History MediaNotes / ANSIStandardBroadcastTVSchedule

* 9 PM - 10 PM: Second hour of Prime Time, and historically the biggest free-for-all in this whole iron grid. It can have edgier sitcoms or any type or drama, from a BuddyCopShow to a prime-time soap.
* 10 PM - 11 PM: The third and last hour of Prime Time. Seldom comedy; almost always drama or (for a later decade) a news magazine.

* 8 PM- 11 PM: Prime Time from the network. Usually, it's laid out as if the {{watershed}} still holds, but the content no longer has to fit. {{Reality show}}s are as common as dramas and sitcoms now, as are prime-time game shows ([[WhoWantsToBeWhoWantsToBeAMillionaire often trying to ape]] ''Series/WhoWantsToBeAMillionaire''). For Fox and TheCW, Prime Time ends at 10 PM[[note]]As with Fox stations, many lower-tier stations such as CW and Creator/MyNetworkTV affiliates carry a local newscast during the 10 PM (9 PM Central/Mountain) timeslot, either produced by the station itself in some larger markets or commonly, produced by another local station as with the 7-9 AM note above.[[/note]]. With the rise of [=TiVo=] and DVRs, 10 PM has become a major trouble spot for the Big Three networks as viewers use this time to catch up on early shows that were roadblocked by other network shows they like and unable to be watched live, or much more adult-focused cable shows that take advantage of the 10 PM weakness.

* 3 AM - 5 AM: Infomercials, risqué local or syndicated programming, {{Rerun}}s of shows that ran during Prime Time or late night, and the sorts of programs that used to come directly after the local news. For CW and [=MyNetworkTV=], this slot is often filled with dating shows, programming purchased by local companies for late night talent shows, home shopping, and Shepard's Chapel, which is three hours of Bible studies (or other religious organizations such as [=CampMeeting=]). If the stations decide not to go this route, ABC and CBS continue to distribute their overnight newscasts to affiliates, while NBC throws on a same-day replay of the Kathie Lee/Hoda hour of ''Today'' and CNBC's ''Mad Money'' (though due to the new 4 AM local news start, this is often pre-empted so a local station can get in ''Early Today''). On weekends, ABC and CBS leave it to the affiliates to fill the time (usually with off-network runs of dramas, movies, and {{Filler}} programming such as one of Byron Allen's 20 infotainment shows), while NBC repeats that weekend's ''MeetThePress'', {{Filler}} programming from WNBC about expensive open houses and dining in UsefulNotes/NewYorkCity, and 18-week-old episodes of ''Series/{{Dateline}}''. When a sufficient number of channels have content at this hour — and most cable is 24-hour — broadcast stations lose out if they shut down, and find themselves experiencing [[WeAreExperiencingTechnicalDifficulties technical difficulties]] in the digital age if they don't leave the transmitter on, even with just rolling weather radar or color bars.

* 10 AM - noon: {{Game show}}s from independent production companies (Goodson-Todman and Merv Griffin Productions were two of the largest game show producers), distributed nationally. ''Series/ThePriceIsRight'' was the only daytime game show from this era to survive the Interregnum in TheNineties.
* Noon - 12:30 PM: Local news or public interest programming.
* 12:30 PM - 3 PM: {{Soap opera}}s from independent production companies, distributed nationally.
* 3 PM - 6 PM: UsefulNotes/{{Syndicat|ion}}ed talk shows and kids' shows (either syndicated, as is the case with most animation, or locally-produced). Also until the late 90's, networks would air the occasional ''Series/AfterschoolSpecial''.
* 6 PM - 6:30 PM: Local news.

* 11:30 PM - 1 AM: Late night. Dominated in the 1960s and 1970s by Creator/{{NBC}}'s ''Series/TheTonightShow''; the Creator/{{ABC}} news program ''Series/{{Nightline}}'', launched in 1980, was the first serious competitor. Creator/{{CBS}} subsisted on action drama repeats and shows rejected for prime time and made-for-TV movies in this slot (notwithstanding the one season Pat Sajak hosted a talk show for them) until they poached Creator/DavidLetterman for ''The Late Show'' in the early 1990s. Stations that did not have a network show running in this slot would play a movie (often the kind that ''Series/MysteryScienceTheater3000'' liked to riff on) after the local news, and then go dark or show the test pattern until the 5 AM farm report, looping the sign on announcement with proper mentions of them saying goodnight instead. In TheEighties, {{infomercial}}s changed that because they were willing to temporarily pay the cost of running the station to hawk their products.

