124-482: Ion Media, LLC (formerly known as Paxson Communications Corporation and Ion Media Networks ) is a subsidiary of the E. W. Scripps Company that operates the linear broadcast networks Ion Television and Ion Plus . Prior to its acquisition by Scripps, the company owned and operated over 71 television stations in most major American markets (through its television stations group, Ion Media Television), and also operated Qubo and Ion Shop. After being operated as
248-473: A MyNetworkTV affiliate) since 1996; Cleveland NBC affiliate WKYC-TV produced evening newscasts for WVPX-TV that focused primarily on that O&O's city of license, nearby Akron ). In some cities, a major network affiliate also provided some engineering and other back office services for the PAX station. In an effort to increase revenue due to low viewership and other financial issues, PAX gradually increased
372-551: A 32% stake in Paxson. On December 4, 2001, it was announced that Paxson had filed with the FCC an arbitration to block NBC's acquisition of Telemundo . In September 2002, it was announced that Paxson's arbitration against NBC was denied. On November 13, NBC requested a redemption of its investment in Paxson of $ 549.2 million. In August 2004, NBC Universal filed a lawsuit against Paxson. On November 7, 2005, to settle several lawsuits between
496-447: A 40-something Becca ( Pamela Bellwood ) tours the house she grew up in while remembering the events of 25 years earlier, establishes that Jesse would ultimately die from AIDS and that Becca would move on and marry a man named David. The series itself ended ambiguously but on an upbeat note, showing Becca five years later, married with a son named Jesse. In the final episode Corky was set to graduate from high school, but he did not because
620-632: A Katz-owned network, some will be offloaded to the Ion stations to free up limited spectrum capacity during the ATSC 3.0 transition. Several of the Ion Plus full-power stations paired with Ion Television stations were also concurrently sold off to Inyo Broadcast Holdings in order to alleviate local ownership conflicts and national cap issues related to Scripps' purchase of Ion Media under the FCC's regulatory station ownership limits. In October 2021, Scripps notified
744-582: A children's program block called "Cloud Nine" on Saturdays from 5:00 a.m. to 10:00 a.m. and Sundays from 6:00 a.m. to 8:00 am. Central. In addition, the network aired religious programming through time-lease agreements with The Worship Network (which aired its overnight programming on PAX seven nights a week) and Praise TV (featuring Contemporary Christian music and other faith-based programs aimed at teenagers and young adults, which aired on Friday and Saturday late-nights from 11:00 p.m. to 2:00 am. Central until 2000). The remainder of
868-418: A children's programming block, as part of a partnership with NBCUniversal and Scholastic Entertainment. On January 29, 2007, the network changed its name again to Ion Television (as a result of its parent company's renaming to Ion Media Networks ). Days after the rebrand, California-based entertainment group Positive Ions, Inc. filed a trademark infringement lawsuit against Ion Media Networks, claiming that
992-496: A comparably small fraction of the paid programming schedule it aired in the past. Ion owned-and-operated stations and affiliates formerly also provide limited local programming on weekday mornings to fulfill public affairs guidelines, which ranged from entirely local productions to Ion Life-sourced programs within which commercial slots are instead devoted to local physicians or experts giving locality-specific health advice or advertising their services. This programming has ended as
1116-403: A considerably more conservative programming content policy than the major commercial television networks, restricting profanity , violence and sexual content; accordingly, many of the network's acquired programs were edited to remove sexual and overt violent content, while profane language was muted . Most of the network's initial affiliates were Paxson Communications-owned affiliate stations of
1240-489: A controlling stake in Ion to Citadel, in exchange for Citadel investing $ 100 million into Ion's growth and digital plans. Ion Television's programming, for the most part, remained unchanged upon the rebrand; the network continued to feature programming from the content deals it signed while under the i brand (such as Who's the Boss? , Mama's Family , Growing Pains , and The Wonder Years ). The network also aired
1364-573: A couple of television stations, eventually becoming Florida's largest radio group. The radio stations' formats included rock , contemporary hit radio , news and talk , and adult contemporary . The television stations were network affiliates of ABC and NBC . In 1993 the company began to purchase stations on the outer fringes of large television markets. In 1994, Paxson acquired its first television station, ABC affiliate WPBF in West Palm Beach, Florida . The company divested itself of both
