Today’s Premieres

Food Network: Undercover Chef at 10p
HGTV: Flipping Across America at 9p
SundanceNow: Blinded
WE tv: Marriage Boot Camp: Hip Hop Edition at 9p

Today’s Finales
NBC: Council of Dads at 8p
Travel Channel: Ghost Adventures: Quarantine at 9p

Friday’s Premieres
HGTV: My Lottery Dream Home: Scratch Offs at 8:30p, Color Splash: Hot or Not? at 9p
Netflix: The Babysitters Club
PBS: Washington Week at 8p, Firing Line With Margaret Hoover at 8:30p

Saturday’s Premiere
Animal Planet: Furever Home Family at 8:30a

Sunday’s Premieres
BET: Sunday Best at 8p
HGTV: Beach Around the World at 10p and 10:30p
History: America: Our Defining Hours at 9p
Nat Geo: Wicked Tuna: Outer Banks at 9p
Science Channel: Unearthed: Seven Wonders at 8p
Showtime: Outcry at 10p

Sunday’s Finales
Hallmark Channel: Good Witch at 9p
NBC: Hollywood Game Night at 8p
Travel Channel: Paranormal Caught on Camera at 9p

IN THE NEWS

NBCUniversal streamer Peacock struck a content licensing agreement with ViacomCBS. Series including Ray Donovan, The Affair, Charmed, Undercover Boss, The Game, Everybody Hates Chris and Real Husbands of Hollywood will be available to stream on Peacock with the launch of the service on July 15, while continuing to be available on ViacomCBS platforms. Films from Paramount’s library will stream on Peacock in limited exclusivity windows throughout 2021, 2022, and 2023. “We are truly excited to bring some of the most popular movies and series from across the ViacomCBS family of brands to Peacock,” said Frances Manfredi, President, Content Acquisition and Strategy, Peacock. “We continue to expand the Peacock catalog with premium programming from NBCUniversal and beyond; partnering with companies like ViacomCBS to ensure that all of our viewers can choose from the best entertainment options available in the market today.” Dan Cohen, President, ViacomCBS Global Distribution Group, said the partnership “is consistent with our strategy to maximize the value of our content by selectively licensing our library product to third parties while prioritizing franchise IP for our own platforms.”

DISH has officially jumped into the retail wireless market with the completion of its $1.4 billion acquisition of Boost Mobile from T-Mobile. “This marks an important milestone in DISH’s evolution as a connectivity company,” said Erik Carlson, President and CEO, DISH. “It positions us well as we continue to build out the first virtualized, standalone 5G network in America.” John Swieringa, who serves as Group President, Retail Wdf ireless and COO, DISH, will lead Boost Mobile.

Comedy legend Carl Reiner died June 29 from natural causes. He was 98. In addition to hit films, Reiner created The Dick Van Dyke Show, won two Emmys as a cast member of Your Show of Shows and had numerous guest roles on television. “My idol, Carl Reiner, wrote about the human comedy. He had a deeper understanding of the human condition, than I think even he was aware of. Kind, gentle, compassionate, empathetic and wise. His scripts were never just funny, they always had something to say about us,” tweeted Dick Van Dyke. CBS will pay tribute to Reiner with a colorized Dick Van Dyke Show special tomorrow, July 3 at 8p.

Fox News fired Ed Henry, co-anchor of America’s Newsroom, following a complaint the network received on June 25 from a former employee’s attorney, alleging willful sexual misconduct in the workplace years ago. Henry was suspended immediately, and following an investigation of the claims, has been terminated. Rotating news anchors will co-anchor America’s Newsroom with Sandra Smith for the time being. Henry was on a leave of absence for four months in 2017 following a cheating scandal involving a Las Vegas cocktail waitress.

WarnerMedia informed employees that CNN Center in downtown Atlanta is going on the market. “We are consolidating our WarnerMedia Atlanta operations in our recently renovated and redesigned Techwood campus. This will increase collaboration and optimize use of Techwood, which was created to be a state-of-the-art hub for our diverse business portfolio,” said the company. “As part of these changes we are selling the CNN Center.” After the property is sold, WarnerMedia said it will lease it back for at least five years, so “there will be no immediate impact to employees” working there.

With revenue rising from digital subscriptions, the New York Times is ending its partnership with Apple’s curated news app, Apple News. “Core to a healthy model between The Times and the platforms is a direct path for sending those readers back into our environments, where we control the presentation of our report, the relationships with our readers and the nature of our business rules,” Meredith Kopit Levien, COO, wrote in a memo to employees. “Our relationship with Apple News does not fit within these parameters.” The Times will continue to work with Apple on apps, podcasts and hardware. Apple spokesperson Tom Nemayr said the paper had “only offered Apple News a few stories per day.”

SAG-AFTRA’s national board approved a new three-year TV and film contract that includes a 26% gain in streaming residuals, wage increases, an increase in funding for the unions benefit plans and improvements in protections for performers working in the nude. The agreement now goes to the members for ratification. The WGA and the AMPTP have also struck a tentative deal for a new TV and film contract. The agreement is headed to members of the guild for approval.

SNL alum Jay Pharoah is set to host Nickelodeon’s Unfiltered (previously Game Face). The remotely produced six-episode game show features panelists who must guess the identities of virtually disguised celebrity guests. Premiere date: Saturday, July 11, at 8:30p.

NBC’s annual Macy’s 4th of July Fireworks Spectacular starts at 8p on Saturday, hosted by Today’s Craig Melvin. Black Eyed Peas, the Killers, Lady A, John Legend, Tim McGraw and Brad Paisley will take the stage before the fireworks begin in NYC; an encore presentation will follow at 10p. To prevent crowds during the pandemic, the spectacle was reimagined as a series of neighborhood shows, with fireworks displays that launched unannounced starting June 29 at land- or water-based locations across the city.

MTV is moving forward with the 2020 Video Music Awards ceremony at NYC’s Barclays Center on Saturday, August 30. “The health and safety of artists, fans, industry, staff, and partners is of the utmost importance,” said the network. “Show producers alongside Barclays Center management have been working closely with state and local officials to implement best practices for everyone involved.”

Golf’s US Open is returning to NBC, which televised the event from 1995 until 2014. Fox Sports signed a 12-year contract with the USGA, but NBC bought the rights to the final seven years, through 2026. This year’s event was postponed until September due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Unilever is halting all advertising on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter in the US at least through the end of the year. “Continuing to advertise on these platforms at this time would not add value to people and society,” said Luis Di Como, Unilever EVP of Global Media. “We will be monitoring ongoing and will revisit our current position if necessary.” Last year, Unilever spent over $42 million in advertising on Facebook, according to Pathmatics.

