Posted on 06/22/2003 3:55:06 AM PDT by E.G.C.
HOWDY FREEPERS!!!!!!
In this essay I will address a law that was passed in the late 80's or early 90's. The Syndex and Non-Network Duplication rule.
This rule while not having a major impact in general has caused consternation in a few places.
Just to give everyone some background on the Syndex/Non-Network Duplication Rules, it works this way: When a cable system serving a community carries two or more stations affiliated with the same television network or syndicated program, the station serving the DMA in which the community is located takes priority and therefore reserves the right to demand that the cable system block out the network or syndicated program from other stations carried by the system.
The Wichita Falls, Texas Time and Record News on Friday went down to Graham Texas to cover a situation where the ABC affiliate excersised it's option to black out ABC programming on the city's cable system from the Dallas ABC affiliate. The Wichita Falls, Texas/Lawton Oklahoma T.V. Market covers 18 counties and Young County in which Graham is the county seat is one of those counties and so the Lawton ABC station take priroty over the Dallas ABC Station.
Needless to say some people in Graham aren't too happy with this situation and are in the process of contacting Washington about it.
Now, here are my thoughts on the subject.
While the Syndex and Non-Network law is not neccasarily impacting many places around the country, where it is impacting it is causing quite a few hardships. For one thing, some people are mssing valuable life saving severe weather information affecting their areas and other places where their loved ones live. Sometimes, the larger market stations are better and more prefferable sources for severe weather information then the smaller market stations.
Secondly, some people believe it or not do have a territorial bias regarding their choices of T.V. stations. Some people would prfer to watch the T.V. station in the state where they live rather than an out-of-state station and sometimes these stations are out of the market where their community is located. Again some prefer larger market to smaller market.
Last, but not least the syndex/non-network rules cause people to lose access to accuarate and vital life saving weather information and as such the only source of weather informaton is a local radio station which is affiliated with that T.V. stations weather department. An awful lot of these stations are News/Talk radio stations. (WBAP, Ft.Worth-Dallas) is a radio affliate of WFAA-TV which is one of the ABC stations carried on the Graham Texas cable system.
But what is going to happen if the news-talk format is legislated out of existence as some in Congress are just itching to do and these radio stations end up having to change formats? Will those radio stations still be able to have the resources to carry those weather updates from those T.V. stations that they are affiliated with? Not a whole lot of people have enough discreationary funds to purchase a battery-powered T.V.
I think the soulution would be to have the syndex/non-network laweither changed or better yet repealed all toghether. Clearly, this law while not impacting everyone is doing far more harm than good where it is impacting.
Calbe T.V. viewers should be albe to choose whichever netowrk affiliate they want to see instead of having their choices dictated to by market area. Plain and simple.
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