Meaning 10 o'clock Eastern, nine Central. But why not 10/7p meaning seven Pacific

Isn't the reason strongly subconscious: "Out of sight, out of mind", the further away the less important

When I was working I noted that a query to a potential supplier or customer was less likely to elicit a response the more distant. Can you cite further instances or am I wrong

I believe the usage stems from (US'n) television broadcast times; e.g., 10/9c means the show airs at 10 Eastern, 9 central, and (by implication) 10 Pacific. in other words, broadcast is delayed by three hours in the Pacific time zone*. for "live" events on the left coast, such as sporting events, you may be left to do your own math.

*I seem to recall that this became a real issue for the broadcast of shows with more than usual nationwide "import", such as the last episodes of Dallas and The Fugitive.

-joe (dilatorily) friday

... which always left us on Mountain time to do the arithmetic (simple though it is). In my experience, people who've lived mostly on the West Coast are somewhat less likely to have a grasp on time zones due to having their TV programs come on at a time sometimes announced as "Eastern and Pacific".
A site announced Monday that something was happening at "7:00 AM Eastern (GMT - 5)" which caused a huge argument on their forums afterwards. The East coast is currently in Eastern Daylight Time which is UTC - 4 so anyone figuring it as GMT - 5 was wrong, but that wasn't the only way that people mis-understood it.

When it comes to recorded, nightly television shows, which ones are actually delayed for the benefit of more westerly viewers?

Take for example, a hypothetical show, Podunk, CSI, which is shown at 9:00 PM in New York. Typically viewers in the central time zone would see this show simultaneously, which would be at 8:00 PM in their time zone. But the Mountain and Pacific time zones actually have their broadcasts delayed. Nobody's watching Podunk, CSI at 7:00 PM Mountain or 6:00 PM Pacific. Instead, the broadcast on NBC affiliates in those times zone is delayed so that the show is aired during "prime time."

and a more better example might could be the 8E broadcast, which simulcasts at 7C. if not for delay, they'd just be sitting down for the evening meal in Denver, and others would still be stuck on the freeway in L.A. -- not good for the ratings!

-ron o.

Forgive if some of my posts are ambiguous as I tend to be stingy with keystrokes. While I understand the meaning of the abbreviation the thrust of my query concerned subconscious implications of the convention

and, while I understood the subtext of your post, I was merely explaining the *actual reason you *typically don't see 10/7p -- it simply doesn't apply.

-ron o.

Hi all, i'm new. I joined to learn new and less-than-useful words yet you have unravelled a dilemma that had confounded me for many years. I'd long fantasised that the good folk of the West Coast must be immurred to sex, violence and anti-social acts of all forms from an early age by, as children, watching post-watershed (that may be a UK only term, apologies if this is the case)shows over their tea (feel free to insert alternative term for evening meal here while you're at it if so minded).

welcome ipsis.
watershed hours are referred to as safe harbor in the U.S.

as to less-than-useful words, see my profile for one worthless resource.

-joe (worthless master) friday

tsu: my apologies as I misread your post. However, most of the ones I watch actually come on here (in La-La Land) simultaneously (7P) and to my knowledge very few except the very earliest are delayed then rebroadcast later (for which I'm grateful as I'm often asleep at 10P) and that's why I had always been puzzled as to why the New Yorkers considered C so much more important than P

Nonetheless when I presented your first post to Laverne, who you must know is far more perceptive than I, she instantly replied "Well, he (tsu) is wrong." In her opinion (and mine), at least, the implication of which you speak would in most cases be invalid. When I pointed out that it might be applicable for those dinnertime broadcasts actually retransmitted later, she responded, "Well it's still wrong because some of them aren't delayed three hours but only one or two, wherever Dish finds a suitable opening"

Thus if we are right, my original question stands; while as Myr suggests, the problem is even more complex, involved, and confusing than even I had imagined. However, I shall forward a link to my grownup sons and to a couple of engineers of my acquaintance--all of whom are smarter than either Laverne or I--and who may shed further light upon the discussion

>wherever Dish finds a suitable opening

I know nada of The Dish; I was referring to "over the air" and cable, which is what I think those time announcements I've heard refer to.

do the networks, OTA or cable, have any control over when the satellite companies air programs?

tsu, good question. I had asked Laverne and was surprised to learn she doesn't either