Audio Video News

Like millions of Americans, I have totally ditched my VCR and now solely rely on my DVR to record my favorite shows while I'm away from home. And the vast majority of time, my Scientific Atlanta box has my back. From Lost, to Prison Break, to The Simpsons, I can leave my house confident in the fact that my shows will be waiting for me when I return home.

Sadly though, one show has become like kryptonite to my DVR's hard drive - Survivor. No matter how many times I tell it to record every showing of Survivor whenever it comes on, my DVR refuses to do it.

Even more fiendishly, Survivor appears in the program guide as if it will record right up until the show starts, at which point…nothing. Or, for the ultimate ass-punch, the record ing light will actually come on, telling me that it is recording, until the show is over and then…poof! Nothing.

At first I thought this was a localized phenomena, and I directed the full force of my rage at Time Warner and my stupid, hateful DVR. But, alas! After a little homework, I've found that this conspiracy runs nationwide. If you're a Survivor fan, follow me down the rabbit hole…

Like any true Survivor fanatic, I have surrounded myself with other like minded folk with whom to discuss island politics, Probst-isms and the exploits of favorites like water-borne, Ozzy or super-human, James. So, once I've recovered from the crushing disappointment that results from Survivor being MIA from my recorded list, I immediately call fellow DVR owners to see if they had any luck. After three other friends experienced the same Survivor no-show, I knew that something was amiss.

What I've discovered is that Survivor just doesn't seem to be recording. Anywhere. A Google search of "'Survivor' 'dvr' 'didn't record'" shows that this is a national crisis affecting not only cable subscribers, but satellite viewers as well. And, you TiVo owners out there saying, "Oh, that would never happen to us!" think again! One TiVo owner watched in horror as Survivor disappeared from her Season Pass list right before her eyes.

CBS, why are you monkeying with the metadata information that tells our hard drives to record? Why?!? CBS, while I thank you for posting episodes on your Website, I also have to wonder – is this some sick and twisted plot for driving those of us hooked on Survivor to CBS.com to watch in order to raise hits or something? The ability to record Survivor on a DVR is only going to reach crisis levels next season when CBS (finally!) starts filming and broadcasting the castaways in HD! "Worth playing for?" Absolutely! – John Sciacca