ABOUT WEIU

Mission                                                                                             

WEIU's mission is to use its human and technological resources in partnership with others to benefit EIU and help make Charleston and the surrounding area a better place to live, learn, work and play.

We do this by:

• Complementing the work of the Departments of Communication Studies and Journalism at Eastern Illinois University by providing real-world training on state-of-the-art equipment to enable EIU students to become the most employable broadcast students in the United States.
• Promoting community service through quality programming that engages and educates and through community outreach that has a positive impact.

Vision                                                                                                

Our vision is to be the model for broadcast education in the United States and to be a valued partner in improving the well being of the constituents that we serve.

Values                                                                                                

WEIU values and works to make our community aware that we...

• Provide a service that is responsive to the needs of - and is valued by - the university, our community, our students, and our underwriters;
• Consistently strive for excellence and professionalism;
• Are accessible, dependable, honest and caring.

WEIU-TV is licensed to the Board of Trustees of Eastern Illinois University.
Our 255-kilowatt digital signal on Channel 51.1 is broadcast from our 492-foot tower located south and east of Humboldt, Ill.

WEIU History                                                                                      

WEIU-TV 51 began operation on July 1, 1986, offering basic programming,   including local news, public affairs, and instructional programming to the people of east-central Illinois for the first time. Things were a little rough in the beginning as dollars were tight and staff members were inexperienced.

"Ladies and gentlemen, welcome live, to the campus of Eastern Illinois University." With that introduction, Daniel Thornburgh, then the director of University Relations, christened WEIU-TV during its live on-air dedication on July 1, 1986.

WEIU struggled at first to get picked up on local cable systems in the area. Eventually this goal was accomplished as WEIU began building a presence in the east-central Illinois region.

WEIU has always focused on local programming for a region that is underserved by its commercial stations. Being a public television station, WEIU has many advantages over other stations when it comes to local programming. Some of the first local programs that aired on WEIU included "Time Out for Trivia," "EIU Connection," and "Coach's Corner."

WEIU's news program at the time, News Scan (now News Watch), aired on the campus cable system before the launch of WEIU and later made the transition to channel 51. On Sept. 1, 1986, News Scan aired on WEIU for the first time. At the time, about 50 students produced two live newscasts airing daily at 5 p.m. and 9:30 p.m. The news was put on hold in 1990 when the amount of staffing for News Scan experienced a dramatic decrease. The news returned to WEIU, however, on Feb. 13, 1990, airing a half-hour show at 6 p.m. and getting rid of the 9:30 p.m. newscast.

Sports programming has also been a strong part of the history of WEIU. Shows like Panther Country (now Sports Talk) have virtually been with the station from the start. The first episode of Panther Country aired in August 1987 with host David Kidwell. WEIU has also tried whenever possible to air live as many EIU sporting events as possible.

On Jan. 30, 1992, WEIU officially joined the PBS network, airing 10 hours of PBS children's programming weekly. Shows included "Captain Kangaroo," "Mr. Rogers," and "Reading Rainbow." The station later took on more PBS programming as it continued growing into the station you watch today.