MontanaPBS airing programming from newly-purchased stations in Eastern MT

MontanaPBS announced the operation of three Eastern Montana television stations this week, concluding a three-year-long effort to acquire stations and translators in Miles City, Glendive and Sidney.

PBS programming on its five digital channels went live in February. Prior to the activation, MontanaPBS’ coverage in Eastern Montana mostly stopped at Billings, though residents could obtain it contingent on their TV provider.

The expansion happens as the federal government has rescinded federal funding for PBS, with MontanaPBS director Aaron Pruitt telling the Gazette in September that it was about a 20% cut to their federal budget. Still, they were able to find private support to fill in the gaps. At the time, Pruitt said they had reached a high-water mark in the number of news producers the station had.

The stations were put up for sale by Maryland-based Marks Group following the death of its owner in 2022.

The stations mostly only ran other content in the past, with Sidney’s station running content from North Dakota. The Miles City station has been silent since the start of 2025. The Glendive station was regularly recognized as the smallest TV news market in the nation, with it featuring a solo five-minute newscast on Eastern Montana happenings until a decade ago.

Commercial television broadcasters passed on the opportunity to purchase them. Pruitt stated in a press release the small market sizes wouldn’t have been profitable for commercial entities.

So the Marks Group offered the stations to Montana PBS for $375,000. The price was below market value, with the firm contributing the rest as a charitable donation.

“In this case, it was made possible by a willing seller who recognized the value of educational programs for extremely rural communities that have never received PBS,” Pruitt said.

It led to what he described as the extremely rare conversion of commercial TV stations to a noncommercial education license.

Montana PBS is planning two days of events to celebrate the occasion in Miles City on April 24 and 25. That includes a Clifford the Big Red Dog meet-up at the library, a PBS pint night, a coffee meetup and a premiere of a brand new documentary “Jonnie” at the Montana Theatre. More information is at montanapbs.org.

“We’re really looking forward to meeting as many people from Miles City and the surrounding region as possible,” said Kyle Sorenson, director of marketing and communications at Montana PBS. “We want to welcome them to the Montana PBS neighborhood.”