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 An open letter to DTVanswers.com
by Chandra
Dear DTVanswers.com
I, as a member of the MTV generation, have never had MTV available at home, and despite a few moments in high school, never missed it.
*Gasp*
What sort of evil torture did my mother give me? Was I chained to a radiator in a closet? No. We never had cable. We watched with rabbit ears. I have learned to adapt to the fuzz, squiggly lines and general greyness of the moving pictures. I have enjoyed antenna tv, and the free over the air broadcasting. In my own home, my family has made the choice - economically and philosophically - to not have cable.
Which is why I am quite displeased with the recent conversion to digital. Like many Americans, I received my coupon, purchased my converter box, and, following the directions closely, hooked it up to my -not digital ready- tv. Post 2/17 "DTV DAY" I no longer receive several stations, including public broadcasting - PUBLIC broadcasting. A station by its very definition is FREE and available to the public. Fox is also gone. Norm and the New Yankee workshop is a distant memory, as is House, Family Guy, Nova and even the boring Antique Roadshow. Full House repeats aren't even a choice, would I want to make them. Even the wannabe hipster station CW is GONE.
I spent some time searching your website, along with many FAQ pages on various broadcaster sites, and found the information lacking. I did discover one bit of bad news "According to the Maine Association of Broadcasters, thousands of Maine homes will receive a fuzzy signal, or no signal at all, due to the state's terrain, and the distance between homes and transmission towers." But nothing explaining what would be done. I live 14 miles outside the most populated city in the state, not in the middle of a potato field 4 hours from the closest Walmart. I would like to know if the new DTV date in June will bring better news and stronger signals. I would like to know why the switch was made. If one more person tells me how much better the digital picture is, I'll scream. A fuzzy picture is one thousand times better than the black screen with obnoxious box saying "signal is not currently available".
Please, I implore you - give us our free television back, boost the signals, and let the News Hour with Jim Lehrer back into my home.
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