On Sundays, the mornings would have political shows (''MeetThePress'', ''Face The Nation'', ''Series/IssuesAndAnswers'' etc.) and religious programming. The afternoon would have sports in season. UsefulNotes/PrimeTime started an hour earlier, at 7 PM. The extra network programming was either an extra family hour such as ''The Wonderful World Of Disney'' or, in the case of CBS, ''[[Series/SixtyMinutes 60 Minutes]]''.

Things started changing in TheEighties and continued mutating through TheNineties. The {{Fox}} network booted with much less network programming than the older networks -- only two hours of UsefulNotes/PrimeTime ([[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1992-93_American_network_television_schedule four]], [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1993-94_United_States_network_television_schedule then three]], on Sunday.) and the occasional talk show. The original excuse was that it was a start-up network; but things never changed (although for a couple years the network experimented with 10pm Sunday programming, low ratings and affiliate pressure forced them to dump it). The fewer hours were also to reduce some FCC regulations that it would have if it programmed the full three hours. Fox would eventually score sports programming and become a serious competitor to the original three networks, but they would never have over-the-air national news, daytime soaps, or the 10 PM hour of UsefulNotes/PrimeTime.

* 10 PM and later: Local programming. The first hour of this on the big-market Fox stations is usually the 10 O'Clock News. Some Fox affiliates which were formerly Big Three affiliates or strong news operations also run 11pm newscasts.

** Note: Usually the lower-tier network stations of Creator/TheCW or Creator/MyNetworkTV (unless they're in a major market or carry ''The Daily Buzz'', a national morning program) have thrown in the towel and air mainly infomercials between 5 AM and 9 AM to make something out of literally nothing.[[note]]Although some of these lower-tier stations (even those that don't have a news department of their own) now often carry a local newscast, particularly one produced by a sister station, in this timeslot; some of these newscasts run as late as 10 AM.[[/note]] Educational and informational programming, which has taken over for children's programming abandoned to the niche cable networks and PBS, also airs within this time to satisfy license concerns.

* 7 PM - 8 PM (6:30 to 7 p.m. Central due to prime time beginning an hour earlier): Syndicated or local programming (Also, some stations may air a summary newscast at 7 PM for late-travelling commuters.) Near universally this is where you'll find the ''{{Series/Jeopardy}}''-''Series/WheelOfFortune'' GameShow block (a rare few stations carry ''Jeopardy!'' earlier in the day, but "The ''Wheel''" is always on around this time no matter the market), along with ''Series/EntertainmentTonight'' in syndication (plus whatever show it's paired with- in the 90s it was the tabloid newsmag ''Hard Copy'', in the late 90s-early 2000s it was a revival of ''Series/TheHollywoodSquares'' and since 2004 it's been ''The Insider'').

* 8 PM- 11 PM: Prime Time from the network. Usually, it's laid out as if the {{watershed}} still holds, but the content no longer has to fit. {{Reality show}}s are as common as dramas and sitcoms now. For Fox and TheCW, Prime Time ends at 10 PM[[note]]As with Fox stations, many lower-tier stations such as CW and Creator/MyNetworkTV affiliates carry a local newscast during the 10 PM (9 PM Central/Mountain) timeslot, either produced by the station itself in some larger markets or commonly, produced by another local station as with the 7-9 AM note above.[[/note]]. With the rise of [=TiVo=] and DVRs, 10 PM has become a major trouble spot for the Big Three networks as viewers use this time to catch up on early shows that were roadblocked by other network shows they like and unable to be watched live, or much more adult-focused cable shows that take advantage of the 10 PM weakness.

The morning schedule for Central and Mountain time was the same as Eastern time because shows such as ''Today'', ''Good Morning America'', ''The Price is Right'' and the soaps were recorded and played back at the corresponding time slot in the Central and Mountain zones, a practice that continues today. In fact, if you look during a morning news show, the notation during a breaking news event will say "Live Eastern Time." Viewers in all other time zones are likely seeing the event on tape delay, or even with editing, just to make sure the damage of JaneFonda or a couple of girls dropping the "[[PrecisionFStrike C-bomb]]" on morning television (which has actually happened) or some guy mooning the ''GMA'' window won't go across the entire country. This is nearly the same with ''Series/SaturdayNightLive'', though the Central zone gets that show live.

