e-Vents

[ Monday ]

 

Small Screen Viewing on a Large Screen TV....

Thanks to CNN or maybe, Bloomberg, we can now watch a 12 inch picture on a 27 inch TV screen. On a 50 inch screen, we can see only about 30 inches of the main subject area.

Why is this? Maybe CNN, ABC, CBS, NBC, ESPN, C-Span, TBS, TNT, UPN, WB, FOX, PBS, Travel, etc, etc, all wanted to protect their material when others videotape the program for later playback. Some broadcasters put the logos onscreen intermittently; with others, it is continuous. Occasionally, ESPN places the game score in the same location at which their logo appears, thereby obscuring the score. Where is the Director when this occurs, and do any viewers call in to complain?

With competition, the problem has increased dramatically. If you watched CNN or Fox during the recent Columbia tragedy, you may have noticed that the video footage of the breakup occupied a small portion of your television screen, while a 'Breaking News' banner, subtitles, and a news scroll occupied the bottom one-fourth of the screen. And in addition to that, there was no mistake as to what channel you might be viewing, since their logo was prominently displayed next to the banner. In the case of a live interview, all of the other graphics appeared, along with a 'Live' graphic in the upper left corner of the screen.

Do they think that we don't notice, or that we just don't care? If you recently spent $10,000 for the latest 50 inch plasma 16x9 format television, do you really want the viewing area to be reduced by one-third or more?

And have you noticed how the local stations, in an effort to promote their late night news, interrupt the credits and upcoming previews for the prime-time programs? Typically, the local stations split the screen, thereby reducing the text to an unreadable size, while voicing over any soundtrack, et cetera of the network program.

OK, maybe it's a small thing, but just like the President said on national television tonight, "If we don't stop this now, where will we be in one year, or five years from now?"

MM [20:54]