MTV to launch gay channel
MTV Networks announced yesterday that it's launching a 24-hour cable television network targeting gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender viewers.
LOGO, which is scheduled to launch Feb. 17, will be advertiser-supported and available in major markets including Greater Boston (on
Tom Freston, chairman and chief executive of MTV Networks, told reporters in a conference call yesterday that the channel has been in development for a while and its timing was not linked to the date when same-sex marriages became legal in Massachusetts.
"Creating a network specifically for the LGBT community is something we've wanted to do for a long time," he said. "Despite our nation's progress on civil rights and the growing visibility of gay people in business, society, and even in television programming, what has been missing is a full-time home for this important and influential audience on television," he said.
Stephen Macias, a spokesman for the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation, said his group is "delighted and excited." "Cable TV is about serving niche markets, but the LGBT community doesn't have a channel," he said. "It's long overdue."
Robert Thompson, director of the Center for the Study of Popular Television at Syracuse University, said such a network was "inevitable" since so many cable channels were finding success with gay-themed programming, including Bravo's "Queer Eye for the Straight Guy" and Showtime's "Queer as Folk." "If the success of `Queer Eye' is any indication, this network won't just appeal to a gay audience," he said.
To be sure, not everyone was pleased with the announcement. Peter Sprigg, senior director of policy studies at the Family Research Council in Washington, said his activist group was "opposed but not surprised."
"I think this will only add pressure to the call for an unbundling of cable TV so people can purchase what they want," he said. "I'm certain that a lot of families don't want their kids to have access to this channel."
LOGO won't be the first gay-themed channel on the air. In August 2003, a pay-per-view movie network called Here! launched as a digital satellite service.
MTV Networks, owned by
Although executives declined to release details about pending shows, they said the basic cable channel would have the same content standards as other networks. If programs such as "Queer as Folk" were acquired from premium cable networks, they would have to be edited. "This is not a network about sex and sexuality," said Freston. "There will be talk shows and documentaries. A lot of the fare here straight people will find interesting."
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SUZANNE C. RYAN
Globe on NECN
Here's what's happening on "Around the Globe" today on NECN:
9:30 a.m.: "Talk of New England"
12:30 p.m.: "Globe at Home" -- Wendy Fox and personal trainer John Pantera of Fitness Together on how to get in shape at any age.
4 p.m.: "Around the Globe"
6:30 p.m.: "New England Business Day"
8 p.m.: "NewsNight"
Schedule is subject to change.
Talk of the dial
6 a.m. WBIX-AM (1060) -- "Early Exchange" with Dave Anthony and Bonnie Bleidt. Guest: Dr. Chris Kryder, president, D2Hawkeye, discusses his Wellesley company, which provides software for the self-funded health care market.
5 p.m. WPLM-AM (1390) -- "PM Magazine" with Lindsy Parker. Guests: Winners of the SBANE New England Innovation Awards; George Muzea, market analyst, on where to invest now; David Rourke, on a relaxing transition to retirement.
Other radio highlights
Noon WUMB-FM (91.9) -- "Live at Noon" with Marilyn Rea Beyer. Guests: the Mercy Brothers.