Remember when you could tell what time of day it was by what was on TV, or at least on the VHF channels?[[note]][[MemeticMutation Pepperidge Farm remembers.[[/note]]]]

* Noon - 12:30 PM (or 11 AM for some stations): Local news. Very, very light content (think your local community theater promoting their umpteenth run of ''OurTown'' in a sit-down setting with ferns) and Mr. Food, and in rural markets this is still where the farm and market rundown airs.

* 9 AM - 3 PM: Local and syndicated programming. As an example, on WTTG Washington (one of Fox's original 6 owned stations) in TheEighties, this would consist of a few hours of sitcoms sourced from Creator/{{Viacom}}, followed by old movies (they especially liked the old Penny Singleton ''ComicStrip/{{Blondie}}'' movies). These days you're more likely to find ''Series/JudgeJudy'' clones or, at worst, infomercials.

* 8 PM - 9 PM: Prime Time. Can be any genre.

* 9 AM - noon: Talk shows -- by anybody. CBS is the sole exception, running the current version of ''Series/LetsMakeADeal'' at 10 AM (in most markets), and ''Series/ThePriceIsRight'' at 11 AM (in pretty much all of them).

* 11:30 PM - 1 AM: Late night. Dominated in the 1960s and 1970s by Creator/{{NBC}}'s ''Series/TheTonightShow''; the Creator/{{ABC}} news program ''Series/{{Nightline}}'', launched in 1980, was the first serious competitor. Creator/{{CBS}} subsisted on action drama repeats and shows rejected for prime time and made-for-TV movies in this slot (notwithstanding the one season Pat Sajak hosted a talk show for them) until they poached DavidLetterman for ''The Late Show'' in the early 1990s. Stations that did not have a network show running in this slot would play a movie (often the kind that ''Series/MysteryScienceTheater3000'' liked to riff on) after the local news, and then go dark or show the test pattern until the 5 AM farm report, looping the sign on announcement with proper mentions of them saying goodnight instead. In TheEighties, {{infomercial}}s changed that because they were willing to temporarily pay the cost of running the station to hawk their products.

* 3 AM - 5 AM: Infomercials, risqué local or syndicated programming, {{Rerun}}s of shows that ran during Prime Time, and the sorts of programs that used to come directly after the local news. For CW and [=MyNetworkTV=], this slot is often filled with dating shows, programming purchased by local companies for late night talent shows, home shopping, and Shepard's Chapel, which is three hours of Bible studies (or other religious organizations such as [=CampMeeting=]). If the stations decide not to go this route, ABC and CBS continue to distribute their overnight newscasts to affiliates, while NBC throws on a same-day replay of the Kathie Lee/Hoda hour of ''Today'' and CNBC's ''Mad Money'' (though due to the new 4 AM local news start, this is often pre-empted so a local station can get in ''Early Today''). On weekends, ABC and CBS leave it to the affiliates to fill the time (usually with off-network runs of dramas, movies, and {{Filler}} programming such as one of Byron Allen's 20 infotainment shows), while NBC repeats that weekend's ''MeetThePress'', {{Filler}} programming from WNBC about expensive open houses and dining in UsefulNotes/NewYorkCity, and 18-week-old episodes of ''Series/{{Dateline}}''. When a sufficient number of channels have content at this hour — and most cable is 24-hour — broadcast stations lose out if they shut down, and find themselves experiencing [[WeAreExperiencingTechnicalDifficulties technical difficulties]] in the digital age if they don't leave the transmitter on, even with just rolling weather radar or color bars.

* 3 AM - 5 AM: Infomercials, risqué local or syndicated programming, and the sorts of programs that used to come directly after the local news. For CW and [=MyNetworkTV=], this slot is often filled with dating shows, programming purchased by local companies for late night talent shows, home shopping, and Shepard's Chapel, which is three hours of Bible studies (or other religious organizations such as [=CampMeeting=]). If the stations decide not to go this route, ABC and CBS continue to distribute their overnight newscasts to affiliates, while NBC throws on a same-day replay of the Kathie Lee/Hoda hour of ''Today'' and CNBC's ''Mad Money'' (though due to the new 4 AM local news start, this is often pre-empted so a local station can get in ''Early Today''). On weekends, ABC and CBS leave it to the affiliates to fill the time (usually with off-network runs of dramas, movies, and {{Filler}} programming such as one of Byron Allen's 20 infotainment shows), while NBC repeats that weekend's ''MeetThePress'', {{Filler}} programming from WNBC about expensive open houses and dining in UsefulNotes/NewYorkCity, and 18-week-old episodes of ''Series/{{Dateline}}''. When a sufficient number of channels have content at this hour — and most cable is 24-hour — broadcast stations lose out if they shut down, and find themselves experiencing [[WeAreExperiencingTechnicalDifficulties technical difficulties]] in the digital age if they don't leave the transmitter on, even with just rolling weather radar or color bars.

