Multichannel News reports that the Senate passed a bill today to keep some analog stations on the air for 30 days beyond the fixed February 17th transition date. The idea is to provide a “nightlight” period before complete analog darkness that allows stations to broadcast public safety announcements and information about the DTV transition. While the bill still has to pass the House, it’s being endorsed by FCC chairman Kevin Martin and the NTIA administrator Meredith Attwell Baker.
Given the continued confusion around the broadcast transition, this probably isn’t a bad idea. Maybe someone could also broadcast an analog tutorial showing how to set up a digital converter box?