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Baseball preempted by Katrina relief?

T

TheTiger

Tomorrow night, my local WB station will carry the game between the Boston Red Sox and the NY Yankkes at 7:00pm. It will be originated from UPN 9 out of NYC.
Because all the broadcast networks and some cable channels will carry the Hurricane Katrina relief telethon, is it possible that baseball games will have to be pre-empted?

With the baseball game going on tomorrow night, this will leave two networks without a relief telethon.
 
Let's address these...

> Because all the broadcast networks and some cable channels
> will carry the Hurricane Katrina relief telethon, is it
> possible that baseball games will have to be pre-empted?

No. Do you think for one minute that a station that has previously committed itself to a baseball game will give up the usually large audience and ad revenue from same for a hastily-arranged "telethon"? I think not. If anything, the Katrina benefit could air at some point during the weekend. Failing that, the American Red Cross or the Salvation Army (etc.) won't be crying over the loss of a station or three tomorrow night, considering that they're swimming in contributions as it is. May the pot overflow.

Second point...

> With the baseball game going on tomorrow night, this will
> leave two networks without a relief telethon.

No it won't. The loss of one station each does not equal the loss of two whole networks. Even then, it's the lesser two anyway. Think about it. Seriously.
 
The Yankee-Red Sox game will be on WWOR tomorrow.
Dollars to doughnuts says that the majority of viewers are going to watch that instead of the "concert". WWOR will air the complete UPN Friday line-up on Saturday night, including the "concert".<P ID="signature">______________
WCBS = We're Crazy Buffoons and Schmucks
<a href=http://chuck.spotteddogs.org/tv/>Spotted Dog TV Talk - for all your non-news TV Talk</a></P>
 
According to tvguide.com, even PBS and I/PAX here in Hartford/New Haven are carrying that benefit concert. The exception? WCTX-TV (UPN) channel 59 of New Haven is still listed as carrying the Red Sox vs Yankees game. While I don't doubt the need to do this fundraiser, I do wonder why it has to be on 6 or 7 different stations at once? It's going to be quite fustrating for those with only an antenna tonight.
 
> According to tvguide.com, even PBS and I/PAX here in
> Hartford/New Haven are carrying that benefit concert. The
> exception? WCTX-TV (UPN) channel 59 of New Haven is still
> listed as carrying the Red Sox vs Yankees game. While I
> don't doubt the need to do this fundraiser, I do wonder why
> it has to be on 6 or 7 different stations at once? It's
> going to be quite fustrating for those with only an antenna
> tonight.
>
I often wondered what the idea is behind using so many TV stations to broadcast the same thing. Whether it is a telethon or a presidental conference. Even local news (at least in Chicago) covers the same stories, often they just shuffle the order.

What people fail to realize is New Orleans will need relief not for weeks or months but for YEARS to come. And irritating people isn't the way to get money.

It would be better to do a series of concerts each airing at a different time and day on a different network. <P ID="signature">______________
Once I figured out the meaning of life....Then I forgot to write it down.</P>
 
Since every major-league baseball stadium has large video screens, couldn't baseball commissioner Bud Selig order every major-league game tonight suspended for an hour between 8 and 9 P.M. EDT and beam the benefit show into the stadiums??

One advantage is that broadcast-TV stations and regional cable networks that carry MLB teams would be able to broadcast the show without missing any of the game.
 
> Since every major-league baseball stadium has large video
> screens,



Not every major league baseball stadium has a large video screen. Wrigley Field still does not have one. Of course if the Cubs were at home this weekend they would not be playing a night game on a Friday.
 
> Not every major league baseball stadium has a large video
> screen. Wrigley Field still does not have one. Of course
> if the Cubs were at home this weekend they would not be
> playing a night game on a Friday.
>

Good news is that none of the broadcast stations carry pre-season football since the regular season has already started last night. It was the game between the Oakland Raiders and the New England Patriots.

As for baseball, all of the games should be cable-only, but speculations are that even the Comcast Sportsnets have to carry the Katrina relief concert telethon. If Bud Selig was notified of the telethon, then he would have to cancel the games, except the ones for the west coast. Then he would have to schedule make-up games at the end of the regular season.
 
> Since every major-league baseball stadium has large video
> screens, couldn't baseball commissioner Bud Selig order
> every major-league game tonight suspended for an hour
> between 8 and 9 P.M. EDT and beam the benefit show into the
> stadiums??

Thankfully all Bud cares about is lining his own pockets, so this scenario is not even on his radar.
Now if this idiotic plan of yours was put through there would be a large riot at 161 st Street and River Avenue in the Bronx tonight as the Yankees are playing the Red Sox. You do not mess with Yankee-Red Sox games.

