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Did people formerly use DX TV to beat NFL blackouts?
- Thread starter BMR
- Start date
The first Super Bowl was held in L.A. and was blacked out in the market.
Many bars, etc. in the L.A. basin put up tall antennas tuning into San Diego television down the coast.
Also, apparently some of the cable systems and CATVs in the L.A. market piped in the San Diego station into their L.A. systems.
The Super Bowl was replayed in L.A. the following day.
Many bars, etc. in the L.A. basin put up tall antennas tuning into San Diego television down the coast.
Also, apparently some of the cable systems and CATVs in the L.A. market piped in the San Diego station into their L.A. systems.
The Super Bowl was replayed in L.A. the following day.
In Michigan, CBS affiliate WJIM-TV channel six in Lansing was just outside the blackout radius. The TV section of the Detroit papers had ads each week for "channel six antennas" to watch the Lions games.
In Philadelphia, the University of Pennsylvania had two high-rise dorms and students from the New York area (and there were quite a few of them) used to gather on the top floor to watch games from WCBS-TV channel two in New York. When the Eagles and Giants played in Philly, the place was packed.
Originally, all home games were blacked out (sold out or not). The Feds forced the NFL to modify this to allow broadcast of sold-out games.
However, true DXing (ionosphere skip) is very rare for TV and completely undependable. What people did was to take advantage of rim-shot signals they normally wouldn't bother with. I went to high school in an area close to the border of two markets and we could get three CBS affiliates (WMAR-TV, channel two in Baltimore, WCAU-TV, channel 10 in Philadelphia and WTOP-TV, channel 9 in Washington - the last one was not a great picture but watchable if you really wanted to).
In Philadelphia, the University of Pennsylvania had two high-rise dorms and students from the New York area (and there were quite a few of them) used to gather on the top floor to watch games from WCBS-TV channel two in New York. When the Eagles and Giants played in Philly, the place was packed.
Originally, all home games were blacked out (sold out or not). The Feds forced the NFL to modify this to allow broadcast of sold-out games.
However, true DXing (ionosphere skip) is very rare for TV and completely undependable. What people did was to take advantage of rim-shot signals they normally wouldn't bother with. I went to high school in an area close to the border of two markets and we could get three CBS affiliates (WMAR-TV, channel two in Baltimore, WCAU-TV, channel 10 in Philadelphia and WTOP-TV, channel 9 in Washington - the last one was not a great picture but watchable if you really wanted to).
WTRF/7 Wheeling WV and then-WSTV/9 Steubenville OH were even on local cable in southern parts of the Cleveland market.
Back in the day, I believe 7 was the NBC affiliate and 9 was the CBS affiliate, so Browns fans would have been trying for 7 at the time (NBC had the AFC deal back then).
I know local bars had antennas aimed at Wheeling, and it's not a difficult catch with a rooftop aerial south of Cleveland.
Today, 7 is CBS(/FOX/ABC subchannels) and 9 is NBC, and of course, we're no longer in the analog era. CBS has the AFC contract, and the Browns have been sold out each week since their return in 1999.
Back in the day, I believe 7 was the NBC affiliate and 9 was the CBS affiliate, so Browns fans would have been trying for 7 at the time (NBC had the AFC deal back then).
I know local bars had antennas aimed at Wheeling, and it's not a difficult catch with a rooftop aerial south of Cleveland.
Today, 7 is CBS(/FOX/ABC subchannels) and 9 is NBC, and of course, we're no longer in the analog era. CBS has the AFC contract, and the Browns have been sold out each week since their return in 1999.
Years ago, people in North Texas bought antennas specially designed to pick up channel 12 and pointed them north to watch the Cowboys on KXII from Ardmore, Oklahoma. In the southern part of the area, people would buy antennas specially designed to watch KWTX out of Waco. (oddly, the two stations were co-owned)
You used to be able to drive around Dallas and see some people had these antennas on masts with rotators. Some even had 4 of them in an array to improve the signal. It worked pretty well.
Years later, KWTX had ABC as well. One night when the Cowboys were blacked out on Monday Night Football, I thought I'd check to see if we could get KWTX on our normal antenna. Lo and behold, there was some good atmospherics in play that night and we got a crystal clear color picture from Waco for the entire game. A day or so later, the Dallas Morning News reported that MANY people had found the same thing.
You used to be able to drive around Dallas and see some people had these antennas on masts with rotators. Some even had 4 of them in an array to improve the signal. It worked pretty well.
Years later, KWTX had ABC as well. One night when the Cowboys were blacked out on Monday Night Football, I thought I'd check to see if we could get KWTX on our normal antenna. Lo and behold, there was some good atmospherics in play that night and we got a crystal clear color picture from Waco for the entire game. A day or so later, the Dallas Morning News reported that MANY people had found the same thing.
