Cable TV outlet Black News Channel has abruptly shut down after two years on the air, and simply after hitting new viewership highs throughout this week’s affirmation hearings for Supreme Courtroom nominee Ketanji Brown Jackson.
In a memo to staff, CEO Princell Hair cited “difficult market circumstances and international monetary pressures” for the choice to wind down operations, in line with a number of reviews. The Nationwide Affiliation of Black Journalists, a distinguished commerce group, confirmed the shutdown in a weblog put up. It pledged to assist the roughly 200 staff affected by the transfer.
BNC was co-founded by former Oklahoma Congressman J.C. Watts and longtime TV government Bob Brillante. After years of planning, the community made its debut in 2020 after billionaire Jacksonville Jaguars proprietor Shahid “Shad” Khan signed on as a associate.
The Tallahassee, FL-based community initially launched in about 33 million households through cable and satellite tv for pc and finally bought to 50 million households. However a number of reviews indicated it couldn’t meet payroll obligations this week and would start airing outdated programming for the subsequent few weeks earlier than leaving the air altogether.
Final yr, BNC initiated a serious revamp, including a brand new morning present in addition to notable on-air commentators like Charles Blow and Marc Lamont Hill.
For all cable programmers, the wages of cord-cutting are persevering with to make life troublesome. As rankings maintain declining, so does income from promoting and distribution. Whereas money move is wholesome for a lot of well-entrenched networks, newer ones have grow to be susceptible. Giant media corporations like Disney, NBCUniversal and Paramount World have began to cull their portfolios, discontinuing a few of their less-robust networks.
The finish for BNC was reported simply hours after the corporate was celebrating success with the Supreme Courtroom nomination hearings. A tweet from the community’s official deal with, which is pinned to the highest of its feed, notes an “all-time viewership report,” including, “THANK YOU ! Let’s Maintain the momentum going – watch 15 minutes every day!”
