In the age of livestreaming webcasts, televised worship services may seem old fashioned, but First Baptist Church, Huntsville, recently found out these broadcasts remain very important to loyal viewers.
On May 6 the congregation’s 10:30 a.m. Sunday morning telecast suddenly went off the air. It happened again on Mother’s Day.
“It just broke down completely,” said Pastor Travis Collins.
The cause: A new hotel has been built in the line of sight between the church and WHNT News 19 about a mile away.
“And here we had been saying how cool it was this boutique hotel was coming in near us as part of the renovation of downtown Huntsville,” he said. “Then come to find out … .”
The new construction obstructed the dedicated wireless path between the church and the TV station, interrupting the signal for more than 7,000 households that tune into the broadcast every Sunday.
Viewers were quick to let the church know there was a problem.
Quick response
Phone calls, emails and social media posts expressed concerns and complaints about the interruption, and the church responded swiftly.
“Our apologies,” First, Huntsville, posted on Facebook. “Our Live TV Broadcast was unavailable today. We invite you to listen to our worship today via our website.”
Frustrated television viewers also were invited to download Collins’ sermon delivered that morning, but they expressed their disappointment at not being able to watch.
“Sure miss when it is not on!!!!!” one said in a Facebook comment. Another added they “hope things get taken care of soon. Meanwhile I will watch the livestream. This is something I look forward to.”
The church posted the following day explaining the problem and assuring viewers the church was “working on the best solution to get around this new obstacle.”
Collins said the situation has taught him that the broadcast remains very popular in the city and the surrounding region, which was not his original evaluation upon coming to the church as interim in 2014 before being called as pastor.
“Why still do it?” Collins thought then. That attitude has changed. He’s become a big believer in the church’s telecast.
Not only has Collins received letters and emails about the weekly broadcast, he hears comments from people who do not even live in Huntsville about how much they look forward to the televised service.
“I have been stopped by people of all ages and all ethnicities saying ‘we watch First Baptist every Sunday,’” he said. “I had a guy stop me at the Atlanta airport and say, ‘I travel to Huntsville once a month and always watch First Baptist when I’m there.’”
“This has convinced me” about the value of the television broadcast, he said. “I think there is still a market for worship on TV.”
For other congregations questioning whether there is value in a televised service over a livestreamed one, Phil Cooke, a media consultant and author of “Unique: Telling Your Story in the Age of Brands and Social Media,” says yes.
Cooke argues in online articles that television can present a church’s message to larger, more diverse audiences than can live-streaming to fragmented viewerships.
“Ask a nonbeliever about a major Christian figure today and chances are those with TV ministries are the most likely to be named,” Cooke writes. “Joel Osteen, Joyce Meyer, Billy Graham, Brian Houston, Andy Stanley, T.D. Jakes, Jack Graham and others are known around the world because of their exposure on television.”
Responsive audience
TV audiences remain large despite the buzz around the Internet. And television audiences are still among the most responsive to broadcast content, he said.
“I’ve personally seen letters and emails from people whose lives have been transformed simply because they clicked on a Christian program and decided to watch,” Cooke said. (BNG)
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