So TSN doesn't leave games in progress ....

[LFITQ]

I call BALONEY!!!

Watching the Rose Bowl yesterday the game cuts to half time with the score 3-3.

TSN does a spiel and then they state they are LEAVING the Rose Bowl to broadcast a Leafs game.

HOw many of us have written in to TSN when they have refused to leave another game in progress to go to a CFL game and been told they have a policy of not leaving games in progress?

Guess if it is the Leafs it is a different story?

What a faux pas by the programming head - who programs to broadcast a game only until half time then bails on it?

Makes me really wonder if the TSN deal the CFL just got was really worth it?

[TheLionKing]

What did you expect from the Toronto Sports Network ? I'm fed up having to watch the Make Beliefs on HNIC with those two fossils Bob Cole and Don Cherry. :x :x

[Tighthead]

I'm not sure why they would even bother with the Rose Bowl - if you can get TSN, you can get ABC.

[Robbie]

Since the Rose Bowl was cut to make room for a Canadian sports event and not some movie or anything else that may not have been too appealing, then I think Canadians will be much easier to forgive TSN than Americans were for NBC and the Heidi Game incident that occurred on November 17, 1968

On that game, NBC was television a game between the New York Jets and Oakland Raiders. With the Jets leading 32-29 with only 65 seconds left in the game, the Raiders quickly scored 14 points to win, 43-32. Meanwhile, millions of American television viewers were unable to see Oakland's comeback. The NBC television network cut off the live broadcast in favor of a pre-scheduled airing of Heidi, a new made-for-TV version of the classic children's story.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heidi_game

[cromartie]

Guess if it is the Leafs it is a different story?

Not a hard decision when the Leafs ratings likely double that of a college bowl game.

Now, the CFL on the other hand is likely competitive ratings wise with the NHL, on TSN at least. As such, you would have every right to be upset with a cut in.

Now, if you want to argue that it was pretty stupid of them to air half a bowl game in the first place, I'd concur.

[TheLionKing]

I wonder if TSN will cut away from the Orange Bowl tonight.........

[Robbie]

I wonder if TSN will cut away from the Orange Bowl tonight.........

Did they?

[TheLionKing]

No

[Belize City Lion]

I'm not sure why they would even bother with the Rose Bowl - if you can get TSN, you can get ABC.

There's your answer right there... anyone who wanted to keep watching the Rose Bowl could change the channel to ABC, so the mcuh larger Leaf's audience could watch the hockey game. I don't see why anyone would take issue with TSN over this. Simply change the channel and enjoy the rest of the game on another channel.

Plus, remember that TSN pays big money for NHL and a Leafs game is counted as Canadian content by the CRTC.

[Tighthead]

I agree with cromartie that it was just bizarre in the circumstances to decide to show half the game and then quit - why not just run one of the dang poker shows or Sportscentre?

I suspect somebody made a double booking error.

[Belize City Lion]

It could also be that the Rose Bowl was part of package of games, or other programs, that TSN bought. So they were paying for it whether they showed it or not. In that case why not run the first half and collect some ad revenue? Not a great strategy from a viewer's point of view, but knowing how the bean counters think I can see them doing just that. Otherwise the Rose Bowl shows as a loss and sales managers and program managers look bad when that happens.

Everyone in Canada who watched the first half of the game (even on ABC, thanks to substitution by cable companies) will be counted towards the overall ratings of college football on TSN. This is important for them in terms of sales and delivering on projections for advertisers.

[OV - 54:40]

I think the point is, the CFL has been treated like not so important before when we had to wait for TSN to finish showing some other sporting "event" (i seem to recall some Ricky Bobby going round the track thing had to finish, or was it tennis or golf ?) and so we missed the start of a CFL game while whatever it was (that i'd bet was available on some other channel anyways) had to finish. But when it comes to hockey or the Leafs, the TSN thinkers will gladly cut away so they won't miss a second of hockey (and somebody will try to claim or rationalize that it's to do with their "commitments" or contract or something like that, but i call bull - it's more to do with an attitude where the CFL has not been treated like a 1st class citizen by Canada's so-callled "sports leader") - we'll see if this changes much with the new CFL TV contract

[TheLionKing]

Plus, remember that TSN pays big money for NHL and a Leafs game is counted as Canadian content by the CRTC.

Why must we be subjected to watching the Leafs ? There are teams in Montreal, Ottawa, Edmonton, Calgary and Vancouver. :x

[cromartie]

Why must we be subjected to watching the Leafs ? There are teams in Montreal, Ottawa, Edmonton, Calgary and Vancouver.

The bulk of whom are on either RDS or Sportsnet.

[CB123]

I didnt even know TSN was broadcasting the Rose Bowl? I was watching it on ABC the whole time.