GE 32GT740 32" TV problem

There are two things that can cause this, 1 there is a muting transistor on the bottom of the PCB that is a surface mount transistor that goes short. this is the channel mute transistor. when you change channels it is designed to mute the static between channel changes. if it shorts then it mutes. 2 the EE-PROM is defective and needs to be replaced. i'de go with the transistor first. if you are unequipped to do this repair have a tech do it.