The technology toolkit available to broadcasters has evolved dramatically over the past quarter-century.
During television’s digital and HD transition era, “future-proofing” became a favorite phrase among systems integrators designing 3G-SDI facilities. Yet television has never actually exceeded 1080i/720p over ATSC 1.0, which is effectively half-bandwidth HD, or 1.5G.
So why did Arizona Public Media (AZPM) choose to build a 4K facility, deploy virtual production capabilities and install 4K cameras in radio studios? The answer lies in understanding where content creation and distribution is headed.
Analyzing the Need
Recent industry research shows audiences are consuming streaming media at a greater rate than traditional broadcast-delivered content. Our own metrics at AZPM reflect the same trend. OTT consumption continues to grow while over-the-air viewership remains relatively flat.
As AZPM began planning the $65 million Paul and Alice Baker Center for Public Media (with a tech budget of about $10 million), we examined our current and future needs across TV, radio, streaming and digital media production. Our goal was to eliminate traditional silos and create technology-agnostic production spaces that support current workflows and can adapt to future requirements.
Quality was also a major consideration. AZPM already captures field content in 4K HDR using Sony FX6 and FX9 cameras and edits in DaVinci Resolve to leverage its advanced color-grading capabilities. Historically, however, field-acquired footage never fully matched in-house studio productions due to limitations in our 1080i SDR infrastructure.
While a migration to 3G HDR would have been the simpler path and would have produced solid results, we chose to push further by designing our internal production environment around 4K HDR. That decision naturally led to discussions about adding a dedicated color-correction suite and a Dolby Atmos mixing room.
We wanted to eliminate the traditional silos that often separate TV, radio, cable television and conference-room AV systems. Too often, these systems coexist without integrating effectively. We believed there had to be a better way.
Searching for the Answer
Because the AZPM facility was funded entirely through donor and member support, one of our earliest goals was to create a facility that donors would be proud to invest in while supporting our long-term mission.
Research became a critical part—the AZPM team visited numerous recently completed media facilities, observing operations and asking candid questions about what had worked well and what they would do differently.
Some organizations had committed to HD and 3G-SDI as their long-term strategy. Others aspired to deploy 12G infrastructures but were constrained by budget realities.
My vision for broadcasting’s future has always included both over-the-air and streaming delivery. Each platform offers distinct advantages. With ATSC 3.0 now approaching a decade of deployment, I remain hopeful that NextGen TV, coupled with integrated streaming experiences, can elevate OTA broadcasting by bringing content quality and user experiences closer to what audiences expect from streaming services.
AZPM currently broadcasts in ATSC 1.0 and 3.0 and chose to deploy a 1080p HDR NextGen TV signal. In doing so, we planted our flag firmly where we believe the industry must go to remain competitive and relevant.
Building the Team and the Plan
At AZPM, the transition began well before the move into the new facility. We migrated field-production equipment and editing systems to 4K HDR workflows while still operating from our existing location. Giving teams time to become comfortable with new tools and processes before introducing a completely new facility significantly reduced organizational friction.
My internal design team included leaders from engineering, information technology and production. Together, they transitioned to 4K acquisition, DaVinci Resolve workflows, LUT-based color management and enhanced audio production techniques.
The results were evident. This year, AZPM received eight regional Edward R. Murrow Awards for excellence in journalism. While great storytelling remains the most important factor, there is little doubt that improved production quality helped strengthen audience engagement and presentation.
As a result, when our production teams moved into the new facility, they encountered familiar workflows enhanced by better spaces, newer tools and expanded capabilities. The transition proved remarkably smooth.
Of course, adopting new technologies also introduces new support challenges. High-bandwidth IP-based production environments require expertise in software, networking, cybersecurity and systems integration that extends well beyond traditional broadcast engineering disciplines.
AZPM invested heavily in staff development while simultaneously upgrading portions of our existing facility to serve as a testing environment. Moving from HD to 4K requires more powerful editing systems, increased network capacity, improved monitoring and measurement tools, and significantly more storage.
Concept testing also played an important role in validating new operational models. One example was transforming a radio program into content that could simultaneously serve radio broadcast, podcast, vodcast, streaming and traditional television audiences.
To test the concept, we equipped an old radio studio with PTZ cameras, upgraded lighting and branded visual elements. A small flypack in an adjacent control room enabled student operators to produce the program efficiently with a much lighter operational footprint.
The experiment proved successful. Today, our new Press Room studio provides expanded space, dedicated cameras, planned lighting and digital signage capable of supporting a wide range of productions while maintaining operational efficiency.
Finding Partners
Successfully delivering a project of this scale while maintaining normal operations is an enormous challenge. Choosing the right partners was therefore one of the most important decisions we made.
We issued an RFP seeking a fully integrated design-build team capable of addressing construction, power, HVAC, acoustics and media facility requirements as a unified effort.
After selecting our construction partner, we completed a Phase 0 broadcast design study. I cannot overstate the importance of providing architects and builders with detailed requirements regarding space allocation, cable pathways, cooling capacity, power distribution and equipment density.
Our builder had recently completed a Meta data center and a film school production facility. Even so, assumptions can be dangerous.
For example, their initial studio-floor specification mirrored what had been used in film production environments. Television production places very different demands on floor surfaces. Pedestal-mounted cameras require strict flatness and levelness tolerances as defined by ASTM E1155-20. Without those standards, camera movements can become unstable and unlocked cameras can literally roll across the studio floor.
Perhaps the most important long-term partner in any facility project is the systems integrator. During installation, we routinely had 10 systems integration specialists on-site for six months to complete cabling, infrastructure deployment and equipment commissioning.
We ultimately selected a midsized systems integrator that demonstrated a willingness to innovate, collaborate and help us achieve our goals.
Building one of the region’s first fully IP-based media facilities—from VITEC-powered cable and digital signage systems to TAG multiviewers and an EVS-managed SMPTE ST 2110 infrastructure—is no small undertaking.
I must commend KCM (Key Code Media) for their collaborative approach and commitment to project success. On multiple occasions, we activated studio resources for live productions before formal project acceptance. KCM staff worked alongside our teams to ensure everything operated successfully, including complex 11-camera productions that occurred before final commissioning was complete.
From Skepticism to Enthusiasm
Few organizations are fortunate enough to build a greenfield media facility of this scale.
No project of this magnitude proceeds without challenges, compromises and occasional disappointments. Throughout the process, my goals remained straightforward: keep the team engaged, provide clear direction to our partners, maintain rigorous oversight and ensure that our staff remained healthy and focused.
One of the more amusing aspects of the transition was watching some of the strongest skeptics become enthusiastic advocates. Several longtime employees initially doubted that the new facility would improve their work, enhance quality or make their jobs more enjoyable.
Today, many of those same individuals enthusiastically explain to colleagues how they use the new tools, appreciate the new spaces and cannot imagine returning to the workflows of our previous facility.
In the end, most obstacles proved manageable and ultimately minor in the context of the overall project.
What I will carry forward from this experience is not only the accomplishment itself, but also the belief that the investment made by our donors, members, staff and partners has provided AZPM with a platform for innovation that will serve the organization for decades to come.
If we have done our jobs well, this facility will enable Arizona Public Media to create, innovate, educate and thrive for the next 75 years.
