TV One

World Screen Weekly, April 10, 2008

COUNTRY: U.S.

LAUNCH DATE: January 19, 2004

OWNERSHIP: A venture of Radio One and Comcast Corporation, along with DIRECTV, Bear Stearns and its Constellation Ventures fund, Syndicated Communications and Opportunity Capital Partners.

DISTRIBUTION: 43 million homes

CHAIRMAN: Alfred Liggins

PRESIDENT & CEO: Johnathan Rodgers

EXECUTIVE VP, PROGRAMMING & PRODUCTION: Rose Catherine Pinkney

DESCRIPTION: TV One is a lifestyle and entertainment cable network aimed at African-American adults aged 25 to 54. The channel features a mixture of original programming and acquisitions, ranging from variety and stand-up comedy shows to reality competition series, cooking programs, documentaries, topical specials and public-affairs programs.

PROGRAMMING STRATEGY: Covering issues and topics that are relevant to its core African-American viewership is key to the way that TV One approaches its programming. “Our hope is that when an African-American viewer tunes into TV One, they will see programs that they know were made especially for them,” says Rose Catherine Pinkney, the executive VP of programming and production at the channel.

Pinkney says that people place TV One into the same category as channels like BET and VH1. However, she notes that while those were “both networks formed with a relationship with music,” TV One is a more general interest entertainment network with programming that “is designed to entertain, to inform and inspire African-American adults. It was born out of the idea that African-American adults deserve choice in television.”

In line with the channel’s mission of providing relatable content for African-American adults, TV One’s schedule highlights original reality shows like Divine Restoration, a series that sees the remodeling of small to mid-sized churches in the U.S. “Many networks have renovation shows so we decided that when we were going to renovate, we would renovate something that’s really important in the African-American community—churches,” says Pinkney. A third season of new episodes is currently being filmed. Meanwhile, the reality series Family Reunion, which made its debut on March 23, celebrates another element of black culture: the concept of the family reunion. TV One has also had success with other original unscripted programming like the competition series Bill Bellamy’s Who’s Got Jokes, which challenges comedians to win by doing “clean humor.” The channel will go into production on a third season of the series.

Pinkney notes that like most cable networks, TV One has “a healthy mix of originals and acquisitions.” The channel’s acquisitions are mostly scripted shows and tend to include “classic black sitcoms” such as Good Times and more recent ones like Martin and All About Eve. Most of the channel’s sitcoms and dramas, along with a majority of its movies, are acquired from major studio distributors. “We’ve also had a lot of luck with independent movies or direct-to-video movies, movies that did not get much interest in the mainstream, but for our audience, [if] they have the right star or the right topic, they can do very well,” notes Pinkney. While she notes that TV One generally will not acquire programming specifically for daytime, the channel did pick up Divorce Court episodes featuring Judge Mablean, a popular African-American female judge, for a daytime slot.

A priority for the channel is prime time, which is comprised of about 20 percent original programming. Weekends are also important for TV One, with its Saturday night lineup featuring shows like Baisden After Dark, a late-night variety series starring African-American syndicated radio talk show host Michael Baisden, and The Funny Spot, which allows the audience to interact with the comedians on stage.

TV One also airs a lifestyle zone on Saturday mornings, a block that includes the reality public-affairs program Sharp Talk with Al Sharpton. Set in a barbershop, the series sees host Rev. Al Sharpton, a prominent African-American community leader, discussing a wide range of cultural, political and economic issues with guests. The channel’s lifestyle zone also features two original culinary series starring chef G. Garvin: the cooking program Turn Up the Heat with G. Garvin, and the food-and-travel-themed G. Garvin: The Road Tour, which sees the chef in search of culinary hotspots throughout the U.S., from uncovering the best spot for biscuits in Atlanta, Georgia, to exploring an African-American-owned wine shop in Harlem, New York.

To ensure that the on-air schedule remains “fresh,” Pinkney says that the channel incorporates topical specials, including The Color Purple: The Color of Success, a historical perspective on the Broadway musical The Color Purple.

WHAT’S NEW: Coming up over the next several months on TV One is Celebrity Dish, a new series starring chef G. Garvin that combines cooking with celebrity interviews, and a new season of Makeover Manor, a show focused exclusively on beauty and style tips for African Americans.

Pinkney notes that while a majority of the channel’s programming is unscripted, she is looking to develop some original scripted programming for TV One in the next year or two.

WEBSITE: www.tvoneonline.com

—By Irene Lew