Arrgggh!! Itv (inc reply) merged

[Yunis]

*******s!! they didnt even show the after race driver interviews....typical!!

whats the deal with bernies TV for next yr is it back on?

[Redblurr]

I agree, 15 million num skulls watching corrie instead - I hope Bernie sets up that F1 channel - I'll sign up now

[Heebeegeetee]

May I just re-post what I said elsewhere:
28 Sep 2003 21:14

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I can't believe it. Here in UK we have 15 million or so people who have no lives, and have to live what they've got through watching seedy, vile, downmarket soap operas, in which the entire cast spend 30 mins screaming and shouting at each other while screwing each others children. Well, that's perhaps an over the top description of Coronation Street, but I'm not far away. Whatever, it means I can't get to see the press conference of what has been a truly momentous occasion, because 15 million people are sitting looking at blank TV screens while dribbling, and commercial pressures are brought to bear because these people are really easily parted from their cash. So the advertisers have to be kept happy. It's absolutely outrageous. To see and hear MS after that performance would have been special.

[Adam43]

I liked it when Jim announced that we were off to see Martin's private life trouble. I thought it highly unfair on Brundle

IMHO James was bad today, but no more than usual. Just no sense of perspective (and understanding of the word irony).

Why did we need an announcement that Corrie would be on afterwards when nothing was running late? Afterall it is in the schedules that it would be on after the race. Maybe people who watch Corrie can't read?

[Yunis]

ITV dont deserve to hold rights to show F1 here in the uk, their coverage is slack! I remember BBC always used to show post race interviews...RTL have an hour long show afterwards that is what you call top coverage! I think if everyone here send ITV emails it would help get our point across, but has prolly been done hundred times before...

How about if we email bernie and show our disgust towards ITV....

[Carla O]

don't complain, in portugal the transmission started 5 minutes before the race and ended after the podium and that was it...

[Yunis]

or how about one of the national newspapers?

its all bull**** i remember when they had footbal and it goes int o extra time they would delay the 10pm new and any other program...but a world class even like the penultimate round of the f1 championship at its climax and they stop it half finished is very poor....would have been nice to got the drivers and teams reactions...

[gfm]

I think you guys are wrong, if you think about it.
A GP during prime time TV is significant and respect DOES have to be given to 15 million saddos. ITV have done a terrific job of covering GPs. No need to glibly knock their coverage for no good reason. They've done more good than harm.

[Redblurr]

Originally posted by Yunis
... I think if everyone here send ITV emails it would help get our point across, but has prolly been done hundred times before...

How about if we email bernie and show our disgust towards ITV....

choose a subject title and everyone uses that subject title on the email that they send. Let' do it! Especially before Sunday morning qually next year only god knows what coverage we will get from ITV then.

[Yunis]

When ITV took over from the BBC theyr also took upon them selves the Moral obligation to provide good coverage for the fans..but when they do this it sucks!

Yeah lets choose a title and mass email them!!

[BootsOntheSide]

Originally posted by AdamAshmore
I liked it when Jim announced that we were off to see Martin's private life trouble. I thought it highly unfair on Brundle

IMHO James was bad today, but no more than usual. Just no sense of perspective (and understanding of the word irony).

Why did we need an announcement that Corrie would be on afterwards when nothing was running late? Afterall it is in the schedules that it would be on after the race. Maybe people who watch Corrie can't read?

I'm with you on all three poitns there Adam. I thought first of Brundle and not Platt when Jim said that - although a joke on teh subject would've been amusing.

James was defiatnely on poor form, but all eh was doing was trying to drum up enthusiasm 9and viewers) for japan when in reality only obsessives like us will get up at 6am for it.

The announcement was not only annoying, ti was pointless, since it didn't mention what time Coronation Street would be on.

But, ultiamtely, 15 million CoronationS treet viewers buy far more than 5 million F1 viewrs, and tehir programme does have to come first. Still, there could've been an extra 10 or 15 minutes allocated.

[Redblurr]

Yeah lets choose a title and mass email them!! [/B][/QUOTE]
Your call, get the email address

[Heebeegeetee]

I've sent the following to www.itv-f1.com/contact

I really am unable to put into words how angry I was at not being able to see the post-race press conference after the United States Grand Prix. I know you have 15 million people waiting for Coronation Street, but more people than that would have been watching the GP, globally.

This Grand Prix was a truly momentous occasion in the world of sport. We were watching a mesmerising performance by a man who has been a leading global sports personality for over a decade. Millions of people, who have no interest whatsoever in motorsport, know the name Michael Schumacher. By anyone’s standards, by any sporting standards, of any sport ever played anywhere, Michael Schumacher’s achievements are as great as any since, well, since man started making record of sporting achievements, probably. He must now be as great as any other sporting hero that has lived on this planet. I make these statements not as some overbearing Schumacher or motor racing fan, but as statements of fact as I see them. He is truly a global icon.