* 3 PM - 6 PM: {{Syndicat|ion}}ed talk shows and kids' shows (either syndicated, as is the case with most animation, or locally-produced). Also until the late 90's, networks would air the occasional ''Series/AfterschoolSpecial''.

* 9 AM - 3 PM: Local and syndicated programming. As an example, on WTTG Washington (one of Fox's original 6 owned stations) in TheEighties, this would consist of a few hours of sitcoms sourced from Creator/{{Viacom}}, followed by old movies (they especially liked the old Penny Singleton ''{{Blondie}}'' movies). These days you're more likely to find ''Series/JudgeJudy'' clones or, at worst, infomercials.

* 11:30 PM - 1 AM: Late night. Dominated in the 1960s and 1970s by Creator/{{NBC}}'s ''Series/TheTonightShow''; the Creator/{{ABC}} news program ''{{Nightline}}'', launched in 1980, was the first serious competitor. Creator/{{CBS}} subsisted on action drama repeats and shows rejected for prime time and made-for-TV movies in this slot (notwithstanding the one season Pat Sajak hosted a talk show for them) until they poached DavidLetterman for ''The Late Show'' in the early 1990s. Stations that did not have a network show running in this slot would play a movie (often the kind that ''Series/MysteryScienceTheater3000'' liked to riff on) after the local news, and then go dark or show the test pattern until the 5 AM farm report, looping the sign on announcement with proper mentions of them saying goodnight instead. In TheEighties, {{infomercial}}s changed that because they were willing to temporarily pay the cost of running the station to hawk their products.

** Note: Usually the lower-tier network stations of TheCW or MyNetworkTV (unless they're in a major market or carry ''The Daily Buzz'', a national morning program) have thrown in the towel and air mainly infomercials between 5 AM and 9 AM to make something out of literally nothing.[[note]]Although some of these lower-tier stations (even those that don't have a news department of their own) now often carry a local newscast, particularly one produced by a sister station, in this timeslot; some of these newscasts run as late as 10 AM.[[/note]] Educational and informational programming, which has taken over for children's programming abandoned to the niche cable networks and PBS, also airs within this time to satisfy license concerns.
* 9 AM - noon: Talk shows -- by anybody. CBS is the sole exception, running the current version of ''LetsMakeADeal'' at 10 AM (in most markets), and ''ThePriceIsRight'' at 11 AM (in pretty much all of them).

* 6:30 PM - 7PM (5:30 to 6 p.m. Central): National news from the network. Although certain Fox affiliates (regardless of market) - and in some larger markets - CW, MyNetworkTV and independent stations may fill this slot with local newscasts[[note]]Major network stations in the Pacific and Eastern Time Zones typically fill the 5:30 PM slot with local news due to the national newscasts being one hour later in those areas[[/note]].

* 8 PM- 11 PM: Prime Time from the network. Usually, it's laid out as if the {{watershed}} still holds, but the content no longer has to fit. {{Reality show}}s are as common as dramas and sitcoms now. For Fox and TheCW, Prime Time ends at 10 PM[[note]]As with Fox stations, many lower-tier stations such as CW and MyNetworkTV affiliates carry a local newscast during the 10 PM (9 PM Central/Mountain) timeslot, either produced by the station itself in some larger markets or commonly, produced by another local station as with the 7-9 AM note above.[[/note]]. With the rise of [=TiVo=] and DVRs, 10 PM has become a major trouble spot for the Big Three networks as viewers use this time to catch up on early shows that were roadblocked by other network shows they like and unable to be watched live, or much more adult-focused cable shows that take advantage of the 10 PM weakness.

