Streaming Election Night Broadcast TV?

kakapo writes "A couple of years ago, we dumped our cable TV, and don't have much luck getting old-fashioned broadcast where we live. That's fine — we can download or netflix almost anything we want to see, and it is great not to pay the Comcast tax every month. Problem is, now I want to watch the election live, complete with talking heads, pundits, glitzy graphics and all the rest, rather than reading about it on a website. So, is there any way to download network TV / CNN / MSNBC in real time — I don't mind paying. And yes, we could visit friends, but ideally our kids would watch the first part and then go to bed — and a sitter would be expensive if we have to wait until late for the result."

Comments

Yes

[Thelasko]

Go here and click on "live video."

Re:Yes

[knorthern knight]

The magic incantation is...

mplayer -playlist http://www.cnn.com/video/live/cnnlive_1.asx

*WITHOUT* the "[cnn.com]" in brackets at the end (damn you Slashdot). I'm running it on linux, and watching CNN right now.

Re:Yes

[Eskarel]

They both supported the bailout because the bailout had to happen. It should have had teeth the way the UK one did(everyone at the top of every bank the UK government socialized got fired) and it probably should have had a better plan than "we'll buy lot of your stock, but we're the government so we can't own a private corporation and so we despite owning the vast majority of your company we won't have voting rights", but the banks themselves needed to be bailed out even if the individuals didn't.

They don't both support the war(at least not identically, yes both support afghanistan, but Obama wants out of Iraq).

Redistribution of wealth depends an awful lot on how they do it. McCain will continue the usual republican model where they "create wealth" so that rich people can be richer making everyone else comparatively poorer. I'm not entirely sure what Obama will do in the end, a hand out to everyone doesn't work, but providing people with health care, protections at work, free education, and general assistance to ensure that rather than working hard to make someone else rich some of their hard work is rewarded by making them a little bit wealthier is a redistribution of wealth I can get behind.

The current system of wealth distribution is flawed. The folks who do the work get barely enough to get by, the folks who run the companies(even if they didn't build them and don't contribute to them) get paid bucketloads, and the scum sucking stock trading weasels make even more playing the market game at the expense of everyone else(including the companies that the stock market is supposed to provide investment captal for).

Hulu.com?

[sohmc]

Hulu had streaming live feeds of the debates. I'd think they'd have some sort of streaming feed come election day. Also, I know CNN has streaming feeds of some of their programs.

Check the Cable feed

[Anonymous Coward]

Have you tried plugging a TV into the cable feed? A lot of times, the cable company won't bother implementing a cancellation, figuring that reclaiming the box is good enough and saving the cost of a truck roll. It's possible that you'll still have analog basic cable on that "disconnected" cable line. Alternately, you could sign up for one month of limited Analog Cable for $15.

Listen instead

[duffbeer703]

Any decent AM radio station will have full-time election coverage, and radio news is generally 1000% better than the swill that you see on TV.

Re:Listen instead

[Crazy Man on Fire]

AM or your local FM NPR station if you can pull it in. I've found NPR's live election coverage to be quite good.

Re:Listen instead

[pilgrim23]

I totally agree and plan on finding out what Americans do on Election Day via shortwave radio from BBC or Radio Sierra-Leon or some other non partisan source on my antique Halicrafters. I am by the way IN the US and a US citizen. Ever consider some other country could run a propaganda station? they might call it..oh I don't know... " Voice of America"...or something....

Re:Same thing with the World Series

[TheLostSamurai]

I think I found a helpful link for you here.

Re:Anything for non americans?

[LWATCDR]

No it isn't
Let me fill you in.
If McCain wins odds are that we will have a Democratic majority on congress.
The end result is that it should keep things somewhat in the center. Or very little will get done that doesn't have a universal support.
If Obama wins we will have a Democratic congress. Truth is that I would bet that it will also go more towards the center but if they start really messing up then in two years congress will shift back towards the Republicans and we will again have balance.
If Obama or McCain really mess up we fire them in four years and get a new president.
In the end it will not be the end of the world.
Geez I don't like Obama's energy policy since it is not as pro nuclear as I would like. I am not all that fond of McCain's tax plan. Or Obama's "Guess what folks. You can not give a tax cut to someone that already pays zero or gets more back than they pay in. That is called charity."
Truth is I doubt it matter much one way or the other. I don't think their is a great man running for president this year but I also don't think their is a monster running.
Chill out and relax.

this is some sort of archetype

[circletimessquare]

the "i don't own a tv and i have to tell everyone about it" guy

in answer to your question: who cares? why do you feel the need to tell everyone you don't own a tv? that's the real subtext of your question

and if you think that's a smarmy answer, well then i have a real answer for you: GO BUY A TV. GET CABLE OR SATELLITE. END OF STORY. your brain will not melt, you will not be contributing to the downfall of western civilization. really. or, go ahead and listen to the various unnecessary technical gymanstics you must perform offered in this thead. instead of simply going and getting yourself a simple, harmless television

the onion was prescient: Area Man Constantly Mentioning He Doesn't Own A Television

this is some sort of genuine subculture. and if not owning a television turns one into a vainglorious buffoon, then please, everyone should own a television, for the sake of a healthy sense of humility. sheesh

FOX

[inzy]

i believe Fox has the best coverage - i hear it's pretty balanced, and covers all the policy issues; I'm sure they'll have a stream with not too many adverts

Re:Anything for non americans?

[Anonymous Coward]

If Obama or McCain really mess up we fire them in four years and get a new president.

Like we did with George W Bush?

Re:Anything for non americans?

[fiannaFailMan]

I'd agree with most of what you say were it not for Sarah Palin. That woman puts the fear of God in me, and I'm an atheist! Can you imagine someone in the President's seat who doesn't even know what the Bush Doctrine is without having to phone a friend? We had a retard in the oval office for 8 years and it has been an unmitigated disaster. Lord help us if the American voters once again show disdain for educated people as 'elitists.'