wasn't WRAL first in HD? --CFIF (talk to me) 13:30, 31 July 2006 (UTC)
As for the factual accuracy, we have to know whether WRAL broadcasts in HD 24/7 or not. WHDT's official website mentions "First High Definition Television Station" on its home page, and even boasts on its Google meta tag: "WHDT-TV in West Palm Beach, Florida, is now on the air to become the first in the Nation to bring High Definition broadcasts into your home 24-hours a day..." I want to know where this is going so that we can clear this mess as soon as possible. -- M (speak/spoken) 17:37, 31 July 2006 (UTC)
"WHDT has since spearheaded some of the most important federal rulemaking decisions which affect today's digital television service. Most notably, the station established the legal precedent for all U.S. digital television stations to have their programming carried on local cable TV systems as a non-degraded high definition signal or in standard definition analog format. WHDT became the first television station to have its HD programming carried on cable under the FCC's digital "must carry" rules [FCC 01-23 MO&O, CSR-5562-Z, adopted 18 January 2001, vote 5:0]." It reads like a pamphlet the station released. WRAL isn't HD 24/7, but it reads as if it was "The first to broadcast in HD" ever. --CFIF (talk to me) 19:15, 31 July 2006 (UTC)
From what I can determine, the reference I linked to is 100% correct. It's possible the translators are broadcasting WHDT, but the main "700kW" channel is off air and has been for some years. In addition to the reference, as a simple idiot check I have an antenna pointed in WHDT's general direction. I get strong WPEC, WPTV, and WPEC signals, but no WHDT signal at all, despite (according to Wikipedia) WHDT having a signal that's as strong as all three put together!
And again, avoiding original research, the FCC's DTV transition page no longer lists it as an active station for anyone in the Palm Beach, Martin County, or Port St Lucie areas.
I'm not trying to promote an argument with the WHDT tech, but if the transmitter isn't active (all evidence points to no) then it shouldn't be described as an active station on this page. What is the rationale for saying otherwise? 66.149.58.8 ( talk) 16:12, 15 July 2009 (UTC)
Perhaps you should include yourself while performing your "simple idiot check". WHDT has been an active on-air broadcaster since the station was licensed by the FCC. The station is watched daily by millions of people in South Florida and is carried by every local cable and satellite carrier in its DMA, except DISH NETWORK which continues to defy an FCC order to carry WHDT. Whatever so-called research data you are relying upon does not change the facts. Your individual ability to receive a TV station, or not, at your home is not confirmation of anything.
Assuming that you do not have a mental problem which interferes with your ability to reason, perhaps you can grasp the following concepts:
1. Only operating and on-air local full service television stations have carriage rights on local cable and satellite systems. If you live in the WPB DMA, you will find WHDT-TV listed by, and carried on every cable and satellite system serving the DMA, except DISH NETWORK. Each of these MSOs, including DISH NETWORK, receive WHDT's program feed over-the-air at their pick-up sites, each of which are located in West Palm Beach;
2. DISH NETWORK has apparently decided to defy its FCC Order to carry WHDT-TV ostensibly because the Order requires that DISH not degrade the high definition signal of WHDT-TV. In 2011, all satellite providers which offer a local-into-local service, are required to carry the HD signal of all local stations that offer HD. The Wikipedia description has been updated to reflect this (unrelated) matter;
3. WHDT's permit to construct and operate from its final site in Wellington, Florida is a matter of public record. Since you seem unable to obtain accurate information from your "internet" sources, you are invited to obtain a physical copy of the station's FCC authorization by visiting the station and requesting a copy from the Public File during regular business hours. The address is: WHDT-TV, 12th floor, 1601 Forum Place, West Palm Beach FL. You may also write to the Station Manager and request this information be mailed to you. A TV station's Public File, and its Washington DC counterpart at the FCC are the only official sources of information. "Facts" that you may discover on the internet have no legal status and should never be relied on for any purpose other than personal amusement;
4. WHDT-TV presently operates at the highest power authorized by the FCC on interim channel 44 during construction of its channel 42 facility. This STA operation insures that the station can continue to provide city-grade OTA service to its city of license, Stuart FL. This special operation was required in order to permit local non-commercial television station WXEL-TV to transition from its former analog operation on channel 42 to its present digital operation on channel 27. The instant description in Wikipedia explicitly states that WHDT is authorized to operate at 700 kW from its 1500 foot tower in Wellington FL, and that the station is presently operating at reduced power under Special Temporary Authorization;