Shortly after Unilever’s announcement. Facebook said it is adopting Twitter’s stance on content posted by politicians that violate its policies: Keep the content, since speech from politicians is often in the public interest, but flag it with a warning label. Facebook is also banning a wider category of hateful content in ads, and taking measures to prevent new forms of voter suppression, said CEO Mark Zuckerberg on Friday.

Still, Facebook is facing a one-month adverting boycott, #StopHateForProfit, over its policy on hate speech. Over 400 brands participating. Nick Clegg, VP of Global Affairs and Communications, said in a letter that while “there is no incentive” for Facebook to do anything but remove hateful content, “With so much content posted every day, rooting out the hate is like looking for a needle in a haystack. We invest billions of dollars each year in people and technology to keep our platform safe….We may never be able to prevent hate from appearing on Facebook entirely, but we are getting better at stopping it all the time.”

Twitch and Reddit have banned certain content from President Trump. “Hateful conduct is not allowed on Twitch,” the statement said. “In line with our policies, President Trump’s channel has been issued a temporary suspension from Twitch for comments made on stream, and the offending content has been removed.” Said Reddi CEO Steve Huffman in a blog post, “All communities on Reddit must abide by our content policy in good faith. We banned r/The_Donald because it has not done so, despite every opportunity. The community has consistently hosted and upvoted more rule-breaking content than average (Rule 1), antagonized us and other communities (Rules 2 and 8), and its mods have refused to meet our most basic expectations.”

NBCUniversal Owned Television Stations’ Clear The Shelters pet adoption campaign will run from August 1 to August 31. The “Adopt & Donate” effort, the sixth for NBC and Telemundo owned stations, will feature virtual pet adoptions.

Former ESPN radio host and commentator Will Cain has been named co-host of Fox News’ FOX & Friends Weekend. Cain will make his official debut on Saturday, August 15 with co-hosts Jedediah Bila and Pete Hegseth. FOX & Friends Weekend has featured a rotating co-host since Tucker Carlson moved to early primetime in 2016, then to the 8p timeslot in 2017.

ViacomCBS and Sinclair Broadcast Group inked a multi-year agreement to renew eight CBS network affiliations for Sinclair stations, and also reached an agreement to renew the affiliation of WTVH in Syracuse, NY to which Sinclair provides services. The 9 markets combined reach 3% of the U.S. audience.

Mary Calvi has joined Inside Edition as weekend anchor and substitute for Deborah Norville. Calvin will continue to co-anchor WCBS New York’s CBS 2 News This Morning and CBS 2 News at Noon.

Charter Communications is adding five Latino targeted TV networks, Kids Central, ¡HOLA! TV, Inglés Para Todos, Tarima TV and Hogar de HGTV, to its Spectrum TV lineup. The networks will be available at no additional cost to subscribers of Spectrum’s Mi Plan Latino and Latino View TV packages.

We’re searching for the most innovative executives in digital media who excel in digital content, marketing, advertising, social media to take their place on Cynopsis Digital’s “It List.” These are the people who shake up the status quo and are shaping digital media’s future.

NOMINATE BY AUG 11th

Curb Your Enthusiasm has been renewed for season eleven on HBO. Larry David will exec produce alongside Jeff Garlin, Jeff Schaffer and Gavin Pone. “Believe me, I’m as upset about this as you are,” said David. “One day I can only hope that HBO will come to their senses and grant me the cancellation I so richly deserve.”

HGTV ordered six episodes of new series Rehab Addict Rescue, starring home renovator and preservationist Nicole Curtis, star of DIY Network and HGTV’s Rehab Addict. Cameras will follow Curtis as she travels the country to mentor families who are overwhelmed by daunting historic home renovations. The show is slated to premiere in early 2021.

Netflix announced a limited series from Ava DuVernay based on Colin Kaepernick’s younger years. Kaepernick will appear in the series; Michael Starrbury (When They See Us) will write and exec produce. “The series will focus on Kaepernick’s formative high school years, lending meaningful insight into the acts and experiences that led him to become the activist he is today,” said Netflix.

Netflix also ordered a second season of teen comedy Never Have I Ever, co-created by Mindy Kaling and Lang Fisher. Streaming is slated to start in 2021.

Comedy Central signed an expansive deal with Mike Judge to reimagine MTV’s Beavis and Butt-Head, as well as additional spin-offs and specials. The network ordered two seasons of the new iteration, which sees the characters entering a whole new Gen Z world. The new series will target new and old fans – Gen X parents and their Gen Z kids, with Judge is set to write, produce and provide voiceover for both characters. “It seemed like the time was right to get stupid again,” said Judge.

Landmark Studio Group, a Chicken Soup for the Soul Entertainment company, and Louisiana-based production studio, ORWO Studios (Twilight, The Magnificent Seven) will partner on the production of a new supernatural thriller series, Safehaven, created by James Seale (30 Below, Throttle) who will serve as showrunner with Brad Turner (24, Designated Survivor, Homeland) onboard to direct.

NBC ordered spacecraft drama Debris, following two agents from two different continents working together to investigate the wreckage from an alien spacecraft. Production on the pilot had been completed before the coronavirus shutdown. Legendary Television will produce with Universal Television.

Pre-production is underway for additional episodes of Food Network series Amy Schumer Learns to Cook. The initial batch of self-shot episodes averaged a 0.6 P25-54 in Live+3 ratings.

E! greenlit new projects including Celebrity Call Center, an advice show executive produced by Nick Cannon premiering Monday, July 13 at 10p, and 10 Things You Don’t Know, a celebrity countdown series set to debut Monday, August 10 at 10p. Additionally, the network announced two new series in development: Glamsquad Showdown, featuring Nene Leakes and Brad Goreski, and The Seven Year Stitch, hosted by Terry and Heather Dubrow.

Tomorrow Studios, a partnership between Marty Adelstein and ITV Studios, has landed a television project from French producer Éric Rochant (The Bureau), centered on the lives of intelligence officers from different countries. For his US television debut, Rochant will serve as showrunner and executive producer for the series (title TBD), alongside Adelstein and Becky Clements of Tomorrow Studios (Snowpiercer, Cowboy Bebop).

