TV Station Gets Flak For Interrupting "Jeopardy!" Rerun With Storm Updates

[firepoint525]

Re: TV Station Gets Flak For Interrupting "Jeopardy!" Rerun With Storm Updates

I've often wondered what would happen if a local emergency and a national emergency occurred at the same time. I recall instances when the networks would interrupt the local news, and vice versa.

A couple of years ago, we had a weather emergency during March madness. A TV station carrying March madness put their weather coverage on their cable channel, and put crawls across the bottom of the screen notifying us of that. I watched the weather coverage on other TV stations, but I wrote to that first station, asking them to also make their cable channel available as a subchannel, so that those of us without cable could also watch it. Took a few months, but they did.

 

[azumanga]

Re: TV Station Gets Flak For Interrupting "Jeopardy!" Rerun With Storm Updates

I've often wondered what would happen if a local emergency and a national emergency occurred at the same time. I recall instances when the networks would interrupt the local news, and vice versa.

On a similar tangent, when the Oklahoma City bombing happened in 1995, CNN was showing live footage directly from the OKC stations. That evening, when it was showing footage from KWTV, a map showing a tornado watch and/or warning popped up in a lower right corner, not just for their own viewers, but for all the world to see via CNN. Shortly after it appeared, it switched to coverage from KFOR, which was not displaying any watches or warnings on the screen.

 

[nomadcowatbk]

Re: TV Station Gets Flak For Interrupting "Jeopardy!" Rerun With Storm Updates

Has a station every interrupted an infomercial for weather or breaking news?

 

[nomadcowatbk]

Re: TV Station Gets Flak For Interrupting "Jeopardy!" Rerun With Storm Updates

I'm surprised that nobody has mentioned that OTA tv stations, as well as radio stations, are licensed to "operate in the public interest". If stations fail to do this they are violating the law and could lose their license. Basic broadcasting 101, but that seems to have been lost.

a scroll at the bottom of the screen is probably enough

 

[DToTheJ]

Re: TV Station Gets Flak For Interrupting "Jeopardy!" Rerun With Storm Updates

"Has a station ever interrupted an infomercial for weather or breaking news"... I would imagine so... though it seems to be a rarity. Would like to see a video of it on YouTube...

 

[nomadcowatbk]

Re: TV Station Gets Flak For Interrupting "Jeopardy!" Rerun With Storm Updates

"Has a station ever interrupted an infomercial for weather or breaking news"... I would imagine so... though it seems to be a rarity. Would like to see a video of it on YouTube...

they don't seem to have problem interrupting network programming or a syndicated show, but what about paid programming they have an obligation to air? of course, most infomercials are shown in the early morning when no one watching to begin with

 

[bpatrick]

Re: TV Station Gets Flak For Interrupting "Jeopardy!" Rerun With Storm Updates

One case of what I think was overkill was the Saturday a few years
ago when WXII pre-empted the Kentucky Derby after a tornado passed
through central North Carolina. The damage was largely in nearby
Randolph County and some surrounding areas, but nothing like this past
Saturday. By 5 PM the tornado was well out of the area, but WXII stayed
with the story--mainly, I think, because WFMY and WGHP did. Needless to
say, WXII's switchboard was jammed with complaints and they finally showed
the race on tape around 7:45 PM. This past Saturday's storms warranted the
extensive coverage they got, particularly on the Raleigh and Durham stations; I
still don't think the storm of a few years ago did.

One thing that bugs me, though, is that these stations will not cover storms
outside their coverage area, regardless of the damage; WGHP cut away once
the storms began moving into the Triangle, because most of it is outside Fox8's
viewing area. Likewise, the town of Rowland, on 15-501 headed to Myrtle Beach,
was ignored by the Raleigh/Durham stations because it's in the Florence/Myrtle
Beach market, even though the destruction was pretty heavy there. Surely, with
all the transportation devices available to local stations, somebody could have gone
down there, unless they figured that one town wasn't worth the expense (and even
then WRAL could have picked up WBTW's coverage, or WTVD, WPDE's).

