[opendtv] Re: Side Note
- From: "TLM" <TLM@xxxxxxxxxx>
- To: "Opendtv" <opendtv@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Mon, 10 Dec 2012 20:52:37 -0800
Mark - Sorry about that. My parents were equating KCET with PBS, as it had
become known around here over the years. So it was KCET that they really
missed. But my point really was, that at least for some percentage of the
population, OTA works just fine.
From some local Internets posts (Mark, your EMail prompted me to look this
up!):
"Wanting to support our old hometown public television after not seeing it
for some time, I watched an episode of local magazine-style news called So
Cal Connected on KCET and afterward good old Huell Howser. I love the idea
of this. At first I thought: there's no way this can be good not being part
of PBS anymore. But then I realized this is amazing that they can focus
solely on local programs and news for Angelenos. Nobody else really does
this. Not those network news shows that cover mostly car accidents and
shootings. That's not the whole story of this city. Now KCET is really
serving the function and purpose of those early public television charters
when they were first created: bringing the people closer together by
informing them about other aspects of their community. It's truly great."
---
"PBS will always be channel 28 to me. Back when television sets were
actually sets and had actual dials, it was a hassle to watch anything on a
channel higher than 13. Why? Well, because you had to twist the main dial to
the AUX setting, and then you had to twist the auxiliary dial to the
appropriate channel. And because this auxiliary dial had so many more
numbers and because it was used less frequently, it was harder to twist
accurately.
In short, you really had to want to watch channel 28. And I did. Why, that's
where Sesame Street was; and where would I be without all the fun counting
skits, including the Count, the thing with the pastry chef slipping and
dropping all his stuff, and the Pointer Sisters-sung counting one with the
pinball machine? (Remember that?)
So when we got cable, PBS was no longer on channel 28. I think it became
channel 6. And it's pretty interesting that Los Angeles, one of the largest
TV markets in the country and basically the home of television production,
got its PBS station relegated to channel 28. How did San Francisco luck out
with channel 9?
I've got mixed feelings about PBS in general. There are some great shows,
but there aren't as many great ones as there used to be. And it's completely
abandoned its commitment to commercial-free television; there are now
regular old ads that show all the time, including ones targeted at children
before and after Sesame Street. Why would I want to support that?"
---
There are many more posts on this issue (which I haven't followed at all, I
fully admit).
- Tom
From: TLM [mailto:TLM@xxxxxxxxxx]
Sent: Monday, December 10, 2012 4:46 PM
To: Opendtv (opendtv@xxxxxxxxxxxxx)
Subject: Side Note
My 87 year old Mom & Pop have had cable for years. They pretty much stopped
watching all except the local news, a few sporting events and PBS so they
dropped down to basic cable. But when Time Warner dropped the local PBS
station off of the Basic Cable tier (KCET) that was the last straw. Now
there is a terrestrial TV antenna feeding the flat panel in their breakfast
nook and they are happy as clams. (And the signal over the air from Mount
Wilson looks much better anyway!).
Tom McMahon
Del Rey
+1-310-717-7208 Mobile
+1-310-822-2935 Land
TLM@xxxxxxxxxx
WWW.LinkedIn.Com/in/McMahonTV
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