WNPT (channel 8) is a PBS member television station in Nashville, Tennessee, United States. The station is owned by Nashville Public Television, Inc., a community-funded, non-profit organization. WNPT's studios are located on Rains Avenue in southeast Nashville, and its transmitter is located in the southern suburb of Forest Hills.
Educational television in Nashville began when this station began broadcasting on September 10, 1962, as WDCN-TV on channel 2. Its activation by the school boards of Davidson County and Nashville—which merged that October—was the culmination of years of effort to start an educational station to serve the schools of Middle Tennessee and southern Kentucky. It originally operated from studios being vacated by commercial station WSM-TV. In the 1960s, WDCN-TV was a major producer of educational programming for schools.
On December 11, 1973, WDCN-TV moved to channel 8, and commercial station WSIX-TV moved from channel 8 and became WNGE-TV on channel 2. The agreement provided improved technical facilities for both stations and gave WDCN a cash infusion that allowed it to build its present studios. However, as time went on, the station became an underperformer in PBS, with a conservative approach to programming; very few programs produced for national distribution; and lagging community support. In order to solve these issues and separate the station from the Metro school board, the station was spun out in 1999 to Nashville Public Television and changed its name to WNPT on February 22, 2000. Donations and local programming rose in the early 2000s after the split was carried out.