Response from WMTW re: HD Programming - They still don't know how to deal with the public and don't care much about HD

February 6, 2008
UPDATED: According to an unnamed source, broadcast networks like ABC, NBC, CBS, etc. do not offer more than one type of feed to their affiliates so please keep this in mind when reading this article. It appears, although not 100% proven that WMTW lied in its response and I can only assume that they did not want to admit to cost cutting measures. I gave WMTW one last chance to change their response and they are sticking by their story that their response was accurate and factual

February 4-5 2008

As stated in the previous post, the Sunday night movie from WMTW (February 3, 2008) was not in HD. Other ABC affiliates I contacted that night were all broadcasting in HD.


I wrote an email to WMTW and the first answer I got from Bill Greep, Director of Engineering was, and I quote "The movie "Meet the Fockers" was broadcast by WMTW in standard definition last night".


Well I already knew that and that's why I wrote the email. This was an obvious attempt at dodging the question. I wrote back and asked "If the other ABC affiliates I contacted were all broadcasting the movie in HD why didn't WMTW broadcast it in HD?" to which I got the response: "ABC offered a short version and a long version of the movie, "Meet the Fockers". We aired the long version which was not available in HD."


Once again, I know that WMTW broadcasted the movie in standard definition, I still don't know why so I asked again: Once again, I understand what was aired. I guess I am not asking the question correctly. We are interested in why WMTW made the choice it did to air the non-HD version. If most other ABC affiliates (or at least the ones I contacted in New England) aired the HD version, why did WMTW not air it. Was it a question of money? What is WMTW's committment to offering HD programming to its viewers?


The next response I got from Greep was "Our decision to air the longer version of the movie was simply an internal programming decision...nothing more. "


This still does not answer the simple question of WHY?


So my next step was to write to the General Manager, Ken Bauder, explain all of the questions I asked and the poor answers I received. I am now waiting for a response.


I received a reply from Mr. Bauder stating that in his opinion, Mr. Greep's responses were "accurate and to the point". Further he stated that they do not discuss internal decisions "in the press".


So I wrote back one more time to confirm what I think he was saying. I wrote: "Just to clarify, WMTW did not show Sunday night's broadcast in high definition because you simply chose not to, is that correct." and I am now awaiting a reply.

Mr. Bauder wrote back and said the WMTW had the option of broadcasting a longer version of the movie in standard definition or a shorter version of the movie in High Definition. Obviously WMTW chose the longer version in standard definition.

I have yet to verify whether or not ABC indeed offered affiliates two different versions of the movie. It doesn't make too much sense to me since primetime programming is controlled at the network level, not the local level. I'm not saying it couldn't happen, but I have never in all the work I've done on High Definition programming, ever heard of this. I can not find a place to look at prior TV listing so I can compare whether or not the movie had different movie lengths in different broadcast areas. I know who carried it in HD so if I did find such a source, I could just cross reference.

My suspicion is the WMTW knew it was up against the Super Bowl and decided on its own to downgrade the broadcast to standard definition to save a few buck. I believe they may have assumed that everybody was watching football and no one would notice that "Meet the Fockers" was in standard definition. Well, I noticed and I'm not done investigating yet.