WITF-TV

WITF-TV (channel 33) is a PBS member television station in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, United States, serving the Susquehanna Valley region (Harrisburg–Lancaster–Lebanon–York).

[11] Chambersburg was predicted to receive poor coverage from the Harrisburg transmitter, and a translator for Franklin County went into service in 1965, the predecessor to today's W20EU-D.[12] The station was quickly embraced by the community; April 1971 brought the launch of WITF-FM 89.5,[13] and by 1979, it had the third-highest percentage of supporting members of any public television station in the United States, with viewers contributing 32 percent of its budget.

[14]: 5  The original transmission equipment was replaced in 1977 along with the commissioning of a new, taller tower, improving coverage and reducing the increasing number of faults attributable to its aging plant.

[14] In late 1979, the governing board for the stations entered into an agreement under which WITF would have owned and operated a new, 46,000-square-foot (4,300 m2) facility at Harrisburg Area Community College.

[18] Robert F. Larson, the president and general manager, noted that the proximity to the Commonwealth capital and educational institutions made a site in Harrisburg desirable.

[23][24] Spurred by growth and technological changes, and with 50 more employees than it had in 1982, WITF launched a capital campaign in 2002 to build a new, $22.2 million public media center on a site in Swatara Township, adjacent to Interstate 283.

[32] In 2018, WITF launched PA Post, a statewide news outlet; the creation of such was suggested as a potential use for funds received in the FCC spectrum auction of 2017.

[39] WITF agreed to share its spectrum with Tribune Broadcasting-owned Fox affiliate WPMT (channel 43) following the 2016–2017 FCC incentive auction for $25 million on February 10, 2017.

The proceeds were slated to be transferred to WITF's endowment, with interest to be used for Central Pennsylvania's media literacy program; a statewide news organization was cited as another possibility, foreshadowing the creation of PA Post.

Refer to caption
The Hershey Community Center was WITF-TV's first home, used from 1964 to 1981
Refer to caption
The WITF Public Media Center (at left), completed in 2006