Clearly, after today’s performance, he had something to say. Clearly, there would have been several million people out here waiting to hear him. I felt that the timing was working out for you to allow us to see this. I believe you went off air, as far as the GP was concerned, at 8.50 pm. I’m sure we could have been allowed to see and hear Schumacher, and you still could have been into Coronation Street for what, 9.03 approximately?



Given that many of us out here are still struggling with the adverts during live play, and I know of no other sport whose followers have to endure this, these other commercial considerations – ie, getting Corrie out on time to please the advertisers – are really hard to bear. It really is unfair that you have the monopoly on showing F1 in this country. Your conduct in how you present these programmes show that you do not place the best interests of the sports followers at the forefront. Somehow, this has got to change.



I fully agree that had this been a typical mid-season race, you might have been justified in trying to rescue the schedules. However, in the sporting world, what happened today was in my view of global importance, and an exceptional occasion. Schumacher has just about won his sixth World Championship. It has never been done before, and ITV has slipped up very badly in not recording the moment properly.

[Heebeegeetee]

PS if you do contact them, don't insult the Corrie viewers, 'cos a) that won't wash with ITV - Corrie viewers money will be regarded to be as good as ours,
and b) it's cruel to be unkind to corrie viewers.

[Heebeegeetee]

PPS I'm not really an MS fan, you understand, but you've got to give the man his due...

[nicker less]

What you need to get into your head is that about 8 million more people watch Corrie than Formula 1. So stop moaning about the poor coverage cos i'm surprised you got that much. But insulting Corrie viewers saying that they have no lives is just low.

[roxana]

well, besides the fact that our national television didn't show the press conference, our cable company messed the raiuno transmission, so we couldn't see it there, either.

[Super Tourer]

What amazes me about ITV is that they have 2 other digital channels, ITV2 and ITV News, why couldn't they at least shown US GP qualifying/post race interviews live on either of those?

ITV2 seems mostly populated by repeats of shows they have already televised on the main ITV channel during the same evening !

[manicmarshal]

i do agree with your comments SuperTourer but I'd be concerned that they go and put their sporting coverage on one of those and then I would never get to see the F1 coverage. Those digital channels are still not free to everyone.

[Brandy_snap]

Originally posted by Super Tourer
What amazes me about ITV is that they have 2 other digital channels, ITV2 and ITV News, why couldn't they at least shown US GP qualifying/post race interviews live on either of those?

ITV2 seems mostly populated by repeats of shows they have already televised on the main ITV channel during the same evening !

I agree, its just pathetic. After all, how often does Corrie get held up by the F1? Twice a year at the most! And the F1 isn't on all year, the season only lasts 6 months! Most people now have the other ITV channels now too, and we'd all have loved to see what the drivers had to say... I'd especially have loved to see what Frentzen had to say ......

[JustinDawkins]

Was I the only one who thought that the camera work (F1 not ITV) was rubbish?

[kdr]

and it seemed like coronation street HAD to start at 8.50pm or else...do their viewers have to be in bed by 9.20?

[scrappy]

I have also just emailed ITV! I don't know what the answer is but i'm so fed!

I completely agree with Heebeegeetee's comments and the importance of Schumachers win. I'm disgusted that a Brit and a British car scoring a WDC point isn't shown crossing the line!!!

My email to ITV - itvwebmaster@ITV-F1.com

I have been meaning to contact you, this F1 season, as I think your coverage of this years events has been truly awful.

I have been a formula one fan for over 15 years and have enjoyed all F1 coverage on BBC, Eurosport and F1 Digital.

ITV do not show qualifying for all of the races live, which is a joke (I can understand Friday qualifying not being shown but it most cases qualifying on Saturday is more vital than the race itself)! If you bid to show a sporting event, show the whole event! Does ITV think that F1 fans are less interested in F1 than football fans in football? I know ITV never miss a second of football!

For ITV, F1 coverage seems to be an ideal opportunity to ruin a sporting event by cramming in as many adverts as possible. ITV is a British television company? We only saw Schumacher cross the line yesterday. We missed Raikkonen (still a WDC contender) and Justin Wilson who is driving for a British team, having driven a brilliant race (although we only saw a few glimpses of him in action) to score his first WDC point. I am so fed up of watching a race for 2 hours only to sit through adverts as drivers are crossing the finishing line! ITV are insulting their viewers by not letting them see the results as they happen and are more worried about how quickly they can run Coronation Street.

I would rather watch live commentary on the F1.com site and listen to 5 live than watch ITVs coverage.

Can I recommend your researchers take a look at this site tentenths.com there are many links where British F1 fans have shared their comments about ITV's poor coverage and commentator, surprisingly there are a few positive...

I understand you probably receive hundreds of complaints following a GP weekend but it would be very interesting to receive some feedback.

[spanner]

You know when corrie is on straight after, it'll run late! what was that about Martins private life? To me the ad breaks seemed about 5 minutes long, was that just due to being prime time?

[Super Tourer]

Justin

Have to agree on the camera work, too many long shots and have you ever seen so many camera's with rain spots on them during a GP, have they not heard of covers !