Station Ident: Difference between revisions

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In broadcasting, it is common for stations to give some kind of announcement as to what station you are on. This typically happens just before a feature begins. Many network mascots and logos are born in idents. They also may contain a theme tune, carry a common motif, or carry no common element at all. Early idents, which were basic and fairly static, can accidentally be [[Nightmare Fuel]] to younger viewers.

[[American Television Stations|American broadcast stations]] are required, under federal law, to declare their call sign and city of license at least once an hour, as close to the top of the hour as is reasonably possible. Obviously radio stations have to announce, a TV station may give it in audio, visual or both. Note this only applies to ''~~broadcast~~'' stations; a ~~station~~ that is on the Internet or is a cable-only or satellite-based ~~station~~ (Music Choice, Sirius/XM, CNN, USA, HBO, MTV, etc,) do not have call signs and are not required to identify themselves.

[[American Television Stations|American broadcast stations]] are required, under federal law, to declare their call sign and city of license at least once an hour, as close to the top of the hour as is reasonably possible.<ref>If the community of licence is not the primary city served, for legal reasons, the city named on the station's licence is always the first of the (often) multiple places listed: "This is WWNY-TV 7 Carthage-Watertown" indicates the licence is Carthage. These are not easy for a broadcaster to change later, as the US FCC is reticent to deprive some small village of "their" only hometown station. If WNET snagged the last spot on the dial by acquiring an existing [[Joisey]] station, the ident stays with "WNET 13 Newark" initially and only mentions NYC later.</ref> Obviously radio stations have to announce, a TV station may give it in audio, visual or both. Other, less-common options include a digital TV station identifying itself in the on-channel programme guide (using PSIP) or a radioamateur station identifying in [[Morse Code]]. Note this only applies to ''over-the-air'' stations; a broadcast that is solely on the Internet, is cable-only or satellite-based (Music Choice, Sirius/XM, CNN, USA, HBO, MTV, etc,) do not have call signs and are not required to identify themselves.

In recent years these have waned in the United States, though a few notable channels like HBO soldiered on. The major TV networks have less need for this practice over the years, thanks to persistent onscreen logos, announcing their brand at the end of every promo, and the fact that idents eat up commercial time. Typically, Top of the Hour announcements come in the form of a blurb for the Late Night [[Talk Show]] guest list or a new episode of a primetime drama. Local stations' afternoon and late news slots are a different matter, as individual station screen bugs aren't widespread in syndicated shows (big three affiliates usually stray from them, but [[FOX]], [[The CW|CW]] and [[My Network TV]] stations don't).

Canada follows a similar pattern to the US, but its regulations are a bit more lax as network-owned stations often simply identify with network name and city ("This is CTV Ottawa") instead of the legal callsign ("This is CJOH-TV 13...").

Idents are still quite popular in British television. [[The BBC]] has a fairly consistent design of idents across its TV channels, as does ITV and Channel 4. British idents often have a [[Hey, It's That Voice!|continuity announcer]], a disembodied voice that informs you of the next program or two and whether you might want to put the kids to bed for this one. British idents aim to entertain or mystify rather than simply inform, and sometimes their onscreen display may be relevant to the content of the show to follow.