Public Television Plans a Network for Latinos

PUBLIC TELEVISION PLANS A NETWORK FOR LATINOS
[SOURCE: New York Times, AUTHOR: Elizabeth Jensen]
In a move to take public broadcasting closer to Spanish-speaking viewers, executives are expected to announce today that a new network, V-me, will go on the air on March 5 in major American cities with large Latino populations. It will offer a mix of Spanish-language children’s and adult programming with an educational focus. This digital network is an unusual public-private partnership forged between the Educational Broadcasting Corporation, the parent of the New York public station WNET; the investment firm the Baeza Group; and the venture capital firm Syncom Funds. Educational Broadcasting will be a minority partner in the for-profit venture. An initial 18 public television stations, which reach about 60 percent of Spanish speakers in the United States, have agreed to carry V-me’s programming on the spinoff channels that are the results of their conversion to a digital broadcast signal. In the cities where the channel will be available, including Miami, Houston, Chicago and most of the major California markets, it will be seen over the air by viewers with digital-capable sets as well as on the digital tier of cable systems. V-me’s management is also pursuing broadcast via satellite.
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/07/arts/television/07wnet.html
(requires registration)