Death of the TV guide

Hard-copy television guides are becoming irrelevant thanks to digital television.

Why should we keep the weekly free TV guide from our Sunday newspaper when we can read program information on the electronic guide on our digital television or the internet?

With the analog signal slowly being phased out in Australia and more people upgrading to digital television sets, should the TV guide be phased out too? After all, the star ratings for programs are just based on one person's opinion. Plus if we're interested in watching a film why can't we just read a simple unbiased description on the electronic guide?

TV guides, particularly Adelaide's, are becoming outdated just like analog television. With the launch of more and more new digital channels on free-to-air Australian television, the Adelaide TV Guide program layout is looking messy and cramped.

In today's Guide there's a write-up about the four main female characters in the drama Gossip Girl. The spread is there to entice us to watch but why wasn't this article published in last week's Guide in time for the season launch?

Here at Media Muncher we'd hardly miss our paper TV guides since we can check our digital guide instead and put our paper guide from the Sunday newspaper in the recycling bin on Sunday.

Too little too late GO

GO! channel says we shouldn't hire Gossip Girl on DVD because we can get our fix starting 6 September 2010. GO!'s blog update has us feeling sceptical that we'll actually see the whole of Season 3 in a consistent timeslot.

Above: xoxo, the cast of Gossip Girl
(Image from GO!)

No doubt repeats of The Big Bang Theory and Top Gear will air before the new episodes of Gossip Girl.

Get it right GO

What's with the GO! channel? Ever since they began airing the US hit series Gossip Girl it's been great for those of us who aren't Foxtel subscribers. But mid way through Season 1 up until the current Season 3 episodes airing, the programming has been inconsistent - it's beyond the joke.

First GO! get rid of Season 1 by playing multiple episodes back-to-back at 3am. Then Seasons 2 and 3 are taken off the air every fortnight and suddenly air again - but not even that's consistent.

Above: xoxo, the cast of Gossip Girl

By the way GO!, why did you always play multiple repeats of The Big Bang Theory on the Thursday night timeslot when you could be playing new episodes of America's best drama?

Does it not make sense to play new programs at decent times i.e. 8.30 or 9.30pm and then leave the repeats for after 10.30pm? Oh and playing medical drama ER wasn't a good idea either!

I've sadly given up on watching Gossip Girl on Thursday's at 10.30pm because I can't keep up with GO!'s programming.