A CYNOPSIS MESSAGE FROM DISCOVERY

CONGRATS TO THE LOS ANGELES RAMS

THE NFC CHAMPIONSHIP WAS THE ONLY THING BETWEEN TLC WINNING SUNDAY NIGHT ON ALL OF TELEVISION

Driven by Successful Hits:
90 Day Fiancé: Before the 90 Days and Sister Wives

Today’s Premieres
Comedy Central: South Park at 8p
Fuse: True Dating Stories at 10p
Hulu: Pam & Tommy
Netflix: Dark Desire; MeatEater

Today’s Finale
Discovery: Growing Belushi at 10p

IN THE NEWS

As coverage of the Winter Games begins, Comcast is offering a simplified way for viewers to sift through the 2800+ hours of Olympics coverage available across the company’s entertainment platforms, including Xfinity X1, Xfinity Flex and XClass TV. Customers can say “Olympics” into their device’s voice remote to access live and on-demand coverage through Peacock’s Premium tier; an Olympics hub offers quick access to live coverage, highlights and replays, documentaries, and more. The hub also features a daily schedule of events. “We’re making it easy for fans across the country to find their favorite Winter Olympics events and witness the incredible stories of Team USA and athletes across the world,” said Rebecca Heap, SVP, Consumer Products and Propositions, Comcast Cable.

Spectrum announced a multi-platform content offering for NBCUniversal’s coverage of the Olympics. Spectrum’s video subscribers will have access to NBCUniversal’s Winter Olympics programming, including coverage of all competition sessions, on-demand.

AT&T announced it will spin off WarnerMedia as part of its $43 billion merger with Discovery, giving shareholders 0.24 shares for each AT&T share they own. After the spinoff, the annual per-share dividend will drop to $1.11, from $2.08. “In evaluating the form of distribution, we were guided by one objective — executing the transaction in the most seamless manner possible to support long-term value generation,” said AT&T CEO John Stankey. “We are confident the spin-off achieves that objective because it’s simple, efficient and results in AT&T shareholders owning shares of both companies, each of which will have the ability to drive better returns in a manner consistent with their respective market opportunities.” AT&T stock fell 4.3% to close at 24.41.

“Hell’s Kitchen” was renewed for seasons 21 and 22 on Fox. The reality series was the number one cooking show on TV last year among A18-49, with a total multiplatform audience up 8% from season 19, and up 48% in streaming audience.

Dating series “The Courtship” has flown the coop. Originally set for Peacock, the series – formerly known as “Pride & Prejudice: An Experiment in Romance” – landed instead at NBCUniversal sib NBC, where it will make its debut Sunday, March 6 at 8p (and stream on Peacock the following day). The series follows a heroine sorting through a group of hopeful suitors with the help of a castle, carriage rides and handwritten letters.

“Don Lemon Tonight” host Don Lemon will host “The Don Lemon Show” on upcoming streaming service CNN+. Can you tell he’s excited? “I’ve been enamored by talk shows since I was a child,” said Lemon. “I’d hide the remote and made my siblings watch Johnny Carson. I wanted to be him. And then I discovered Phil Donahue and it all clicked. ‘Caller, you’re on the air.’ A talk show centered around news, current events and everyday provocative topics – I watched every single day! Same with Oprah. Time now for this generation’s version of that great tradition.”

Prime Video will be debuting its first “Thursday Night Football” brand advertisement during the Super Bowl. Created in partnership with Wieden + Kennedy, the spot kicks off a series of upcoming reveals around “Thursday Night Football” on Prime Video. “Thursday Night Football” starts streaming this September in the first year of an 11-year agreement with the National Football League.