> One advantage is that broadcast-TV stations and regional
> cable networks that carry MLB teams would be able to
> broadcast the show without missing any of the game.

One advantage of not showing the self-serving concert is it gives people an option to watch something else.
In the Tri-State Area there will be many people watching WWOR at 8PM, in the Red Sox Nation they will be watching WSBK or NESN.<P ID="signature">______________
WCBS = We're Crazy Buffoons and Schmucks
<a href=http://chuck.spotteddogs.org/tv/>Spotted Dog TV Talk - for all your non-news TV Talk</a></P>
 
> As for baseball, all of the games should be cable-only, but
> speculations are that even the Comcast Sportsnets have to
> carry the Katrina relief concert telethon.

Why?
Red Sox-Yankee game on WWOR is better than self-serving concert on WWOR.

> If Bud Selig was notified of the telethon, then he would
> have to cancel the games, except the ones for the west coast.
> Then he would have to schedule make-up games at the end of
> the regular season.

Given Bud only cares about profit, he would never do such a thing.
They should have made George W. Bush baseball commissioner when they had the chance!
<P ID="signature">______________
WCBS = We're Crazy Buffoons and Schmucks
<a href=http://chuck.spotteddogs.org/tv/>Spotted Dog TV Talk - for all your non-news TV Talk</a></P>
 
> Since every major-league baseball stadium has large video
> screens, couldn't baseball commissioner Bud Selig order
> every major-league game tonight suspended for an hour
> between 8 and 9 P.M. EDT and beam the benefit show into the
> stadiums??

He could, but why would he? It's just a concert. Most MLB teams and other organizations are doing other things to help Katrina victims. No one wants to go to a baseball stadium to watch a concert for an hour.

I do see why every general-interest broadcast network is running this, but I don't see a reason to pre-empt sporting events for it. A lot of people just want to watch the game, and it would be silly to force a concert, however well-intentioned, down their throats.
 
> I do see why every general-interest broadcast network is
> running this, but I don't see a reason to pre-empt sporting
> events for it. A lot of people just want to watch the game,
> and it would be silly to force a concert, however
> well-intentioned, down their throats.

Agreed, and a question to Joseph_Gallant:
Why are you so hopped up about this and think everyone should be forced to watch it?
It is going to be just like the tsunami, a few months later and all is forgotten despite a similar roadblocked self-promotion fest.<P ID="signature">______________
WCBS = We're Crazy Buffoons and Schmucks
<a href=http://chuck.spotteddogs.org/tv/>Spotted Dog TV Talk - for all your non-news TV Talk</a></P>
 
I was asked:

> Why are you so hopped up about this and think everyone
> should be forced to watch it?

Because the producers of this program want it to appear on as many places on the TV dial as possible. The idea the producers probably had was "If you're going to be watching TV between 8 and 9 P.M. on Friday, you're going to be watching our hurricane relief benefit!".

It would be one thing if this show was, like last week's benefit, produced by a network (NBC) for broadcast on only that network (or perhaps also on cable networks under the same ownership as that network).

But this is a joint effort of a number of networks and the idea is to get it broadcast on as many networks as possible.
 
> I was asked:
>
> > Why are you so hopped up about this and think everyone
> > should be forced to watch it?
>
> Because the producers of this program want it to appear on
> as many places on the TV dial as possible. The idea the
> producers probably had was "If you're going to be watching
> TV between 8 and 9 P.M. on Friday, you're going to be
> watching our hurricane relief benefit!".

Which still doesn't answer the question, why do you feel that everyone should be forced to watch it and are so hopped up about it, unless you are one of the producers of this pretense of munificence by millionaires.

> It would be one thing if this show was, like last week's
> benefit, produced by a network (NBC) for broadcast on only
> that network (or perhaps also on cable networks under the
> same ownership as that network).

I'll give you that, but again, that was more of the same nonsesne, but on a lesser scale.

> But this is a joint effort of a number of networks and the
> idea is to get it broadcast on as many networks as possible.

Yes, it is, but that still doesn't it make it worthy of watching.
<P ID="signature">______________
WCBS = We're Crazy Buffoons and Schmucks
<a href=http://chuck.spotteddogs.org/tv/>Spotted Dog TV Talk - for all your non-news TV Talk</a></P>
 
> The Yankee-Red Sox game will be on WWOR tomorrow.
> Dollars to doughnuts says that the majority of viewers are
> going to watch that instead of the "concert". WWOR will air
> the complete UPN Friday line-up on Saturday night, including
> the "concert".
>
WWOR-TV ran a scroll at 8PM tonight that said it will air the concert at 11PM after baseball.
 
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