Q: Why does our local Time Warner Cable continue to refuse to carry MASN, the station that carries Washington Nationals and Baltimore Orioles games?
J.F.
A: "Because Baltimore and Washington sports teams do not have a strong fan base in North Carolina, Time Warner Cable concluded that offering MASN on Basic Cable wasn't appropriate," said Scott Pryzwansky, a spokesman for Time Warner Cable in the Carolinas. "Time Warner Cable did, however, offer to carry MASN on a digital sports tier."
MASN and TWC in North Carolina have been at odds for years over where the channel would be carried here, with MASN asking for carriage in the basic tier and TWC offering to include it in a digital sports package instead. In 2008, after arbitration with the FCC, TWC was ordered to add the station to its basic tier; TWC appealed the decision, and the order was reversed in 2010.
"Time Warner Cable believes that [making MASN a digital sports tier channel] would better ensure that sports fans would have access to this programming, but that all consumers would not be forced to pay for a channel that the majority of viewers in North Carolina did not want to see," Pryzwansky said. "Time Warner Cable remains willing to discuss carriage with MASN, but we still don't have an agreement."
On its website, www.masnsports.com, the channel states, "MASN does not have an agreement with Time Warner at this time."
MASN is available on some satellite services.
Q: Will PBS be showing the "Downton Abbey" Christmas special that aired last December after it finishing showing season two, or will we have to wait until this Christmas to see it?
K.T.
A: Yes, that special episode, "Christmas at Downton Abbey," will air at the end of the current season, according to a spokeswoman at PBS.
The final two episodes of season two for "Downton Abbey" will air back to back this Sunday on UNC-TV, starting at 9 p.m. Then on Feb. 19, UNC-TV will air a marathon of all eight episodes of the season from 1 to 9 p.m., then air the Christmas special from 9 to 11.
For those who don't want to wait, the "Downton Abbey Season 2" boxed set was released this week on DVD and Blu-ray. It includes all eight regular-season episodes, the Christmas special, and about 30 minutes of behind-the-scenes extras.
Q: I have seen commercials for TaxACT.com, but I did not see it listed among the free online services on the IRS website. Is it reliable?
M.B.
Actually, TaxACT.com is listed as an option on the IRS's website, but there's a reason you may have missed it on the list: It is listed there as "Free TaxACT."
You can find the IRS's list of Free File companies at apps.irs.gov/app/freeFile/jsp/index.jsp. The list includes the restrictions for each company in terms of your age, income, where you live and so on.
Email
Facebook
Google
Twitter
Favorites
More
Advertisement