The Canadian Record (Canadian, Tex.), Vol. 119, No. 01, Ed. 1 Thursday, January 1, 2009 Page: 3 of 24
This newspaper is part of the collection entitled: Hemphill County Area Newspapers and was provided to The Portal to Texas History by the Hemphill County Library.
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THE CANADIAN RECORD
NEWS PAGE
THURSDAY 1 JANUARY 2DD9
Digital television conversion will not affect
cable, translator or satellite customers here
Confusion reigns over the much-pub] ■
cized but poorly-explained shift from ana-
log to digital television which viewers have
been warned will take place on February 17.
A test performed by Amarillo TV stations
last week—temporarily shutting off analog
signals in order to help viewers determine
whether their sets are ready for the digital
television transition—may have done more to
mislead viewers than inform them, though, as
both CL&O Translator customers and Sud-
denlink customers will continue to receive
analog signals and will not need the conver-
ter boxes that many have already purchased.
The tempest in a TV follows a Congressio-
nal mandate requiring all full-power TV sta-
tions in the US to shut off their analog signals
and switch to digital on February 17, 2009.
Digital broadcast television provides better
pictures, clearer sound and—in many com-
munities—additional channels of program-
ming, all free, over-the-air from local stations.
The digital conversion also allows the federal
government to auction off spectrum for new
telecommunication services and to reallocate
part of the spectrum to improve communica-
tions among emergency responders.
The change does not affect viewers who
pay for either Dish or DIrectTV satellite
networks. Neither does it affect viewers who
receive their TV service from either Sudden-
link cable service or the CL&O Translator—
both of which have made plans to convert the
digital signal back to an analog signal, which
can still be viewed without the aid of a conver-
ter.
The CL&O Translator is a non-profit ser-
vice which relays Amarillo television stations
signals to nearly 400 households n rural
Hemphill, Ochiltree, Lipscomb and Roberts
counties, and to some viewers n Oklahoma
counties bordering the Texas Panhandle.
Schafer Services' Dale Schafer provides
contract service to the CL&O Translator
and maintains its towers. He reported this
week that the digital signal coming in from
Amarillo stations will be converted back to
analog at the translator system's head-end.
Translator customers who have purchased
conversion boxes will not need them, Scha-
fer said, although he urges those who have
already purchased them to keep them handy
in the event that the system does eventually
go digital.
"A lot of people have run out and bought
the box and it doesn't work," he said, warning,
"Don't throw it away."
The conversion to digital—which would
provide a much clearer and more consistent
signal to viewers—would cost CL&O from
$300,000-400,000 for the system's three tow-
ers sites, making t prohibitive to do now. It
is possible, Schafer said, that government
grants like the one CL&O received for the
conversion to analog will eventually be avail-
able for the transition to digital.
The translator charges no fee, but encour-
ages viewers to pay voluntary dues for the
service. It is not a money-making operation,
Schafer said, and its reserve funds are slowly
dwindling. "It s voluntary," he said, "but if
they want to pay...money is starting to run
very low."
Suddenlink basic and expanded basic cus-
tomers will also be spared both the effects
and the advantages of digital conversion. The
cable company is vague about its solution to
the switch, saying only that the company's
engineers are "monitoring" the tests per-
formed by Amarillo TV stations, and are "ac-
tively working with TV station engineers to
address any issues that result."
The bottom line: "If your TV sets are
hooked up to Suddenlink cable, they should
continue to work just fine," the company re-
ports on its website.
"The digital transition applies only to TV
signals that are broadcast and received over
the air," the website explains. In contrast,
TV signals that are transmitted over cable
lines, like Suddenlink's, will continue to be
delivered "in a format that works with your
current TV sets."
Suddenlink is also more than happy to
schedule appointments for those who have
older TV sets that are not hooked up to their
cable service so they continue to work, or to
upgrade the viewer's service to digital for a
fee.
Schafer did note that a very few rural
television viewers in this area receive their
OETA signal directly from an antenna—not
from the translator. Those viewers will need
to purchase the $40 set-top conversion boxes
n order to continue receiving that signal. The
boxes are available at Radio Shack, WalMart,
Target and most consumer electronic stores.
The federal government is subsidizing the
cost of the converter boxes with up to two $40
coupons per household.
The coupons can be secured by apply ing
online at www.DTV2009.gov or by calling
toll-free 1-888-DTV-2009. The coupon appli-
cation process takes just minutes, although
processing and delivery takes weeks. Those
who fail to apply for a coupon until mid-Jan-
uary may not receive it in time for the transi-
tion.
FOR
ORE INFORMATION
Go online to wvm.dtv2009.gov to learn more
about set-top convert or boxes and coupons.
Visit www.antennaweb.org for information on
ensuring you have the right antenna to receive
all local broadcast TV signals.
To learn more about the DTV transition, go to
www. dtvanswers, com.
Keep your eye on our grand new flags!
Red?
No newspapers yet.
f Green? i
Come and pet em!
Nope!
W
^wf^wRECORD
On display at front and back doors. 211 Main • Canadian, Texas • (806) 323-6461
Canadian man
charged with
sexual assault
Shawn Shaffer Baxter, 25, was ar-
rested here Saturday and charged with
sexual assault of a Roberts County child
following a report filed by the victim's
mother with Sheriff Dana M iller's office.
Baxter is charged with one second-
degree felony count of assaulting a 7-year-
old female. A warrant for his arrest was
issued to Roberts County law enforce-
ment officials following an interview of
the young victim conducted by The Bridge
Children's Advocacy Center in Amarillo.
The alleged assaults apparently oc-
curred over a period of time during which
Baxter worked as a babysitter for the
family.
Baxter was taken nto custody by
Hemphill County law enforcement of-
ficials Saturday, and later paid $50,000
bond and was released. Sheriff Gary Hen-
derson said his office is following up on
further leads as a result of this incident,
and would only say that the nvestigation
is ongoing.
WEATHER RRIEFS
Weather report for Canadian
The low overnight tempera-
ture for the time period from
Dec. 17 through Dec. 29 was
10 degrees on Dec. 21 and the
low daytime temperature of 29
degrees occurred on Dec. 22.
The high daytime temperature
of 74 degrees was registered on
Dec. 29 and the high overnight
temperature of 43 degrees was
on Dec. 26. #01
Attention
feterans
Your Veterans Service officer,
Nick Thomas, can help you with
any Veteran-related problems,
paper work or medical records.
Call 323-9111
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Brown, Laurie Ezzell. The Canadian Record (Canadian, Tex.), Vol. 119, No. 01, Ed. 1 Thursday, January 1, 2009, newspaper, January 1, 2009; Canadian, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth252731/m1/3/: accessed March 19, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Hemphill County Library.