Chargers-Jaguars Game Blacked Out Per NFL Policy (Sep 17, 2010)

For the first time since November 7, 2004, a home Chargers game won't be broadcast locally.

The League's long-standing policy requires all games not sold out 72 hours prior to kickoff to be blacked out in the local market. This includes all signals within a 75-mile radius of the stadium and those areas whose television signal reaches within that 75-mile zone. That also includes KCBS 2 in Los Angeles and a low power CBS affilliate in Palm Springs. The league's policy affects all telecasts, including cable and satellite.

KFMB will instead show another CBS regional game: New England Patriots at New York Jets at 1:15pm.

More than 7,000 general tickets remain available at Qualcomm Stadium Gate C, www.Chargers.com, TicketMaster outlets or by calling TicketMaster at 1-800-745-3000. A wide selection of Club Seats, some of the best locations in the stadium, also are available.

The game kicks off at 1:15 p.m.

Fans can listen to the game live on radio beginning at 1 pm on KIOZ Rock 105.3 FM and XTRA Sports 1360 AM in San Diego with Josh Lewin and Hank Bauer calling the action from the booth. The Chargers Radio Network includes KLAC 570 AM in Los Angeles; KGEO 1230 AM in Bakersfield; KNWH 1250 AM in the Yucca Valley; KNWQ 1140 AM in Palm Springs; KNWZ 970 AM & 94.3 FM in the Coachella Valley; KOSS 1380 AM in Palmdale and Lancaster; KSPA 1510 AM in Ontario, Rancho Cucamonga and the Inland Empire; KATY 101.3 FM in Temecula and the Inland Empire; KWDJ 1360 AM in Ridgecrest; KCAL 96.7 FM in Riverside and San Bernardino; KXO 107.5 FM in the Imperial Valley and Yuma, Arizona; KVFG 103.1 in Victorville and Hesperia; ESPN Radio 1100 AM in Las Vegas; KUPA 1370 AM in Hawaii; and Sirius Satellite Radio.

The game will be broadcast in Spanish on XHFG 107.3 FM in San Diego, KWKW 1330 AM in Los Angeles, XHSOL 89.9 FM in Mexicali, Mexico and XEHS 1590 AM in Ensenada. Jorge Villanueva and Dante Lazcano will call the action.

Fans in the blackout area will be able to see a replay of the game on NFL.com beginning at midnight [Monday].

More than 12,000 tickets - both general and Club tickets - remain available for the Chargers' next home game versus the Arizona Cardinals on Sunday, Oct. 3.

So, No Double-Header on KFMB This Sunday? (Sep 17, 2010)

According to Titan TV, KCBS in Los Angeles still has at 10am Miami Dolphins at Minnesota Vikings from The Metrodome, then at 1:15, it says Jacksonville Jaguars at San Diego Chargers from Qualcomm Stadium, but KCBS can't show that game since their signal reaches within 75 miles of Qualcomm Stadium, so it's likely that it will show New England Patriots at New York Jets at 1:15pm instead. Los Angeles is a secondary market that can show doubleheaders since it doesn't have an NFL team.

The Titan TV listings for KFMB TV, however, says mostly paid programming from 10am to 1pm, followed by New England Patriots at New York Jets at 1:15pm.

So, if the Chargers game did sell out, we would have gotten to see two games on the CBS station in San Diego; if they didn't, the NFL would dictate that this primary market CBS station could show only one NFL game. Is this right?

The NFL defines an area to be "local" if it is within a 75-mile radius of the stadium. Therefore, a blackout affects any market (affiliate station) whose terrestrial broadcast signal, under normal conditions, penetrates into the 75-mile radius. These affiliates are determined before the season, and do not change as the season progresses.

Each TV market, including one hosting a non-sold-out game, is assured of at least one televised game in the early and late time slots, one game on each network, but no "network doubleheader" in the home market of a non-sold-out game.

So in this case, The Chargers did not sell out their home game, so the three CBS affilliates cannot show their turn to broadcast a doubleheader in those three markets whose signals penetrate within 75 miles of the radius of Qualcomm Stadium. They can broadcast only a single game in those markets.

Now, come on, NFL. Going from Coachella to San Diego is a good three hour drive if you take the Interstate freeways 10 and 15, and its CBS station in Palm Springs is low power and unlikely to come within 75 miles of Qualcomm under normal conditions. So how the heck can the NFL dictate that the Palm Springs CBS affilliate can't show the Chargers game? This is stupid at best. STUPID!

Punishing viewers for not selling out their local team market's game by not allowing the primary network station to show a doubleheader is at best an overkill as it benefits the opposing network station's lone NFL singleheader game that will run unopposed. In this case, Fox 5 can show Chicago Bears at Dallas Cowboys from Cowboys Stadium at 10am while CBS 8 is stuck with showing paid progams, Charger Girls special, and the CBS fall preview show from 10am-1pm.

The NFL policy on television blackouts needs a tuneup. Some of the seats that need to be sold at Qualcomm according to some of the stadium visitors are undesirable and not worth the money, so why not reduce the number of seats that need to be sold out to just the number of usuable seats. Another idea is to reduce the prices of the games, get the salaries for the rookie players under control, and most of all, start winning some games!