>From PC World Mag: What's Behind Your TV's Color Temperature Settings? The settings on many of today's televisions include one for color temperature. In many cases it's labeled 'low', or 'warm', and it may mention the term 'NTSC', or the number '6500'. Color temperature refers to the overall color cast of screen images--slightly reddish, slightly bluish, or neutral. The number 6500 refers to the temperature (measured in degrees Kelvin) at which a specific theoretical material (referred to as "black body") will glow the color of sunlight at noon. Developers of the NTSC system adopted 6500 degrees Kelvin as their system's reference standard. DVDs and the ATSC (high-definition TV) system use 6500 as well.
When directors or production crews balance the color of their TV or movie shots, they work on reference monitors calibrated to 6500. For this reason, colors should display as the director intended if the material is viewed on a TV that is also set to 6500. There's is nothing magical about 6500 degrees Kelvin. We could achieve very similar color results if everyone made 5400 Kelvin or 7000 Kelvin the reference point instead. But 6500 Kelvin is the developers' choice. The key thing is that everyone has a reference point to adjust their monitors to, so we all see the same thing (or as close as possible to it). 007.
