Broadcast Delay

In radio and television, broadcast delay refers to the practice of intentionally delaying broadcast of live material. A short delay is often used to prevent profanity, bloopers, violence, or other undesirable material from making it to air, including more mundane problems such as technical malfunctions or coughing. In this instance, it is often referred to as a seven-second delay or profanity delay.

Longer delays can also be introduced, often to allow a show to air at the same time for the local market as is sometimes done with nationally-broadcast programs in countries with multiple time zones. That can sometimes be simply achieved with a video tape recorder or similar technology. In the context of modern digital video recorders, this can now be considered a class of time shifting. In this instance, it is often called a tape delay or west-coast delay in the United States, so-called because special events (including award shows) broadcast live in the rest of the US are often tape-delayed on the west coast. This includes Southern California (with the exception of the Academy Awards, which airs live in Los Angeles and the rest of the west coast), despite the fact that Southern California is where many live televised events (American Idol, Dancing With The Stars) take place.

Tape delay also refers to the process of broadcasting an event at a later scheduled time. This is because either a scheduling conflict prevents a live telecast, or a broadcaster seeks to maximize ratings by airing an event in a certain timeslot. A prominent example of the latter is coverage of the Olympic Games, when a broadcaster televises a high-profile event to air in prime time, even though that event is being shown at the "wrong time" because it actually took place when fewer people are likely to be at the TV. Sporting events aired on tape delay are often edited down for time considerations, highlighting the most interesting portions of the event.