Small Town News: KPVM Pahrump

Small Town News KPVM Pahrump is a six-part, half-hour documentary series that pulls back the curtain on life at a privately owned TV station in the small desert town of Pahrump, Nevada, revealing a colorful cast of characters in front of and behind the cameras. Executive produced by Emmy-winning filmmakers Fenton Bailey and Randy Barbato (HBO’s Catch and Kill: The Podcast Tapes, Carrie Fisher: Wishful Drinking), Small Town News KPVM Pahrump provides an entertaining glimpse into a scrappy, hard-working local news broadcaster looking to expand into a bigger market during challenging times. With warmth and admiration, the series celebrates the can-do spirit, community pride, and political diversity among the station’s charismatic and often humorous employees. Owned and operated by Vernon Van Winkle, known as “Vern,” and his wife Ronda, a singer/songwriter, KPVM provides a look at what it takes to report the news in a small desert town with a population of over 37,000. With ambitious goals to expand into the Las Vegas market, Vern and his small team take on daunting challenges, including building a new tower to provide a stronger broadcast signal, developing new ideas to generate advertising revenue, and broadening their stories beyond local interests. In the months leading up to the 2020 presidential election, KPVM must navigate the hot political climate and its own internal political leanings while striving to remain neutral and boost viewership. But in an era of divisive politics, the series reveals a greater respect and camaraderie for those with different opinions than is typically portrayed in the national media. Pahrump and KPVM showcase people across the political spectrum where a sense of community, civility, friendship, and laughter prevails.