Alabama Public Television to air PBS Kids Channel starting Jan. 16
"Daniel Tiger's Neighborhood" is a popular APT Kids program. (APT)
Alabama Public Television said it is adding a new digital channel for children and families across the state.
The PBS Kids Channel will begin airing Monday, Jan. 16, on APT’s digital channel 2, and will include a live stream on digital platforms.
“This should be terrific news for parents and children everywhere in Alabama,” Roy Clem, executive director of APT, said. “PBS Kids programming is proven to help children start school better prepared to learn and makes them more successful throughout school.”
PBS Kids Channel launches in Alabama January 16 from Alabama NewsCenter on Vimeo.
Having access to that programming at any time will be a help to parents, Clem said.
“The new PBS Kids Channel will make sure they can benefit from these programs 24 hours a day, including primetime and other after-school hours when viewing among families is high,” he said. “Viewers will also be able to watch the channel’s live stream through pbskids.org and on the PBS KIDS Video App, which is available on a variety of mobile devices, tablets and over-the-top platforms such as Roku, Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV, Android TV, Xbox One and Chromecast. Of course, these great programs will continue to be seen on APT’s main channel as they always have been.”
The on-demand clips and full episodes that already existed on the PBS KIDS Video App and streaming via pbskids.org will continue. Streaming on pbskids.org accounts for nearly half of all time spent watching kids’ videos online, and the site is No. 1 in the kids’ category for total views and minutes spent. Across digital platforms, PBS KIDS averages 419.8 million streams per month.
“Parents know that PBS KIDS makes a difference in their children’s lives, which is why so many have said they would value having access to our content throughout the day,” PBS President and CEO Paula Kerger said. “Television continues to be the most widely used platform for children’s educational content, especially among low-income families.”
The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) recently released new recommendations for parents about children’s TV time, placing greater emphasis on the quality of the media kids interact with, rather than the quantity, and pointing to PBS KIDS as a leading resource for educational programming. The new guidelines also encourage parents to watch TV with their children, and talk about it together.
Games and other content are planned with the expanded platforms.
The PBS Kids Channel on Alabama Public Television is made possible in part by Alabama Power, Children’s of Alabama, HEAL Alabama and Medical Properties Trust.
APT broadcasts two other digital sub-channels on its nine-station network, Create on digital channel 3, and World on digital channel 4.
