I learned something about the transition to DTV from a chance conversation with two people who have no expertise in digital television or HDTV. In fact they’re not even in our industry.
Their qualifications are that they are a senior citizen couple on a fixed household income and are unabashed Angels baseball fans. They were at a shopping mall restaurant watching the Angels play the Boston Red Sox in the American League’s divisional championship series. They have followed the Angels all season long but because they cannot easily afford the monthly fee for cable or satellite TV, they aren’t able to watch the ball game at their house. So they’re at a restaurant, nursing soft drinks for several hours to watch a road playoff game that used to routinely air on free TV.
In our industry cocoon, the only trade news on the divisional series is that viewership ratings were up a significant percentage as compared to last year, justifying TBS’ investment in the postseason package. But what justifies a fan not being able to see a crucial postseason road game without paying a premium? Perhaps a local free broadcast TV feed for team markets in the playoffs could be available at least for the road games–but that would dilute the audience share for TBS.
Before I’m tempted to digress and criticize MLB commissioner Bud Selig for his stewardship of the game–or bemoan what the game might have been if Bart Giammati had lived to serve a long tenure as commissioner–the point is that this elderly couple represents a segment of the population that could very well be passed over in the pending transition to DTV.
One in five U.S. households depends on a rooftop antenna or rabbit ears to get a TV picture. Without converter boxes, those TV set screens will for the most part go blank on Feb. 18, 2009 when federal law currently mandates that broadcast stations switch off analog signals and transmit exclusively on digital. Thus while most of us will enjoy vastly sharper pictures and access to a wider range of multicasting channels provided by networks like NBC, ABC and PBS, a significant number of the country’s people who are already somewhat disenfranchised run the risk of becoming even less connected.
Households without cable or satellite service tend to have lower incomes and according to research, ethnic minorities–African Americans and Latinos in particular–are more likely than whites to receive only over-the-air TV. Furthermore a poll found that more than 60 percent of respondents who rely on broadcast TV (not cable or a satellite service) aren’t even aware of the analog to digital transition.
So while we are at the doorstep of an exciting digital era, let’s not forget those who are in jeopardy of doing without. Otherwise just as baseball, the great American pastime, has turned out not to be accessible for many Americans in the face of a lucrative TV deal, so too will television, an American staple, be lost or significantly minimized for many as well.
Gene Hackman Died Of Heart Disease; Hantavirus Claimed His Wife’s Life About One Week Prior
Actor Gene Hackman died of heart disease a full week after his wife died from hantavirus in their New Mexico hillside home, likely unaware that she was dead because he was in the advanced stages of Alzheimer's disease, authorities revealed Friday. Both deaths were ruled to be from natural causes, chief medical examiner Dr. Heather Jarrell said alongside state fire and health officials at a news conference. "Mr. Hackman showed evidence of advanced Alzheimer's disease," Jarrell said. "He was in a very poor state of health. He had significant heart disease, and I think ultimately that's what resulted in his death." Authorities didn't suspect foul play after the bodies of Hackman, 95, and Betsy Arakawa, 65, were discovered Feb 26. Immediate tests for carbon monoxide poisoning were negative. Investigators found that the last known communication and activity from Arakawa was Feb. 11 when she visited a pharmacy, pet store and grocery before returning to their gated neighborhood that afternoon, Santa Fe County Sheriff Adan Mendoza said Friday. Hackman's pacemaker last showed signs of activity a week later and that he had an abnormal heart rhythm Feb. 18, the day he likely died, Jarrell said. Although there was no reliable way to determine the date and time when both died, all signs point to their deaths coming a week apart, Jarrell said. "It's quite possible he was not aware she was deceased," Jarrell said. Dr. Michael Baden, a former New York City medical examiner, said he believes Hackman was severely impaired due to Alzheimer's disease and unable to deal with his wife's death in the last week of his life. "You are talking about very severe Alzheimer's disease that normal people would be in a nursing home or have a nurse, but she was taking care... Read More