BET - Miempowerment.com

Black Entertainment Television

Owner CBS Entertainment Group
(Paramount Global)

Launched January 25, 1980 (USA Network timeshare)
July 1, 1983; 40 years ago (full-time channel)
Founder Robert L. Johnson
Sheila Johnson

Website BET.com

Service(s) Hulu + Live TV, fuboTV, Philo, Sling TV, YouTube TV, Vidgo

BET is an American basic cable channel targeting African-American audiences. It is owned by Paramount Global through CBS Entertainment Group. As of February 2015, approximately 88,255,000 American households (75.8% of households with television) receive the channel.

After stepping down as a lobbyist for the cable industry, Freeport, Illinois native Robert L. Johnson decided to launch his own cable television network. Johnson would soon acquire a loan for $15,000 ($55,648 in 2023) and a $500,000 ($1,854,921 in 2023) investment from media executive John Malone to start the network. The network, which was named Black Entertainment Television (BET), launched on January 25, 1980. Cheryl D. Miller designed the logo that would represent the network, which featured a star to symbolize “Black Star Power”.

Initially, broadcasting for two hours a week as a block of programming on the Madison Square Garden Sports Network (which would change its name to USA Network three months after BET launched), the network’s lineup was composed of music videos and reruns of popular black sitcoms.

It would not be until 1983 that BET became a full-fledged entity, independent of any other channel or programming block, though for years it continued to share channel space with other cable networks on local cable systems due to a lack of channel room for their 24-hour schedule until the time of digital cable allowed for larger channel capacity. In some markets, the network would not arrive at all until as late as the early 2010s and ViacomCBS considered it compulsory in retransmission consent negotiations to carry the BET Networks with ViacomCBS networks, due to some providers claiming that there was an overall lack of demand for the channel, or there was a low to non-existent African-American population within their service area.

BET launched a news program, BET News, in 1986, with Paul Berry as its first anchor. Berry was also a local anchor at WJLA TV in Washington, DC at that time. Ed Gordon became an anchor in 1988. Gordon later hosted other programs and specials on BET, such as For Black Men Only: The Aftermath, related to the 1992 Los Angeles riots, and a recurring interview show, Conversations with Ed Gordon. In 1996, the talk show BET Tonight started with Tavis Smiley as host; in 2001, Ed Gordon replaced Smiley as host of the program.

In 1991, the network became the first black-controlled television company to be listed on the New York Stock Exchange. Starting the late 1990s, the network expanded with the launch of digital cable networks: what is now the general interest channel BET Her was initially launched as “BET on Jazz” (later known as “BET Jazz”, “BET J”, and “Centric”), created initially to showcase jazz music-related programming, especially that of African-American jazz musicians; in 1997, it entered into a joint venture with Starz (then-owned by John Malone’s Liberty Media, but later acquired by Lionsgate years later) to launch a multiplex service of the premium channel featuring African American-oriented films called “BET Movies: Starz! 3” (later renamed “Black Starz” after BET dropped out of the venture following its purchase by Viacom, then-owner of Starz rival Showtime, and now known as “Starz InBlack”). In 2001, the network lost its status as a black-owned business when it was bought by media conglomerate Viacom for $3 billion. In 2005, Johnson retired from the network, turning over his titles of president and chief executive officer to former BET vice president Debra L. Lee.

In 2002, the network launched two more music-oriented networks, BET Hip-Hop and BET Gospel. BET also launched a series of original programming by this time, including reality shows Baldwin Hills and Hell Date, competition show Sunday Best, and town hall-style discussion show Hip Hop vs. America. BET’s president of entertainment Reginald Hudlin resigned from the network on September 11, 2008. He was then replaced by Stephen Hill, who is also executive vice president of music programming and talent.BET announced in March 2010 that Ed Gordon would return to the network to host “a variety of news programs and specials”.

In March 2017, the president of programming Stephen Hill and executive vice president of original programming Zola Mashariki both stepped down. Connie Orlando, senior vice president of Specials, Music Programming, and News was named the interim president of programming.

In July 2017, Viacom signed new film and television development deals with Tyler Perry following the expiration of his existing pact with Discovery Inc. (now merged with WarnerMedia) in 2019. As part of this deal, Perry would produce The Oval and Sistas for BET and co-own the network’s newly launched streaming service, BET+.

In March 2023, it was reported that Paramount Global was exploring the sale of a majority stake in BET Networks in order to provide additional funding to its flagship streaming service Paramount+; Tyler Perry, as well as Sean “Puffy” Combs (who owns Revolt TV) and Byron Allen (who owns Entertainment Studios, TheGrio, and The Weather Channel), were identified as potential suitors. In August 2023, Paramount Global drops plans to sell its majority stake in BET Networks.