5. Television stations routinely operate under special circumstances to facilitate service changes without interrupting service. Doing so does not make them "inactive", reduce their legal status, or alter their rights in any way. The FCC has developed procedures to make the digital transition as transparent to the viewing public as possible, and has elicited every broadcaster's cooperation to effect this. Reconstruction of a multi-billion dollar industry takes time and no one needs to hear a lot of nonsense from outsiders who have little comprehension of the process;
6. We are aware of no Wikipedia reference claiming that WHDT-TV's signal is "as strong as all three put together!". WHDT-TV's authorized power level on its allocation channel 42 is substantially identical to other UHF stations in the market. Anyone actually familiar with broadcast stations is also aware that there is a statutory limit of 1 million watts (average) power established for the digital television service, and that the limit is adjusted downward to correct for the extended wavelength of lower channels. WHDT-TV was the first television station in the U.S. to receive authorization to operate at 1 million watts at the time the station's allocation channel was channel 59. Following the digital transition, channels 52 to 69 were reassigned for non-TV services and stations on these channels were transitioned to lower channels. In congested markets, this required a series of interim operations on temporary channels to permit all stations in a market to reorganize and rebuild new facilities to operate on their final post-transition channels. In the WPB market, no TV station now operates on its legacy channel. The "virtual channel" PSIP system permits TV stations to "display" their former legacy channel on the screen so as not to require viewers to memorize all new channels;
7. Frequent self-serving references which nearly always cite the internet a their source, are a constant nuisance to commercial businesses. Most simply ignore them. A simple example of a citation which "proves" WHDT-TV is off-the-air is a brief story in TCPalm whose headline reads "WHDT Off the Air". The minor story responds to inquiries from Comcast cable viewers who "lost" service on cable channel 17, while the operator was launching WHDT's high definition tier service on cable channel 438. Comcast later restored its analog service on channel 17 to be simultaneous with its digital channel in order to comply with FCC Rules for carriage of local TV stations. Although the interruption of service was clearly explained to the person writing the story, she was unable to grasp the difference between a station being off the local cable system for a week, and its being actually off-the-air and not broadcasting a signal. Nevertheless the headline remains available on the net and is oft cited. There are numerous other examples of internet-based nonsense. Most serious people do not rely on this junk, nor do they ever cite material sourced from the internet without obtaining physical confirmation.
I intend to monitor further revisions by others to the Wikipedia description of WHDT-TV. When uninformed contributions are made, they will be removed. As a matter of reference, TV stations have the option to use the suffix -DT, -TV or omit the suffix. Where two stations are authorized and co-owned, they may share the same four letter call sign, provided that one selects the suffix -TV. WHDT's legal call sign is thus WHDT-TV, although this is generally used only in FCC filings and other official communications.
Günter Marksteiner, Dipl. Ing.-Dr. WHDT-TV licensee 68.209.110.241 ( talk) 17:20, 12 December 2009 (UTC)
I've only just seen this, but a few comments need to be stated.
First, insults do not in any way help your case, be they suggesting I'm an "idiot" for being unable to find your channel from any antenna in my Stuart, FL based home, or your repeated assertions that my edits constitute "vandalism".
Second, you appear to spend a lot of time above changing the subject. I'm unable to validate your statements suggesting that Dish Network is the only carrier not carrying your TV station, however:
1. I can't comment on this as I'm not in West Palm Beach.
2. Regardless of the reasons, WHDT is not carried by Dish Network, and therefore it is false for you to keep reverting the removal of the statement "The channel is not carried by Dish Network", replacing it each time with "DISH Network was ordered to carry WHDT by the Federal Communications Commission in 2008." and previously "WHDT is carried in West Palm Beach and Miami on cable channels 44 (SD) and 1044 (HD) by AT&T, on cable channels 17 (SD) and 438 (HD) in West Palm Beach by Comcast, and on satellite channel 44 (SD) in West Palm Beach by DIRECTV and DISH Network."
3. I'm perfectly aware that WHDT is legally allowed to broadcast TV. Being legally able to is not the same as actually doing so. You don't broadcast WHDT. Even the FCC's site (see references in the article) makes it plain that WHDT is not available.
4. This is not true. If you believe it to be so, then you have a serious technical problem, because there isn't a single person in Stuart with suitable equipment (an ATSC TV or video capture card) I know of who can receive the station. The situation appears to be as stated by the FCC, not as stated by you.
5. Regardless of whether a television station is acting under "special circumstances", if a station is not broadcasting a signal, it is off-air. WHDT is off the air.
6. 700kW vs 29.5kW+ 50kW (sorry, WPEC was counted twice. But yeah, you're right, it's not 3x, it's more like eight or nine times!)
7. "Frequent self-serving references"? Like the FCC's, or Dish Network's?
