Delta College’s WDCQ-TV to cover the Thumb, Flint and Genesee following WCMZ-TV going off the air.

Back in early 2017, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) announced that WCMZ-TV – Central Michigan University’s PBS station in the Flint market – was sold as part of the broadcast spectrum auction. As a part of that sale, WCMZ-TV will now be signing off the air on April 23 and no longer operating in the Flint broadcast market.

However, Delta College’s PBS station, WDCQ-TV, has a strong signal over the market and will be available to all dedicated PBS viewers in the Thumb, Genesee and Flint area. At the time it made the sale decision, CMU’s president, Dr. George Ross indicated his understanding that 99% of Flint viewers have access to other PBS stations.

“Dr. Ross and I met last summer to discuss the PBS station situation,” said Dr. Jean Goodnow, Delta College’s president. “We both understood the value of public broadcasting and I wanted to assure him that WDCQ-TV stood ready to serve the viewers in the southern portion of our coverage area.”  Delta College is working now with cable and satellite providers to be able to fill any gaps as they occur.

Delta College’s Public Broadcasting has been a foundational part of local towns and cities in the Great Lakes Bay Region for nearly 54 years. “There is a great deal of power when public broadcasting has a strong a presence in our local communities,” said Dr. Jean Goodnow, College president. “We love being a part of the PBS family through WDCQ-TV and the NPR network through WUCX-FM 90.1.”

Delta College is one of just a dozen or so community colleges in the nation to hold the license to a Public TV station. Along with our public radio station, it is part of our community service mission. Delta’s commitment has allowed the College to impact our region for decades by offering a tremendous level of community programming and service. WDCQ’s viewership includes 45,000 households weekly, each with multiple residents.

WDCQ-TV has a long and distinguished history of creating award-winning local documentaries. In production now are two 30-minute programs that focus on the early history and development of Flint, Michigan during the nineteenth century, and then the rapid expansion and eventual decline of the auto industry during the twentieth century. The anticipated airdates for the two documentaries will be in late 2018 and early 2019.

Delta College is also continuing to look for ways to offer new services. That may come in the form of enhanced first responder and public safety services, and advanced datacasting or other community connections requiring the use of the airwaves. We remain committed to bringing those new opportunities to our part of the country, as the technology changes and makes new services available.

The Flint station first signed on the air on August 23, 1980 as WFUM under the ownership of the University of Michigan–Flint. Central Michigan University, which bought the station from the University of Michigan for $1 million back in 2009, sold the station’s spectrum for $14 million last year.

For 15 consecutive years, Americans have named PBS and its member stations #1 in public trust among nationally known institutions, according to a nationwide survey released in February 2018. PBS led other sectors of the media and government in the annual ranking, including digital platforms, commercial cable and broadcast television, courts of law, newspapers and social media.
 
Nearly 8 in 10 respondents (78%) agreed that local PBS member stations provide an excellent value to their communities. In addition, PBS and member stations rank second only to the country’s military defense in terms of value for taxpayer dollars, with 65% of respondents calling it a “good” or “excellent” value.

WDCQ-TV is a non-commercial public television station, owned and operated by Delta College. The station’s city of license is Bad Axe, Michigan and it broadcasts from a tower located in Gilford Township.

WUCX-FM 90.1 is operated as a public service by Central Michigan University and Delta College. The station’s city of license is Bay City, Michigan and it broadcasts from a tower located in Quanicassee, Michigan.