Writer/producer LaToya Morgan (The Walking Dead) inked an overall deal with Warner Bros. Television Group, calling for her to develop, write and produce new television projects via her TinkerToy Productions.

SpringHill Entertainment, founded by LeBron James and Maverick Carter, inked a two-year overall deal for scripted television with ABC Studios. “SpringHill Entertainment makes the shows LeBron and I want to watch. We look at every project as a way to connect with our community and ask ourselves if it will entertain and empower them,” said Carter, CEO of The SpringHill Company. “We want our content to be insightful in every way.”

Production on Freeform limited series Love in the Time of Corona, using remote technologies and shot in stars’ homes, began on Monday. The cast includes Leslie Odom Jr. (Hamilton), Nicolette Robinson (The Affair), Tommy Dorfman (13 Reasons Why), Rainey Qualley (Mad Men), Gil Bellows (Patriot), Rya Kihlstedt (One Mississippi), Ava Bellows (This Too Shall Pass) and L. Scott Caldwell (Lost). The series comes from executive producers Joanna Johnson (The Fosters), Christine Sacani (The Fosters), and Anonymous Content’s Robyn Meisinger.

BET picked up a second season of Lena Waithe’s Twenties, and announced an FYC partnership with Showtime, which will air season one starting Monday, July 6. Twenties ranked as the #1 new comedy series on cable for African-Americans 18-49.

NEW & RETURNING SERIES

Animated comedy series Star Trek: Lower Decks, focused on the support crew on a Starfleet ship in 2380, debuts Thursday, August 6 on CBS All Access. New episodes will be available to stream on Thursdays.

The 90 Day Fiance universe expands again with the premiere of Darcey & Stacey on Sunday, August 16 at 10p on TLC. “For the past four seasons of our record-breaking series Before the 90 Days, fans have become obsessed with Darcey and her twin sister Stacey. They have clamored to follow along further on their quest for true love,” said TLC President and General Manager Howard Lee. “One of the reasons for the success of the 90 Day franchise is the raw, real and captivating individuals who share their stories with us. Darcey and Stacey don’t hold back – they live life out loud.” An early premiere of the show is available on TLC GO on Sunday, August 9.

Wynonna Earp kicks off season four on Sunday, July 26 at 10p. Because of the production break caused by the health crisis, a mid-season finale will air Sunday, August 30; production of the final six episodes will resume later this summer.

Season one of Britannia debuts on Epix on Sunday, August 2, followed by the US premiere of season two on Sunday, October 4. Epix will also be the home for season three of the series, now in production. The fantasy drama is a Sky Original for Sky in the UK, Italy and Germany.

The third and final season of Comedy Central’s Corporate bows Wednesday, July 22 at 10:30p. “We know there’s absolutely nothing else going on in the world right now that could possibly need your attention,” said show creators Pat Bishop, Matt Ingebretson and Jake Weisman, “so we expect you all to tune in.”

New drama series Lovecraft Country, based on the novel by Matt Ruff about a road trip across 1950s Jim Crow America, debuts Sunday, August 16 at 9p on HBO.

Also on HBO: Room 104 returns for its fourth and final season on Friday, July 24 at 11p. The late-night anthology series will have 12 new episodes.

A new season of OWN’s Family or Fiance premieres Saturday, July 11 at 9p, following engaged couples seeking the blessings of their families before their weddings.

UK’s quarantine cooking show Jamie: Keep Cooking and Carry On, from Jamie Oliver Productions, has been acquired by Hulu, and will launch on the streamer on Monday, July 27. “The series was produced extraordinarily quickly as a direct response to people looking for help in these unprecedented times,” said Samantha Beddes, executive producer at Jamie Oliver Group.

Every season of INSP’s The Cowboy Way, including the upcoming seventh season, will be available for the first time across multiple platforms, starting Wednesday, July 15. Season seven makes its debut on INSP on Wednesday, July 29 at 9p.

The Soup is back on, with E! serving fresh episodes starting Wednesday, July 8 at 11p.

Comedian/collector Jeff Foxworthy hosts What’s It Worth?, from Thinkfactory, launching Tuesday, August 4 at 9p. New series Extreme Unboxing follows at 10p, offering a look at entrepreneurs who buy large boxes of discounted merchandise, sight unseen.

Lifetime’s Marrying Millions, following relationships where one partner is wealthy and the other is not, is back for season two on Wednesday, August 5 at 10p.

New weekly half-hour lifestyle program +Life premieres nationally on ABC’s Localish network on Sunday, July 12 at 9a, 2p and 7p PDT in all eight markets of ABC Owned Television Stations. Hosted by entertainment reporter Karl Schmid, +Life will feature topical interviews and celebrity guests.

Quibi and Nitro Circus have teamed for Life Size Toys, featuring iconic playthings brought to life, starting Monday, July 6.

Australian crime drama The Code lands on Ovation TV on Saturday, August 1 at 7p.

Fuse has extended season one of Genius x Fuse, which wrapped its initial 10-episode run on May 20. Five new episodes sponsored by Boost Mobile launched July 1.

New CJC Network lifestyle and culture series Traveling will focus on vacation experiences from around the world. Denella Ri’chard, who has worked with Norwegian Cruise and Holland America, hosts.

TECH TALK

TV data and measurement company Alphonso announced agreements that will increase the scale of its premium Smart TV viewership data footprint. Two more global smart TV providers, Seiki and Skyworth, have agreed to embed Alphonso Video AI in smart TVs, as well as deploy the technology into TV sets already in market through over-the-air activation. Additionally, the company announced it is working with CBS Broadcasting and Cox Media Group, in addition to TEGNA, NBC, Home Team Sports (Fox Sports) and others, to enable their local TV stations to provide granular TV and OTT measurement and rapid closed-loop attribution to local advertisers. Said Ashish Chordia, CEO of Alphonso, “The partnerships we are announcing today put Alphonso in the best position to help brands and broadcasters take advantage of real-time TV audience data as behaviors shift and audiences migrate across linear and OTT platforms and services.”

Facebook is expanding its fan subscriptions to any creator in the US, Canada, Australia, Brazil, Mexico, Thailand and the UK that meets the availability criteria. The subscription enables creators to charge their fans $4.99/month for exclusive content and a fan badge for their profiles. Also becoming more widely available is virtual currency Stars, which fans can used to tip creators. “We’re seeing the traditional notion of a creator evolve as comedians, artists, fitness instructors, athletes, small businesses and sports organizations use video and online events to connect with their audience,” said the company in a blog post. “To better support our partners, we’re improving the tools that help creators earn money and manage their presence on Facebook.”

