Quote:
Originally Posted by acropolite
It was a very memorable time, I could never understand why, on subsequent missions, coverage was reduced by the media.
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Hi Phil,
Media coverage of subsequent Apollo missions, with the exception of 13 and
only then after the cryogenic oxygen tank rupture event, was appalling.
Though there is no doubt, as far as the broad viewing public was concerned,
that anything after Apollo 11 could only be an anti-climax, nevertheless none
of the Australian TV channels would provide live coverage from Apollo 14 and
onwards.
In my own personal opinion, one of the reasons why viewing interest dropped can
be traced back to the early parts of the Apollo 12 walk. There was live
television coverage up to the point when Alan Bean, whilst moving the
camera, accidentally pointed it at the Sun and burnt out the videocon tube.
Then that was it. Nothing to see on television so people switched off.
So by the time Apollo 13 rolled around, the limited attention span of
the broader viewing public was lost and the television stations ran
their regular programming instead.
The demise of the general publics' interest in Apollo, particularly within
the United States, was more complex than that and has been well documented
by others. We all know that events back on Earth such as Vietnam,
the civil rights movement and poverty, were held by many to be far more pressing
problems.
However, I have often wondered if the camera had not burnt out on 12,
whether live coverage of subsequent Apollo missions might have continued
by the broadcasters.
Best Regards
Gary