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#17327807541261488-636: A deal with Liberty Media to bring the QVC and HSN networks to most of its Ion Television O&O stations throughout nationwide on digital subchannels X.5 and X.6. In December 2013, the United States bankruptcy court approved a plan by creditors of Roberts Broadcasting to transfer East St. Louis -based WRBU and its sister stations, WZRB in Columbia and WAZE-LP in Evansville, Indiana , to
1612-456: A dual reference to its founder and corporate parent, and the Latin word for " peace " – shortly before its launch. Paxson, who felt that television programs aired by other broadcast networks were too raunchy and not family-friendly enough, had decided to create a network that he perceived as an alternative. Since the new network would focus on programming tailored to family audiences, PAX maintained
1736-516: A family entertainment lineup of drama shows, movies, first-run shows, wildlife shows, sitcoms, and talk shows. The most expensive station acquisition was WBIS in New York City. The city government had sold this station to Dow Jones & Company and ITT in 1996 for nearly US$ 200 million. In January 1997, Dow Jones launched a business format called S+ during the day and a sports channel after 7 pm and on weekends. Dow Jones/ITT lost money on
1860-454: A forced divestiture of either i or Spanish network Telemundo , which NBC had acquired in April 2002 (prior to its merger with Vivendi Universal ), along with the divested network's O&Os due to FCC rules that prohibit broadcasters from owning more than two television stations in the same market unless there are either a minimum of 20 full-power stations in the market or one of the stations
1984-724: A fourth digital subchannel of local i owned-and-operated stations and affiliates until the network was dropped in January 2010; in addition, Tomorrow's Weather Tonight and rebroadcasts of network affiliate newscasts were discontinued the day prior to the rebrand on June 30, 2005 (though a few stations not owned by the network's parent company retained news share agreements with major network stations after that date, such as WBNA in Louisville, Kentucky , which continued to air newscasts from NBC affiliate WAVE ). The network shifted its format almost entirely to reruns of television series from
2108-414: A game show titled The Reel to Reel Picture Show , sitcoms Dave's World , Here's Lucy and The Hogan Family , and some movies. The network ran weekdays from noon until 1 am. Due to low ratings and mounting financial costs, PAX TV soon reduced its hours. In 1999, they were reduced to between 3 pm and midnight, and in 2002, they were reduced again to 6 pm to midnight. In September 1999, NBC bought
2232-510: A joint venture with its Fox Television Stations division, to create a larger station group in an effort to counter Sinclair Broadcast Group and their proposed purchase of Tribune Media . The proposal also included the possibility for as many as 26 stations owned by Sinclair or Tribune to be switched from Fox after existing affiliation contracts expire. It has been argued that this deal was intended to place pressure on Sinclair to abandon its acquisition, lest it potentially lose Fox affiliations to
2356-433: A late afternoon sitcom block called "Laugh Attack", which featured reruns of comedy series targeted at African American audiences (originally consisting of Hangin' with Mr. Cooper and The Wayans Bros. , the latter of which was later replaced by The Steve Harvey Show ). In January 2008, Ion Media and Comcast reached a carriage agreement to continue carrying Ion Television, while also adding Qubo and Ion Life to
2480-552: A major commercial broadcast network until 2010). On January 4, 2015, the Qubo block on Ion was relaunched as the "Qubo Kids Corner", concurrent with the block's move to Sunday mornings. As mentioned above, Scripps now purchases syndicated programming to meet Ion Television's E/I requirements with its wind-down of Qubo. The network has previously broadcast certain sporting events, including Conference USA college football games (produced by College Sports Television ), soccer matches from
2604-527: A news share agreement with another local station – to produce Tomorrow's Weather Tonight , a five-minute national forecast segment that aired Monday through Friday nights at the conclusion of PAX's entertainment schedule. Starting in 2000, many PAX stations also entered into news share agreements with a local major network affiliate (mostly involving NBC-affiliated stations, though some involved an affiliate of ABC , CBS, or Fox ) to air tape-delayed broadcasts of evening, and in some markets, morning newscasts from
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#17327807541262728-609: A one-year delay from their original syndication broadcast) and, due to its alliance with NBC, The Weakest Link (both from the Anne Robinson -hosted network run and the George Gray -hosted syndicated version) as well as the 2000 revival of Twenty-One . In September 1999, NBC purchased a 32% share of Paxson Communications for $ 415 million in convertible stock, with an option to expand its interest to 49% by February 2002, pending changes in ownership regulations set by
