Hey, It’s Photo Friday!

In my time with public television, I’ve seen fund drives come and go. We hit the airwaves every so often (annually in the early days, several times a year more recently) to ask for your support because, cliché though it may be, you are the public in public television and your donations do matter. I’ve seen slogans a-plenty and pledge pitches that rank from masterful to novice. And for every minute you see on screen, there’s probably an hour of planning and prep behind the scenes to make it happen.

Here’s a pic I snapped some years ago in the offices used to coordinate the live fundraiser breaks that used to permeate our airwaves during pledge time. Nowadays, breaks are all pre-taped and “virtual” but any longtime viewer will remember (perhaps fondly) the era of live television where almost anything could happen.

Hey, It’s Photo Friday!

Is it a stereotype if it’s true? Because the cliche that we give out a massive amount of tote bags may be just an exaggeration but I do spy a lot of them around the building. Here’s one hanging in a co-worker’s cubicle…

Hey, It’s Photo Friday!

What’s our name? Currently, it is PBS North Carolina. Previously, we were known as UNC-TV. That identity lasted for decades. And if you visited our lobby in years gone past you may have seen this sign hanging…

Hey, It’s Photo Friday!

If you’re ever a guest on our public affairs series STATE LINES, here’s what you’ll be drinking out of. As one might guess, any decent political/current events discussion program needs to keep its guests hydrated since a dry mouth can be the difference between making a cogent argument and looking like a fool on statewide television. So that why we had these drinking mugs made up with the STATE LINES logo. They showcase our brand and make nifty souvenirs (assuming guests get to keep theirs – I don’t know for certain).

Hey, It’s Photo Friday!

Who wants a prize?! Most people do, it seems. Prizes, swag, giveaways, loot, plunder – who doesn’t like free stuff? Well, here’s a pic of a prize basket I spied in a neighboring department. No idea how this will be gifted, whether it’s a staff prize or something to be handed out during some upcoming community outreach event. Hopefully a loyal viewer will be the beneficiary of this nifty basket o’ freebies. Maybe even you.

Hey, It’s Photo Friday!

Another tote bag! Seems like there’s a endless supply of these things around the station. This one’s from the 2021 North Carolina Science Festival (NC SciFest). As you can see from the second photo, we (then UNC-TV) were a Gold Sponsor. Certainly it comes as no surprise that PBS North Carolina has always been dedicated to science learning with shows like NOVA and SCI NC. So it’s a natural extension of that science dedication to support an event of this nature. And we get a nifty little burlap tote to show for it!

Hey, It’s Photo Friday!

If you watch Rootle or visit our website, you may be aware of something called the Rootle Roadster. It’s a station vehicle that brings the Rootle crew and loads of fun to communities around the state. Last year, the Rootle Roadster tour made stops at the Mount Olive Pickle Festival, the NC State Fair and various other places around the Tar Heel State.

This year, the tour kicked off last weekend in Raleigh at the Marbles Kids Museum and Moore Square. 1,500 participants made the scene and over 600 were treated to a special showing of the new PBS Kids series LYLA IN THE LOOP in IMAX. Lots of activities were on tap and there were plenty of organizations there to interest kids and their families.

Couldn’t make it? No worries. There will be other Roadster tour stops all year log (visit our website for more info) but here are some pictures from event to assuage your FOMO.

Thanks to Raleigh Downtown for the fantastic photos and thanks to everyone behind the scenes who made this possible. Check out some more snaps of the festivities…

Hey, It’s NOT Photo Friday!

No, it’s not Friday but I wanted to follow up on a post from a week or so back about our new sign. It lights up! I don’t know whether all the wiring just wasn’t connected the first few weeks or if I just didn’t notice but the sign lights up like a beacon in the night. Noticed it as I walked out last week so … hey, pretty cool.

Apologies for the bad photo but it was night.

Hey, It’s Photo Friday!

We’ve got a sign! Maybe not something people usually get excited about but we moved into or RTP building in 1989 and we’ve never had a sign before last month. Sure, the building was pretty hard to miss in that it was the only thing at the end of our long and winding wooded driveway – and there was a big monolith sign at the main entrance – but we’ve never had an actual sign on the building itself. So if you ever visit PBS North Carolina there should be zero doubt you’re in the right place.

Hey, It’s Photo Friday!

A quick shot of PBS NC long past. Back in the days were we were just WUNC, Channel 4 out of Chapel Hill, that’s how far back. I saw this picture on a wall in one of our production rooms and thought how much it looked like something I might have come across in the archives I inherited some years ago. So I share.

What’s the production seen in the photo? No idea. As I’ve said before, there’s no catalogue of all the shows we’ve aired or produced in the decades since our 1955 sign-on, which is sad, so I have no idea who’s pictured. Anyone who does has long retired or passed.