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View Full Version : Why Is DIRECTV Zooming Late Night with Conan O'Brien's Aspect Ratio?

FilmCritic3000
09-13-2008, 02:00 AM
Well, after a while and a little sleuthing on my part, I've discovered that it appears DIRECTV is not displaying Late Night with Conan O'Brien (and several commercials) in its proper aspect ratio.

To make certain it's DIRECTV and not my NBC affiliate, I connected my rabbit ears to my bedroom television. The OTA signal (not HD) via my NBC affiliate is broadcasting the show as it has been displayed since 2005 - in a widescreen format. With this new insipid move, the show is now crammed tightly onto the screen, with any onscreen text butchered in half.

FWIW, I've checked the settings on both televisions. They're not the issue.

Is anyone else having problems of this sort? Methinks it's time to get on the horn with DIRECTV.
JimSpence
09-13-2008, 10:36 AM
Watching via ch 392 on DirecTV it looks okay. I don't have locals for a comparison.
trainman
09-13-2008, 02:09 PM
Sounds like the problem may be your NBC affiliate's feed of their SD signal to DirecTV. Do you have any friends with cable who can take a look and get a third data point for you? Have you noticed the same problem with prime-time NBC shows that are supposed to be letterboxed in SD?
FilmCritic3000
09-13-2008, 05:24 PM
Sounds like the problem may be your NBC affiliate's feed of their SD signal to DirecTV. Do you have any friends with cable who can take a look and get a third data point for you? Have you noticed the same problem with prime-time NBC shows that are supposed to be letterboxed in SD?

Nope. Primetime NBC shows shot in widescreen are appearing in their normal aspect ratio.

I think you may be right about the SD signal my NBC affiliate (WSAV) is giving DIRECTV. Might someone be asleep at the wheel, so to speak, in this regard? If so that's highly unprofessional, as WSAV is the one station here that actually has a decent budget, marketing-wise, promotion-wise, and on-air production budget-wise (read: WSAV's newscasts, unlike the other stations, don't look like middle school morning news announcements) so it'd be a bit striking if something like this was being phoned in.