Huntington Beach-based KOCE-TV, Orange County’s public television station, is trying to raise $8.5 million to go digital,a plan that involves, in part, a new live news channel for this area following the closing of the Orange County NewsChannel this month.
Mel Rogers, president of 29-year-old KOCE-TV, said the station began raising funds in March as part of a capital campaign to support the station’s switch from analog to digital,a change mandated by the federal regulators. Public television stations must comply by 2003.
But going digital also means KOCE can expand its services and programming, according to Rogers.
The station’s plan calls for three education channels: one for college and workforce training; another for kindergarten through 12th-grade classes; and one to help prospective teachers get their credentials.
Plus, Rogers said, KOCE wants to establish a live, local news television station.
But first KOCE, which has yet to receive government assistance, must raise the funds for the changeover.
So far, Rogers said KOCE has collected about $3 million from undisclosed individuals and corporations in OC.
“It’s always been important for Orange County to have a strong television station of its own,” Rogers said. But now, he said, it’s even more critical with the demise of the Orange County NewsChannel, which officially closed its doors on Sept. 7.
“Orange County is uniquely media deprived in terms of television news,” Rogers said. “And we are trying to raise the revenues around here to solve that problem.”
KOCE produces the “Real Orange” nightly news and public affairs show, co-founded by the Los Angeles Times, which provides the station with financial assistance each year. The show would remain, according to Rogers, though he expects it would evolve a bit with more field-produced work vs. in-studio interviews.
Plus, he said he would grow the “Real Orange” staff and “create a much larger news gathering operation in Orange County” to offer live, local coverage.
“We need to expand the equipment we have and convert the old analog equipment to digital and get live news gathering trucks,” Rogers said.
The Los Angeles Times would continue to be part of the operation, according to Rogers, “assuming we continue to renew our agreement with them each year.”
KOCE’s office in Huntington Beach will remain the same.
“Our facilities here are really pretty adequate for the time being,” Rogers said. “We have a nice studio and room to grow.” n
