December 16, 2004
Purdue TV production to resume with 13 shows in early 2005
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. – Purdue University's weekly news and feature magazine television program will return to the airwaves and cable systems after the first of the year.
The "Discover Purdue" show is a half-hour program with 13 installments intended for statewide distribution. Each program will include campus news, feature segments and at least two studio interviews. Viewers also can watch the show or see previous archived episodes on the Web.
Presented jointly by the division of Information Technology at Purdue (ITaP) and the Office of University Relations, the program is scheduled to air weekly beginning Jan. 5 through the end of March.
Studio host for the fourth straight year is Mike Piggott, Purdue's director of community relations and a former news anchor, news director and general manager at WLFI-TV in West Lafayette. His co-host this year is Tangra (Riggle) Broge, 2003 Miss Indiana and a Purdue senior majoring in communications. Jim Vruggink, director of special projects in university relations, serves as the show's producer, along with Ed Dunn, producer/director for ITaP.
Vruggink said the start of production for the 2005 season marks the14th year of the program's current half-hour format. It was launched in 1989 as a one-hour live call-in show. The format was revised to its current length and content in 1990.
"'Discover Purdue' is geared toward a general audience, but focuses on the university's missions of learning, discovery and engagement," Vruggink said.
Guests on the first four programs include Purdue President Martin C. Jischke the first week, Vice President for Governmental Relations Terry Strueh the second week, forensics instructor David Tate in the third, and former NASA astronauts Guy Gardner and Mike McCulley in the fourth.
In Lafayette-West Lafayette, the program will be seen starting Jan. 4 each Tuesday at 11 a.m. and Saturday at 7 p.m. on Insight Communications Cable (Channel 13). On Purdue's West Lafayette campus, the program will start Jan. 3 and will air every Monday through Friday at 6:30 p.m. on the Purdue Channel on Insight Communications (Channel 5) and the University Residences Television Antenna System (Channel 15).
Outside the Lafayette-West Lafayette area, the program will be seen as follows:
• Indianapolis area and on many cable systems statewide on WFYI-TV (Channel 20) at 7:30 p.m. each Wednesday beginning Jan. 5.
• Northwest Indiana and Chicago area on WYIN-TV (Channel 56) at 8 a.m. CST each Sunday beginning Jan. 9.
• Evansville area on WNIN-TV (Channel 9) at 9 a.m. each Sunday beginning Jan. 9.
• Fort Wayne area on WFWA-TV (Channel 39) at 6:30 a.m. each Sunday beginning Jan. 9.
Source: Jim Vruggink, (765) 494-2086, jvruggink@purdue.edu
Purdue News Service: (765) 494-2096; purduenews@purdue.edu
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