You can monitor this all you want. If you continue to imply that anyone in Stuart has a hope in hell of receiving WHDT via an antenna, well, I'll continue to point at the FCC references that prove otherwise and remove claims that imply that the channel is on air and that Dish Network carries it. Others, like me, have pointed out the channel is off-air. If you really want the page to show that WHDT really is on air, perhaps you should put it on air? If my ATSC receivers can pick up a <30kW signal from 30 miles away, but not a "700kW" signal from less than five miles away, where do you think the problem lies? -- 66.149.58.8 ( talk) 21:29, 17 December 2009 (UTC)
The problem clearly lies only with you and your inability to receive a local TV station. WHDT is readily available to anyone in the Stuart area with a digital TV set connected to an outside antenna. A viewer who experiences reception problems can call the station at (561) 983-6300 to obtain professional assistance. Most DTV problems can be easily solved, and every local TV station offers this free service.
With respect to your comments about WHDT, you seem to be incapable of understanding what you read. It appears that you possess neither the technical nor legal qualifications to make a meaningful contribution to this topic. Here are some examples of this from your previous comments:
1. You do not have to live in West Palm Beach to be in the WPB DMA (Designated Market Area). Every city is the U.S. is assigned to a DMA. The Miami DMA extends from Key West to the Palm Beach County line. The West Palm Beach DMA extends from Boca Raton to Sebastian, Florida. The city of Stuart is part of the WPB DMA and all TV stations assigned to the WPB market area, including WHDT, are available to all cable and satellite providers (MSOs) who offer any television service in Stuart. This means that you need only look at the station lineup of Comcast, DIRECTV, AT&T, etc. (as well as in your local newspaper, TVGuide, etc.) for Stuart to see WHDT listed as a local broadcast station along with its hourly program schedule. The only MSO who is not carrying WHDT, despite being ordered to do so by the FCC, is DISH NETWORK (a/k/a EchoStar Communications). It is obvious that you are not familiar with the term "DMA"; did not know that Stuart is part of the WPB DMA; and did not bother to read all of the words in the sentence ("If you live in the WPB DMA . . .").
2. At no time did WHDT make the statement or imply that DISH NETWORK was carrying WHDT. Your 17 December 2009 comment [2] above misquotes the carriage statement written by WHDT. WHDT clearly differentiated its carriage by DIRECTV and the lack of carriage by DISH NETWORK. It is only "your" misquote which states: " … in West Palm Beach by DIRECTV and DISH Network." The actual WHDT text reads: " … in West Palm Beach by DIRECTV. DISH NETWORK was ordered to carry WHDT in 2008."
WHDT does not as you claim state that it is being carried by DISH NETWORK and WHDT lists no satellite channel number for DISH. In the current revision I added a comment which cites the relevant FCC Order against DISH, for anyone who is interested:
"In its Second Report and Order, Memorandum Opinion and Order and Second Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, released March 27, 2008, DISH Network was ordered to carry WHDT by the Federal Communications Commission. To date, DISH Network has failed to comply with the Order and WHDT is not available to DISH Network subscribers."
The Wikipedia description of WHDT is not about DISH NETWORK. At most, only a simple citation is warranted here.
3. You again proclaim utter nonsense about the broadcast operations of WHDT, supported by none other than yourself. Thousands of viewers throughout the Stuart-Palm City area can enjoy WHDT 24/7. It is irrelevant if you do not know any of them. The FCC website which you like to cite is woefully incomplete and is not maintained by the Commission for any legal purpose. Furthermore, it does not list TV stations which are not yet broadcasting on their final allocation channels (hence "signal unavailable"); it does not list STA (Special Temporary Authority) operations; it does not list channel modifications in progress; it does not list pending changes to licensed facilities; etc., etc. The site is intended only for general reference by the public and has no legal or other standing.
At the end of 2010, the FCC will publish a TV station listing which will be more complete, but it will still not list any of the hundreds of M/H (Mobile DTV) broadcast facilities. The NAB (National Association of Broadcasters) is working to assemble a more complete listing of digital TV stations which it will make available to the public in January 2010. Because of the hundreds of still-pending unresolved requests by VHF broadcasters to return to a UHF channel, even the NAB's list will remain incomplete.
The bottom line is that WHDT's OTA (over-the-air) broadcast signal is readily available in Stuart. It is irrelevant that WHDT does not broadcast on its "allocation" channel. Viewers do not tune their TV sets to "allocation" channels (i.e. a station's RF or "physical" channel). Viewers tune their TV sets to a DTV station's "virtual" channel.