2852-481: A partnership between Ion Media Networks , NBC Universal , the Nelvana unit of Corus Entertainment , Scholastic Media , Classic Media , and its subsidiary Big Idea Productions . The Qubo block originally debuted on NBC and Telemundo on September 9, 2006, with NBC's Qubo block initially being rebroadcast on Ion Television on Friday afternoons (making it the last weekday afternoon children's block to be carried by
2976-494: A private company since it entered and emerged from bankruptcy in 2009, it was acquired by the E. W. Scripps Company and merged with its Katz Broadcasting subsidiary on January 7, 2021, creating the new Scripps Networks division to manage those assets separately from its traditional broadcast network-affiliated television stations. The company was founded in 1988 by Bud Paxson in Florida . The company purchased radio stations and
3100-414: A singer and actress. She is very supportive of Corky and proud that Corky and Becca take part in their church's drama group and that Becca is in her school's drama club. At the end of Season 2, she gives birth to her and Drew's fourth child, a son named Nicholas. Drew's daughter, Libby's stepdaughter, and Corky and Becca's older half-sister. Paige frequently dates men of whom her father does not approve. She
3224-515: A statement on its website, DirecTV (which ironically had, and still has, multiple networks made up of full-time paid programming) planned to terminate its carriage agreement with i on February 28, 2006. The satellite provider cited that "most of [ i Network's] programming consists of infomercials and other promotional shows", despite an earlier promise by network executives that it "would consist of general, family-oriented entertainment". At its peak, infomercial time stretched across eighteen hours of
3348-691: A tentpole of the network with Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) and National Women's Soccer League (NWSL) games occupying weekly slots in the programming lineup and to launch a refresh of their brand identity and new year-long brand campaign based on the new tagline from the new branding being "Ion. It's On", replacing "Positively Entertaining" after 16 years. Sister channels Ion Mystery and Ion Plus would also be rebranded with similar graphics based on Ion's branding. As of April 2024, Ion provides general entertainment programming to owned-and-operated and affiliated stations every day from 6:00 am. to 2:00 am. Eastern Time (except Fridays outside of
3472-692: A trio of private equity companies (Black Diamond Capital Management, Avenue Capital Group, & Trilogy Capital) purchased a 62.5% controlling stake in Ion Media Networks from the Ion Media Liquidating Trust (the legal entity selling the stake) through their partnership, Media Holdco L.P. (43.7% owned by Black Diamond via its BD Ion Media GP Holdings subsidiary; 15.8% by Trilogy via its Trilogy Ion, LLC subsidiary; & 40.5% by Avenue via its Avenue Ion Holdings LP subsidiary). The remaining 37.5% of Ion Media Networks remained with
3596-513: A trio of winged teenage angels that hosted the wraparound segments that bridged breaks during the block's shows, which were mostly sourced from the DIC library. "Cloud Nine" was discontinued in the spring of 1999, and was replaced by a new block under the title "Pax Kids." Pax TV discontinued the "Pax Kids" block in September 2001, as a result, it became the first major commercial broadcast network in
3720-738: A trust with Ion Media Networks (a creditor in Roberts' chapter 11 bankruptcy proceedings, which it filed for in 2011) as its beneficiary, with Roberts' attorney subsequently stating that Ion Media Networks would purchase the three stations. The deal is complete on February 10, 2014, and both WZRB and WRBU became Ion stations. Also in December 2013, Black Diamond purchased Avenue & Trilogy's stakes in Media Holdco, placing Black Diamond as Media Holdco's sole shareholder. As of November 2014, Media Holdco's majority equity stake in Ion Media Networks
3844-402: A week of each other, and another that among other things would bring original programming to Ion Television's lineup. On June 27, 2006, Ion Media announced a comprehensive programming deal with Warner Bros. Television Distribution , which gave it the broadcast rights to movies and television series owned by the company. One week later on July 5, 2006, Ion announced a similar deal that resulted in
Ion Media - Misplaced Pages Continue
3968-644: A year later when seven series made it to PAX's 2004–05 schedule. On June 28, 2005, Paxson Communications announced that it would rebrand PAX as i: Independent Television , to reflect a new strategy of "providing an independent broadcast platform for producers and syndicators who desire to reach a national audience." The network used a lowercase letter "i" for its branding and other items such as its electronic program guide listings. The rebranding also resulted in several changes to its programming lineup: paid programming replaced overnight programming from The Worship Network, which began to carry its full 24-hour schedule on