Programming

Other services
BET Walk of Fame Awards

The BET Walk of Fame Awards were established in 1995 by BET. In 2004, proceeds were shared between United Negro College Fund (UNCF) and the BET Foundation, which executes the Healthy BET obesity awareness campaign and other pro-social causes like the annual charitable black-tie BET Walk of Fame ceremony.

BET Interactive

In 2006, BET Interactive, LLC became a subsidiary of BET. BET also has a digital group including BET.com, BET on Blast, BET on Demand and BET Mobile.

BET Home Entertainment
BET’s programming is distributed on DVD and through video-on-demand services under the name BET Home Entertainment. In 2007, a distribution deal was arranged with Paramount Home Entertainment, a sister company of BET since 2001.

Sister Networks & International
Spin-offs

BET has launched several spin-off networks over the years, including BET Her (formerly known as “BET on Jazz”, then “BET J” and later “Centric”), BET Jams (formerly known as “MTV Jams”), and BET Soul (formerly known as “VH1 Soul”), alongside SHO×BET, a premium Showtime multiplex network.

In May 2019, a BET-branded channel was launched on Pluto TV, which was owned by ViacomCBS in March 2019. In June 2019, ViacomCBS announced the launch of BET+, a premium streaming service targeting the network’s African-American demographic. The service launched in the United States in Fall of 2019 with First Wives Club (which was originally planned to launch on Paramount Network before being shifted to BET) announced as one of the service’s original series.

BET Gospel is a television network in the United States that launched on July 1, 2002, and provides gospel and religious programming. The network, a spin-off of BET (Black Entertainment Television), mixes new and classic shows as well as original gospel-oriented programming. BET Gospel previously ran on an automated loop schedule. In 2016, the channel was updated with its programming now composed of recent uplifting music videos, as well as gospel-themed series and specials.

Current programming

Lifted (2016–present) (music videos)Being (2016–present)Bobby Jones Gospel (2002–present)Lift Every Voice (2002–present)Celebration of GospelIt’s a Mann’s World (2016–present)Let the Church Say Amen (2016–present)The Sheards (2016–present)T.D. Jakes Presents: Mind, Body, & Soul (2016–present)Sunday Best (2016–present)

BET Jams is an American pay television network that airs hip-hop and urban contemporary music videos on a thrice-daily automated wheel schedule of eight hours outside of temporary “roadblock” closures during Paramount Global awards events, with all of its programming currently denoted in hour blocks as BET Jams – Music Videos within electronic program guide listings.

The channel launched on May 1, 2002, as MTV Jams, and carried that name until October 5, 2015, and was placed under BET’s purview as MTV drifted away from music programming. The network space itself launched on August 1, 1998, as MTVX, carrying modern rock videos, and was re-focused around hip-hop music on that date, to some controversy from MTVX’s former viewers.

BET Hip-Hop
BET Hip-HopHistory
Launched July 1, 2002; 21 years ago[39]

BET Hip-Hop is a music video network owned by BET Networks which is exclusive to digital cable systems. It formerly aired some of BET’s original programming such as Rap City, ComicView and the network’s video countdown programs. After the 2015 relaunch of the former MTV Jams as BET Jams (which has much wider distribution), the channel’s programming was shifted to an automated playlist made up of BET’s library of older hip-hop videos. As part of Viacom’s 2017 restructuring plan, the network was speculated to slowly wind down operations over time.

BET International
Main article: BET International

BET UK first transmitted on Videotron (now known as Virgin Media) and several other subscription providers from 1993 until 1996.

In May 2007 by Ofcom, BET International Inc. was given a license to rebroadcast in the United Kingdom. BET International is the first international version of the channel and is available in Europe, Africa and the Middle East through satellite providers. BET launched on February 27, 2008, on Sky channel 191 and began to be carried by Freesat channel 140 on August 8, 2008. BET+1 is also available on Sky channel 198 and Freesat channel 141, and is free-to-air. BET International shows with a mix of content from the main BET channel and locally produced shows. An exclusive, but temporary, HD version of the channel was made to show the 2009 BET Awards on Freesat EPG 142.

BET is additionally an associate member of the Caribbean Cable Cooperative.

BET launched an app called BET Play allowing international access to BET content in over 100 countries in June 2016.

The channel was shut down on April 8, 2021, with its content moved to My5 and Pluto TV.

Canada

BET became available in Canada in October 1997 on most pay television providers. The Canadian feed mirrors the U.S. feed, though certain television programs and films are blacked out. Until 2017, they were replaced with repeats of old music video blocks (namely BET Music, The Pull Up and BET Now). As of May 2018, the feed now airs current music videos and other acquired sitcoms and films in place of blacked-out programs.

France
Main article: BET (France)

Introduced on November 17, 2015. BET France launched across a linear television channel alongside non-linear services including Bouygues Telecom, Canalsat, Numericable/SFR, and Free.