Armstrong Rebrands Local Programming as Neighborhood Channel

BOARDMAN, Ohio – Television shows such as “Street Scene,” “Loose Change,” “Simple Living” and “Locally Speaking” will be calling Armstrong Neighborhood Channel their new home.

Armstrong Neighborhood Channel has been in the works for several months and will remain on channels 20 and 100, said Megan Ellashek, Armstrong’s community marketing manager. Since Armstrong is a family-owned business that delivers high school sports, community events, parades and local music, the new name encompasses what the business is about, she said.

“Our programmer here locally, Greg Rhoton, will schedule with people in the community,” she said. “He does ‘Out and About’ and ‘Street Scene’ with Rick Gurrera. They go out to all of the car shows locally and they rotate.” 

All proceeds from the show go to the Second Harvest Food Bank, she noted.

When employees found out The Vindicator was closing, Rhoton took the time to get creative with the channel, even adding local obituaries for people to view. Armstrong serves more than 52,000 homes in the area.

“People look for that,” Ellashek said. “He’s worked with funeral homes and it’s got the pictures, the write ups and things you wouldn’t think of.” 

Armstrong came up with the Armstrong Neighborhood Channel brand after “extensive surveys, brainstorming and customer feedback,” said Adam Daniels, field marketing manager, in a statement. It also identified for producers the programming viewers find interesting, he said.

“They know the people and places that matter,” he said. “They know the school spirit and town pride that fills the backyards and front porches in our local communities. We bring that straight to our viewers in all of our neighborhoods.” 

Plans include further developing the sports show to include new ways to cover top teams, Ellashek said.

“We’re used to getting that paper and here’s everything laid out,” she said. “[Rhoton is] getting very creative with filling that gap and thinking of new ways of how he can do it, and you don’t even have to leave your home.” 

Goals to keep people watching are also in the works with the rebranding because there’s always going to be new shows to watch, Ellashek said. 

“You might be able to see your grandchildren or music at noon and what happens at YSU, so it’s very widespread,” she said. “It’s fabulous the way technology has evolved.” 

Armstrong Neighborhood Channel content can be found at ArmstrongNeighborhood.com or by following @followArmstrong on Facebook, YouTube, Instagram and Twitter. 

As of 2018, Armstrong is the United State’s 11th largest cable television provider, according to SNL Kagan, an offering from S&P Global Market Intelligence. Service is provided to residential and commercial customers in Pennsylvania, Ohio, New York, West Virginia, Maryland and Kentucky.

Copyright 2024 The Business Journal, Youngstown, Ohio.