# Which network to watch the Inauguration **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [January 19, 2009, 12:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-network-to-watch-the-inauguration/481910 "2009-01-19T00:39:12Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 15\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Julius\_Henry](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/8797f3/32.png) [@Julius\_Henry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Julius_Henry)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2009, 12:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-network-to-watch-the-inauguration/481910/1 "2009-01-19T00:39:12Z")
Since my workplace has not declared Tuesday to be a Day of Significant Importance, I’m going to be taping (that’s how we Tivo’d things when we all lived in caves) the inauguration. This means no channel surfing, no getting pissed at Katie again and switching channels, nothing. Plus, my local PBS affiliate won’t be interupting \*Sesame Street \*for the festivities. I’ve got one chance to get it right. So I’ll put it to board — which network is most likely to do the best job covering the inauguration, along with all the attending hoopla? And I’m not watching Fox, I don’t care how many of you suggest it. ---
**Author:** ![Frank](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Frank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frank)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2009, 12:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-network-to-watch-the-inauguration/481910/2 "2009-01-19T00:46:53Z")
> [@Julius\_Henry](#): > > … no getting pissed at Katie again … Probably not CBS. > [@](#): > > And I’m not watching Fox, I don’t care how many of you suggest it. Or Fox. Hmmm . . . I dunno, the only thing that is going to actually interest me is the actual swearing in and the Inaugural Address. I’ll settle for any network for a recording of it - at least any network that stays shut up during it. ---
**Author:** ![Frank](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Frank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frank)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2009, 1:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-network-to-watch-the-inauguration/481910/3 "2009-01-19T01:08:20Z")
> [@Frank](#): > > Hmmm . . . I dunno, the only thing that is going to actually interest me is the actual swearing in and the Inaugural Address. I’ll settle for any network for a recording of it - at least any network that stays shut up during it. Come to think of it - CSPAN? ---
**Author:** ![Zoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/a4c791/32.png) [@Zoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zoe)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2009, 1:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-network-to-watch-the-inauguration/481910/4 "2009-01-19T01:13:03Z")
You purist! ---
**Author:** ![Vox\_Imperatoris](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/f9ae1b/32.png) [@Vox\_Imperatoris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Vox_Imperatoris)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2009, 1:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-network-to-watch-the-inauguration/481910/5 "2009-01-19T01:15:28Z")
If you want the Inauguration and no commentary, CSPAN is definitely the way to go. Otherwise, they’re pretty interchangeable. Valete, Vox Imperatoris ---
**Author:** ![Rachael\_Rage](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/71c47a/32.png) [@Rachael\_Rage](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rachael_Rage)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2009, 1:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-network-to-watch-the-inauguration/481910/6 "2009-01-19T01:22:57Z")
We’re going with NBC. We don’t have cable and we were pretty happy with their election night coverage. And this may be crazy, but my boyfriend thinks the color saturation is better on NBC. ---
**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2009, 1:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-network-to-watch-the-inauguration/481910/7 "2009-01-19T01:29:14Z")
I’m going to watch Fox just to hear them eat their hearts out. On election night it was like they were covering a funeral. ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2009, 4:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-network-to-watch-the-inauguration/481910/8 "2009-01-19T04:33:36Z")
I’m Tivo’ing CNN, only because it’s the news channel I normally watch. I will cut to “live” for the actual swearing in and the speech. ---
**Author:** ![Clothahump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/51bf81/32.png) [@Clothahump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Clothahump)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2009, 4:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-network-to-watch-the-inauguration/481910/9 "2009-01-19T04:40:58Z")
> [@Julius\_Henry](#): > > Since my workplace has not declared Tuesday to be a Day of Significant Importance… It isn’t. It’s just another inauguration day. Although the way the major networks are carrying on, you’d think he was being deified instead of inaugurated. ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2009, 7:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-network-to-watch-the-inauguration/481910/10 "2009-01-19T07:05:53Z")
> [@Julius\_Henry](#): > > And I’m not watching Fox, I don’t care how many of you suggest it. C’mon, you just have to make sure the color is adjusted correctly so you can see the bile. ---
**Author:** ![audit1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ed8c4c/32.png) [@audit1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/audit1)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2009, 7:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-network-to-watch-the-inauguration/481910/11 "2009-01-19T07:54:53Z")
CSPAN is the way to go. The other channels will cut back to the talking heads as frequently as possible. ---
**Author:** ![Ferret\_Herder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e47774/32.png) [@Ferret\_Herder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ferret_Herder)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2009, 3:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-network-to-watch-the-inauguration/481910/12 "2009-01-19T15:41:51Z")
> [@audit1](#): > > CSPAN is the way to go. The other channels will cut back to the talking heads as frequently as possible. Do they do live streaming web broadcast? Because I’m going to be stuck at work all day tomorrow. ---
**Author:** ![Kalhoun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/3bc359/32.png) [@Kalhoun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kalhoun)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2009, 4:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-network-to-watch-the-inauguration/481910/13 "2009-01-19T16:56:24Z")
I’m sure it will be streaming somewhere. My cable took a dirt nap this morning. Will I be able to watch it on the internet if HALF THE WORLD is doing the same thing? ---
**Author:** ![Least\_Original\_User\_Name\_Ever](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e480ec/32.png) [@Least\_Original\_User\_Name\_Ever](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Least_Original_User_Name_Ever)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2009, 12:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-network-to-watch-the-inauguration/481910/14 "2009-01-20T00:20:57Z")
> [@Kalhoun](#): > > I’m sure it will be streaming somewhere. My cable took a dirt nap this morning. Will I be able to watch it on the internet if HALF THE WORLD is doing the same thing? The Democratic convention ran very smoothly and with very high quality online. CNN ran a lot of big speeches with minimal hitches. I expect a few small hitches, but I think it’ll be handled fine. Signed, An organizer that never got a TV in his office and had to watch virtually all of his speeches online. ---
**Author:** ![Euryphaessa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/c5a1d2/32.png) [@Euryphaessa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Euryphaessa)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2009, 4:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-network-to-watch-the-inauguration/481910/15 "2009-01-20T04:35:32Z")
Live streaming [here.](http://inaugural.senate.gov/index.cfm)