Question for Americans

[Mother Jones]

Do you have access to BBC and the CBC channels? (either via Satellite or specialty channel?)

There are a plethora of fascinating and well balanced stories coming from both, particularly on the middle east. Just wondering if you are fortunate enough to get them?

[hermetic]

1. Nope.

Since I'm probably 1 of 10 people left in the country that doesn't have cable or satellite, I'm stuck with the locals. So I am very grateful for the internet and DU.

[HEIL PRESIDENT GOD]

2. No, but my parents do.

As far as I know they watch both every night. I've gotten news from my friend in Baghdad before it hit the US media, but my parents are usually right up-to-date.

[Nay]

3. Yes, we have satellite TV and get BBC, WNI, lots of info

you won't get on stations originating from the U.S.

[Huckebein the Raven]

4. I have BBC America but

the local NPR station here broadcasts the BBC World Service. I also have NWI and European Journal and The National are my favorite shows on NWI. I also watch Link TV for their documentaries, Democracy Now, Viewpoint with James Zogby, and also Mosaic. Mosaic rebroadcasts news from the various news organizations around the Middle East.

I wish I had the regular CBC here.

[PSU84]

5. We have BBC World News

One of the PBS stations in Washington DC carries. Watching the BBC, you'd think there were other countries out there and that they are actually important. Not like American TV news at all. We only have news about foreign countries we've invaded recently. And Israel, too, but only if someone has been blown up or bulldozed or whatever.

[Phil214]

11. We get BBC in Dallas

KERA-TV carries BBC World News at Midnight for 30 min. KERA (90.1) carries it on radio from 10 a.m. to 5 a.m. Mom sattelite service gets Newsworld International out of Toronto.

[iverglas]

12. tsk

"Mom sattelite service gets Newsworld International out of Toronto."

Shurely you meant "Mum satellite service"!

It's a joke, it's a joke, it's a joke.

[Mother Jones]

6. Great to hear they could be available by satellite,

I hope you are watching, if you get them! I'm referring to programs like Witness, The Passionate Eye, Marketplace, etc...

The Passionate Eye, for it's season opener, showed the very recent documentary film "Control Room".

We are just SO lucky to have access to this type of programming, and as much as I love PBS, they don't seem to be picking up these not-to-be-missed educational programs.

I really think they would go a long way towards Americans understanding what's going on in other countries/cultures. For example, I recently saw "Embedded in Baghdad", which showed life for a middle-class Iraqi family from prior to the invasion and after. As much as they didn't like Saddam, they didn't approve of the U.S invading them.

[iverglas]

7. unfortunately

Newsworld International (NWI) in the US is no longer owned by the CBC -- it's privately owned and broadcasts CBC programming. The programs it offers are shown on its site: http://www.newsworldinternational.com/

Passionate Eye is, sadly, not on the schedule. It does air The National, along with the UK's ITV news and an English-language Japanese news show.

When we were in Florida in the spring of 2003, we watched The National on C-SPAN. I don't see it listed on C-SPAN's site; maybe that was Florida-specific programming for snowbirds.

We watched The Control Room in our living room, too -- but it's also in theatre release, both here and in the US, I gather. Highly recommended.

A note about upcoming programming on Cdn TV -- I missed The Corporation the night it showed in a theatre town, but now VisionTV is showing it in three parts, STARTING TONIGHT, Thursday, and the next two Thursdays, for anybody who hasn't seen it.

[Mother Jones]

8. I forgot to include the Fifth Estate in my 'programs not to miss'....

Difficult to include all the wonderful shows.....(although I haven't seen Disclosure on the roster this season, I hope it's still around b/c that was one of the best!)

Iverglas, I do realize Control Room was out in theatres, but I have no doubt it doesn't reach as many that way, than running it on the tube.

Another great channel I missed was TVO, they're the ones who showed us The Corporation for their own season opener this year. (which was fabulous btw)

Again, and it's no surprise to people here, we are SO lucky we live here, and have access to real news and journalism.

[iverglas]

9. and duh

I said that The Corporation was on "today, Thursday". Well, it was on "today", but today was Wednesday. So now *today* is Thursday, and part 1 was on last night, and parts 2 and 3 will be on next Wednesday and the Wednesday after.

The Fifth Estate on Cheney was fun last night,
http://www.cbc.ca/fifth/dickcheney/
especially to watch right after Part 1 of the Corporation. ;) (Thank goodness for that time-shifting stuff with digital cable -- we watched the later west-coast airing of the Fifth Estate, so I could still tape my Amanda Burton mystery on BBC and see The Fifth Estate w/o missing Law&Order!)

If only these things showed on TV where people really need to see them.

Of course I absolutely agree that theatre release is nowhere near as good as TV airing. I missed The Corporation in the theatre myself because my mulish co-vivant had a tummy ache 15 minutes before we were supposed to leave, and I was a motivated audience.