* 3 AM - 5 AM: Infomercials, risqué local or syndicated programming, and the sorts of programs that used to come directly after the local news. For CW and [=MyNetworkTV=], this slot is often filled with dating shows, programming purchased by local companies for late night talent shows, home shopping, and Shepard's Chapel, which is three hours of Bible studies (or other religious organizations such as [=CampMeeting=]). If the stations decide not to go this route, ABC and CBS continue to distribute their overnight newscasts to affiliates, while NBC throws on a same-day replay of the Kathie Lee/Hoda hour of ''Today'' and CNBC's ''Mad Money'' (though due to the new 4 AM local news start, this is often pre-empted so a local station can get in ''Early Today''). On weekends, ABC and CBS leave it to the affiliates to fill the time (usually with off-network runs of dramas, movies, and {{Filler}} programming such as one of Byron Allen's 20 infotainment shows), while NBC repeats that weekend's ''MeetThePress'', {{Filler}} programming from WNBC about expensive open houses and dining in UsefulNotes/NewYorkCity, and 18-week-old episodes of ''DatelineNBC''. When a sufficient number of channels have content at this hour — and most cable is 24-hour — broadcast stations lose out if they shut down, and find themselves experiencing [[WeAreExperiencingTechnicalDifficulties technical difficulties]] in the digital age if they don't leave the transmitter on, even with just rolling weather radar or color bars.

Creator/{{NBC}} caused a huge uproar in 2009 when it ran ''TheJayLenoShow'' at 10 PM Eastern because it was very much like ''Series/TheTonightShow with Jay Leno'', only more evenly distributed. (Viewers at 10 PM are less likely to go to bed before the show is over.) People predicted that NBC would destroy network television this way, even though that hour is currently completely unused by two of its competitors (three if you count Creator/MyNetworkTV, and you probably shouldn't). This violation took at least a temporary toll on NBC, though. (Moving ''Series/LawAndOrderSpecialVictimsUnit'' an hour earlier severely hurt its ratings, because it ran in what is otherwise a ''de facto'' family hour.) As expected, this failed miserably — not because Leno's show lost money (it was ''so'' cheap to produce that it couldn't lose money as long as a few advertising spots were sold), but because Leno's ratings were killing the late local news on NBC's affiliates. When the affiliates threatened to dump Leno and put either syndicated content or their late news in the 10 PM hour, NBC blinked, cancelled the primetime Leno show, and paid Creator/ConanOBrien millions of dollars to go away so that Leno could get the Tonight Show back. Some people believe [[BatmanGambit this is what Leno wanted all along]], or at least after NBC forced him to "retire" from the Tonight Show [[note]]The announcement of Conan taking over ''The Tonight Show'' after Leno retired, by the way, occurred not long after Craig Kilborn left ''Series/TheLateLateShow'' and before Creator/CraigFerguson was chosen as the replacement, so some believe it was just a way to keep Conan from leaving NBC like Letterman did.[[/note]].

On Saturdays, the morning hours after the farm report would be filled with {{Saturday morning cartoon}}s, with the odd locally produced kids' show mixed in. The afternoon had sporting events, and PrimeTime was mostly {{sitcom}}s and ''The Wonderful World Of Disney''.

On Sundays, the mornings would have political shows (''MeetThePress'', ''Face The Nation'', ''Series/IssuesAndAnswers'' etc.) and religious programming. The afternoon would have sports in season. PrimeTime started an hour earlier, at 7 PM. The extra network programming was either an extra family hour such as ''The Wonderful World Of Disney'' or, in the case of CBS, ''[[Series/SixtyMinutes 60 Minutes]]''.

Things started changing in TheEighties and continued mutating through TheNineties. The {{Fox}} network booted with much less network programming than the older networks -- only two hours of PrimeTime ([[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1992-93_American_network_television_schedule four]], [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1993-94_United_States_network_television_schedule then three]], on Sunday.) and the occasional talk show. The original excuse was that it was a start-up network; but things never changed (although for a couple years the network experimented with 10pm Sunday programming, low ratings and affiliate pressure forced them to dump it). The fewer hours were also to reduce some FCC regulations that it would have if it programmed the full three hours. Fox would eventually score sports programming and become a serious competitor to the original three networks, but they would never have over-the-air national news, daytime soaps, or the 10 PM hour of PrimeTime.

