Teradek Cube Encoder Helps California’s Central Valley Television With Live Streamed News

It’s been just over a decade since Carlos Rodriguez stepped in and rescued a floundering California Central Valley television station from likely extinction. The young news journalist looked at the broadcast options for his humble agricultural community that was desperately in need of local news sources. He dipped his toe into live streaming but it was Facebook Live and other social media that gave him the opportunity to reach audiences previously unheard of.

Broadcasting on social media has its benefits. Whereas news in Central Valley would typically travel slowly due to the lack of news networks and logistics required to set up satellites, Rodriguez takes out his Panasonic HPX3100 and Teradek Cube encoder and streams to Facebook within minutes, beating big media outlets that still use satellite. Having a trusted news source like Central Valley TV is vital in the face of a pandemic.

“I’ve been on the front lines of this whole COVID-19 situation since the week after the Super Bowl,” he says. “I took several assignments daily, from working at Travis AFB in Fairfield reporting on quarantined cruise ship passengers, to interviewing some after they were cleared and released.”

He explains that the need for live streaming is critically important in today’s situation. “People are consuming information and data as quick as they can that helps them determine what decisions they need to make in their daily lives during the stay at home recommendations. Residents want to know where they can pick up supplies if needed, where they can find groceries if one outlet is sold out, etc.”

CVTV is more than just a news source. They’ve been using their live streaming capabilities to serve their community where possible. “Recently when Governor Newsom issued stay at home orders, the local food bank had to cancel their biggest fundraiser of the year,” Rodriguez reported. “It was sold out, so they were greatly disappointed. In less than 48 hours, we planned a virtual auction that we live-streamed to their Facebook page. They were extremely happy with the results. It felt great to lend a hand.”

He calls today, “The wild west” filled with long days that keep Carlos and his partner Gabby Muro busy, like the nurses strike and the outbreak of 90 new Coronavirus cases at the local senior home. The fact that CVTV reports breaking news is a service that the community really appreciates, especially during these grueling economic times. CVTV has no paywall for its viewers and has been 100% free from the start.

Rodriguez and his partner have less resources and staff than traditional large broadcast stations so he chooses gear that’s easy for a small team to use, scalable, and won’t let them down. “We use a 600 Series Cube along with Live:Air Action. It is super portable, easy to use and streams straight to our Facebook page without a hitch. We were early adopters of Teradek since the beginning, and we still use our first gen unit from time to time. We love having these units in our arsenal!”

The Teradek Cube encoder has been a popular device used by production companies, broadcasters, and even local government offices as a means to deliver important information quickly and reliably. The HEVC and H.264 codecs offer unparalleled image quality for live streaming, IP video, and point-to-point needs.

CVTV is about to move to a new headquarters nearby in Stockton, where Rodriguez says, “We will continue to grow and serve the community any way we can.”