By Phillip Swann
The TV Answer Man – @tvanswerman
TV Answer Man, can you explain to me why the damn dog show is in 4K but an incredible sporting event like the Kentucky Derby is NOT in 4K?! Does this make any sense? What do these people think?!! Do they think?? — Neal, Lexington, Kentucky.
Neal, Fox this week is offering 4K coverage of the annual Westminster Dog Show from New York, concluding tonight with the Best in Show awards starting at 7 p.m. ET. (FS1 will simulcast the event in HD. See this article for more details on how you can watch the canine-fest in 4K.
The contrast between the 4K Dog Show and Saturday’s no-4K broadcast of the Kentucky Derby prompted a few reader e-mails to the TV Answer Man. People seem to have difficulty understanding why a dog show would take precedence over one of sport’s greatest and historic annual events. One reader even wondered if it was because a certain network executive prefers dogs to horses.
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Well, there may be some partiality to dogs but that’s not the reason why one event is in 4K and the other isn’t. The reason is because Fox is broadcasting the Westminster Dog Show while NBC did the broadcast for the Kentucky Derby.
Fox has been bullish on 4K, albeit a 4K upscale of a 1080p production, offering everything from the Super Bowl to NASCAR to NFL playoff games in the format. But NBC has done next to nothing in 4K with the notable exception of the Olympics.
When a big event is coming up, the Fox team weighs the benefits of doing a 4K broadcast, but 4K is not even mentioned in the NBC discussions. That’s the difference.
Neal, hope that helps. Happy viewing and stay safe!
Have a question about new TV technologies? Send it to The TV Answer Man at swann@tvanswerman.com Please include your first name and hometown in your message.
— Phillip Swann
@tvanswerman
