It's been discussed many times (here and elsewhere) that many cable channels (and broadcast networks without a news department) switched to news coverage at some point during the tragic events of 9/11/01. You know, Turner channels switching to CNN, Viacom stations to CBS, some PBS affiliates to BBC World, etc., etc. I'm not rehashing the specifics again (somewhere buried on my computer I have a fairly complete list of who switched to what). It may seem trivial, but I am curious as to how the "handover" was handled by some of these channels. I didn't catch any of the switches actually happening that day, and if any of you did, I wonder if any of them actually preceded the switch with an announcement or slide, or for the most part did the signal just abruptly switch from regular programming to whatever news feed was being utilized?
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Question about cable coverage of 9/11 events
- Thread starter Stanislav
- Start date
I seem to recall ESPN had a permanent slide directing viewers to ABC News coverage. I know our local Comcast affiliate did something similar so maybe that's why I'm thinking ESPN did so also
On the flip side of this, during 9/11 I wonder what cable networks ( or even local TV stations ) kept their regular format going on as if nothing happened?
I know Nickeleodeon and I think Cartoon Network stayed to cartoos and other children's programming for the sake of the kids and the pay-nets like HBO and Showtime stayed with their formats but I can't think of any others on the cable end that stayed with the old and not do coverage.
Just after the first breaking news on 9/11, our local AM sports station knowing that their CBS and ESPN feeds would be full of 9/11 news decided that until ESPN and CBS News stopped doing the wall to wall 9/11 coverage the radio station would play automated country music ( a format they gave up 10 years prior ) instead. And for several days they didn't say a peep about 9/11 because their PD was "..sick of this god-damned 9/11 sh*t..who in the hell cares !!"....Not sure how many complaints they received for refusing 9/11 coverage but with all the others doing the coverage, there might have been a ratings bump for them from those suffering from 9/11 coverage burnout.
I know Nickeleodeon and I think Cartoon Network stayed to cartoos and other children's programming for the sake of the kids and the pay-nets like HBO and Showtime stayed with their formats but I can't think of any others on the cable end that stayed with the old and not do coverage.
Just after the first breaking news on 9/11, our local AM sports station knowing that their CBS and ESPN feeds would be full of 9/11 news decided that until ESPN and CBS News stopped doing the wall to wall 9/11 coverage the radio station would play automated country music ( a format they gave up 10 years prior ) instead. And for several days they didn't say a peep about 9/11 because their PD was "..sick of this god-damned 9/11 sh*t..who in the hell cares !!"....Not sure how many complaints they received for refusing 9/11 coverage but with all the others doing the coverage, there might have been a ratings bump for them from those suffering from 9/11 coverage burnout.
I thought that TV Land stayed with their regular schedule, or at least they went back to it sooner than some other Viacom owned networks that went with CBS coverage.
One of the home shopping networks, don't remember exactly which one, abruptly switched to live 9-11 coverage - from a Canadian network. It wasn't the CBC, but I don't remember the network's name.
The legacy of TV's coverage of 9-11 remains with us today. All the scrolls you see at the bottom of the screen on newscasts pretty much started with 9-11 coverage.
The legacy of TV's coverage of 9-11 remains with us today. All the scrolls you see at the bottom of the screen on newscasts pretty much started with 9-11 coverage.
RicoGregg said:
...actually, it *was* the CBC, through their NewsWorld International channel (a Canadian variant on CNN). The U.S. shopping network that picked them up was HSN. The anchor of the coverage was Peter Mansbridge, who still anchors the CBC's nightly news block "The National." I believe NewsWorld actually had some of their own anchors handling the coverage until Mansbridge could get into place on the CBC's Toronto news set, and then they simulcast Mansbridge's CBC coverage until late that night. I got about six hours' worth of that onto a VHS; will have to look at it again sometime today...
Turner Classic Movies (TCM) did stay with its regular programming on 9/11. I remember going through all of the cable stations that afternoon to see what was on. I recall that TCM was running "White Heat" with James Cagney. It's one of my favorite movies, but I certainly wasn't in the mood or mindset to watch it that day.
To answer the initial question, I don't know how the various stations that did switch over carried that off; whether someone said something or the switch just came about; or, in the case of some stations like the shopping channels, a slide was just inserted.
To answer the initial question, I don't know how the various stations that did switch over carried that off; whether someone said something or the switch just came about; or, in the case of some stations like the shopping channels, a slide was just inserted.
The island that week happened courtesy of TV Land as they did a "Brady Bunch Fandimonium" weekend. After all of the events and continual coverage of the prior days it was nice to forget for a few days.
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