Bad reception satellite viewers unable to get local channels

Tag : Satellite Programing

“Last week, when the weather was atrocious, Channel 13 hadhours of coverage on where the storms were,” said LarryMcCarty of Ottumwa.
He could barely see the signal on regular television when heswitched off his satellite programing; he has complained about formonths, his satellite does not give him Ottumwa/Kirksville or DesMoines stations.
What he gets instead are “local” stations from the Eastand West Coast.
“We are not able to receive either CBS (KCCI-TV) or NBC(WHO-TV) programming by satellite,” he said. “Peopleare fed up that they can’t get these things. And with the[OATS] translator down, a lot of people who could get thosechannels are now in the same boat I am.”
He said satellite companies offer “local” channels toplaces like Oskaloosa and Albia, but not Ottumwa. The majorproblem, he contends, is that the FCC needs to change its rules.
Mary Diamond, an FCC spokesperson in Washington, D.C., said the FCCis asking for comments from viewers. The deadline for input onsatellite rule changes is April 28.
“We opened this up for public comment ... to seek input fromthe public. That’s always taken into account and put in therecord,” she said.
“I’ve sent a rather lengthy [e-mail] to the FCC; Itlooks like they may change the rules, but we need [more]people,” said McCarty.
He’s not asking much, he insists.
“I urged the FCC to amend its rules. The satellite providersneed to be able to transmit that [Des Moines] signal [whichcurrently] they can’t provide us with. What we’reasking is the FCC permit satellite providers to allow reception ofthe closest in-state but out-of-[market] network signal... whenthere is no [local market] signal.”
Local stations are seen on cable, just not satellite.
“We would love to be on satellite. We would all be very happyabout that,” said Dianne Little, general manager of KYOU, theFOX station in Ottumwa. “The satellite providers won’tpick us up.”
She understands some of the FCC rulings — she certainlywouldn’t want an outside FOX station being brought into themarket she is paying to serve.
“We want to provide free TV to the local community. Localstations pay the FCC fees to provide free over-the-air television;we pay to be able to provide that to our viewers.”