The three stations share studios at Campbell Hall for Public Telecommunication on the university's campus; WILL-TV's transmitter is located on East 1700th Road North, five miles (8 km) west of Monticello.

However, by 1948, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) determined that insufficient channels had been created to provide for national interference-free coverage, and there was also a need to set aside allocations for use by non-commercial educational stations.

After a bill that would have forced the university to withdraw its application was narrowly defeated in the legislature, the Illinois Broadcasters Association funded a taxpayer's lawsuit filed by Evanston restaurant owner Stephen Turkovich, that claimed financial support for the station violated provisions of the state's 1955 Finance Act.

[7] Financial support included a transmitter donated by General Electric, and $100,000 from an independent Ford Foundation agency, the Fund for Adult Education.

[citation needed] Originally airing for only a few hours at night, the station began daytime broadcasts in 1958, consisting of telecourses from the university.