The earliest years of Fox were uninspiring, since both hours of PrimeTime were family hours and Fox was unsure how to do that kind of program. But then, the requirement that there be a family hour was removed. This allowed Fox to be the model for its own version of the standard schedule, one that other new networks would follow. Here is the short version:

Meanwhile, in TheNineties, cable became common in American households. This meant that people could watch TV without watching the broadcast networks at all. This hit both broadcast stations and networks, forcing both to lower their costs, and cut into such network staples as the VarietyShow and Saturday morning children's programming. At the same time, all of the major television networks ended up in the hands of, or connected to, movie studios. Before this happened, the networks tried hard to get viewers to stay home instead of going to the movies. Now, the people making network programming also made the movies and ''wanted'' viewers to go watch them. This intensified the FridayNightDeathSlot and all but killed PrimeTime programming on Saturday.

* 8 PM - 9 PM: The first hour of PrimeTime. Usually contained "family-friendly" {{sitcom}}s due to the {{watershed}}. Although the watershed is now gone, the perception of 8 PM as a "family hour" persists. Most shows were produced by independent studios.

* 7 PM - 8 PM: Syndicated game shows or second-run sitcoms (also syndicated). This was where ''Evening Magazine'' ran on Group W stations (as well as a few others that bought into the pool) in TheEighties, as well as ''Series/EntertainmentTonight'' (plus whatever show it's paired with- in the 90s it was the tabloid newsmag ''Hard Copy'', in the late 90s-early 2000s it was a revival of ''Series/TheHollywoodSquares'' and since 2004 it's been ''The Insider'') and the seemingly-indestructible ''Series/WheelOfFortune''/''Series/{{Jeopardy}}'' block.

* 7 PM - 8 PM (6:30 to 7 p.m. Central due to prime time beginning an hour earlier): Syndicated or local programming (Also, some stations may air a summary newscast at 7 PM for late-travelling commuters.) Near universally this is where you'll find the ''{{Series/Jeopardy}}''-''Series/WheelOfFortune'' GameShow block (a rare few stations carry ''Jeopardy!'' earlier in the day, but "The ''Wheel''" is always on around this time no matter the market), along with ''Series/EntertainmentTonight'' in syndication.

* 7 PM - 8 PM: Syndicated game shows or second-run sitcoms (also syndicated). This was where ''Evening Magazine'' ran on Group W stations (as well as a few others that bought into the pool) in TheEighties, as well as ''Series/EntertainmentTonight'' and the seemingly-indestructible ''Series/WheelOfFortune''/''Series/{{Jeopardy}}'' block.

* 5 AM - 7 AM: Local or network news. In some markets the local news begins now at 4:30 AM to provide some kind of update to those viewers who come in from a '''really''' distant city and have a long commute into work (say, Petaluma into UsefulNotes/SanFrancisco, or Harvard, Illinois into UsefulNotes/{{Chicago}}). Can go to as early as 4 AM on special days like snowstorms or major news events, though as of 2014, 4 AM is becoming the new default start time for many local newscasts in the larger markets (this figures the staff is there by 3 AM and is already being paid in the makeup chair, so get them to work as soon as possible).

* 12:30 PM - 3 PM: {{Soap opera}}s (from the network) or {{reality show}}s (syndicated or local), or more daytime talk shows as the networks cancel more soaps. The number of soaps on the air shrank to four in 2012, the fewest in almost 60 years. Those CBS markets that don't air ''[[LetsMakeADeal LMAD]]'' at 10 AM air it after ''The Talk'' at 3 PM.

* 8 PM- 11 PM: Prime Time from the network. Usually, it's laid out as if the {{watershed}} still holds, but the content no longer has to fit. {{Reality show}}s are as common as dramas and sitcoms now. For Fox and TheCW, Prime Time ends at 10 PM[[note]]As with Fox stations, many lower-tier stations such as CW and MyNetworkTV affiliates carry a local newscast during the 10 PM (9 PM Central/Mountain) timeslot, either produced by the station itself in some larger markets or commonly, produced by another local station as with the 7-9 AM note above.[[/note]]. With the rise of [=TiVo=] and DVR's, 10 PM has become a major trouble spot for the Big Three networks as viewers use this time to catch up on early shows that were roadblocked by other network shows they like and unable to be watched live, or much more adult-focused cable shows that take advantage of the 10 PM weakness.

* 5 AM - 7 AM: Local news programming aimed at farmers and early-rising business people. There were quite a few stations that didn't bother to start broadcasting until 6:45 AM, and even a few that let the network morning show start them off at 7 AM. A religious interlude usually started off the day after the national anthem. Often a short news/weather update and farm price information was given to help the early risers some information before the got the paper off the doorstep.

