PBS Station Finder FAQs
PBS Online connects you directly to your local public broadcasting member station through the Station Finder. Localizing PBS enriches your experience by adding local content provided directly by your station.
Q. Does localizing PBS filter any content?
A. Identifying your local station allows pbs.org to add to your online experience, not subtract. No content on pbs.org is removed from the site in order to bring you local content and information. You will see the same content you're used to seeing, with the addition of local broadcast schedules, local content related to PBS programming, and quick links to your local station's Web site for more information on membership and pledge.
Q. How can I find my local PBS station?
A. You will be given the opportunity to enter your zip code in a zip code box in several places throughout pbs.org, including the homepage, within Station Finder, and from within TV Schedules. In many places, you will also have the opportunity to select a state from a pull-down menu if you're unsure of the correct zip code. The resulting list of stations are those available in your television viewing area.
Q. What do I get when I select my station?
A. TV Schedule Information
If you start the process within the PBS Station Finder, you'll be given station contact information including an email address to contact the station, and links to their website and TV schedules. If you start the process from within TV Schedules (including the "What's On Tonight" section of the pbs.org homepage) you'll be linked directly to your station's TV schedule, or a list of what's on that station tonight during primetime.
Local Information
In addition to the content you already enjoy on pbs.org, your locally enriched site will provide direct links to local resources, depending on your local station's level of participation in this service. This information might include:
integrated local content links throughout pbs.org program companion sites
local community events and happenings
local educational resources
local membership information
Q. How can I change my selected member station?
A. Click the "Station Finder" button in the main navigation on pbs.org. On your station information page you have the opportunity to select a new station by choosing the "Change" button, or choose the "Remove" button to remove your local station preference completely.
Q. When I enter my zip code, why don't I see the station I usually watch?
A. The system we've established is based on data from Nielsen Media Research, the company that provides program ratings information. When you enter your zip code, our database tracks which station transmitters are closest to your home. Our data is based on which channels you should be receiving based on your location. If you are using a satellite service and are receiving the PBS national feed, you should return to the PBS Online homepage and use the "TV Schedules" area to review the national schedule. If you are a cable user and your channels are different from your local station's broadcast transmission, we recommend using the by-state listing since our data does not accommodate cable channels at this time.
Q. What if I usually watch more than one channel?
A. Right now, if you are in an area where you receive more than one PBS channel, a user will have to localize to each station on pbs.org separately each time you visit so you are able to see the original content from each station and view their individual television program schedules. PBS and its member stations have been working together to explore future models that support multiple PBS television schedules in one experience. With the Digital Transition in February 2009, PBS plans to launch a new TV Schedules service that anticipates allowing users to localize to more than one station, so multiple viewing of schedules will be an option, from one page. Our expected launch of this next-generation tool is late fall 2008.
Q. Will PBS Online remember my local station every time I visit?
A. Using standard Web technology, PBS Online will write a "cookie" to your web browser, so that your local, customized version of the PBS Online homepage will appear each time you visit. A cookie is a small piece of information that our web server sends and stores on your computer within your browser software. When you return to the PBS web site, our server reads the cookie and remembers your station of choice. This way, you need to customize only once to get the local/national version of the PBS Online site. For more information about your privacy, please read our PBS Online Privacy Policy.
Q. If I do not allow cookies, can I still access my local PBS station web site and TV schedule?
A. Yes. You will have to re-enter your zip code or state information each time you want to look up your local station TV schedules on pbs.org.
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