Tape delay

Tape delay was long a practice of network affiliates of pre-empting a network show at its regular time, recording that show, and airing it at another later time. Some prime time shows would be delayed to the weekends while daytime shows were either delayed a week or later the same day.

Before videotape became a standard, stations kinescoped shows and aired them on delay. Kinescope is a process where a special motion picture camera films the telecast. In the early days of TV while the East Coast saw network shows live, those shows were kinescoped and transported to the West Coast for later viewing.

In the modern age, digital technology is used to record shows and air them on delay.