 

[firepoint525]

Re: TV Station Gets Flak For Interrupting "Jeopardy!" Rerun With Storm Updates

I've often wondered what would happen if a local emergency and a national emergency occurred at the same time. I recall instances when the networks would interrupt the local news, and vice versa.

On a similar tangent, when the Oklahoma City bombing happened in 1995, CNN was showing live footage directly from the OKC stations. That evening, when it was showing footage from KWTV, a map showing a tornado watch and/or warning popped up in a lower right corner, not just for their own viewers, but for all the world to see via CNN. Shortly after it appeared, it switched to coverage from KFOR, which was not displaying any watches or warnings on the screen.

That's kind of what I was getting at. But even I didn't envision a scenario in which the local emergency and the (unrelated) national emergency would be from the same location! When something like that happens, what gets the priority coverage?

 

[firepoint525]

Re: TV Station Gets Flak For Interrupting "Jeopardy!" Rerun With Storm Updates

One thing that bugs me, though, is that these stations will not cover storms
outside their coverage area, regardless of the damage; WGHP cut away once
the storms began moving into the Triangle, because most of it is outside Fox8's
viewing area. Likewise, the town of Rowland, on 15-501 headed to Myrtle Beach,
was ignored by the Raleigh/Durham stations because it's in the Florence/Myrtle
Beach market, even though the destruction was pretty heavy there. Surely, with
all the transportation devices available to local stations, somebody could have gone
down there, unless they figured that one town wasn't worth the expense (and even
then WRAL could have picked up WBTW's coverage, or WTVD, WPDE's).

I'm thinking that they probably get enough flack from viewers for interrupting coverage whenever a storm IS in the coverage area. Here in the Nashville market a few years ago, we had storms on the eastern fringe of their coverage area. They covered the storm's movement here, but advised viewers that they would probably need to switch to Knoxville stations for more continuous coverage as the storm moved further east.

 

[recto101]

Re: TV Station Gets Flak For Interrupting "Jeopardy!" Rerun With Storm Updates

What if KABC did not pre-empt ABC Soaps for the Rodney King Verdicts. Then every LA TV stations would be labled racist and violating free speech.

KGO did pre-empt ABC's World News back in July 2010 for the Oscar Grant Bart Shooting Verdicts
mainly because the activists in Oakland worried that the outcome of the trial might be worse than Rodney King Trial in 1992.

 

[KERCAlum]

Re: TV Station Gets Flak For Interrupting "Jeopardy!" Rerun With Storm Updates

I'm sure this has been addressed, but I don't feel like reading through all the posts. ;D

On January 28, 1986, when Challenger blew up, I worked for the CBS shop in Wichita Falls. I was off that day, but the next day I talked to the receptionist, and she told me the phones lit up for the better part of three hours because of the interruption of daytime programming by the disaster. Most of the old ladies who called were incensed, irate, angry, you name it, because their soap opera was pre-empted by the deaths of seven people.

That was the final evidence I needed that people were morons.

 

[recto101]

Re: TV Station Gets Flak For Interrupting "Jeopardy!" Rerun With Storm Updates

I'm sure this has been addressed, but I don't feel like reading through all the posts. ;D

On January 28, 1986, when Challenger blew up, I worked for the CBS shop in Wichita Falls. I was off that day, but the next day I talked to the receptionist, and she told me the phones lit up for the better part of three hours because of the interruption of daytime programming by the disaster. Most of the old ladies who called were incensed, irate, angry, you name it, because their soap opera was pre-empted by the deaths of seven people.

That was the final evidence I needed that people were morons.

RIP all the people who died on the shuttle in 1986. I remember KNBC pre-empted NBC's NBA Finals for the OJ Simpson chase in 1994 did the News Director of KNBC in 1994 get bashed like this? Who knows.

