#BadMedia Just tell us the truth KPRC

Last Sunday I tweeted my disappointment that KPRC Local 2 (Houston's NBC affiliate) decided to not broadcast live the Formula 1 Grand Prix of Monaco.  It was unfortunate because the National Network (as well as NBC Sports Network) heavily advertised that the flagship would be broadcasting the race, live, at 7AM EDT.  Since KPRC Local 2 never offered up a notice saying they wouldn't broadcast the race, I was up for a 6AM (local time) broadcast only to be greeted with their morning news show.

Today then, KPRC has issued a "statement" regarding the incident, and it seems as if it was designed to insult the viewers.

A letter to Formula One fans. Jerry Martin, KPRC

I wanted to let you know that we heard from many Formula One fans this weekend regarding our decision to air our local news in lieu of the Monaco Grand Prix. We will reevaluate the decision for next year's race. That evaluation will not only be based off ratings data, but also the amount of viewer confusion caused by not airing the race after NBC promotes the coverage heavily in their programming. 

Our rationale for not airing the race was based on KPRC being a "news comes first" local television station, which includes holiday weekends

Yes, what you have just read is a flimsy rationalization.
Were there breaking news on Sunday that could cause the race to be preempted I would heartily agree, but there was no "news comes first" event that would call for preempting the race.  And, were the event Sunday Night Football or some higher rated show they would not preempt with a local newscast for regular news.

They based this decision on expected ratings, period. That's fine if you don't think enough people will tune in to watch who makes it through Rassgass unscathed to make it worth your while but don't insult our intelligence by claiming to be following some time honored "news comes first" principle that we all know doesn't exist.

If you choose to air local news because it will rate higher then that's fine. I can live with that.  F1, in America, is a very small niche sport and I don't have an expectation that it will run live on TV unless, that is, you constantly run advertisements with no disclaimer that it's running live on your station.

But then, when all is said and done, don't come back and lie to us.

Because, if you're telling the truth, then I expect to see the 10PM coverage of the upcoming Olympics to be preempted for the local news cast.  We all know that's not going to happen.