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Think about this for a moment. Today we have over 500 channels, DVD players, VCRs, Tivo, and the Internet. 25 years ago, all we had was OTA television and *maybe* a beta VCR if you're lucky.The problem is, since 1977, we've had a slow erosion of programming time. In fact, it has gone from 52 minutes per hour, to 43!
Yes, we do have too many commercials nowadays, and it's clear, to me, that Cable TV/Satellite is the main reason. Back in the 70's for instance, NBC, CBS, and ABC were our only real prime time options. Today, there are more than 50 basic channels, which most of us on this website receive. Networks are happy to get a 25% share of the audience, when only 20 years ago, having a 25% share is close to last place for the night.
As a result of the diminished network audience, more and more commercials have been added. The boiling point was sometime around 1994, when the limit was reduced from 48 min to 43 min per TV hour. Now it's ridiculous! Television viewing is often quite uncomfortable, though I still get by.
What could we do to bring back more programming time to our television? I really would like to do away with a lot of the more useless channels up and down the board. HGTV? give me a break! Food Network? Who needs a damn network about food? ESPN2? One ESPN is enough! TV Land? Don't the local affiliates show enough reruns?
I figure with fewer channels, we get lower cable/satellite bills, and hopefully, we could get fewer commercials.
Finally, I ask again the question that I started with: Is it better now, or were things better when we had just 3 channels, no VCRs, and no DVDs w/ Widescreen, scene selections, etc?
Follow Ups:
Except for the news, I record *everything* I want to watch. Besides the advantages of time shifting, I also get *time savings*, in that I watch one hour of NYPD Blue in about 45 minutes. Time is money, and this saves a whole lot of it. Using S-VHS VCRs means I hardly lose any picture or sound quality, too. My three VCRs are set up so that I can record network TV from my rooftop antenna, Dish programming from my satellite receiver and watch a taped program or movie, all at the same time. S-VHS VCRs are so cheap now (they start at about $100), it's worth it to have this sort of setup.
The production quality of those shows sucked. And as far as getting rid of the extra channels that we don't need, all I can say is I love food network, but like you,I hate commercials too. In fact, I think that allowing commercials to be louder in volume than the actual feature should be illegal. But alas, any show that I really like, I watch on TiVo. I like to spend about 3 hours a night watching TV. With a PVR (TiVo, Replay, Ultimate TV) I can now watch (4) 1 hour shows in 3 hours. No widescreen DVD's you say? I can't think of many people on this forum, or any video foum that would back you up on that. Pan and scan releases are a bastardization of the original theatrical release, and should be banned. The problem isn't with putting up with letterboxing on a 4x3 screen. No, the problem is having a 4x3 screen. Can I get a witness? :-)
NT
> > Think about this for a moment. Today we have over 500 channels, DVD players, VCRs, Tivo, and the Internet. 25 years ago, all we had was OTA television and *maybe* a beta VCR if you're lucky. < <I guess I'm behind the curve, LOL. I only have OTA and a SVHS VCR!
Not only was the time per hour more back then, but the programming was better too. Nowadays, I watch maybe 2 or three network shows/week (not counting sports). The rest is cable. Not everybody loves Raymond.
I hear you RE: network programming. Like you, sometimes I can't help but feel like this guy , but without the elitist attitude (hopefully). I actually lied about the OTA thing, as I haven't run a coax feed down to the basement yet. The little set top aerial can't pull in anything. Of course that also means my FM tuner can't pull in anything either. It's on my lists of things to do. :-)I watched Raymond once. It was at the best buy last july. They had a HDTV feed of it, or so they said. I caught the tail end of it and Alias (I think). I hadn't seen either shows before. I didn't really care for either. But they looked halfway decent in high-def.
I wouldn't be without a television. This afternoon I watched Lawrence of Arabia, tonight the Fiesta Bowl. I enjoy programs like Life in the E.R. on Discovery, the History Channel, HGTV, occassional PBS programs like New Yankee Workshop, and HBO. It's just sad that the networks are such a vast wasteland of mindless mediocrity.
I enjoy some of the same programmes, Motorweek & Nero Wolfe Mysteries in particular. But if there is nothing on, I just turn it off. I also agree that 90% of what is on is dreak.
My wife and I find ourselves saying this too often.....thankfully there's music!
-Nick
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