I know I should watch TVO's evening current affairs show more -- Studio 2, that's it -- but that supercilious woman co-host drives me up a wall.

Yesterday and today, watching argument on the marriage reference in the Supreme Court has been quite entertaining. I'm missing some of the right-wingers as we speak ... darn.

[Mother Jones]

10. lol!

I can totally relate to the time-shifting we are offerred on our satellite! It's great to be able to "fit" everything into a night of viewing....since so much of it is relevant and vital.

We actually live in the country, so The Corp wasn't even playing anywhere near us....makes us value our Canadian t.v so much more.

p.s - I doubt you need to hear the bigots speak, you already know their point of view is that gay marriage will "ruin family values for our children" ....utter nonsense! :eyes:

[Huckebein the Raven]

14. I believe Al Gore got together with investors

and purchased it.

[Lefty48197]

13. We have always gotten the CBC here in the Detroit area

yay!

[Jackie97]

15. When I can actually watch TV, yes....

Otherwise, I go to the internet to get all my non-American news. I can't help but think that the US government will make sure that BCC and CBC never send anything that they don't want us to see.

[carpetbagger]

16. Some BBC, very little CBC.

BBC World is on public television nightly, the BBC has a show on in the early morning (like 5AM or something) on public radio, and my mega-cable package includes BBC America, which unfortunately is mostly just British comedies and light drama series.

As to the CBC, we get very little. C-Span, a noncommercial public affairs network which broadcasts congressional sessions, political speeches, political conferences, and other public events, occasionally has feeds from the CBC. They do cover Canadian election night broadcasts.

No, most Americans get no news apart from the nightly network and cable tv news reports, which mostly focus on partisan charges, countercharges, and reactions to events.

[area51]

17. BBC

In Houston, our PBS TV station runs the BBC world news for 30 minutes on weekdays @ 5pm. It's refreshing to watch news that isn't insanely jingoistic.

[puttothesword]

18. shortwave.

I can pluck them up on my shortwave and usually do.

[Dez]

19. No CBC here in Az :(

But I got it when I lived in Wa. State. I really miss it!

[FlatJack]

20. BBC but not CBC

Most have BBC but not CBC. I find I disagree with CBC a lot, they are very very left leaning. BBC and CBC both have a lot of specials on Iraq that delve deeper than CNN. It's interesting how a BBC special on the day to day life of a soldier stationed in Iraq really spends time with the camera fixed on one spot, not jumping from one thing to another.

[othermeans]

21. I got a bootleg copy of the Iraq War documentary off of ebay

it was far and away the best documentary about the war that I have seen. CBC has got to be the most informative news agency on the North American continent.

[Kolesar]

22. I listen to CBC-1 from London, Ontario

Or is it CBC-2? In any case, I can often tune in to 93.5 when the weather is clear and the reception is good. It was a godsend when NPR was in total-whore-mode during the leadup to the invasion of Iraq. I love the gravely-voiced guy who does the snarky intro to "the current" at 8:30 am.

Our NPR/public radio station plays "As It Happens" at 8 pm every weekday. I dig it. They really ripped on the Fallujah invasion. They asked the US spokesman to explain how they will know who to readmit to Fallujah after taking it and stabilizing it. He had no response.

[kayell]

23. No CBC, 30 minutes of BBC at 6 am and again at 11 pm

I use the net for news.

One day I'll tell my granddaughter about how I can remember back when the US had a free press, and she'll say "Wow, I didn't know you were THAT old Grandma".

[texpatriot2004]

24. I am an American. I live in Texas. I watch the BBC almost

daily. There news program. I prefer it to our news channels. I don't know the CBC channel. What's that.

[Mother Jones]

25. Last night cbc's "The Fifth Estate" joined with Frontline & NYTimes

to do a wonderful story on Al-Qaeda.....Considering that Frontline is a pbs (and therefore U.S) channel, I am HOPING you all will get to see it.

Uh, actually, make that YOU NEED to see this documentary!

There's no one running for the hills, they are as organized as ever. Listening to this, then watching your the ridiculous statements coming out of shrubs mouth was just appalling!

These NEED to be seen in your country! Particularly in the red states.

[MADem]

26. If it is a FRONTLINE show, most everyone will see it

...or at least have the OPPORTUNITY to see it. I'm fortunate in that I can get not one, not two, but THREE distinct regional PBS stations.

[ailsagirl]

27. After the "election," I dumped my cable so... no

[carpetbagger]

28. I now get, through NWI, nightly CBC coverage.

I haven't watched the US cable news, and not much of the network news, since the election. It really makes you realize how out there most Americans are. All we get on our news is a bunch of flag-waving nonsense. US coverage of the tsunami can be reduced to one statement: how dare people not appreciate our righteousness.