There are few great characters in broadcasting history, and none better than Harry Caray. Whether chugging Miller Lite and shouting “Holy Cow!” from the bleachers at Wrigley Field, or calling games for the Chicago White Sox and Cubs, this Frick Award winner was a baseball legend.
Major League Broadcasting is navigating turbulent times in the streaming and cord-cutting era. One of its local rights holders, Diamond Sports Group, filed for bankruptcy Wednesday.
NBC
NBC is one of the biggest sports networks in the United States, and is available on many streaming services. The network broadcasts 87 hours of regular programming each week, including live sporting events and original series. It also produces several live-action and animated Christmas specials. Some of its best-known in-house productions include Bonanza, Little House on the Prairie, Las Vegas, Crossing Jordan, and the Law & Order franchise.
The network’s logo is a stylized peacock, which has been redesigned several times over the years. The current logo is a square with the word “NBC” written diagonally in black letters on a white background.
NBC’s master feed is transmitted in 1080i high definition. Some affiliates also carry the network’s programming in 720p HD or 480i standard definition, either because of technical considerations or to comply with local station waivers. NBC is currently available in American Samoa via Seattle-based KING-TV and on cable providers throughout the Federated States of Micronesia and Guam through Honolulu-based KHNL.
ABC
ABC launched as a radio network in 1943, and expanded into television in 1948. It would later merge with Capital Cities Communications in the 1980s, and was ultimately purchased by The Walt Disney Company in 1996.
ABC provides 89 hours of scheduled network programming each week, including prime time shows like Grey’s Anatomy and Good Morning America. The network also offers dramas, reality shows, and comedies and is home to daytime soap opera General Hospital since 1963. The network is headquartered in Burbank, California, adjacent to Walt Disney Studios and the Roy E. Disney Animation Building.
The network is also known for its Circle 7 logo, which first appeared on station graphics in 1962 and has since become iconic. ABC affiliates that broadcast on channel 7 usually use the logo along with the main network logo in their on-air branding. The network also uses the logo on its newscasts and sports telecasts, along with iterations of its translucent logo bug.
TBS
In the early 1990s, TBS began imposing a one-dollar-per-viewer surcharge on cable operators for broadcasting the Goodwill Games. This skewed profit figures, as the network was forced to pay for expensive production costs and reimbursing advertisers that did not receive as many viewers as planned. The surcharge was also a major reason for TBS’s decision to abandon its localized programming model and switch to national programming by 2000.
In 1986, WTBS acquired the rights to MGM/UA’s film library, which allowed the station to air theatrical cartoon shorts (such as Tom & Jerry and The Three Stooges) in addition to feature films. This change helped revitalize the network’s ratings, which were declining at that time due to competition from cable television. By the late 1980s, WTBS reduced its number of movies broadcast during the day and shifted more of its schedule to comedic programming, such as reruns of sitcoms from the 1970s (including Happy Days, The Jeffersons, and Good Times) and Little House on the Prairie.
Fox
In addition to producing famous TV shows like The X-Files, Beverly Hills 90210, American Idol and more than you can shake a ladle at Gordon Ramsey screaming at kitchen staff, Fox also has the rights to several MLB games. However, the company has been struggling financially and could lose those rights if it fails to make payments on Wednesday.
Baseball broadcasts helped shape the emerging medium of cable television and were a big draw for early satellite and local superstations, such as WGN and WTBS. The sport also shaped the creation of ESPN and TBS, as well as MLB Network.
Many teams, including marquee franchises like the Yankees and Cubs, have their own regional sports networks (RSNs). These RSNs offer streaming services that carry live MLB games. They can be found in most streaming packages. National telecasts on ESPN, FS1, and TBS and MLB Network are available on most streaming services as well. These national telecasts are blacked out in the home markets of teams that broadcast them. 메이저리그중계