WBUR vs WGBH

[Varulven]

Maybe Eli can answer this. A Sonny Rollins interview was aired on WBUR and WGBH this morning, about a 2 second delay between 89.7 and 90.9. Are there a lot of programs that are on both signals?

Are the signals affiliated in any way other than they both broadcast NPR stuff?

 

[Eli Polonsky]

Maybe Eli can answer this. A Sonny Rollins interview was aired on WBUR and WGBH this morning, about a 2 second delay between 89.7 and 90.9. Are there a lot of programs that are on both signals?

Yes, on weekdays WGBH as well as WBUR airs NPR's morning news program Morning Edition, NPR's afternoon news/talk program All Things Considered, and NPR's weekend news/talk program Weekend Edition. Of course, the locally produced cut-in segments are different, as they're independently produced and hosted at each station.

WBUR and WGBH also air BBC programming at different times.

Are the signals affiliated in any way other than they both broadcast NPR stuff?

No, the stations are not affilated with one another, though both stations are NPR, BBC and PRI (Public Radio International) network affiliates, and members of the CPB (Corporation for Public Broadcasting).

 

[Jacko]

The delay that you heard between the two stations is because of digital radio. WBUR delays its analog signal so that it matches with the digital signal, while WGBH, which also broadcasts in HD, does not delay its analog signal. Apparently if you have a digital radio and you're trying to listen to WGBH on the outer fringes of the digital signal, the digital signal cuts out, kind of like the stereo effect would if you're say in Worcester trying to listen to a Boston station, but when this happens on WGBH, because the analog signal isn't matched up timewise with the digital signal, it can sound like you're listening to someone who's schizophrenic.

And in contrary to what Eli said (I wouldn't contradict Eli unless it was absolutely necessary), to the best of my knowledge, WGBH does not air BBC programming, however they are working with the BBC, along with WNYC/New York and Minnesota Public Radio to launch a new public radio morning show that's targeting younger listeners.

Jacko

 

[webcastboy]

WGBH does not air BBC programming, however they are working with the BBC, along with WNYC/New York and Minnesota Public Radio to launch a new public radio morning show that's targeting younger listeners.

Close, but WGBH co-produces "The World" with the BBC which airs weekdays 4-5pm on WGBH. They also air BBC World Update 5am-6am weekdays.

WBUR, of course, airs a ton of BBC World Service programming: overnights until 5am and 9-10am weekdays, too. Also 4-5pm on weekends.

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Joe, were you listening on an HD Radio or an analog radio? There should be more than a 2 second delay between WGBH and WBUR on an analog radio at the moment. That's because WBUR delays their analog feed by a little more than 7 seconds to time-match their digital feed. WGBH does not, which makes for (as mentioned) really schizophrenic listening on a HD Radio! I've heard they'll fix this problem after they're done moving into the Brighton Landing facilities.

If you're listening on two different HD Radios, though, there can be noticeable differences from radio to radio (nevermind model to model) in decoding an HD Radio stream. I've had three different models all on the same antenna, all tuned to the same station, and all three were putting out audio about 1/2 sec apart in delay. It's just the differences in internal circuitry.

There also can be delays from digital processing in the different STL equipment that WBUR uses vs. WGBH. WBUR also runs a seven-second delay on their talkshows and, separately, they have a 25/7 ATM (automatic time manager) to "squeeze" more minutes out of every hour during fundraisers and other live broadcasts. The latter is really remarkable technology...you can speed things up by over 12% and it's not audible unless you're REALLY listening hard. That means you can fit an extra 7 minutes into every hour...very handy for fundraisers. I don't know if WGBH has one of those 25/7 devices but I don't think they do in Allston...they might install one in the Brighton studios, though. (shrugs)

To go even further, WBUR and WGBH don't always air the same segments from NPR's national feed of Morning Edition and All Things Considered. Especially for ME, WBUR will shuffle around and drop some segments to make room for locally produced stories. WGBH doesn't do that nearly as much. Sometimes they air different satellite feeds of the same show; this is especially noticeable on Marketplace at 6:30pm when they both air the "same" episode but sometimes the stories are in different orders. That's because APM feeds several "live" feeds of Marketplace starting at 5pm ET, and they mix it up a little for each subsequent feed.

 

[Eli Polonsky]

... WGBH co-produces "The World" with the BBC which airs weekdays 4-5pm on WGBH. They also air BBC World Update 5am-6am weekdays.

Yes, WGBH joins NPR Morning Edition weekdays one hour later than WBUR. WBUR goes from BBC to Morning Edition, with both local and national segments, at 5 AM. WGBH airs BBC World Update from 5-6 AM after their overnight jazz programming, then goes to Morning Edition at 6 AM.

 

[webcastboy]

Actually Eli, do you know if WBUR is routinely using the 25/7 ATM...or just using it for fundraiser pitching breaks?

 

[Eli Polonsky]

Actually Eli, do you know if WBUR is routinely using the 25/7 ATM...or just using it for fundraiser pitching breaks?

It's not in use when I'm there overnights. I don't think it's being used at other times outside of fundraisers either, but I'm not there in the daytime so I'm not completely sure.