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WQLN is the public television station in Erie, Pennsylvania. It is owned by Public Broadcasting of Northwest Pennsylvania, Inc.
WQLN, a PBS member station, broadcasts on analog UHF channel 54 and digital channel 50, from transmitting facilities south of the city of Erie.
Groundwork for an educational station in northwest Pennsylvania was laid in 1953 with the founding of Educational Television of Erie. Its initial effort to sign on a station was unsuccessful, but the group eventually reserved channel 54 for noncommercial use. The group, which was renamed Educational Television of Northwest Pennsylvania in 1964, pressed on until finally winning a construction permit on December 6, 1966. The group initially chose the call letters WLRN (for LeaRNing), but those letters were already being used by another PBS station in Miami, Florida. They then went with their next choice, WQLN (We Question and LearN). On August 13, 1967; WQLN finally went on the air. WQLN-FM signed on in 1973.
WQLN has long struggled financially, and as a result, at various times in the life of the station programs including Mister Rogers, Nova, and Macneil/Lehrer Newshour were not seen on WQLN.
In addition to its local viewership in Northwestern Pennsylvania and portions of nearby Ohio and New York State, WQLN is also seen in the London, Ontario area on Rogers Cable channel 8, and on other cable systems in the area. To reflect audiences on both sides of Lake Erie, WQLN promotionally identifies as "Erie/London" on-air.
WQLN-TV was once offered on many cable systems in the Hamilton, Niagara and Grand River regions. In the early 1990s this station was replaced with WNEQ-TV in the Hamilton and Niagara regions. WQLN-TV was dropped from the cable systems in the Grand River regions and was not replaced.
Twice each day WQLN lists the birthdays of children who are members of the WQLN Kids Club.
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