# Live feed via satellite question

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/live-feed-via-satellite-question/83782>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [September 25, 2001, 8:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/live-feed-via-satellite-question/83782 "2001-09-25T20:45:12Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 3\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![Superdude](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/superdude/32/13450_2.png) [@Superdude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Superdude)\
**Post date:** [September 25, 2001, 8:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/live-feed-via-satellite-question/83782/1 "2001-09-25T20:45:12Z")

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Wolf Blitzer, on CNN, had a live report from someone in Afghanistan. After Wolf finished asking a question, the reporter would pause, presumably to hear the complete question before answering (makes sense to me…time it takes the speed of sound to be broadcast to the satellite and beamed into the reporter’s earpiece). There would be a brief one to two second pause. However, when the reporter would finish, Wolf was able to pick up immediately, with no lag. Why would the delay be only one way? Shouldn’t the answers coming from the reporter have been subject to the same delay being broadcast back to CNN?

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**Author:** ![Kent\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kent_clark/32/105_2.png) [@Kent\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kent_Clark)\
**Post date:** [September 25, 2001, 8:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/live-feed-via-satellite-question/83782/2 "2001-09-25T20:50:14Z")

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Wolf talks. We see him talking. At that point the signal goes up on the satellite, bounces around and gets to the correspondent a half second later. The correspondent answers, the answer takes the same route, but when it gets to master control, it’s going out on the air at the same time it’s coming into Wolf’s earpiece. Ergo, no apparent delay.

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**Author:** ![Arjuna34](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/eb8c5e/32.png) [@Arjuna34](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Arjuna34)\
**Post date:** [September 25, 2001, 9:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/live-feed-via-satellite-question/83782/3 "2001-09-25T21:12:29Z")

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Just to expand on **kunilou** ’s answer, the delay from the correspondent back to Wolf is present, and we (and Wolf) both experience it as an extra delay waiting for the correspondent to start talking. So, to us (and Wolf), it looks like one big delay instead of two delays.

Like **kunilou** said, we’re hearing the end of the response at the same time Wolf is, so his reply isn’t delay with respect to the end of the correspondent’s talk.

Arjuna34