David,

I am thoroughly confused by Bill's statement. Didn't WBFF and WNUV go all digital during the switch in February? I thought they were no longer sending out an analog signal?

Hi Beverly, I am editing this answer, because it mainly succeeded in further complicating the siutaution in readers' minds. I thank you for being the first to point out your confusion. I am afraid my first attempt to clarfiy didn't help much at all. But I believe the two signals issue is explained in the other comments: one is HD, and the other is standardized, which is the language Fanshaw used in his statement. I do love this dianlogue with readers and the experttise folks like you bring to the blog. And I am grateful. Thanks. Z

How can WBFF / WNUV state they're sending out 2 signals?

According to an article in the Baltimore Sun on Feb 17th...Some left out in switch from analog to digital signal...you noted the following:

"Starting at midnight tonight, hundreds of stations across the country - including Baltimore's Fox and CW affiliates - will broadcast only digital signals, dropping their analog transmissions despite efforts by Congress to delay the switch until June. While most have extended the deadline at the government's request, 368 stations have decided to stick to the original plan."

In response to your comment to Beverly, I believe the signal you're referring to specifically applies to what they call "Nightlight" stations. Those signals only carry DTV related content and emergency news b'casts...not regular programming content.

Sounds like there's a lack of "full disclosure" here...

What are your thoughts Mr. Z?

Hi Jack, I am checking further. After the comments from you and Beverly, I went back through my notes and Fanshaw did say the problem involved a router sending out the wrong signal. But I am trying to get more clarification. Clearly, WBFF and WNUV are sending out more than one signal each, given the differences in reception Monday night. I went back and added the router reference in the post -- thanks to your thoughtful questions. Thanks. Z

Thank you Mr. Z -

If they're still running an analog signal...I'm pretty sure it's prohibited from airing entertainment programming.

Technically, the "router" comment does seem to make more sense. It would be easier for a computer or router to switch feeds (or someone hitting the wrong button) than analog / digital signals being switched due to the conversion.

Hi Jack, Thank you for your expertise and help on this -- and your quick response to the statement by WBFF. Your helped me and a lot of readers, I think. Z

It's hard to imagine that there are still people out there who aren't watching in HDTV -- especially a TV critic.

How could they have allowed this to continue for almost 45 minutes?

Good question. I am tyrying to get an answer on that. Thanks. Z

I believe that they send out 2 signals one for HD and one for SD. Appears the SD was affected. Remember Digital is not HD

"High definition" and "digital" aren't synonymous. Both signals are digital, but the station transmits both a standard definition and a high definition signal. The standard def signal is the one that was interrupted.

Hi Mark, Yes. That is my understanding as well. But note the router problem as well. Z

Doesn't sound like anything to do with analog vs digital. The release just say's they lost their Standard Def signal. The Standard Def signal is still broadcast digitally (along with the HD). So if what they say is true, people watching the Standard Def through digital or analog would have lost their signal, but if watching the High Def digital fed, they were fine. Standard Def doesn't mean analog only. A lot of people seem confused on this. The Standard Def signal is broadcast digitally along with the High Def feed.

who cares? get an HDTV!!!

Is it possible that there is some confusion regarding the standard definition (SD)/high definition (HD) distinction as opposed to the FCC-mandated digital switch?

The last time I was in the area, Comcast/Verizon carried two versions of the channel (SD and HD) on different channel numbers, which I believe vary by county and provider. Although the FCC-mandated switch would restrict over-the-air (OTA) broadcast of these channels on UHF 14/UHF 45, I am under the impression that they would still be able to carry both HD and SD signals within the digital feed.

i.e. OTA broadcasts will no longer be in NTSC, but it's possible that the station could carry two feeds through ATSC (especially through the use of sub-channels) to cover both SD (4:3 aspect, 480i) and HD (16:9, 720/1080). In the same way, they could also transmit both versions to the local cable companies.

