Who Decided WJBK Detroit Should Be The Canadian Satellite Fox Affiliate?

[Scott Fybush]

The Boston stations are indeed uplinked to satellite. The uplink is in Needham, next to the WBZ-TV tower, and I believe it's maintained by WGBH, though it's paid for by Cancom or whatever has succeeded it.

[kc1ih]

The Boston and Seattle network affiliates are available in Canada to anyone with Bell TV (formerly ExpressVU).

[chrish]

There is a very strong relationship between the people living in Quebec, Ontario and especially the Maritimes have with New Englanders, many have emigrated back and forth across the border since the late 1800's and there are family relationships on both sides with ties to each other.
In addition there was a horrific Halifax harbor explosion in 1917, the people of Boston and New England immediately sent train loads of aid including Doctors, nurses, medical supplies in addition to food, clothes, household goods and money. This endeared the people of the Maritimes and Nova Scotia to New Englanders so much that to this day they still send a huge Christmas tree to Boston for display just after Thanksgiving every year.
The relationship is so strong that when there was talk of Quebec leaving the Confederation a strong number of Maritimers expressed sentiments of joining the US
rather than continuing being tied to the Western Provicences to which they have little in common. Talking with New Brunswick and PEI relatives surprised me
by saying the Canadian Federation is nowhere near as strong as the American statehood relationship. In the wonderful PBS special "The last train across Canada"
the host spent time with Manitoba and Saskatchewan ranchers and people living on the boarder who said they had a much closer and stronger relationship to
the people of North Dakota and Minnesota than the did with fellow Canadians

[RBW]

Part of the reason WJBK is there is so that there is a balance and nonduplication of syndicated programming. If you picked WXYZ from Detroit, WTOL from Toledo and WGRZ from Buffalo, there is a chance that all 3 carry one or more syndicated programs - but with all stations from one market - you wouldn't see Wheel of Fortune on the American channels at once (for example).  Look at it this way - WWJ's lack of local news probably balances WJBK's news (compared to other markets).

It's the end of the day... and maybe my brain has fried  ... But could you please clarify this post so I can understand it better.

[M.J.]

Part of the reason WJBK is there is so that there is a balance and nonduplication of syndicated programming. If you picked WXYZ from Detroit, WTOL from Toledo and WGRZ from Buffalo, there is a chance that all 3 carry one or more syndicated programs - but with all stations from one market - you wouldn't see Wheel of Fortune on the American channels at once (for example).  Look at it this way - WWJ's lack of local news probably balances WJBK's news (compared to other markets).

It's the end of the day... and maybe my brain has fried  ... But could you please clarify this post so I can understand it better.

Let's assume, for the sake of argument, that Wheel/Jeopardy! aired on WDIV (NBC) Detroit, WTOL (CBS) Toledo, and WEWS (ABC) Cleveland. If a cable system carried those three stations, you would have the same programming on those three channels, plus whatever Canadian channels were carrying it. Of course, the U.S. stations get sim-subbed, but from the viewers' standpoint, there's a lack of choice when 4 channels on the lower end of the dial have the same shows at the same time.

[RBW]

Ahhhhhh... of course!  That damn substitution rule is the pits. Which makes me think that the ability to receive the "western" feeds would effectively kill that process.  IS that true?

[azumanga]

Ahhhhhh... of course!  That damn substitution rule is the pits. Which makes me think that the ability to receive the "western" feeds would effectively kill that process.  IS that true?

Usually is, but it depends on system and situation -- Shaw Direct and most cable systems offer stations from both coasts, with Shaw Direct simsubbing according to post code and the local systems sinsubbing according to the available local signals. Bell TV also has both eastern and western feeds, but implements nationwide simsubbing, usually with Toronto simsubbing over Boston and Vancouver simsubbing over Seattle; viewers experience simsubbing, regardless of where they live. And of course, some programs that are seen nationwide, such as the Super Bowl, are simsubbed nationwide. There were reports that some Shaw Direct customers unplug, and plug back in, their receivers (sometimes repeatedly), just so they can get the original feed.

[chrish]

I forgot this one.....when traveling in the Maritimes you will often hear a description of those to the south (New England) as the Boston States.

[spencerkarter85]

The Boston and Seattle network affiliates are available in Canada to anyone with Bell TV (formerly ExpressVU).

Well the Canadians got lucky! Here in the USA on satellite TV on getting east/west network feeds is different than in Canada, if they don't have local stations on satellite or lived in so-called 'unserved' household, they have to apply to a waiver to their local TV stations (if approved or denied) to watch the network feeds in SD from both coasts and/or HD from your own coast. If you already have locals, you're so out of luck unfortunately, it's a SHVA/SHVIA/SHVERA/STELA thing.

[FreddyE1977]

A business contact in Winnipeg told me that his cable system said they had replaced the
Detroit stations with Buffalo and Rochester because of "all that coverage of shootings and
street crime on the Detroit newscasts".   No idea if there is any truth to that.