Tennessee Valley Indians

noun

Interference with television signals, caused by CB radio.

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Meanings

nounTennessee Valley Indians pl (plural only)
  1. pluralplural onlyCB radio slangInterference with television signals, caused by CB radio.

    First of a Series: Tvi (television interference, commonly referred to as "Tennessee Valley Indians") is certainly one of amateur radio's biggest problems.

    1963, CQ; the Radio Amateur's Journal, volume 19, numbers 1-6, page 87
    1 more example

    “I've been using the meter to chase Tennessee Valley Indians. That's what we hams call television interference connected in any way with an amateur station,” Barney went on in answer to Mac's questioning look.

    1957, Radio & Television News, volume 57, page 70

Origin

Humorous alternative expansion of the initialism TVI.

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

Tennessee Valley Indians. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Tennessee%20Valley%20Indians

MLA

“Tennessee Valley Indians.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Tennessee%20Valley%20Indians. Accessed November 5, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “Tennessee Valley Indians,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Tennessee%20Valley%20Indians.

Source: Tennessee Valley Indians on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.