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ENTRY DEADLINE: FEBRUARY 16
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PRODUCTION & DEVELOPMENT

“Swimming with Sharks,” a scripted drama series about the dark side of the Hollywood studio system, will make its debut on The Roku Channel this April. The Roku Original stars Diane Kruger (“Inglourious Basterds”) and Kiernan Shipka (“Chilling Adventures of Sabrina.” “Historically, Hollywood has always represented reinvention, rebirth. Starting over. There has never been a better time to embrace that,” said showrunner and creator Kathleen Robertson. “My goal was to subvert this story and come at if from a place of both wonder and corruption, through the eyes of two complex female perspectives.”

AMC has greenlit two new original series for 2023, “Demascus” and “Invitation to a Bonfire,” developed as part of AMC’s “scripts-to-series” model. The first season of each AMC Studios series will include six episodes, to appear next year on AMC+ and AMC. “Demascus,” an exploration of life as an ordinary Black man in America, is executive produced by Mark Johnson’s Gran Via Productions (“Better Call Saul”) and created by Tearrance Arvelle Chisholm (“Boomerang”); Kirk Moore (“American Crime”) is showrunner. Based on the novel by Adrienne Celt, “Invitation to a Bonfire” is a psychological thriller set in the 1930s at an all-girls boarding school in New Jersey. The series is from creator and executive producer Rachel Caris Love (“Physical, Blindspot”), who is also showrunner. Robin Schwartz and Kyle Laursen are executive producers.

“Dear Edward” is a go at Apple TV+. The drama, written and produced by Jason Katims, reunites him with “Friday Night Lights” star Connie Britton. Also along for the ride are Taylor Schilling (“Pam and Tommy”) and Colin O’Brien (“Wonka”).

“The Game” has been renewed for season two, announced Paramount+ during its TCA 2022 presentation. The reboot of the 2006-15 dramedy looks at Black culture through the prism of pro football.

Comedy “Guru Nation,” starring “Mr. Show with Bob and David” duo Bob Odenkirk (“Better Call Saul”) and David Cross (“Arrested Development”), is in development at Paramount+. Co-creators Odenkirk and Cross star as rival cult gurus. Also in the works at Paramount+ is a TV adaptation of the 1980 film “Urban Cowboy” and a remake of 1983’s “Flashdance.”

MTV Entertainment Group has inked a multi-picture deal with Gunpowder & Sky, founded by Van Toffler, former CEO of Viacom Media Networks Music & Logo Group. “They say the perp should never return to the scene of the crime, but here I go returning to my old home that was insane enough to allow me to make diverse and outrageous comedies,” said Toffler. “So, if Chris McCarthy and the rest of the gang at ViacomCBS are silly enough to give me the keys to the car once again, how could our studio not jump on that opportunity. Strap in!”

Twenty eight years after the original series was produced, cult classic animation “Swat-Kats” is making a comeback. Show creators Christian and Yvon Tremblay have teamed up with Toonz Media Group to produce a new series featuring anthropomorphic feline fighters. “Swat-Kats Revolution” will be co-produced by Tremblay Bros. and Toonz Media Group, and targeted at 5 to 11-year-olds.

TV festival SeriesFest is taking its “Pitch-A-Thon” on the road. The creative competition, traditionally a signature event at SeriesFest in Denver, Colorado, is traveling to new markets including Austin and Chicago in March, providing creatives in those areas an opportunity to participate in a live pitch session with television, new media and digital media executives in hopes of moving their unproduced projects forward.

BHM HIGHLIGHTS

Fox and Tubi celebrate Black History Month with a digital documentary, “Making History in Hollywood,” showcasing Fox talent. Available on Tubi this February, the Fox digital documentary features Malcolm-Jamal Warner (“The Resident”), Brian Michael Smith and Sierra McClain (“9-1-1: Lone Star”), Dulcé Sloan (“The Great North”), Kyla Pratt (“Call Me Kat”), and Karin Gist and Debbi Morgan (“Our Kind of People”), as they discuss their triumphs and personal experiences working in Hollywood, while spotlighting notable figures who inspired them. Fox will also debut a special Black History Month anthem as part of #TVFORALL.

