This week's TV Q&A responds to questions about "Studio 60," "Eureka" and "My Boys." As always, thanks for reading, and keep those questions coming.
-- Rob Owen, Post-Gazette TV editor
Q: Is "Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip" officially history, or is there a chance of it returning? It seemed the last four episodes were much better than the beginning episodes from last fall.
-- Bill, Pittsburgh
Rob: The show is dead, kaput, done, canceled, finished.
I agree that the last four episodes were stronger dramatically, but only because writer Aaron Sorkin quit telling stories about life backstage at a TV show and moved back into the "West Wing" political/personal realm with stories about a kidnapped soldier in a war zone and a difficult childbirth.
Q: Do you know if there will be a second season of two shows that were on the Sci Fi Channel? They are "Eureka" and "The Dresden Files."
-- Bob, Canonsburg
Rob: "Eureka" returns for its second season Tuesday at 9 p.m. A decision has not been made on the future of "Dresden Files," but I expect it will be canceled.
Q: I've been seeing previews for the return of "My Boys." I thought it said June 30 but I did not find it in the listings. It's not listed next Saturday either. Do you know the return date?
-- Audrey, Pittsburgh
Rob: You were off by a month. "My Boys" returns to TBS on July 30 at 10 p.m.
Q: I have been wondering for quite a while, are Lynne Hayes Freeland and Harold Hayes of KDKA-TV related in any way, perhaps brother and sister?
-- Chris, Butler
Rob: They are not related.
Q: Is WTAE also using the same Ignite system that WPXI is using?
Monday at approximately 5:40 p.m. the darn thing took off. I can't believe that an actual human would have manually let this happen. Only a pre-programmed unit (with a minimum of people) would have allowed this to happen until a HUMAN realized how to get OUT of the mess.
I know it is a learning curve, but is there some reason newscasts need to look like a high school production where the director, producer and technicians can't communicate?
-- Marcy, Pittsburgh
Rob: According to news director Bob Longo, WTAE does not use Ignite or a similar system and has no plans to do so. I guess what Marcy saw has to be chalked up to human error.
Q: What would you consider a Pittsburgh station's viewing area?
-- J. P., S. Fayette
Rob: It's not up to me, it's up to Nielsen, which counts the following 16 counties among the Pittsburgh viewing area: Allegheny, Westmoreland, Fayette, Greene, Washington, Beaver, Butler, Lawrence, Armstrong, Indiana, Clarion, Venango and Forest counties in Pennsylvania; Monongalia and Preston counties in West Virginia and Garrett County in Maryland.
Q: Where has WBGN gone now that it's not on Channel 14 anymore?
-- Bob, Verona
Rob: According to WBGN owner Ron Bruno, the former general manager of the local Comcast systems removed WBGN from a few outlying systems, including yours. Direct your complaints to Comcast.
FEEDBACK
In response to the question as to why Comcast moved Country Music Television from channel 64 to channel 146, I'm not sure their only reason was to force viewers to switch to digital and thus pay more money.
As I understand it, analog channels like 64 use 10 times as much bandwidth as digital channels like 146. Eliminating analog channels allows the cable system to use that bandwidth to add more high-definition channels (on my system, National Geographic HD and A&E HD have appeared in the last few weeks). HD viewers have been asking for more of these, and satellite services are offering a lot of them, so cable has to keep up. For progress to continue, expect more analog channels to migrate to digital as time goes on.
It would be nice if Comcast made a greater effort to tell us about these changes, however.
-- Tom, Brackenridge
Rob: Thanks, Tom. You're right that analog takes up more bandwidth and we may see more migration, but I think Comcast is targeting channels like CMT and Sci Fi that have a strong, loyal following among customers who are more likely to upgrade to digital. It just seems a little calculated.
Perhaps I should have given Comcast more of the benefit of the doubt, but it's not like the company's past actions have encouraged that response.
Please let Norman from Butler know that "The Chris Matthews Show" can also be seen on CNBC on Sunday nights at 11:30 p.m.
-- Chase, Robinson
Rob: Good idea. Thanks! Looks like it also airs on CNBC at 8:30 p.m. Sunday.
First Published: July 5, 2007, 6:00 p.m.
