NH Primary over-the-air coverage disappoints

[Scott Fybush]

News junkie that I am, and NH Primary junkie in particular (remember, I cut 
my radio news teeth at WCAP during the Year of Tsongas), I've spent most of 
the evening in front of the computer with C-SPAN blaring away on the TV, 
flipping around a bit to CNN and MSNBC. It's been fun watching WMUR's coverage.

But about 9:30 I had to go downstairs to the kitchen for a bit (OK, yes, I 
hadn't had dinner yet.) I don't have cable in the kitchen, so first thing I 
did was to flip 'round the broadcast dial. Nothing - even as John Kerry was 
making his celebratory speech. Not even on NBC, which allegedly was to be 
doing an hour from 9-10 on the primary (it somehow turned into a bunch of 
Dateline repeats.)

Next stop - the radio. You'd think, out of five local stations doing news 
and talk, that I could find SOMETHING, right? Nope - WHAM is running 
Michael Savage on tape-delay. WROC 950 is running someone else on tape 
delay. WYSL 1040's in the AP All News wheel. WHTK 1280 is in ESPN Radio. 
And even my local NPR, WXXI 1370, isn't carrying NPR coverage - it's doing 
the usual rebroadcast of Bob Smith's talk show from earlier in the day.

Pull out the 2010 and see what the skywaves are bringing in. First stop, of 
course, is 1030 - but they're doing Bruins. (C'mon, guys, you can't bump 
the game to WODS once every four years???) WCBS? In the newswheel, doing 
sports. WBBM? Ditto. I finally ended up, of all places, on WBT from 
Charlotte, which was carrying the Kerry speech.

I feel bad for any news junkies without cable or satellite tonight...I sure 
hope local viewers/listeners in New England have some better choices than I 
do. (Indeed, I see from their websites that NHPR and WBUR are doing live 
coverage, and I would hope the WGIR network is, too, though I can't tell 
from their website, which still includes a link to "name the new Manchester 
baseball team." How about the Fisher Cats?)

s