60 Days of Nothing

[Joseph S]

I would like to thank the fine souls at WISN and WITI for providing me with zero content over the past 60 days and look forward to another 60 days of nothing. My complaints to both your stations and the FCC will not cease until your licenses are revoked or you comply with the mandate and pay up your fines.

It was nice to see Hearst-Argyle is about to lose a major license in CA if they don't comply immediately.

WISN, WITI, and the others deserve any financial hardships they may face for they chose to be cheap when times were great. Not saving up for the rainy day should put a few more of you incompetent execs out of a job.  

Thank you CBS for fixing the problem you had. Although I disagree with the multicasting, you have boosted the signal back from the 30's into the high 50's-low 60's. NBC get thumbs up too for a strong signal and primetime and the Triple Crown coverage. I wish PBS would quit lying about a lack of programming options and start showing all HD content. Seeing as they have provided some content they are performing well above the others in my opinion.

Here WISN is a link from your own page that could've helped solve many of the problems you face. Proposing a skyscraper ten times and getting it turned down 6-0 every time is not going to help so either go up on the MATC tower or find a new site with the help of  http://cobranders.lawyers.com/common/content/aboutlaw/about_zoning.asp?site=427&eid=4271

[Gregg Lengling]

I agree with your sentiments. Even with my 50 foot tower here in Cedarburg, with a high gain antenna and preamp, I can only receive WITI-DT during Temperature Inversions.  Their flea power is a joke.  In addition when I have been able to receive them I have never had a HighDef transmission.  Not even a letter boxed STD transmission, they are just send a Digital STD transmission.  Talk about not providing anything, they have provided nothing except maybe a couple bucks a month to WE Energies for the Family Radio Service transmitter they have taped to their Studio Tower.

Screw FOX.....only time I ever watch them anyway is for the Packer Games.....

A disgruntled viewer and adoptee of High Technology.....now if only purveyers of technology like WITI would get with the 21st century instead of the DARK AGES.


------------------
Gregg R. Lengling
RCA P61310 61" 16x9
gregg@camelcomm.com

[gparris]

It is true that Milwaukee is backward and this technology is just too advanced for this city. No wonder my neighbors to the south of me, Chicago laugh and make fun of us. I expected that Milwaukee would be one of the last larger cities to cough up HDTV.
And until its OTA, TMC won't even try to retransmit the signal,even though it would certainly get to more HD sets a lot easier and quicker. Houston Tx TWC is a glowing example of what (see their website) of what an advanced city, not afraid of technology,can do, without excuses: then their TWC has the cable in HD...even last year at this time! WISN and WITI are run by a Milwaukee Mentality. Too Bad...

[Matt Heebner]

Milwaukee has High Definition ?? Other than Jim Hall and CBS, and Sean O'Flaherty of NBC,(you guys rock!) there is no mention or acknowledgement of HD. I've emailed the editor of the TV Listings in the sunday paper three times and have YET to even get a response. Tim Cusprin (I am working from memory so forgive me if his name is wrong) did a dinky mention of HD in his section. Where else is there info available to the general public May 1 was supposed to be a landmark date.....transformation to the digital era. A 50 year old NTSC standard changing to a new digital ATSC standard !! This was supposed to be bigger than color transmissions!! Not a news story to be found (unless you dig for an obscure reference mentioned in an online format).
Unless soemone knows about this web-site, how in the hell is anyone even supposed to find out about digital transmissions? I've seen a flier at American talking about local HD broadcasts, but how is someone supposed to KNOW how to get them.
What the stations need to understand (and this includes NBC and CBS) that this is the future. It isn't going away. The government wants their zillion dollar spectrum back. All stations should be promoting the HELL out of their digital transmissions...AND DOING IT ON THEIR ANALOG STATIONS!!!! I mean come on, what better way to "get the ball rolling." Network stations complain all the time about how cable and satellite is too hard to compete with. HEY STATION MANAGERS....HD IS THE KILLER APP! What better way to stick it to the so-called super stations....right? Offer something that they might not ever have...all programming in HD. I know for sure that as soom as the big local stations here start doing 24 hour all digital programming, I am cancelling my locals on DirecTV.
I guess I just dont understand why stations aren't promoting themselves. I see screen savers on NBC when there aren't any commercials and I wonder why are they not doing self promotion commercials.
 
I get tired of bitching about this stuff, yet it angers me to no end that cetain stations think this is a joke or something. I wish that they would realize that this is the future, whether they want it to happen or not. Prolonging and procratinating will get them nowhere.
[/end rant]

Matt

[oflaherty]

Matt – Just a quick note on the "screen savers" you see on 4-1.  They are there because we have not built a HD master control room yet. We will also eventually need a HD video server to playback HD commercials.
In February we built a temporary control room for the Olympics but the local commercials were just upconversions and even that took three extra people per day to staff, one per shift.
The last I heard the HD master control was in the budget for next year. The present operator in SD master control should be able to run it.
---
Sean at TMJ4

[Matt Heebner]

Thanks again for the info Sean. I really don't like seeing this website turn into one big complaining-fest (of which I am very guilty) but I guess frustration sets in and wins sometimes. I know there is a LOT more going on behind the scenes with you guys than I would ever know about. I can't imagine being a true early adopter (like Tom)who has been waiting for HD since what?...1998? It's hard enough waiting months for a deadline to approach...nevermind years!
I guess whan May 1 was around the corner, I was very excited to be able to take advantage of the new technology that was to revolutionize TV programming. Well, it's been more of a soft thud than the big explosion I was waiting for.
Anyways, thanks again Sean. Just answering to the rant I went on above shows that you are commited to the HD community! Ilook forward to the new fall line-up from NBC.

Matt

[Tom Snyder]

I can't imagine being a true early adopter (like Tom)who has been waiting for HD since what?...1998? It's hard enough waiting months for a deadline to approach...nevermind years! [\QUOTE]

Heck.. I've had an HD Jones since 1991 when I first saw it demonstrated at a Broadcasters convention in Las Vegas! But delayed gratification (and a wife who wanted a house more than I wanted a HDTV) put off the decision to actually get one till 2000.

Regardless it's been a long wait. While I wait for meaningful OTA content, DVD's get a lot of use (I use Netflix so I always have a handful in the house to choose from).

Not quite true HDTV, but better than analog.