Haystack News announced the launch of a streaming channel covering Black History Month, which will run the entirety of February. Local, national and worldwide coverage from Haystack’s news content partners will offer 24/7 news for free AVOD viewing.

Disney+, Hulu and ESPN+ are marking Black History Month with new content and collections across the Disney bundle. Among the highlights: Disney+ is expanding its “Celebrate Black Stories” collection; Onyx Collective and Searchlight Pictures’ doc “Summer of Soul (…or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised)” begins streaming Tuesday, February 8 on Disney+; Hulu will offer new content in its Black Stories hub; and ESPN+ is re-launching its Black History Always Collection.

TBS, TNT, and truTV announced the official launch of the MORE initiative, a campaign highlighting content that celebrates all cultures and showcases diverse stories and voices. In celebration of Black History Month, the TNets will showcase MORE’s first digital series, including “Taste the Culture with Justin Sutherland,” following the “Fast Foodies” chef; discussion show “Points Were Made; “Securing the Bag,” centered on Black college athletes learning how to monetize themselves; and animated “Focket Fyre.” “Over a year ago the team asked what more we could do to show up as an equitable and inclusive culture? The answer was this multilayered commitment to elevating and supporting BIPOC creators and their stories,” said Brett Weitz, General Manager of TBS, TNT and truTV. “This isn’t simply a promise or a campaign; it’s part of the TNets DNA and will continue to be on display as these underrepresented audiences are showcased and highlighted throughout TNets branding campaigns, social media verticals, publicity efforts and TV series.”

Documentary “Frederick Douglass: In Five Speeches” premieres Wednesday, February 23 at 9p on HBO. The show is inspired by David Blight’s biography, Frederick Douglass: Prophet of Freedom.

CBS Reports special “Trayvon Martin: 10 Years Later” will debut on the CBS News Streaming Network and the Smithsonian Channel on Saturday, February 26 and on BET on Monday, February 28 at 8p. Gayle King anchors hour-long special, which looks back at the killing of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin and how it became a turning point for how Americans view and confront the deaths of young Black men.

AMC Networks has rolled out its 9th annual Black History Month Public Service Announcement campaign, in partnership with members of the Congressional Black Caucus and Color of Change, the online racial justice organization. The spots air across the company’s networks and platforms under the theme “A Closer Look at the Black Experience,” and feature eight U.S. Members of Congress from the CBC addressing issues that impact the Black community.

Documentary streaming service MagellanTV is offering a curated a playlist of documentaries and docuseries that showcase the breadth and depth of the Black experience in America. The collection of films highlights influential Black luminaries throughout time as well as important moments in Black history.

NEW & RETURNING SERIES

“Inside the Black Box” launches on Crackle on Thursday, February 17. The 10-episode series, hosted by Joe Morton (“Scandal”) and acting coach, casting director, and producer Tracey Moore, spotlights the world’s greatest artists of color, and reflects on how one’s complexion impacted their journey to success in the entertainment industry.

Apple TV+ bilingual thriller series “Now and Then” premieres Friday, May 20. The Miami-set, 8-episode series was shot in Spanish and English and will debut with the first three episodes, followed by one new episode every Friday.

“Life & Beth,” written, executive produced by and starring Amy Schumer (“I Feel Pretty”), premieres Friday, March 18 on Hulu with all 10 episodes.

The fifth season of the ABC iteration of “American Idol” premieres Sunday, February 27 at 8p. Judges Luke Bryan, Katy Perry and Lionel Richie return, along with host Ryan Seacrest.

COMING UP

MeTV and DECADES Networks will remember actor Howard Hesseman with special programming. DECADES kicks off a weekend binge of tribute episodes of “WKRP in Cincinnati” beginning on February 5, at 12p, while MeTV will feature special “WKRP” episodes featuring Hesseman on Sunday, February 6 at 4p and 4:30p. Hesseman died January 29 at 81.

FilmRise has acquired Kiwi indie film “The Justice of Bunny King.” The film had its worldwide premiere at the 2021 Tribeca Film Festival and stars Essie Davis (“The Babadook”) and Thomas McKenzie (“JoJo Rabbit”).

