Nothing scarier than nonmembers

KCET head programmer Bohdan Zachary shares his colleagues' Halloween decoration of this very, very lapsed station member in his latest blog entry. Spooky indeed. Zachary also reminisces about the creepiest soap opera ever, Dark Shadows, and his attempt to contact a dead grade-school classmate using a seance inspired by the gothic show. Spoiler alert: It didn't work.

Explorer concept inspires UNC-TV channel

UNC-TV used PBS's Explorer branding identity (Current, June 23, 2009) to create its own new Explorer Channel, offering travel, culture, science, nature, history and outdoor programming. In announcing the channel, the station said it's in response "to a demonstrated need for diverse public television programming for adults, including daytime programming." PBS execs continue to draw attention to the Explorer concept. At this month's Round Robin in Baltimore, PBS programming head John Wilson spoke of ongoing focus the branding, as well as using it to draw in desired audiences such as the 40- to 64-year-old "femographic."

KCTS renovations will be green

KCTS 9 in Seattle just received a $100,000 award from the Kresge Foundation's Green Building Initiative to renovate its 23-year-old facility to LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) specifications. The station was one of seven organizations chosen from among 114 nationwide. The Kresge Foundation's headquarters in Troy, Mich., is a Platinum LEED building, the highest rating of the standard (plus, it looks pretty cool).