MattParker said:
Correct, of course. I should perhaps have said 'rimshot TV' or 'fringe TV'.....possibly I should also have put this in the 'classic TV' section, but it seems to be doing fine here now. Some interesting stories here and I'm enjoying reading them- keep them coming
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Looking into this further I've just found this piece in 'popular science' http://books.google.com/books?id=_A...&resnum=1&ved=0CC4Q6AEwAA#v=onepage&q&f=false
showing the huge aerials some people used to beat blackouts.
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I don't really have a British equivilant from the soccer world to share with you, as soccer games have tended to be shown nationally or not at all. It's only really with the satellite and internet age people have started searching the skies and the web for coverage from mainland European stations, either for a game not being shown in the UK or to beat the high subscription fees for Sky and ESPN.
There is a national soccer blackout in the UK between 3pm and 5pm on Saturdays, to protect smaller clubs, but overseas stations can and do take coverage.
OhioMediaWatch said:
Didn't Browns fans also aim antennas at/drive to Toledo to get around the blackouts? Toledo is JUST out of the blackout range for the Browns, but not out of it for the Lions.....so even though we're a Lions market officially, the Browns were on TV more often between the 70's and 90's.
EnbyCee said:
Back in the 70's, many times, the New England Patriots games on Monday Night Football on ABC would be blacked out within 75 miles of Boston (including WCVB, WMUR and WTEV). Fortunately at the time, WMTW-TV Channel 8 from high atop Mt. Washington in New Hampshire had a killer signal with good coverage from over 125 miles away. Many people in the Boston area would buy DX antennas (especially with bar room TV's) and watch MNF on WMTW. That was one way to beat that stupid NFL blackout. West of Boston, you could get WHYN-TV (Channel 40) from Springfield.
Greg Branch said:
I even remember folks driving south to one of the rest stops along I-35, park their truck, plug in the TV to the electrical outlet (with a long extension cord), pull out some folding chairs and tune in the games from there. I thought it was odd, but that was the easiest way to watch the Pokes...
J
A lot of people also did this with the Falcons. Many Falcons games were blacked out from Channel 5 (CBS) in Atlanta, so people used antennas to get WMAZ from Macon or WDEF from Chattanooga (depending on what part of town you were in), so they could get their blacked-out Falcons games.
That scenario has never happened with the Panthers, since their blackout zone is so large. Every market in the Carolinas is blacked out except for Greenville/New Bern, Wilmington, and Charleston when they don't sell out.
In the year they had at Clemson, Charlotte, Greenville/Spartanburg/Asheville and Columbia were blacked out, but the other markets were not. People could drive to the Triad or the Florence area to watch.
That scenario has never happened with the Panthers, since their blackout zone is so large. Every market in the Carolinas is blacked out except for Greenville/New Bern, Wilmington, and Charleston when they don't sell out.
In the year they had at Clemson, Charlotte, Greenville/Spartanburg/Asheville and Columbia were blacked out, but the other markets were not. People could drive to the Triad or the Florence area to watch.
Peter Q. George (K1XRB) said:
I remember in the 70's growing up just outside of Manchester, NH and my dad using a rotor to pickup WCSH out of Portland to see the Patriots if they were blacked out on WBZ-TV.
I came back to check recent posts on this topic and the ad at the top was for an outdoor HDTV antenna with a range of 150 miles - perfect for beating Black Outs today (or seeing other than the designated team). In addition to Black Outs, which still do happen, the team the NFL (or the network) requires a station to carry is sometimes not the team a lot of people in the market want to see. There are still reasons for people to want to get around NFL TV rules, especially in teams' "secondary markets" when a team has claimed a market and all away games must be carried but a lot of fans are loyal to another nearby team and would rather see its games.
Under current rules, if any part of a TV market is withing 75 miles of the stadium, it can show a blacked out game. Under the old rules, if a station was outside the 75 mile range, it could show the game.
Under current rules, if any part of a TV market is withing 75 miles of the stadium, it can show a blacked out game. Under the old rules, if a station was outside the 75 mile range, it could show the game.
mattparker said:
I'd guess that combining the current rules with analogue switchoff makes beating a blackout today a tough proposition, even for those who still have aerials.
When I did a thread asking about the structure of the US transmission system, I seem to remember someone stating that the local channels are carried on narrow satellite spot beams focussed on each market.
Is it possible to use a large dish to get a neighbouring market, rather as people use a large dish to get British TV in Spain, well outside its intended footprint?
Or do people just accept the blackouts more these days
MattParker said:
How much is that antenna compared to a Sunday Ticket subscription?
BMR said:
Most games that are blacked out these days are dog games. If there is enough local interest, the station in the home teams market will buy up the remaining tickets. All home games were blacked out in the early days.
nomadcowatbk said:
Local blackouts apply to Sunday Ticket subscribers in the area, as well. Sunday Ticket packages are helpful if you are in a secondary market and want to see other games (i.e., if you are in Harrisburg, which the Ravens claimed as a secondary market but you follow the Eagles or Steelers), or if you are a transplant and still follow a team from back home. But if your local station is blacked out, so is Sunday Ticket.
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