PBS 45/49 to change its name

the vindicator

KENT — Effective Wednesday, PBS 45/49 will change its name to Western Reserve Public Media.

According to the Public Broadcasting Service station, the new name reflects the regional nature of its coverage area, which includes Northeast Ohio’s four biggest metropolitan areas: Akron, Canton, Cleveland and Youngstown/Warren.

It also emphasizes the broad range of services that Western Reserve Public Media provides.

Under the new umbrella identity, channels 45 and 49 will become Western Reserve PBS and will continue to operate as the primary broadcast service of the organization. Western Reserve Public Media will also represent the full range of the organization’s broadcast, Internet, new media, education, print services and more.

Though the name is changing, everything else will remain the same, according to the company. The station’s call letters — WNEO/Youngstown and WEAO/Akron — are not changing, and the stations’ programming will remain the same.

Noticeable difference

Viewers will notice that the channel numbers will no longer be used. That’s because the television landscape has changed over the past 15 years to the point where channel designations aren’t as meaningful as they used to be. Most cable companies carry WNEO and WEAO in channel positions that are different from the over-the-air broadcast positions. The station will begin digital broadcasting Nov. 21, and will be located at 45.1 and 45.2.

The Western Reserve name dates back to the late 1700s, when the state of Connecticut gave up its claim to western lands but specifically “reserved” a strip of land bordering on Lake Erie and Pennsylvania, which became known as the Connecticut Western Reserve.

The corporation is a consortium of the University of Akron, Kent State University and Youngstown State University.

The organization’s telephone numbers will remain the same. The new Web address is WesternReservePublicMedia.org.