The Association for Computing Machinery is calling for the suspension of the use of facial recognition technologies, arguing that the surveillance technology is often biased. “The technology too often produces results demonstrating clear bias based on ethnic, racial, gender, and other human characteristics recognizable by computer systems,” the group’s US Technology Policy Committee said. “Such bias and its effects are scientifically and socially unacceptable.” While acknowledging that facial recognition technology can be beneficial, the association said it shouldn’t be used until there are legal standards for accuracy, fairness and accountability.

STREAMING SCOOP

The price of YouTube TV is jumping to $64.99/monthly, a hefty increase of $15. “We don’t take these decisions lightly, and realize how hard this is for our members,” wrote Christian Oestlien, VP of Product Management at YouTube TV, in a blog post. “This new price reflects the rising cost of content and we also believe it reflects the complete value of YouTube TV, from our breadth of content to the features that are changing how we watch live TV.” As announced in May, YouTube TV is adding ViacomCBS channels BET, CMT, Comedy Central, MTV, Nickelodeon, Paramount Network, TV Land and VH1.

FuboTV is also raising its price, from $60 to $65 per month for its family bundle. While the service is adding Disney’s ABC and ESPN, eleven WarnerMedia channels have been dropped from the sports-first streamer – including TNT and TBS, which feature NBA and MLB games. “In order to continue to provide the most value to our customers at a reasonable price point, we will not be renewing our contract with WarnerMedia,” said a Fubo spokesperson. “Despite these changes, and with the upcoming launch of ESPN and Walt Disney Television, fuboTV’s sports-focused cable TV replacement will offer a market-best 43 of the top 50 Nielsen-ranked sports, news and entertainment channels in our base package.”

Newsmax TV has joined the channel lineup on fubo Standard, fuboTV’s basic package.

Netflix announced it will allocate 2% of its cash holdings to financial institutions and organizations “to directly support Black communities in the U.S.” The initial commitment will be as much as $100 million. For starters, $35 million will be split to finance a new fund, the Black Economic Development Initiative, that will invest in Black financial institutions, and the Hope Credit Union.

Amazon Prime is adding a co-watching experience that supports chat with up to 100 people, no plug-in required. So far, the feature, being tested, is available on desktop browsers except Safari. Hulu is also testing a co-watching experience,

Analyzing how the pandemic has hastened already-growing video streaming behavior, VAB’s “Navigating the Flood: Charting Your Way Through Today’s Streaming Ecosystem” report found that in April, 72.4 million homes used Connected TV, compared to 64.6 million in April 2019. Other highlights include:
· During the pandemic, AVOD on Smart TVs grew significantly compared to overall app use, with a +74% increase in AVOD app usage compared to +20 increase in all app usage (week of 4/6/20 vs. week of 3/9/20).
· Younger viewers (P16-49) prefer more ad breaks of shorter length when watching AVOD, vs. less ad breaks of longer length.
· The top 4 reasons people say they will add additional streaming services all relate to content: to expand the content they have available (47%); to watch programs they used to watch on TV and can’t find anywhere else (37%); to watch a particular program they have heard about (37%); and to access original content exclusive to streaming platforms (35%).

The churn rate of streaming subscribers rose to 41% in 1Q20, versus 35% in 1Q19, reports Parks Associates. Why the increase? “We are seeing a record number of consumers experiment with new OTT services as a result of the COVID-19 crisis and the shifts in strategy in the industry,” said Steve Nason, Research Director at Parks Associates. “OTT services are offering extended free trials to build up engagement, and 8% of U.S. broadband households report they have subscribed to at least one new OTT service since the COVID-19 crisis began.”

Nonfiction studio XTR is launching its own streaming platform, Documentary Plus+. Programming will include feature documentaries, short films and XTR films. “This is a revolutionary moment in documentary film where new audiences are discovering the genre and new filmmakers are able to create and tell their own stories,” said XTR CEO Bryn Mooser. “In the past documentaries were limited in distribution to art house movie theaters and the back row of video rental houses. With documentary plus we will bring these films directly to our audiences on their TV or mobile phones or wherever they watch content. In these dynamic global times, the role of a documentary film has never been more important or vital.” The free service is slated to launch in the fall.

Lionsgate Television sold domestic SVOD rights to Mad Men to Amazon and AMC, where the period drama ran for seven seasons. Amazon’s IMDb TV will have AVOD rights. The show will air on Amazon Prime Video and IMDb TV in the summer, starting July 15, while AMC will house the series in the fall, along with linear syndication rights. Amazon and Lionsgate’s Starzplay have international streaming rights.

Tubi is bringing The Joy of Painting to its library on the Docurama Channel from Cinedigm. Nearly 400 episodes will stream on Tubi by the end of July, for free. “Bob Ross and his unforgettable style make The Joy of Painting the epitome of comfort TV,” said Adam Lewinson, Chief Content Officer of Tubi.

Season one of OWN and Warner Horizon Scripted Television’s lyrical drama David Makes will be available to stream on HBO Max starting Thursday, July 16. The series centers on a 14-year-old prodigy from the projects who is haunted by the death of his closest friend and relied upon by his hardworking mother to find a way out of poverty.

Insight TV signed an extensive content licensing deal with China’s video streaming service iQIYI. Insight TV’s content will be available on all of iQIYI’s ad-supported tier operated platforms, websites, and its affiliated companies.

HITN TV announced an evolution of its entertainment digital app to HITN GO. The refreshed app will feature new content.

ADVERTISING

Companies that have consistently invested in longer-term marketing have managed to stave off the worst of the COVID-19 crisis, according to the 2020 BrandZ Top 100 Most Valuable Global Brands ranking from WPP and Kantar. The Top 100 most valuable brands portfolios continued to outperform the market, including the S&P 500 and MSCI World Index, and in the current crisis dipped less than the global average. Additional key takeaways from BrandZ:
* Amazon maintained the #1 spot and accounts for a third of the Top 100 total growth, while MasterCard entered the Top 10 for the first time this year.
* Newcomers: TikTok entered the ranking for the first time at # 79, followed by UnitedHealthcare (# 86, $15.8bn), Bank of China (#97, $13.7bn), Lancôme (# 98, $13.6bn) and Pepsi (# 99, $13.3bn).
* While technology dominated the list, the retail sector showed strong performance, growing the fastest (21%) in brand value driven by the major e-commerce players. Retail e-commerce brands Amazon, Alibaba and JD (+24%, # 52, $25.5bn) demonstrated innovation and agility, along with more traditional retailers like Walmart (+24%, # 27, $45.8bn), which has invested in its e-commerce capabilities.
* Over half of brands in the media and entertainment category appeared in the top 20 risers, including Netflix (+34%, $45.9bn), up eight places to # 26, Instagram (+47%, $41.5bn) up 15 places to # 29, LinkedIn (+31%, $29.9bn, #43), and Xbox (+18%, $19.6bn), up 22 places to # 65.