4. It would appear that it is you who have the serious technical problem. I live in the Stuart area and I have no difficulty receiving WHDT. Unless you live underground, or suffer from some peculiar multipath interference issue, there is no reason that you cannot receive WHDT via antenna.
5. And maybe the earth is flat.
6. Again, you manufacture the statements and then you attribute them to WHDT. There is no Wikipedia listing which claims that WHDT's authorized power is 3x or Nx that of any other TV station. You looked up a number of TV station descriptions of your choosing, make some strange computation which suits your claim (not WHDT's), and then assert some technically meaningless jibberish about matters that you do not understand.
There is nothing in the WHDT descriptive text which is inaccurate. If you had even the most basic understanding of television engineering then you would not compare the effective radiated power (ERP) of VHF stations with UHF stations. The FCC establishes the maximum authorized power for TV stations based upon the wavelength of their allocation (radio frequency) channel. There is no meaning to a relative power comparison between TV stations operating in different parts of the TV spectrum. Local VHF stations, such as WPEC and WPTV, employ lower frequencies and much lower ERPs for their broadcast operations than local UHF stations such as WPBF, WFLX, WXEL and WHDT. UHF stations employ higher ERP to offset the higher propagation losses associated with higher frequencies and their shorter wavelengths. The large difference in ERP between VHF and UHF stations does not have any material effect on these station's respective market coverage.
WHDT's authorized power on its first allocation channel (CH 59) was 1 million watts, which is the statutory limit for any TV operation in the U.S. WHDT was the 1st station to be authorized for 1 MW digital TV service. After channels 52 through 69 were reassigned by the FCC for non-TV use, WHDT's allocation channel was changed to channel 44 and later to channel 42. The corresponding ERP limit for channel 42 is 0.7 MW (700 kW). When WHDT commences operation on channel 42 in mid-February 2010, it will broadcast at 0.7 MW. The Wikipedia description of WHDT's technical operation explicitly states that the station is currently broadcasting at reduced power until then. This is as clear a statement as it is possible to make.
7. No, worthless references like yours.
Your inability to comprehend technical matters is aptly demonstrated by your inept final remark above: " … but not a 700kW signal from less than five miles away, … "
This shows that you have no idea what you're talking about. The station is neither broadcasting at 700 kW nor is it broadcasting at 700 kW five miles away [from you]. The WHDT technical discussion clearly states that 700 kW is the power authorized for the station at its CP (construction permit) site in Wellington, Florida, a location which is 40 miles south of Stuart.
I advise you to leave the editing of Wikipedia's television station descriptions to technically competent editors. You can better spend your time reading up on Business Disparagement:
"The tort of injurious falsehood, or disparagement, is concerned with the publication of derogatory information about a person's title to his or her property, to his or her business in general, or anything else made for the purpose of discouraging people from dealing with the individual. Generally, if the aspersions are cast upon the quality of what the person has to sell, or the person's business itself."
If you are so damn sure of yourself and wish to continue your false claim that WHDT is "inactive", I challenge you to call the station and request that a technician visit your area and assist you with solving your reception problem. Otherwise you can continue to hide behind your "references" - but keep your BS to yourself.
21 December 2009 v. Günter Marksteiner —Preceding unsigned comment added by Marksteiner ( talk • contribs) 06:19, 21 December 2009 (UTC)
Mark, it sounds to me like you have "issues". Your response to what appears to be an contributer bending over to be fair and ask pertenant questions in an attempt to improve the article is insulting, fails to answer questions in a reasonable way (ie from the point of view of improving the article), and in some cases dubious and apparently dishonest.
Is this really the reputation you want your TV station to have?
You need to be aware that your statements are public, that others can read them, and that you are doing WHDT or yourself no favors in engaging in personal attacks simply because you disagree with the point of view of the person you're attacking.
May I respectfully suggest that, as the author (and therefore the only person with the right to remove material you've contributed to the Talk: page) that you remove it?
98.254.202.225 ( talk) 17:44, 20 February 2013 (UTC)
I haven't read the long rants above - WP:TLDR. I found this article which mentions the channel this year though so the idea that it has been off air since 2007 seems incorrect. Notice that the source previously referenced said that going off air was a temporary measure. Please remember that we have a policy against original research, saying that you cannot recieve it and that is therefore off air is an invalid argument to use. Likewise the current version of the article is not ideal as it likely contains information that isn't verifiable. I'm not really sure what the best action to take is. Smartse ( talk) 12:36, 24 December 2009 (UTC)
The following Wikimedia Commons file used on this page has been nominated for deletion:
Participate in the deletion discussion at the nomination page. — Community Tech bot ( talk) 06:06, 31 July 2019 (UTC)