Will audiences watch the saturation TV coverage of Sept. 11?

All four major broadcast networks, along with the three big cable-news channels, are devoting the entire broadcast day to Sept. 11 programming. And virtually every cable channel, from ESPN to the Food Network, will air specials related to the attacks.

"Everybody's going to have to take this seminar in Sept. 11," said Robert Thompson, head of the Center for the Study of Popular Television at Syracuse University. "That's very unusual in the cable era - usually if you want to avoid something, there's someplace to flee on cable. Not this time."

For some networks, the decision was a snap. "What would you program that day? What else would you put on?" said Shepard Smith, a Fox News Channel anchor. "There's not going to be any other news that day."

Others agonized about what to do. "There was definitely a spirited internal debate," admitted Laura Zalaznick, president of the popular-arts cable network Trio, which will devote two commercial-free hours to the tragedy. "In the end, we decided we had to stay topical and not ignore this very real anniversary, which is a recognition of a horrendous, life-altering event."

But how many times do viewers want to see airliners splatter into the twin towers? How many griefmute widows can they look at? How many sobbing cops and firemen can they stand? Does anyone really want to relive that hellish day?

"There certainly is that danger," acknowledged CBS President Leslie Moonves, conceding the possibility that large numbers of viewers will turn off their televisions Wednesday. "However, it is far better to err on the side of giving too much coverage than not paying enough respect to what happened.

"This is the most significant event since Pearl Harbor in our lifetimes. And to not give it the appropriate respect, I think, would be a mistake."

The few cable networks going ahead with regular programming are portraying it as a public service for those who find Sept. 11 too painful to revisit. "For viewers who need to watch something else, we want to provide them an alternative - not a competitive alternative, but a compassionate alternative," said Steve Albani, a vice president at Comedy Central.

For those who do want to watch, there's programming of almost every conceivable stripe, from features on the physics of the twin towers' collapse to investigative accounts of White House decisionmaking in the hours after the attacks.

Among the highlights during Wednesday's round-the-clock coverage on the major broadcast networks are a rebroadcast of the special "9/11," which includes footage shot inside one of the doomed towers (9 p.m. on KCBS-TV Channel 2); a live "Concert for America" from the Kennedy Center in Washington, featuring Gloria Estefan, Al Green, the National Symphony Orchestra and other performers (9 p.m. on KNBC-TV Channel 4); "Answering Children's Questions," a town-hall meeting on how kids dealt with the attacks (3:30 p.m. on KABC-TV Channel 7); and" 9/11 - The Day America Changed," which will include a live interview with Lisa Beamer, whose husband Todd led the passenger revolt against hijackers that ended in the crash of United Flight 93 (8 p.m. on KTTV-TV Channel 11).

Special programming on Sept. 11 actually began in August and will continue all this week. Here are Tuesday's highlights (See Wednesday's Daily Showcase for more Sept. 11 highlights):

ABC tells the story through the eyes of cops and firemen who reached the scene first in "Report From Ground Zero," based on Dennis Smith's book. "There was no big tunnel with the white light at the end," recalls a firefighter who miraculously survived the collapse of one tower. "There was no story of my life and all the people that are going to miss me and that I'm going to miss ... It was just me saying to myself, THIS IS IT, THIS IS IT, THIS IS IT." 9 p.m.

ESPN's "Outside The Lines" magazine show is devoted to Sept. 11 themes, including a segment on rebuilding Afghanistan's national sports program. 8 p.m. in Adelphia Channel 48.

"Relics From The Rubble" tells the tale of what cleanup crews found in the World Trade Center debris - and what they didn't. For instance, only one filing cabinet was found in the combined wreckage of 110 stories of office space, but a briefcase blown out of a 103story window survived intact. 10 p.m. on the History Channel (Adelphia Channel 40).

WEDNESDAY

CNBC (Adelphia Channel 45) will feature in-depth reports all day on the economic fallout from the attacks. And BBC America will suspend ordinary programming from 6 a.m. to 1 p.m. for news coverage of the anniversary.

Pax (KPXN-TV Channel 26): A special two-hour episode of "Doc" called "Some Gave All" repeats. The show weaves a plot line about families who suffered losses in wars with interviews with real veterans and firefighters. 8 p.m.

Discovery Channel (Adelphia Channel 43): "Portraits of Grief," based on the series of brief vignettes that has appeared in the New York Times since Sept. 11, remembers the day's victims through photos, home videos and interviews. 8 p.m. "After 9/11: Rebuilding Lives" at 9 p.m. and "Rebuilding Ground Zero" at 10 p.m. focus on the aftermath.

History Channel (Adelphia Channel 40): "The Day The Towers Fell," at 9 p.m., and "The Pentagon," at 4 p.m., describe the day's events. "The World Trade Center: Rise And Fall Of An American Icon," at 9 p.m., is a history of the twin towers. Arthur Kent hosts "Inside Islam" at noon, a look at the world's fastest-growing religion. "War On Terror - A Year In Review," at 5 p.m., is a broad look at everything from the Israeli-Palestinian conflict to the anthrax attacks in relationship to the Sept. 11 attacks.

A&E (Adelphia Channel 57): "Minute by Minute: The Attack on the Pentagon" is a gripping account of the attack and rescue efforts there. 10 p.m.

ABC Family (Adelphia Channel 61): "Love's Legacy: The Babies of 9/11" tells of unborn children orphaned by the attack, 9 p.m.

TLC (Adelphia Channel 39): "9/11 Babies," of three pregnant women who lost their husbands, 5 p.m. "Still Riding" tells of five New York rescue units completely wiped out, 6 p.m. "Here Is New York" describes the creation of a photo exhibit born in a SoHo storefront that has grown to 5,000 shots, 7 p.m. "110 Stories" is a collection of individual accounts, ranging from a man who left one of the towers moments before the crash to help an injured bird to another who chose to evacuate in an elevator instead of the stairs. 8 p.m. "World Trade Center: Anatomy" "of a Collapse" deals with design and construction issues, 9 p.m. "Pentagon Under Fire" is about the attack on Washington, 10 p.m. "Inside Flight 93" is the story of the hijacked plane where passengers fought back, 11 p.m.

Travel Channel (Adelphia Channel 96): "Airport on Alert" records the lockdown at San Francisco International after San Francisco-bound United Flight 93 was hijacked. 8 p.m." World Trade Center: Triumph and Tragedy" is a history of the twin towers. 10 p.m.

Discovery Health Channel (Adelphia Channel 105): Two families living side by side in Brooklyn try to heal their hurt in "Aftermath: The Road to Resilience." 8 p.m. "Babies: Special Delivery" concentrates on renewal, the lives of nine babies born exactly nine months after Sept. 11. 9 p.m.

BET (Adelphia Channel 66): "September 11th: Telling Our Stories" explores the day's impact on black America, including a feature on the family of Leroy Homer, the co-pilot of the airliner that crashed in Pennsylvania. 8:30 a.m.

Cinemax (Adelphia Channel 274): "Visions From Ground Zero" is a collection of five pieces, ranging from a minute to an hour in length, from independent filmmakers. 8 a.m.

HGTV, Food Network, DIY Network and Fine Living will suspend regular programming for two hours at 8:30 a.m. to show a collage of images and music commemorating the attacks.

The simplest of the day's programming may also be its most poignant. Four cable networks - A&E, History Channel, Biography Channel and History Channel International - will go dark at 8:46 a.m., the moment the first airliner struck the World Trade Center. Then they'll scroll the names of the 3,000 victims of the attack for an hour and 43 minutes. An eternity.

Uploaded September 10, 2002