The NBCUniversal Owned Television Stations’ division has entered into a multiyear partnership with Mediaocean to help advertisers access NBC Spot On’s inventory through Mediaocean’s Spectra platform. Advertisers can now buy NBC Spot On’s inventory across 100% of U.S. DMAs and NBC Sports Regional Networks. “As TV viewing habits continue to trend towards connected TV viewing, NBCUniversal Owned Television Stations has solidified a partnership with Mediaocean to ensure local buyers have frictionless access to the next generation of TV buying,” said Shawn Makhijani, SVP, NBC Spot On.

Verizon Media introduced a TV tune-in attribution product that allows broadcasters, networks and media companies to quantify the impact of digital ad campaigns on consumers tuning into TV shows. The company is launching the offering with Inscape, a subsidiary of VIZIO, for automatic content recognition TV viewing data, with additional partnerships forthcoming. “We are continuing to close the attribution gap across devices, channels and screens,” said Iván Markman, Chief Business Officer, Verizon Media. “Our TV tune-in product helps advertisers better understand their customers, connecting the dots between ad-viewing on a smartphone, for example, with TV-viewing. That feedback loop drives better performance and outcomes, while providing insights into critical performance indicators like tune-in conversions.”

Magnite, an independent sell-side advertising platform, debuted June 30 following the merger between Rubicon Project and Telaria in April. The omnichannel advertising platform enables publishers to monetize across all auction types and formats including CTV, desktop display, video, audio, and mobile. “Uniting our rich technology, experience and partnerships under the Magnite brand brings us closer to being an essential partner for publishers and buyers,” said Michael Barrett, President and CEO of Magnite. “Now, more than ever, our industry needs an independent alternative to the walled gardens. At Magnite, we believe that collaboration is the path to a thriving ecosystem that works for everyone.”

SPORTS

With a plan in place to resume play, the NBA released its complete game slate and national television schedules across TNT, ESPN, ABC and NBA TV for the “seeding games,” which will run July 30-August 14 to tip off the resumption of the 2019-20 season. July 30 will see the season resume with a TNT doubleheader as the Jazz face the Pelicans at 6:30p and the Clippers meet the Los Lakers at 9p. ESPN will tip off its restart game telecasts with a doubleheader on July 31 and four games on August 1. Friday’s doubleheader will feature the Celtics vs. the Bucks at 6:30p and the Rockets vs. the Mavericks at 9p. ABC will present two games on August 2, with the Trail Blazers taking on the Celtics at 3:30p and the Bucks meeting the Rockets at 8:30p. NBA TV will televise seven games during the first week of the season restart, beginning with a matchup between the Grizzlies and Trail Blazers on July 31 at 4p.

Minor League Baseball is canceling the season after MLB teams said they would not be able to provide affiliated clubs with players. “These are unprecedented times for our country and our organization as this is the first time in our history that we’ve had a summer without Minor League Baseball played,” said Minor League Baseball President and CEO Pat O’Conner. “While this is a sad day for many, this announcement removes the uncertainty surrounding the 2020 season and allows our teams to begin planning for an exciting 2021 season of affordable family entertainment.”

On the ratings front:
· The opening game of the NWSL Challenge Cup started the season on a high note, notching the most-watched match in league history, with an average of 572,000 viewers on CBS. That marks a 201% rise in viewership over the previous record, set in 2014, with 178,000 viewers in the 18-49 demo and Portland leading local markets.
· CBS Sports’ final-round coverage of the Travelers Championship swelled 43% over last year’s numbers in both rating and viewership. The broadcast earned a 2.0/6 and an average of 3.067 million viewers.
· FS1’s NASCAR tripleheader from Pocono concluded with Denny Hamlin taking the win in a rain-interrupted Cup race that scored 2,660,000 viewers excluding the weather delay, up 11% from the 6/2/19 Pocono Cup race on the network. Through 15 races, NASCAR Cup racing is averaging 3,778,000 viewers on FOX and FS1, that’s off just 1% from last year’s average through the first 15 races of the season (3,817,000 viewers).

Athletes Unlimited announced that all 30 games of their inaugural softball league will be available to fans live thanks to agreements with CBS Sports and ESPN. CBS Sports Network will televise seven games in the United States and Canada including the weekly matchup between the top two team captains. ESPN is on deck to distribute 23 games across its platforms in the US.

After a delay of nearly four months, the 2020 season of the FIA Formula One World Championship launches this week with the first of two consecutive weekends of racing in Austria. The Formula 1 Rolex Austrian Grand Prix from the Red Bull Ring in Spielberg, Austria. will air Sunday, at 9:05a on ESPN and ESPN Deportes. Once again in 2020, the race telecasts will be presented commercial-free with sponsorship from Mothers Polish, which signed a new, three-year agreement with ESPN. The expanded new deal also includes presenting sponsorship of practice and qualifying telecasts.

Despite the pandemic, Nathan’s Famous Hot Dog-Eating Contest will air live on Saturday, at noon on ESPN with the women’s championship, followed by the men’s championship. Nathan’s Famous will conduct the 2020 Fourth of July International Hot Dog-Eating Contest in Coney Island in a private location with COVID-19 safety measures in place. ESPN commentator Mike Golic Jr. will do play-by-play of the eating competition.

In data news:
· theScore announced a multi-year agreement to become an Authorized Gaming Operator of Major League Baseball, providing the company with immediate access to official MLB betting data, league marks, and logos for its mobile sports betting app, theScore Bet. As part of the agreement, theScore and MLB will also collaborate on best-in-class practices to protect the integrity of MLB games.
· The Basketball Tournament and FanDuel announced a strategic partnership designating FanDuel as an Official Partner of TBT. FanDuel will coordinate exclusive daily fantasy basketball contests as well as offer betting odds in select states where sports wagering is legal.

