CBS News in HD coming soon?

Good news for Beantown and the Windy City: your CBS affiliates just splurged on some Sony XDCAM gear. Actually CBS bought the cameras for its 17 owned-and-operated stations, which is a good thing since these can run up to $25k each. WBZ in Boston and WBBM in Chicago are the first affiliates to receive the equipment, but CBS was sly and didn't actually admit that those news stations will go high-def. Since these cams don't ship for two months, we'll have to watch the news for more..er...news on this. One fact we can share now: you won't see an HD-DVD in this cam.

[(Unverified) Posted Jan 18th 2006 7:13PM]

WUSA(CBS) in Washington DC has been broadcasting all news cast in HF for several months, to the point that some have changed their viewing habits.

[(Unverified) Posted Jan 18th 2006 7:15PM]

oopps thats HD

[(Unverified) Posted Jan 18th 2006 7:24PM]

News Release
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE



W*USA 9 LEADS THE WAY IN HDTV
9 News FIRST to Launch Local HDTV Newscasts

Washington, DC � W*USA 9 announced today that this spring it will become the first television station in Washington, DC to present its local live newscasts in High Definition Television [HDTV]. From buying new studio cameras to stringing miles of cable throughout, the station is literally being rebuilt from the ground up.

�This advancement will be historic for W*USA 9. The station is not only launching its newscasts in HDTV, but also launching a new era in Washington TV. We�re excited to be the leaders in this new technology. HD will provide our viewers with a dramatic, vibrant and sharp viewing experience. It will be like giving them a front row seat in our studio,� said Darryll J. Green, President and General Manager of W*USA 9.

W*USA 9 will also be unveiling a new set and new graphics built with HDTV in mind, giving 9 News a completely new look. Viewers will be able to experience the difference of this technological advancement in all of W*USA 9�s more than 35 hours of local news each week.

While most viewers recognize that HDTV has a wider 16:9 ratio format, the most amazing change is actually the clarity of the video. The HD resolution is much closer to what your eyes actually see. That makes the experience even more life like. Even those viewers who don�t have HDTV sets will enjoy the benefit of a clearer, sharper picture.

In addition to 9 News, CBS continues to be the HDTV network leader with more HD programs than any other network. Look for HD programs like CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, Without a Trace, CSI: Miami, Cold Case and The Young and the Restless. You can also see special events like the Grammy Awards, the NCAA Final Four, PGA Championship, US Open Tennis and NFL Football in HDTV.

[(Unverified) Posted Jan 18th 2006 10:17PM]

It's enough to sway my morning news habits, but until they put evening news at 9 ET (like FOX) I will watch FOX. (FOX is an hour long... another good way to broadcast news.)

And too bad for strictly OTA viewers... WBBM-DT is notoriously the most diffficult channel to pull in. (Its physical channel is 3, which is VHF. HDBeat talks about OTA but they say HD is strictly UHF, which is NOT the case here in Chicago.

[(Unverified) Posted Jan 18th 2006 10:31PM]

and this is news?
WRAL has been broadcasting news in HD since 2001. In fact it broadcast the first digital signal in 1996

http://www.wral.com/wralinfo/623644/detail.html

[(Unverified) Posted Jan 19th 2006 3:41PM]

Yeah, but who the hell cares about raleigh, nc?