FCC Chairman Kevin Martin has announced a nationwide initiative to increase awareness about the upcoming transition to digital television. The FCC identified target television markets for specific DTV outreach, including all those markets in which more than 100,000 households, or at least 15 percent of the households, rely solely on over-the-air signals for television. Chairman Martin announced that the five FCC Commissioners and other Commission staff will fan out to these and other markets to raise awareness and educate consumers in the days leading up to the digital television transition on February 17, 2009. Chairman Martin was joined by representatives from the National Association of Broadcasters, Consumer Electronics Retailer Coalition, Consumer Electronics Association, and the National Cable Telecommunications Association for the announcement at the Newseum in Washington, D.C., one of the television markets identified. The NAB and members of the DTV Coalition will be assisting the Commission throughout this nationwide tour.

At each stop, there will be a public event, such as a town hall meeting, workshop, or roundtable, with an FCC Commissioner to highlight the digital transition, and be available to local press. In coordination with these visits, the FCC will work with local broadcasters and radio stations to increase the broadcasts of radio and TV DTV PSAs. All combined, this outreach is designed to educate consumers in these DMAs and especially those groups that are most vulnerable in the transition: Seniors, People Living in Tribal and Rural Areas, People with Disabilities, Individuals with Low-Incomes, Minorities and Non-English Speakers. For information as to outreach venues, visit the FCC's website.