Summer brings NBC Sports Camp powered by Chelsea Piers, a free, virtual summer program for 7-to-12-year-old athletes to learn and play a variety of sports. The four-week online VOD program starts the week of July 6, offering immersive instruction across more than 10 sports and is hosted by NBC Sports Correspondent Corey Robinson. Athletes range from AJ Mleczko– NHL on NBC Analyst and 1998 Olympic gold medalist – to Christian Vande Velde – NBC Cycling Analyst and two-time Olympian (2000, 2008) to Erinn Smart – 2008 Olympic silver medalist in fencing.

ESPORTS

After 9 seasons, Psyonix detailed plans for RLCS X, a rebuilt and restructured Rocket League season that will move to an open event-based circuit format that culminates in an annual Rocket League World Championship, replacing the bi-annual season. Throughout the season more than $4,500,000 in prizing will be awarded across all regions with three Splits that each culminate with a Major. The World Championship has also been expanded to 16 teams (six from North America, six from Europe, two from South America, and two from Oceania). South America and Oceania will have their own circuit of events that will serve as official pathways to Majors and the World Championship.

Gen.G is teaming with Samsung to produce two mobile gaming events, a Minecraft Pocket-Edition Build Contest on July 16 and Lonestar Mobile Gaming College Championship on Aug. 1. “Mobile gaming has become a part of mainstream entertainment. We’re excited to bring these events around two of the most popular mobile games together with Samsung,” said Martin Kim, VP of Strategic Partnerships with Gen.G.

Complexity Gaming and the U.S. Army’s Family and Morale, Welfare and Recreation, part of the Installation Management Command, are joining forces to conduct a worldwide 12-week online esports tournament starting July 4. The Better Opportunities for Single Soldiers program will be promoting participation in the tournaments at the garrisons with competition featuring multiple game titles for Soldiers to compete in at their garrisons throughout the 12 weeks. The first game will be Madden NFL 20. “We understand the challenges with social distancing and the closure of certain facilities due to the COVID-19 pandemic,” said the Department of the Army’s BOSS Representative, Staff Sgt. Adrian Mooney. “We wanted to bring a form of entertainment that would be easily accessible to Soldiers. It is a form of entertainment that most Soldiers already have the resources for in the comfort of their barracks or homes.”

Facebook Gaming is teaming up with 11 athletes to “help connect and entertain fans at home while also raising money for COVID-19 relief and social justice.” All summer, these athletes will be streaming a game of their choice exclusively on Facebook via Facebook Gaming and on their own Facebook Pages while running fundraisers during each livestream. The athletes include: Donovan Mitchell, Utah Jazz; Julian Edelman, New England Patriots; Allie Long, U.S. Soccer/Reign FC; Brittney Griner, Phoenix Mercury; JaVale McGee, Los Angeles Lakers; Josh Richardson, Philadelphia 76ers and more. “Athletes continue to be remarkable forces for good on social media and we’re excited for this particular group to use Facebook Gaming this summer to entertain fans and raise money for incredibly important causes,” said Evan Shugerman, Facebook Athlete Sports Partnerships Lead.

WINNERS

Issa Rae (Insecure) landed the Best Actress award during the (virtual) BET Awards, and Michael B. Jordan (Black Panther) won for Best Actor. Beyonce was presented with the Humanitarian Award by former First Lady Michelle Obama, and her daughter, Blue Ivy, received the BET Her award for her part in the song, “Brown Skin Girl.” For a complete list of winners, go here.

Accepting Daytime Emmy Awards were talk show host Ellen DeGeneres, Jeopardy!’s Alex Trebek, and for Best Drama, The Young and the Restless. For more winners, go here.

Netflix was top trophy-taker at the Critics Choice Real TV Awards, with a total of eight; Cheer and Queer Eye won two apiece. ABC and Bravo each grabbed two awards. For a list of winners, go here.

COMING UP

STARZ kicks off its “Summer of Blockbusters @Home” stunt with the premiere of 2019’s Jumanji: The Next Level, starring Dwayne Johnson, Jack Black, Kevin Hart and Karen Gillan, on Friday, July 3.

Fuse Media is launching “Be Heard. Be Change.”, the latest iteration of its call-to-action initiative. The campaign will feature Stacey Abrams, former Minority Leader of the Georgia House of Representatives and 2018 Democratic Party candidate for Governor of Georgia. Starting July 5, a series of 30-second vignettes featuring Abrams will detail the impact of climate change on communities of color and will encourage people to vote for politicians that include environmental responsibility as part of their platform.

NATPE plans to launch NATPE Virtual in support of two of its tentpole events, happening in-person this year, NATPE Budapest International, August 25-27, and NATPE Streaming Plus, September 15. Both events were postponed due to the pandemic.

“31 Marathons in 31 Days” features nightly marathons of classic series during the month of July on streaming TV service Pluto. Shows include Walker, Texas Ranger; Married…with Children, Baywatch, Family Feud and more.

HBO Sports has acquired North American television and streaming rights to the documentary feature film The Weight of Gold, a documentary exploring the mental health challenges that Olympic athletes often face. The film debuts Wednesday, July 29 at 10p on HBO.

HLN is celebrating the Fourth of July with a 19-hour marathon of Forensic Files, from Saturday, July 4 at noon through Sunday, July 5 at 7a.

MeTV celebrates the life of the late Carl Reiner with a month-long presentation of his favorite episodes of The Dick Van Dyke Show, starting Sunday, July 5 at 10p and 10:30p.

The Decades Network is also remembering Carl Reiner, with a weekend binge of The Dick Van Dyke Show from Saturday, July 11 at 12p until Monday, July 13 at 7a.

GOING GLOBAL

IMPACT Wrestling Channel has expanded to Pluto TV LATAM, furthering the channel’s reach throughout Latin America. IMPACT Wrestling’s partnership with Pluto TV kicked off in April 2018 with the US launch of the IMPACT Wrestling Channel.

Monkey, part of NBCUniversal International Studios, signed MC Grammar for a co-development deal with the company. MC Grammar, real name Jacob Mitchell, is primary school teacher, father and YouTube star, who uses rap and rhyme to teach children the English language. Over the past two years, MC Grammar has been visiting schools in the UK and across the globe to deliver interactive sessions. He has also been running live weekly sessions via his YouTube channel.

A+E Networks unveiled its summer 2020 global content sales catalog, with 380 new hours of programming across multiple genres. Among new offerings are Surviving Jeffrey Epstein, Nine Lives of Ozzy Osbourne, Forged in Fire: Beat the Judges, transactional series Extreme Unboxing, a modern evolution on Storage Wars, and TV movies including Lifetime’s annual Holiday Collection.