Thoughts?

(I'm out of the area now, so this is mostly speculation. My apologies for any inaccuracies.)

The router problem seems to make the most sense. They would obviously have one routing system for SD feeds and another for HD. Seeing as one company operates both stations, it would make sense for them to consolidate the equipment as much as possible.

My guess would be that instead of setting WBFF to go to the WBFF output, they instead set the WBFF output to go to the WNUV output as well. I'm having a hard time convincing myself that this could be a glitch in the system without human intervention. Though I'm looking forward to seeing your answer about why it took so long to repair.

The SD vs. HD comments are accurate.

If WBFF / WNUV are, in fact, sending seperate SD / HD signals (via hard line versus actual b'cast transmission) to the various distribution systems (Comcast, Direct TV, etc), then the router comment continues to make the most sense.

Bottom line, it sounds like Sinclair either has an operator that hit the wrong button, or, they have a more significant automation / server issue.

Since other "industry blogs" have documented WBFF and WNUV problems for a while now, I tend to believe their issue is more technically-related.

Hope they get this worked out...

live in boca and have comcast trouble with picture watching "house" last night.

You are the second Floridian to say this. Veryt puzzling. What station were you watching. I want to see if it is Sinclair owned. But the other complaint from Florida was not on a Sinclair station, so....Z

"It's hard to imagine that there are still people out there who aren't watching in HDTV -- especially a TV critic."

Actually, I think the majority of television users are still watching a standard definition signal, albeit now a digital one. Most of us simply don't care about that high def picture.

Thanks. It is clear that a heck of a lot of people, Z in cluded, aren't watching in HD. Z

Sounds like a typical Sinclair problem to me.

Hi, I am not sure what you mean by "typical Sinclair problem." Can you clarify? Thanks. Z

David -

A correction and a clarification -

The WBFF problem was corrected at 9:32 PM, not 10:24. I was the one who found the problem with the router, and that's the time that I switched the correct feed to the correct output. The main reason that it took that long to find is because I was told that it was a problem on Comcast, and the number that I had for them was no longer in service. It took me 10-15 minutes to get a good number for them, and only after that did I find out that it was a problem in the building, and begin to address it here. As far as I can tell, the problem was caused when I reset the station router when I was attempting to fix the no audio problem on WNUV. Nothing is SUPPOSED to change when the reset is done, but it's happened before, and apparently happened this time. It was several minutes after I did that, that I started to get reports that the wrong signal was on the cable, and I was still fixing the problem with WNUV, so I didn't put the two together.

It's unfair to blame Sinclair or the station for the problem. It's a pretty new router, made by Grass Valley, a well respected name in broadcast electronics. It's the control system for the router that generally s... is f... has issues. I was watching the broadcast signals closely when I reset the router, to make sure that we didn't go off the air (that's happened before, too) - I'll have to keep an extra eye on the cable signal, from now on.

On the issue of the two seperate signals coming out of the station - I understand your confusion. The fact is that, although we are only transmitting the digital signal (our analog transmitters are off), we are providing an analog version of both WNUV and WBFF to Comcast, DirecTV and Verizon FIOS. Those feeds are sent directly to them via fiber optic cables that they installed in our building.

I'm pretty sure that there's no one in the building that feels worse about lots of people missing the end of House and the first half of 24 than I do. I can assure you that I've taken a lot of steps to make sure that it doesn't happen again or, if it does, it gets resolved quickly.

Sorry for the problem.

Hi Mark, Thanks for the explanation. I am sure readers will be happy to see it. Yes, I meant 9:24, not 10:24. I described the length of the problem correctly in several places in both blogs, however. And I will take your word that in was 22 -- not 24 -- minutes into 24, as several readers have said after checking their recording devices. But the bottom line, this is a good thing. I really appreciate you sharing this explanation with readers of this blog. I suspect that once they read it, they will be more understanding. I do think you are going to have a hard sell, however, getting viewers to direct their frustration at the maker of the router instead of the station they were watching. It doesn't work that way, and I think you know that. The attitude of many viewers, especially when they are looking at Gossip Girl with no dialogue: Get a router that works! But, again, thanks for making this whole issue more transparent and understandable -- and I think most readers will accept the fact that stuff like this happens on their jobs, too. Thanks. Z

I hope they show 24 again!

