Al Gore's CurrentTV replaces Newsworld International tonight at midnight, ET.

Programming is expected to be akin to CBC's artsy program ZeD, with amateur videos produced by viewers and art students.

With it's demise, we lose yet another news resource in this nation.

I expressed my disappointment to DirecTV's VP of Programming, Bob Marsocci this past week.

Mr. Marsocci --

My name is Michael King. I'm a freelance writer and columnist based in Atlanta. I've also been a subscriber to DirecTV for the past couple of years.

Overall, I've been very pleased with DirecTV, and find the service and quality far superior to the service I received previously from Comcast Cable (and in it's earlier guises, AT&T Broadband and MediaOne). The quality of the signal and the variety of networks (both new and old) have been very enjoyable for both me and my family.

The one area that I have a concern in is in the arena of international news. Previously, I was able to watch CNN International's programming (at least on weekends), along with news from Newsworld International. Over the past eight months both services have met their demise on DirecTV. With the end of NWI next week, a view of the news from overseas that many viewers have looked forward to watching will have been silenced.

I understand that the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation has approached DirecTV about continuing to offer some form of news from their auspices following the demise of NWI, but was turned down.

On behalf of many viewers who depend on international news from outside American borders, I ask that you please reconsider your decision. In addition, I'd like to suggest three additional international news services: CNN International, BBC World and SkyNews.

CNN International's return would provide a level and type of international news service that viewers have come to expect from CNN.

BBC World's round-the-clock news coverage would provide news quality that is considered to be second-to-none by many; and as evidenced by BBC World News viewership on PBS stations around the US and on BBC America, domestic viewers would be very interested in receiving programming from BBC World. International travelers already are familiar with BBC World's programming, as they are available to travelers worldwide.

SkyNews is already available in many English-speaking nations around the world, and as a sister company to both DirecTV and Fox News Channel, would provide additional product and content from NewsCorp. SkyNews has won multiple awards for their programming, and it's value as an international counterpart to Fox News is immeasurable. Programmers at FNC already recognize the value of Sky, given the amount of simulcasting Fox News has done of SkyNews programming during the recent London terror attacks.

Please reconsider your decision not to offer additional international news to American viewers. Not only would you provide service to an underserved viewer base, you would offer content that is not presently available on Dish Network or on many cable television systems in the United States.

Thanking you for your consideration, I remain,

Sincerely,

Michael H. King
Mableton, GA

They don't give a flying fart as to what we, as viewers, want.

Posted by: mhking at 06:50 PM | Comments (5) | Add Comment
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