KNPB (channel 5), branded PBS Reno, is a PBS member television station in Reno, Nevada, United States, owned by Channel 5 Public Broadcasting, Inc. The station's studios are located at the E. L. Cord Public Telecommunications Center on the campus of the University of Nevada, Reno on North Virginia Street in Reno, and its transmitter is located on Red Hill between US 395 and SR 445 in Sun Valley.
History
In 1964, following authorization of federal matching grants for the construction of non-commercial educational television facilities, there was a proposal for a state network of educational television stations offering television programming originating from Las Vegas. The proposal was opposed by educators in other parts of the state of Nevada, and the Clark County School District's trustees gave up the proposal of a statewide service in 1966. KLVX signed on the air in March 1968 to serve Southern Nevada; Reno would not receive a public television station of its own until 1983. During that time, PBS programming was made available to Northern Nevada from the city's commercial stations on a per-program basis (i.e. Sesame Street was on KOLO-TV). Cable systems in northwestern Nevada (including Reno and Carson City) piped in KVIE in Sacramento, California, which was available over-the-air in the extreme western portions of the market. Northeastern Nevada, including