Showtime Documentary Films landed worldwide rights to “Nothing Compares.” The film charts Sinéad O?Connor?s rise to fame and examines how she used her voice at the height of her stardom before she was exiled from the pop mainstream.

TECH TALK

Roku is adding Nielsen’s Digital Ad Ratings audience guarantees to OneView, its cross-screen streaming ad buying platform – just in time for upfront season. OneView aims to enable Nielsen guarantees across TV streaming. “We believe that all TV ads will be streamed and that all TV ad measurement will be automated. Now, upfront advertisers in OneView will be among the first to see audience overlap across major devices, channels, and publishers on their plan,” said Louqman Parampath, VP of Product Management. “Our goal is to offer diverse tech and measurement offerings that move the industry forward.”

Alphabet reported better-than-expected 4Q21 earnings, and set a 20-for-1 stock split for July. Revenue hit $75.33 billion, versus a projected $72.17 billion. Google’s advertising revenue was $61.24 billion for the quarter, versus $46.2 billion in the year-ago quarter. The company’s “deep investment in AI technologies continues to drive extraordinary and helpful experiences for people and businesses, across our most important products,” said Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai. “Q4 saw ongoing strong growth in our advertising business, which helped millions of businesses thrive and find new customers, a quarterly sales record for our Pixel phones despite supply constraints, and our Cloud business continuing to grow strongly.”

Simulmedia has launched a new platform, TV Plus, that provides advertisers and media buyers with access to cable, broadcast and streaming commercial inventory. The platform automates planning, buying, activation and measurement and guarantees that advertisers target TV viewers at scale no matter how they’re consuming programming.

Tubular Labs’ introduced a new eCommerce product, Consumer Insights, connecting social video viewership with viewers’ shopping behaviors. Tying social viewership to Amazon purchases, findings include:
· People who watch videos about home automation are 36 times more likely to shop for cleaning supplies.
· The top three categories watched for candy shoppers include: travel, family & parenting and food & drink.
· Toothpaste shoppers are most likely to watch Beauty content.
· Disney Media Networks can now claim an estimated addressable audience of 56 million Health and Household shoppers.
· Barstool Sports audience, over-indexes on key categories like Video Games (4.1x shopping affinity), Electronics (2.2x), and Clothing (1.5x).

Google has stopped serving ads on the website of right-wing commentator and Fox News host Dan Bongino. “We have strict publisher policies in place that explicitly prohibit misleading and harmful content around the COVID-19 pandemic and demonstrably false claims about our elections,” said Google. “When publishers persistently breach our policies, we stop serving Google ads on their sites.” After his Google AdSense account was revoked, Bongino’s show’s Twitter account tweeted, “We deeply appreciate your efforts to try & silence us, it presents the perfect foil for the free speech parallel economy.”

STREAMING

Fox Entertainment and Hulu announced a new program output deal enabling Hulu to stream all out-of-season episodes of a number of Fox series, including all of the network’s unscripted content. That includes “The Masked Singer,” “LEGO Masters,” “Name that Tune,” “MasterChef” and more. The deal also includes future unscripted programming. “This deal proudly continues the Fox/Hulu partnership. Hulu continues to be a great place for fans to catch-up on, and even discover, Fox’s iconic, talked-about stories and characters,” said Fox Entertainment CEO Charlie Collier.

Will ViacomCBS sibs Paramount+ and Showtime combine their streaming programming? “We’re incredibly thrilled and proud of their success because we really feel the brands complement each other, they’re not in competition,” said Nicole Clemens, President of Paramount+ Original Scripted Series, at a TCA event. “There’s already bundling around Showtime and Paramount+ and that’s going to continue to evolve… I think we’re looking at all of our options.”