* 9 AM - 3 PM: Local and syndicated programming. As an example, on WTTG Washington in TheEighties, this would consist of a few hours of sitcoms sourced from Creator/{{Viacom}}, followed by old movies (they especially liked the old Penny Singleton ''{{Blondie}}'' movies). These days you're more likely to find ''Series/JudgeJudy'' clones or, at worst, infomercials.

* 6 PM - 8 PM: Local and syndicated programming. Usually more sitcoms, though some Fox stations have started running news here.

On Sundays, the mornings would have political shows (''MeetThePress'', ''Face The Nation'', ''IssuesAndAnswers'' etc.) and religious programming. The afternoon would have sports in season. PrimeTime started an hour earlier, at 7 PM. The extra network programming was either an extra family hour such as ''The Wonderful World Of Disney'' or, in the case of CBS, ''[[Series/SixtyMinutes 60 Minutes]]''.

The morning schedule for Central and Mountain time was the same as Eastern time because shows such as ''Today'', ''Good Morning, America'', ''The Price is Right'' and the soaps were recorded and played back at the corresponding time slot in the Central and Mountain zones, a practice that continues today. In fact, if you look during a morning news show, the notation during a breaking news event will say "Live Eastern Time." Viewers in all other time zones are likely seeing the event on tape delay, or even with editing, just to make sure the damage of JaneFonda or a couple of girls dropping the "[[PrecisionFStrike C-bomb]]" on morning television (which has actually happened) or some guy mooning the ''GMA'' window won't go across the entire country. This is nearly the same with ''Series/SaturdayNightLive'', though the Central zone gets that show live.

On Saturdays, the morning hours after the farm report would be filled with {{Saturday morning cartoon}}s, with the odd locally produced kids' show mixed in. The afternoon had sporting events, and PrimeTime was mostly {{sitcom}}s and TheWonderfulWorldOfDisney.

On Sundays, the mornings would have political shows (''MeetThePress'', ''FaceTheNation'', ''IssuesAndAnswers'' etc.) and religious programming. The afternoon would have sports in season. PrimeTime started an hour earlier, at 7 PM. The extra network programming was either an extra family hour such as ''Series/TheWonderfulWorldOfDisney'' or, in the case of CBS, ''[[Series/SixtyMinutes 60 Minutes]]''.

* 9 AM - 10 AM: A talk show, or local programming. This is where ''{{Donahue}}'' and ''[[RegisPhilbin Live with Regis]]'' aired for many years in many places. (Note that ''Live'' was originally a locally-aired production called "The Morning Show").

* 7 AM - 9 AM: Morning news and {{talk show}}s (''Series/{{Today}}'', ''GoodMorningAmerica'') produced by the network, with approx. five minutes per half-hour of local-affiliate time for local news and weather. Until 1982, CBS ran a general newscast for an hour, followed by ''Series/CaptainKangaroo'' before joining the network morning show race full time.

* Signon: Just before the start of programming, the typical station would announce its call sign, city of license, who it was licensed by, and that it was "licensed to television station X, at a frequency of Y to Z megahertz, by order of the Federal Communications Commission." This was typically followed by the National Anthem, usually prefixed with "and now, our National Anthem." Often it was a small film that was made by someone else and given to television stations to let them use it. Sometimes it was made by religious organizations. In some cases the video of the National Anthem involved jet footage and at the end you discover it was produced by the [[ProductPlacement U.S. Air Force]].

* 3 PM - 6 PM: Syndicated talk shows, cartoons, or kids' programming. During the Fox Kids era, the 2-5 PM block was ''network''. Some Fox stations have started running news during the 5 PM slot in recent years.

Such restrictions were never applicable to television, however. Television stations were allocated by community, and the allocations were based on engineering estimates that would prevent two stations on the same channel within their reach, or even an adjacent channel. Television stations were licensed for 24 hour operations, 7 days a week if they wanted to be on that much. Notwithstanding this, in most communities up until the late 1970s or 1980s there wasn't enough programming available to have anything in the early morning (this was, of course, the age before the {{Infomercial}}), and most stations went dark during early morning. For more information about them, see AmericanTelevisionStations.

* 9 AM - 3 PM: Local and syndicated programming. As an example, on WTTG Washington in TheEighties, this would consist of a few hours of sitcoms sourced from Creator/{{Viacom}}, followed by old movies (they especially liked the old Penny Singleton ''{{Blondie}}'' movies). These days you're more likely to find ''JudgeJudy'' clones or, at worst, infomercials.