Miss America Pageant Heads to TLC

ATLANTIC CITY/LOS ANGELES, August 14: TLC has reached a
multiyear deal with the Miss America Organization for the telecast rights to
the Miss America Pageant through 2010.

The rights were previously held by Viacom-owned CMT, which
picked up the pageant for 2006 and 2007 after ABC opted not to renew its
contract.

The agreement with TLC will kick off with the live broadcast
of the Miss America 2008 Pageant on Saturday, January 26, 2008, from Planet
Hollywood in Las Vegas. The William Morris Agency brokered the deal on behalf
of the Miss America Organization.

As part of the deal, TLC will also launch a new reality
series that will chronicle the preparations and journeys of the 52 contestants
as they adjust to a new twist on the pageant format. The series will also give
fans of the pageant the chance to learn more about the young women competing
and allow them to start choosing their favorites in the pursuit of the crown.

"We're thrilled to partner with the Miss America
Organization and to broadcast the next generation of the Miss America
Pageant," said Angela Shapiro-Mathes,
the president and general manager of TLC. "In addition, through a new
reality series, we'll get to know 52 of the country's smartest and most beautiful
women as they prepare for a competition they've dreamed of their entire lives.
The series will culminate in the ultimate pay-off—the Miss America 2008
Pageant itself. This collaboration is a tremendous opportunity for us to
present this scholarship pageant and great American tradition to our viewers
with a contemporary production style unique to our channel."