 

[azumanga]

Re: TV Station Gets Flak For Interrupting "Jeopardy!" Rerun With Storm Updates

I remember KNBC pre-empted NBC's NBA Finals for the OJ Simpson chase in 1994 did the News Director of KNBC in 1994 get bashed like this? Who knows.

I think when OJ got chased, just about every TV station in the nation bumped what they were doing to cover it live.

 

[searadiofreak]

Re: TV Station Gets Flak For Interrupting "Jeopardy!" Rerun With Storm Updates

As someone who had my old VCR running that night, I can tell you that the networks did break in with live coverage of this, atleast in my pacific northwest market. Whether EVERY network affiliate carried it, I do not know. The cables of course were all over it, and the NBA championship on NBC did a split-screen for much of it. ABC was notable for their coverage when they received, and aired a prank call from someone reportedly representing the Howard Stern show.

 

[firepoint525]

Re: TV Station Gets Flak For Interrupting "Jeopardy!" Rerun With Storm Updates

We are looking at an interesting situation next week. Coverage of the royal wedding will start at 4:00 a.m. CDT, which is when my local TV stations start their morning drive news coverage. Will they break in with traffic and weather updates (even if weather is "normal"?) or will the networks even provide station breaks for that purpose? Will the networks even be able to do so?

I remember a Sunday morning back in December of 2003 when I got up and turned the TV on to find out what the weather would be like for that day, only to find out that the networks were on, providing coverage of what was going on Iraq, because that was the day that Saddam Hussein had been captured.

 

[DToTheJ]

Re: TV Station Gets Flak For Interrupting "Jeopardy!" Rerun With Storm Updates

The last time there was a major event from England that had significant coverage here was the Princess Diana accident and subsequent funeral back in 1997. Anyone live in any areas that had severe weather around that time? Did the local station put a crawl or superimpose a weather radar on the screen underneath "Di TV"?

 

[WPPCProductions]

Re: TV Station Gets Flak For Interrupting "Jeopardy!" Rerun With Storm Updates

I remember KNBC pre-empted NBC's NBA Finals for the OJ Simpson chase in 1994 did the News Director of KNBC in 1994 get bashed like this? Who knows.

I think when OJ got chased, just about every TV station in the nation bumped what they were doing to cover it live.

I remember the David Hasselhoff Pay per View got trashed that night.am I right.I remember haering him talking about it somewere.

 

[azumanga]

Re: TV Station Gets Flak For Interrupting "Jeopardy!" Rerun With Storm Updates

We are looking at an interesting situation next week. Coverage of the royal wedding will start at 4:00 a.m. CDT, which is when my local TV stations start their morning drive news coverage. Will they break in with traffic and weather updates (even if weather is "normal"?) or will the networks even provide station breaks for that purpose? Will the networks even be able to do so?

In my opinion, local stations would have no choice but to give the morning news crew a day off -- once the wedding starts, there will be no place to stop.

 

[kilamanjero]

Re: TV Station Gets Flak For Interrupting "Jeopardy!" Rerun With Storm Updates

I'm surprised that nobody has mentioned that OTA tv stations, as well as radio stations, are licensed to "operate in the public interest". If stations fail to do this they are violating the law and could lose their license. Basic broadcasting 101, but that seems to have been lost.

a scroll at the bottom of the screen is probably enough

Considering how fast scrolls run and most people will ignore them, I doubt that.

 

[Sammi Brie]

Re: TV Station Gets Flak For Interrupting "Jeopardy!" Rerun With Storm Updates

We are looking at an interesting situation next week. Coverage of the royal wedding will start at 4:00 a.m. CDT, which is when my local TV stations start their morning drive news coverage. Will they break in with traffic and weather updates (even if weather is "normal"?) or will the networks even provide station breaks for that purpose? Will the networks even be able to do so?

In my opinion, local stations would have no choice but to give the morning news crew a day off -- once the wedding starts, there will be no place to stop.

There are some breaks in coverage for local ad time that can be used for local opt-outs at the station's discretion (for ABC affiliates, see http://www.abcnewsone.tv/?q=node/3347 )