Wildlife and factual entertainment producer and distributor Earth Touch has secured new international sales and package deals across its slate of titles. International broadcasters and platforms including TVE (Spain), Kanal 7 (Turkey), CCTV (China), RCS (Romania and Hungary), Viasat World (Baltics, CEE, Russia & CIS and Scandinavia), SABC (South Africa), RTV Indonesia and AVOD platform Little Dot Studios have picked up a total of 170 hours of Earth Touch’s wildlife content.

The Series Mania Festival is set to take place in Lille, France and the Hauts-de-France region from March 19 to 27, while the Series Mania Forum, to be held in the Lille Grand Palais, is set for March 23 to 25. Series Mania has developed three new initiatives: The expansion of Series Mania Digital; the launch of the Series Mania label; and the unveiling of training venue, the Series Mania Institute.

Factual production company Barcroft Studios announced the launch of OTT channel truly, home of “amazing true stories.” The channel will debut on Pluto TV in the UK, Austria, Switzerland and Germany in early July. Barcroft Studios will also commission a new show strand, truly Docs, dedicated to producing original documentaries.

HBO GO, WarnerMedia’s regional streaming service in Southeast Asia, is now available directly to consumers via app stores in Taiwan. HBO GO can be downloaded as a standalone service from the App Store or on Google Play.

Animal Planet in the US and France’s TF1 picked up Mega Zoo from Australia’s Fred Media. The docu-series will provide behind-the-scenes access to some of the 5000 animals that live in Melbourne Zoo.

Tubi has entered an exclusive ad sales partnership with Australian media company Foxtel Group. As part of the collaboration, Foxtel Media will serve as the sole ad sales representative in Australia for Tubi through 2022.

ENTER HERE

For the week of June 15, HGTV claimed the #1 spot in Total Day among W25-54 and was among the top 5 networks among P25-54 (#4), Households (#4), P2+ (#4), P18+ (#4), and W18+ (#4).

The BET Awards drew 3.7 million total viewers P2+ Total Viewers, simulcast across ViacomCBS networks including BET, BET Her, and CBS, with 1.6 million total viewers and a 0.6 rating among A18-49 tuning in on BET alone. On CBS alone the telecast drew 1.9 million total viewers and 0.4 in the demo.

The fifth and final season premiere of OWN’s Greenleaf delivered 1.9 million viewers in Live+3 Nielsens, up +1% vs. prior season premiere, and ranked as Tuesday night’s #1 cable telecast among W25-54, up +2% vs. prior season premiere.

The season four finale of WE tv’s Mama June: From Not to Hot delivered 1.6 million total viewers in Live+3, the highest viewership since its season one finale.

In syndication, Judge Judy (three-week high 5.7 Live+SD national Nielsen rating, up 8% from the week before) led court shows and Dr. Phil was the top talker (1.9, up 6%) for the week of June 15, despite mostly encore episodes.

FOX Business Network delivered its highest-rated quarter in network history in Business Day viewership, according to Nielsen. FBN delivered 255,000 total viewers across Business Day, up 62% compared to 2Q19 and earning the network its highest-rated Business Day quarter ever in total viewers. Additionally, the network’s Total Day viewership saw increases of 44%, with 171,000 total viewers while Market Hour viewers grew by 59%(260,000 total viewers).

Cooking Channel’s second quarter is on track to be its highest-rated quarter in network history for both Prime and Total Day for P25-54 and W25-54, with year over year gains pacing to be +43% and +39%, respectively.

Broadcast Late Night Shows for the Week of June 22
CBS: Late Show 2.70 million viewers, 0.28/3 A18-49
NBC: Tonight 1.54 million viewers, 0.27/2 A18-49
ABC: Jimmy Kimmel 1.49 million viewers, 0.25/2 A18-49 (R)

Top 10 M-F Syndicated Strip Series for the week of June 15 ranked in order by HH Rtg
Family Feud (CTD) 6.1 AA
Judge Judy (CTD) 5.7 AA
Jeopardy (CTD) 5.3 AA
Wheel of Fortune (CTD) 5.2 AA
The Big Bang Theory (WB) 3.0 AA
Inside Edition (CTD) 2.6 AA
Entertainment Tonight (CTD) 2.3 AA
Last Man Standing (DAD) 2.2 AA
Hot Bench (CTD) 2.0 AA
Dr. Phil Show (CTD) 1.9 AA

Cable News Networks 2Q20 vs. 2Q19
Total Day
Fox News: 1,958,000 total viewers – up 48% (366,000 in A25-54 – up 61%)
CNN: 1,188 total viewers – up 120% (335,000 in A25-54 – up 150%)
MSNBC: 1,209,000 total viewers up 34% (193,000 in A25-54 – up 45%)
Primetime
Fox News: 3,574,000 total viewers – up 50% (624,000 in A25-54 – up 67%)
CNN: 1,806,000 total viewers – up 137% (528,000 in A25-54 – up 181%)
MSNBC: 1,999,000 total viewers – up 19% (315,000 in A25-54 – up 25%)
Source: Nielsen seven day week Live+SD

Basic Cable Top 5 for the week of June 22
Primetime (P2+)
Fox News Channel (3,429,000)
MSNBC (2,113,000)
CNN (1,642,000)
HGTV (1,244,000)
TLC (1,144,000)
Total Day (P2+)
Fox News Channel (1,721,000)
MSNBC (1,231,000)
CNN (1,052,000)
HGTV (723,000)
Nickelodeon (539,000)

Shareablee Top 10 TV Shows for the week of June 22
Program, Network, Total Actions, Total Content, Actions per Content, Fans & Followers
E! News (E!) 10.4M, 567, 18,302, 37.5M
The Daily Show (Comedy Central) 4.2M, 146, 28,547, 24.8M
Hannity (Fox News) 3.4M, 251, 13,714, 9.2M
Today Show (NBC) 1.7M, 925, 1,868, 13.7M
Entertainment Tonight (WB/syndicated) 1.6M, 553, 2,957, 9M
The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon (NBC) 1.6M, 126, 12,528, 26.1M
The Rachel Maddow Show (MSNBC) 1.5M, 67, 21,804, 12.8M
Good Morning America (ABC) 1.2M, 905, 1,362 13.9M
Fox & Friends (Fox News) 1.2M, 95, 12,915, 4.8M
The 100 (The CW) 1.1M, 52, 21,886, 5M

