Roush on 60 Minutes, Shark and Without A Trace
Question: I was interested in the item in last week's Ask Matt
column about the new CBS Sunday night schedule accommodating East Coast viewing after NFL coverage with
60 Minutes starting at 7:30 pm/ET, going for 90 minutes, and so on. Being a big fan of
Shark (and last year
Without a Trace), I love it! But then you said CBS would probably revert to its old approach once
Viva Laughlin kicks in. I also watch
Brothers & Sisters and record
Shark, but with the NFL, we East Coasters never know when it will start. I've tried resetting the "stop" time to well past 11 pm, but unless you catch exactly when
60 Minutes starts, it's hard to know when the rest of the shows will follow. I have what seems to be a simple solution. Let's suppose the NFL runs on to, say, 7:13 pm, and that's when
60 Minutes starts. Why not put a little "pop-up" at the bottom of the screen (near the CBS Eye?) that says, "
Viva Laughlin (or whatever is next) will start at 8:13" Then, if I miss the actual time, I can easily check the time by flipping back anytime during the show to see the start time, and set my DVR/VCR/whatever accordingly. The networks cram enough advertising junk at the bottom of the screen now — actually including something informative would be refreshing. This shouldn't be rocket science for TV engineers and would go a long way toward showing goodwill, or whatever, to the viewing public. Call me a cynic, but something so sensible is probably way too much to ask from the networks. What do you think?
— Kathy C.
Matt Roush: You're hardly a cynic. But it probably is too much to ask. Mainly because the networks don't want to make it any easier for you to watch their rivals. So on nights with Sunday football running late when CBS reverts back to its old rigid pattern of everything running over, I'd be shocked if they put a ticking clock at the bottom of the screen to tell you when the next episode begins. It's within their power to do it, I'm sure, and I'd love it as a public service, but making it easier for you to adjust your DVR or VCR timer isn't in their best interest. Unless, of course, these overruns drive too many people away from the rest of the night's schedule. Which, despite the aggravation, doesn't appear to have happened. Yet. But thanks for the great suggestion. We can dream.
(This just in, a helpful hint from a reader who calls herself Stanford Sue: "CBS sends text messages via cell phone to alert viewers to changes in Sunday night start times. You can sign up at cbs.com." If you're into that sort of thing, go for it.)
