Question about evening news broadcasts...

[wonderfly]

I have a question about the evening news broadcasts...

Here in the Eastern Standard Timezone, (notice I didn't say on the East Coast? Ah, to see the Ocean again. I wish),...anyway, here in the East, our evening news shows (whether you watch Tom Brokaw, Dan Rather, or Peter Jennings) broadcasts at 6:30 in the evening. And having lived in the Central Timezone, I know the news just gets broadcast at 5:30. But what about in the Mountain timezone and on the West Coast? Surely they don't show "The Evening News" at 4:30 and 3:30.

So do they just repeat the evening news, ( a replay) or do they do a whole new broadcast for those timezones, (it's not like it's a syndicated show, its a live broadcast).

So I was just wondering. Tonight's broadcast by President Bush will be at 8 oclock Eastern Time. So the news at 6:30 will be talking about the speech in a future tense.

Meanwhile, when the news airs at 6:30 or 5:30 on the West coast, that could be right after the speech is over. So would they have evening news over on the West Coast, will they replay the stuff from the East coast? My head is hurting thinking about this...

[moldorm]

I think usually they re-broadcast the same program, but I have seen cases where they have a new program if something big happens.

[zmanjz]

I assume that they'll take an MSNBC format (continous live shot) tonight on all chanels.

[TimTwoFace]

For national broadcasts, I know that they tape them in the Eastern Timezone and then play them at 10pm EST (on CBC, for example). The same program is rebroadcast in the Central, Mountain, and Pacific time zones at 10pm, local time.

As for local broadcasts, they're aired whenever the local channels want. :)

Why are the Central and Eastern time zones always lumped together for broadcasts? That would really confuse me if I lived in the Central time zone.

-Tim

[Pilmedium]

Originally posted by TimTwoFace
Why are the Central and Eastern time zones always lumped together for broadcasts? That would really confuse me if I lived in the Central time zone.

It makes sense for a program to air simultaneously in Eastern and Central time zones, resulting in a one-hour local difference. That way, they get programs, such as news, without a time difference. The lack of a time difference gives them the same news.

[Brainatra]

Writing from the PT zone here (Oregon, specifically):

Network broadcasts, including the evening news, are all aired on a tape-delayed basis here, to keep with "standard" Eastern Time Zone airtimes (i.e. "The Simpsons" airing at 8 PM Pacific Time Sundays). Same goes for the news---it's just a tape-delayed rebraodcast of what the rest of the country sees. The morning shows are also all tape-delayed, as well. The exceptions/stuff that gets aired live are: big news events (presidential speeches, urgent bulletins, etc.) and sporting events.

For cable, a few channels (like HBO) offer a specific west-coast feed, but most (like CNN) are just the same feed the rest of the country sees---thus, Larry King airs here at 6 PM in the evenings (and 9 PM ET).

From my understanding, the Mountain Time Zone either tape delays things an hour from the Eastern/Central time zone feed, or airs the shows live...or, um, something...

I'll tell you this: since they have to make room for live sporting events on Saturdays *and* the local stations' Sat. morning news shows, Sat. morning cartoons here have a rather, um, "eccentric" air schedule...

-B.