Shareablee 10 Streaming Shows for the week of June 22
Program, Platform, Total Actions, Total Content, Actions per Content, Fans & Followers
13 Reasons Why (Netflix) 1.8M, 8, 223,696, 9.8M
Umbrella Academy (Netflix) 1.7M, 29, 60,316, 2.1M
Queer Eye (Netflix) 649K, 25, 25,970, 2.8M
Lucifer (Netflix) 347K, 5, 69,354, 5.6M
The Boys (Amazon Prime Video) 284K, 28, 10,138, 502K
She-Ra and the Princesses of Power (Netflix) 199K, 12, 16,596, 221K
The Handmaid’s Tale (Hulu) 141K, 2, 70,737, 1.9M
the Politician (Netflix) 141K, 13, 10,824, 221K
Legendary (HBO Max) 120K, 17, 7,061, 41K
The Order (Netflix) 100K, 3, 33,304, 127K

TV Time’s Binge Report for the Week of June 22
Dark (Netflix) – 3.46%
Modern Family (ABC) – 2.70%
The Order (Netflix) – 2.57%
13 Reasons Why (Netflix) – 2.23%
Friends (NBC) – 1.66%
The Office (NBC) – 1.54%
Dynasty (The CW) – 1.51%
Brooklyn Nine-Nine (NBC) – 1.29%
Grey’s Anatomy (ABC) – 1.23%
The 100 (The CW) – 1.22%
The weekly Binge Report ranks shows with the most binge sessions. A binge session is when four or more episodes of a show are watched and tracked in our TV Time app within a given day.

TV Time’s Shows on the Rise for the Week of June 22
The Twilight Zone (CBS All Access) 94.3%
Doom Patrol (DC Universe) – 82.7% *Also premiered on HBO Max
Dark (Netflix) – 81.3%
Floor Is Lava (Netflix) – 49%
RuPaul’s Drag Race (VH1) – 43.2%
It’s Okay to Not be Okay (TVN) – 40.2%
Adventure Time (Cartoon Network) – 15.8%
The Sinner (USA) – 15.4%
Food Wars! Shokugeki no Soma (Tokyo MX) – 14.4%
Erkenci Kus (Star TV) – 10.5%
Methodology: Every week, millions of viewers around the world use TV Time to track their favorite series. “Shows on the Rise” is calculated by determining the week-over-week growth in episodes watched for a given program.

Broadcast Nielsen Ratings for Tuesday, June 30
Show, P2+ 0000s, (A18-49)
ABC: Modern Family 2.29 (0.3), Modern Family 1.70 (0.3), black-ish 1.42 (0.3), mixed-ish 1.30 (0.2), Genetic Detective 2.43 (0.3)
CBS: NCIS 5.21 (0.4), FBI 4.56 (0.4), FBI: Most Wanted 3.82 (0.4)
CW: DC’s Stargirl 0.99 (0.2), CW Happy Hour 0.34 (0.1)
FOX: 24 Hours to Hell and Back 1.34 (0.4), 24 Hours to Hell and Back 1.33 (0.4)
NBC: America’s Got Talent 844 (1.2), World of Dance 3.99 (0.8)
Telemundo: Cennet 1.31 (0.3), 100 Dias Enamorarnos 0.81 (0.3), Enemigo Entimo 0.82 (0.3)
Univision: Te Doy la Vida 1.85 (0.5), Amor Eterno 1.94 (0.5), Como to no Hay Dos 1.56 (0.5)
Source: Nielsen, Live+SD time period averages

EXECUTIVE MOVES

Apple TV promoted Michelle Lee to Director, Domestic Programming at Apple TV+. Lee joined Apple in January 2018.

Kantar appointed Chief Financial Officer Ian Griffiths to the newly created position of Deputy CEO. The appointment is an expanded responsibility for Griffiths, who will continue with his responsibilities as CFO.

Chris Parnell is leaving his position as co-President at Sony Pictures Television to take a senior programming job at Apple TV, where he’ll reunite with former SPT Presidents Zack Van Amburg and Jamie Erlicht. Parnell was at Sony for 16 years.

ViacomCBS announced that Naveen Chopra has been appointed EVP, Chief Financial Officer, effective August 10. He succeeds Christina Spade, who will transition into an advisory role after the Company’s second quarter earnings call. Chopra joins ViacomCBS from Amazon, where he served as CFO of Amazon’s Devices and Services business.

Bozoma Saint John has been tapped to serve as Chief Marketing Officer for Netflix. Saint John had been CMO of Endeavor.

Michael Nagle was named Head of North American Distribution for DocuBay. He previously served as Head of Distribution for NatureVision TV.

Dr. Seuss Enterprises announced the promotion of Shannon Spisak to a new role as Senior Director of Global Marketing & Communications and Jenna Marson to Manager of Global Marketing & Licensing.

CuriosityStream has named Bill Goodwyn to the newly created role of Chief Revenue Officer and Executive Vice President of Strategy, Business Development & Partnerships. A 30-year veteran of Discovery, Inc., Goodwyn is Vice Chairman of Discovery Education.

Friday Fun Fact
The Eiffel Tower was originally intended for Barcelona, but that city passed, deeming it an eyesore.

Answer to Our Last Trivia Question
The Andy Griffith Show (1960-1968) was a spin-off from which show? The Danny Thomas Show (1953-1964; titled Make Room for Daddy for its first four seasons, before Griffith’s appearance). Kudos to: John Ferlazzo-London, Claire Hambrick-A+E Networks/NYC, David Stern-BARD Entertainment/NYC, Joel Zaremby-The Workplace/Bridgeport, CT, Anthony Salerno-Horizon Media/NYC, Bob Telford-SAG-AFTRA/Valley Village, CA, Dave Sikula-San Francisco University/San Francisco, Greg Moloznik-GLM Media/Scottsdale, John Kukla-KDFW-Fox4/Dallas, Miriam Aardahl-OMD/LA, Ray Giacopelli-MI7 Media Intel.Sonoma, CA, Andy Pittman-TAMU/College Station, TX, Dan Whitford-WTTW/Chicago, Tom Boyd-WGN/Chicago, Julie Houston-Tom Scott Agency/Boise, ID,

Today’s Trivia Question
In which sitcom were the two lead characters owner-pilots of a plane called Lucky Linda? (Email [email protected] 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.)