You have questions. I have some answers.
Q: Isn’t there a law that commercials can’t be too loud? It isn’t like that when I watch TV.
A: There are rules, although they aren’t as useful as you would think. Federal law includes the Commercial Advertisement Loudness Mitigation (CALM) Act from a decade ago. FCC rules then apply the law’s standards to “TV stations, cable operators, satellite TV providers or other multichannel video program distributors (MVPDs).”
However, the law “does not set an absolute cap on loudness. Rather, it requires commercials to have the same average volume as the programming they accompany, so that the volume a consumer chooses is the one at which both the programming and the advertisements will air.” Then why doesn’t everything sound the same? Look at the word “average.”
As I understand the rules, the average loudness of the commercial is measured by averaging the loudness of all components of the sound (dialogue, background music and so on) over the length of the commercial. Then, the average loudness of the program is measured by averaging the loudness over the length of the program. If you come out of a quiet scene into a commercial, it may be loud compared to what you’ve just been listening to, but not loud on average.
You can find out more about this, including how to file a complaint with the FCC, at fcc.gov/media/policy/loud-commercials.
By the way, some of you are now wanting to talk about loud background music. I have been answering that question annually for close to 20 years, and will be getting to it again in a later column.
Q: Has “SEAL Team” been renewed for another season? I enjoy the show and all the issues that they address about the military. The last season seemed to hint that they would not be back.
A: The drama has been picked up for a seventh season on Paramount+ (which also has the first six seasons, both those which premiered on CBS and those that started on Paramount+). The announced returning cast includes David Boreanaz (as Jason Hayes), Neil Brown Jr. (Ray Perry), A.J. Buckley (Sonny Quinn), Toni Trucks (Lisa Davis) and Raffi Barsoumian (Omar Hamza).
Q: Is “The Blacklist” gone for good or will it be returning?
A: The thriller starring James Spader will be back for its 10th season starting Feb. 26.
Q: There was a TV show back in the ‘50s named “The Man Called X” that I really enjoyed watching. It starred Barry Sullivan as X and was probably the first spy show on television. I’d love to watch it again. Where can I find it?
A: In the beginning there was the radio show “The Man Called X,” airing from 1944 to 1952, with Herbert Marshall as the agent in the title. A television version followed for a single season in 1956-57; as you remembered, Barry Sullivan was X on TV. A search for old TV episodes just unearthed some on YouTube.
As for the first TV spy idea, Guinness World Records gives that honor to “Shadow of the Cloak,” a series on the old DuMont network in 1951-52. It’s also worth mentioning the first screen portrayal of James Bond was in a 1954 episode of the drama anthology “Climax!” On that series, Barry Nelson played an Americanized Bond in an adaptation of “Casino Royale.”
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