FAST Studios unveiled a plan to build the Women’s Sports Network, a free, ad-supported, 24/7 streaming destination where fans will find women’s sports content around the clock. To complement the array of programming from its content partners, Women’s Sports Network will produce flagship daily and weekly women’s sports news, talk and highlights shows.

DistroTV is laying claim to being the first FAST platform to debut an original feature film with the global premiere of its new Hispanic film, “Escándalo Secreto: En Plena Cuarentena.” The comedy, directed and written by Jorge Cano, will hit the DistroTV screen for its global premiere on Friday, February 25.

AccuWeather NOW is joining LG Channels’ roster of over 300 channels. LG users can now access AccuWeather’s forecasts as well as continuous daily programming, dedicated to all things weather.

GOING GLOBAL

A+E Networks EMEA has launched streaming service History Play in Hungary. The SVOD brand will offer documentaries and premium factual entertainment and will be available through RTL Most+. The launch marks the premiere of the brand in the Central-Eastern European region.

White Spark Pictures, the TV and VR production company, has been granted exclusive access by the Australian Antarctic Division to join the maiden resupply voyage of its $528 million icebreaker to begin filming a two-hour documentary series, “Birth of an Icebreaker: RSV Nuyina.”

Corus Entertainment has purchased a majority stake in Aircraft Pictures Limited. “Bringing Aircraft Pictures’ demonstrated creative capabilities and entrepreneurial talents into the Corus orbit will help to accelerate our strategy of expanding our global content business,” said Colin Bohm, EVP of Content & Corporate Strategy, Corus Entertainment.

Canada’s Quebecor Content will air the Quebec adaptation of “I’m a Celebrity…Get Me Out of Here!” this fall. The reality series, produced by Productions Deferlantes in collaboration with Quebecor Content, is inspired by the ITV Studios format.

Plimsoll Productions announced that its Channel 4 competition series “Handmade: Britain’s Best Woodworker” is going Stateside under the title “Handmade: Good with Wood.” Channel 4 ordered two new seasons after the series earned the highest audience for a new show in the primetime slot in over four years.

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RATINGS

Fox’s broadcast of the Rams/49ers game last weekend drew 50.4 million viewers, the most for an NFC Championship game in eight years. At CBS, the Bengals/Chiefs match-up delivered 47.9 million viewers, a six-year high for the early afternoon slot.

“Janet Jackson” averaged 3.1 million total viewers across its premiere airings on Lifetime and A&E, cable’s best non-fiction debut since ESPN/ESPN2’s”The Last Dance” (4/19/20 – 5/17/20) with total viewers, A25-54, A18-49, W25-54 and W18-49. The delivery on Lifetime marked the net’s best non-fiction performance since “Surviving R. Kelly” (1/3/19 -1/5/19) with total viewers, A25-54, A18-49, W25-54 and W18-49. And on A&E, part 4 was the network’s most-watched telecast since “Biography: WWE Legends” with A25-54 (4/18/21).

Spectrum News reached over 2.9 million daily viewing households across all digital and linear platforms in January, the highest number of cross-platform households since February 2021. Also in January, the Spectrum News App surpassed 1.8 million total downloads since its July 2020 launch.

In syndication, sophomore “The Drew Barrymore Show” (season high 0.6, up 20% from last year at this time) scored the biggest year-over-year improvement of any show in original production. “The Good Dish” (debut week 0.4), the replacement for “the Dr. Oz Show in most markets, drew ratings 33% below those earned by “Oz” the week before.

Fox News Channel marked its milestone 20th consecutive year as the number one cable news network in total day and primetime, according to Nielsen. Since January 2002, FNC has remained the most-watched cable news network across both dayparts with total viewers and in the A25-54 demo.

Fox Business Network’s weekday market-close program, “Kudlow,” ended the month of January delivering its highest-rated telecast since the show’s inception in February 2021, with 263,000 viewers for the month, according to Nielsen.

