FCC proposes end to NFL blackout rule

That used to be the reason not to show baseball games too -- there was no blackout rule, but the reasoning was why would people buy tickets if they could stay home? And then the better marketers realized that if they showed the games and made them look fun, more people would go. After 25 years of that, I'd say it's a striking success, with attendance strong even though now every game is on TV in most places.

The problem with the NFL is that the in-stadium fan experience sucks.

 

Huh. Had no idea.

 

The Chicago Blackhawks did not televise home games until about five or six years ago under this logic.

They've struggled mightily since, obviously.

But, yeah, football is a different animal because watching football live in most seats sucks.

 

Weren't the Blackhawks home games not televised until after Bill Wirtz passed away?

 

Damn it!

 

Bill Wirtz didn't pass away. He died.

 

He is smiling up from below, though.

 

I remember well as a kid listening to the race live on the radio -- "... we go to Howdy Bell in Turn 2!" -- then watching it that night on TV.

 

"Stay tuned for the Greatest Spectacle in Racing."

Didn't Indy try closed-circuit broadcasts sometime in the 60s?

 

Although to be sure plenty of Dems also spend plenty of time and tax money powerslurping the franchise owners. Probably has something to do with luxury boxes.

 

As a regular race-goer, it's a tradition that you go to the Indy 500, and then that night watch it on TV to find out just what the hell exactly happened, given nobody can see the whole track.

Actually, I don't think Indy attendance would suffer from live TV locally. Too many people, particularly natives (such as myself) come from out of town for the party for that to happen. Radio broadcast ratings would plummet, though.