It is really hard to believe that after all this time WGME can't seem to broadcast in high definition when they are supposed to.
If you are a regular on this site you know the troubles we have had with WGME that go way, way back. At one point, it was almost on a nightly basis that I would have to call the control room at WGME to tell them they were not broadcasting in HD, only to have someone there flip the HD switch and hang up without ever asking me who I was or how I knew.
Terry Cole, the General Manager, finally caught on and invited me to come and see their operation. I wrote to him so many times that he actually was interested in fixing the problem. He was, at one time, concerned with the public's perception of their station. During my visit I actually saw the "HD button" which is akin to an on/off switch on the control board. There are a few times during that day that the network feeds from CBS are in HD, and therefore the control room needs to manually switch over to broadcasting in HD. But somehow, they don't get it right and it takes a phone call from me; someone who has no connection to the television industry whatsoever other than I watch TV, to let them know something is wrong.
This happened again last night. I don't even remember the show. Whatever is on CBS at 8:00 was not in HD but should have been. I called and asked to be connected to the control room. Once again I spoke to someone who did not give me his name (I think it was "Chip" and he was munching on a Kit-Kat bar). I explained that WGME was not broadcasting in HD but should be. I was watching channel 13 as I was on the phone. Suddenly the picture burst into full HD color and sound. I don't believe I even got a thank you for letting him know.
In the past, someone along the line would try and convince me how complicated it is. But I have toured this station and as I said, saw the HD "on/off" button. A monkey could do it. Maybe WGME should hire monkey.
3 comments:
How nice it must be to have so much free time that you can complain about such trivial things, Are you employed full time? I'm sure you would love to have some pathetic blogger criticizing your work and endangering your job. Maybe you'd like to give everyone your work address? Perhaps you tour of WGME didn't show you that a master control operator more often than not is juggling several things at once, from live shots to satellite up links and very often things get hectic. I'm sure you didn't notice any of this during your tour because it was just a show, a hollow effort to appease a lonely internet blogger. Perhaps you should think about these things and the fact that you may cost good people their jobs for simple mistakes; this is no great conspiracy, simply flawed technology being implemented in an under budgeted environment.
You're kidding me right? You write to say I should post MY work address and then have the balls to send it anonymously? Then you acuse me of having some special powers that affect peoples lives all because of a blog posting. Don't be an idiot and stop being such a friggin drama queen. You don't even know the history of this issue. If you had read more than one posting you would know that this has been going on at WGME and all of the other Portland affiliates for over a year and half. WGME was the ONLY ONE to commit to making it better. They have made some great strides but clearly the issue is not fixed.
Further, at 8:00 pm, there is NOTHING going on at a local affiliate except the control room is passing though a network feed. There are no live shots or satellite uplinks during a prime time network program. You obviously must work for WGME otherwise why would any of this bother you. In fact who would actually search the Internet and find this article specific to WGME and their Control Room unless they had a vested interest. So that means you are most likely part of the problem, not the solution. You called this issue "trivial". If it is why are you so riled up. Why get so upset over something trivial.
I do have a full time job as a matter of fact and the phone number there is (deleted at request of employer). Feel free to call if you'd like, idiot.
I am enthralled that you think I have so much power as to get someone fired all from a blog posting about an on/off switch. Do you still smoke crack or what.
If you want to produce and accept inferior work, you go right ahead. I don't have to. Maybe you should start your own blog about how to get paid and not really have to do anything or know anything.
You're lucky I even allowed you to post your ridiculous comment but over all I do believe in free speech and freedom of expression. You expressed your opinion now I'm expressing mine right back at you.
Good day
It does seem that this escalated to something it shouldn't have. However I do get frustrated when a TV show is not in wide screen and I don't know if it's me or the TV station? I don't know who to call when these things happen.
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