So the moral of this story is Fox 45 believes WE were at fault for not watching their high-def broadcast. We should buy a high-def television right away. It is entirely OUR fault. This crummy station and their management really know how to tick US all off.

I'm sorry but this is unacceptable. Almost 24 hours later and all we get is a lame (and very defensive) explanation from some guy at WBFF as to why his incompetence ruined a night of television viewing?

Where is the rebroadcast? I've been on WBFF's website on and off all day and found NOTHING! I agree with Brian; this is a put-up job designed to make everyone toe the HDTV line. It's funny how people have given loads of reasons for not going the HDTV route. How about not being able to afford to make the change in a nightmare economy when many of us are out of work? I just love these idiots who say, "Why don't you just watch HDTV?" as if everyone is loving life and just looking for ways to spend all their disposable income. Get a clue!

Hi Mac, I checked back with Bill Fanshawe, the GM at WBFF, at the end of the day, and he said he still had not heard from Fox on re-broadcast. I abolutely agree, though, about many folks not being able to afford HDTV. And I, too, am surprised when people act like everyone has it -- or should have it. Excuse me, lots of folks don't have jobs any more. I don't have HDTV, and I know lots of others who don't. But it is getting to be haves and have-nots issue, isn't it? Thanks. Z

So the moral of this story is Fox 45 believes WE were at fault for not watching their high-def broadcast. We should buy a high-def television right away.

No high-def television required. It came in just fine on an analog TV fed the over-the-air digital signal via a converter box.

Why Comcast, DirectTV, and Verizon are still getting analog feeds is another question.

Mr Zurawik
... and what of the advertisers who bought local/national spots - do they get a refund - does the supposed 'automatic logger' take this outage into account? Seems this could be a larger problem for WBFF/WNUV than just disaffected viewers. Is there a NAB / 'Clearing House' / ?? phone number that addresses ad time not delivered?

I cannot imagine advertisers will not get some kind of "refund" in the form of "free" time if they ask for it. Since some viewers did see the shows without disruption, it will surely have to be a negotiated "refund" from the stations. But I sure wouldn't risk making my advertisers unhappy over something like this. Let Sinclair, the owner of the stations, sort it out with the maker of the router. As an advertiser I could care less what caused the disruption -- all I know is it happened, and I didn't get the eyeballs they promised me. Thanks. Z

I'm surprised so many people care about the advertisers!

Here in Kansas City we get interrupted shows, especially around this time of the year, because of the weather. I guess that's what you get for living in Tornado Alley! The stations here are usually really good about re-airing shows that get interrupted. Typically it seems like less popular shows get shown late at night after the late night talk shows, and more popular ones get re-aired on Friday or Saturday nights during prime-time depending on the network.

No high-def television required. It came in just fine on an analog TV fed the over-the-air digital signal via a converter box.

Why Comcast, DirectTV, and Verizon are still getting analog feeds is another question.

I had no problem with the off-air signal and my $40 digital to analog converter, which produces SD pictures from the off-air signal.

Does this mean that Comcast, DirecTV and Fios Customers who pay for HD really don't get it for some of the broadcast channels? I'll keep my antenna!

How could this go on for over 45 minutes? Blame it on a router that suddenly switched signals? Bull! Someone pushed the wrong button(s). Aside from the "talent", they have interns running the place. Check out the quality of writing on the tape scroll on the 10 o'clock news. Listen to the writing behind the "talents'" presentation. Cheap help. Bad writing. Bad spelling. Wrong button.