Broadcast Nielsen Top 10 M-F Syndicated Strip Series for the week of January 17, ranked in order by HH Rtg
Jeopardy (CMV) 6.6 AA
Wheel of Fortune (CMV) 6.0 AA
Family Feud (CMV) 5.8 AA
Judge Judy (CMV) 5.9 AA
Inside Edition (CMV) 2.4 AA
The Big Bang Theory (WB) 2.3 AA
Entertainment Tonight (CMV) 2.2 AA
The Dr. Phil Show (CMV) 1.8 AA
Live With Kelly and Ryan (DAD) 1.7 AA
Hot Bench (CMV) 1.6 AA

Basic Cable Nielsen Top 5 for the week of January 24
Show, P2+ 000s
Prime Time
Fox News 40
MSNBC 1258
HGTV 1220
TNT 963
Hallmark Channel 949
Total Day
Fox News 1549
MSNBC 675
HGTV 645
ESPN 579
Hallmark Channel 529

Broadcast Nielsen Ratings for Monday, January 31
Show, P2+ 000s, (A18-49)
ABC: The Bachelor 3.54 (0.8), The Promised Land 1.77 (0.2)
CBS: The Neighborhood 4.23 (0.5), Bob Hearts Abishola 3.73 (0.4), NCIS 4.11 (0.4), NCIS: Hawai’I 3.08 (0.3)
CW: March 0.29 (0.1), 4400 0.31 (0.1)
Fox: 9-1-1: Lone Star 6.01 (0.8), The Cleaning Lady 3.55 (0.5)
NBC: Kenan 1.98 (0.3), Kenan1.49 (0.2), That’s My Jam 2.36 (0.4), Celebrating Betty White 4.27 (0.5)
Telemundo: Exatlon Estados Unidos 1.25 (0.4), Hercal: Amor y Venganza 1.29 (0.4),
Univision: Soltero con Hijas 1.61 (0.5), Vencer el Pasado 1.77 (0.5), Madre 1.50 (0.4)
Source: Nielsen live + same day time period averages

EXECUTIVE MOVES

Channing Dungey, Chairman, Warner Bros. Television Group,and George Cheeks, President and CEO, CBS Entertainment; have been named new chair’s appointees to the Television Academy Executive Committee.

Endemol Shine Australia announced three promotions: Executive Producer Tara McWilliams becomes Director of Content; Executive Producer David McDonald is elevated to Head of Comedy; and Executive Producer, Scripted Sara Richardson has been promoted to Head of Scripted.

Animation studio ZAG has appointed Carlotta Caracciolo as its first VP, Middle East and Africa. Most recently, Caracciolo served as Head of Sales and Licensing, Middle East and Africa, at MGA Entertainment.

Joe Lancaster, Ph.D. has been named Chief Strategy Officer at OpenVault. Lancaster had held the Chief Strategy Officer position at VelociData prior to the company’s acquisition by OpenVault.

Cream Productions has appointed Sahba Li as Director of Development and Jane Churchill as Development Executive.

Aviv Giladi has joined DAZN Group as President of Broadcast Partnerships. Giladi served as Chairman and CEO of AI Film Ltd.

This Day in History
1892 – William Painter patented the bottle cap.

Answer to Our Last Trivia Question
What was Ted Knight’s first starring role in a sitcom, following his Emmy-winning run in a supporting role on “The Mary Tyler Moore Show”? Roger Dennis in “The Ted Knight Show” (1978). Kudos to: Rev. Mark Wajda/Clermont, FL; Charles Lore/NYC; John Kukla-KDFW/Dallas; Synda Kollman-Charter Marketing Group/Boca Raton, FL; Jerry Gibbons-Cox Communications/Providence, RI; David Hauptman/Denver; Tom Moore-Kalt Productions/LA; David Westberg-SAG-AFTRA Credit Union/Burbank

Today’s Trivia Question
What was Adam Cartwright’s occupation on “Bonanza” (1959-73)? (Email trivia@cynopsis.com with your answer and be sure to include your name, company, city and time zone. Unofficial rules: a limit of four answers per time zone.)

Cynopsis Team