4092-451: Is a satellite ). As part of the agreement, Lowell Paxson stepped down from his position as chairman of Paxson Communications. In April 2006, published reports surfaced that i owed more than US$ 250 million to creditors. Standard & Poor's reported a much higher debt in March 2008, owing $ 867 million to creditors and having a bond rating of CCC+/Outlook Negative. According to
4216-552: Is able to circumvent the legal limit of covering 39% of the population because all of its stations operate on the UHF television band, which is subject to a discount in regard to that limit. In the digital age, the restoration of the UHF discount has proven controversial with other broadcast groups and FCC rulings between presidential administrations, though as the network's parent company mainly acquired low-performing stations and stations on
4340-863: Is an American broadcast television network and FAST television channel owned by the Scripps Networks subsidiary of the E. W. Scripps Company . The network first began broadcasting on August 31, 1998, as Pax TV , focusing primarily on family-oriented entertainment programming. It rebranded as i: Independent Television (commonly referred to as "i") on July 1, 2005, converting into a general entertainment network featuring recent and older acquired programs. The network adopted its identity as Ion Television on January 29, 2007. For many years, Ion has focused primarily on off-network reruns of existing series, with most of its current schedule devoted to marathon blocks of procedural dramas , along with occasional broadcasts of films (including television films during
4464-401: Is at 85%, leaving the company's senior investors from previous rounds of financing with a minority stake of 15%. On April 20, 2017, Ion Media Networks, through its website, announced a name change to "Ion Media" (with the company still legally operating as "Ion Media Networks"). On August 2, 2017, it was reported that 21st Century Fox was proposing that Ion Media contribute its stations into
4588-496: Is available throughout most of the United States through its group of 44 owned-and-operated stations and 20 network affiliates , as well as through distribution on pay-TV providers and streaming services; since 2014, the network has also increased affiliate distribution in several markets through the digital subchannels of local television stations owned by companies such as Gray Television and Nexstar Media Group where
4712-407: Is known as Corky. Life Goes On was the first television series to feature a major character with Down syndrome . Drew is the husband of Libby Thatcher and the father of Paige, Corky, and Becca Thatcher. He is a Special Olympics coach who formerly worked for a construction company before going into the restaurant business. Drew's wife, Paige's stepmother, and Corky and Becca's mother, who has been
4836-511: Is nerdy but attractive; at school, she is socially awkward, especially around her crushes, such as Tyler and Jesse. The drama featured the Thatcher family, whose son, Charles "Corky" Thatcher (played by Chris Burke), has Down syndrome, while their daughter Becca (played by Kellie Martin) did well at school but was socially awkward. Patti LuPone, then best known for theatrical roles, played the mother Elizabeth ("Libby") and Bill Smitrovich played
4960-522: Is set in the Chicago suburb Glenbrook, Illinois , which is named after the high school which one of creator Michael Braverman's children attended at the time. The name itself is a blend of the real suburbs served by the school, Glenview and Northbrook . Each episode's opening credits end with a shot of Arnold, the family dog (billed as "Arnold the Semi-Wonder Dog"). Apparently forgotten by
5084-410: Is very caring of Corky but has a love-hate relationship with Becca. Corky is the middle child: younger brother of Paige and older brother of Becca. Despite having Down Syndrome , he takes mostly regular classes in high school. He occasionally struggles, and indicated that mathematics was his hardest subject, but he improves through tutoring sessions. Becca is the younger sister of Corky and Paige. She
Ion Media - Misplaced Pages Continue
5208-537: The 720p format, announcing they would do so on January 28, 2009, with an original launch date of February 16, 2009, but delayed to March 16, 2009, after the passage of the DTV Delay Act , which pushed the national digital television transition to June 12, 2009. Most Ion stations began to switch their main signals from 480i standard definition to 720p HD in late February; an early decision to pillarbox 4:3 programming with blue rather than black pillarboxing
5332-471: The Christmas season). In the past, Ion had acquired first-run airings of Canadian series not picked up by other U.S. networks, and had also been infamous for devoting much of its schedule to infomercials . Under Scripps ownership, Ion has increasingly added national sports programming from the newly-established Scripps Sports division, beginning with packages of WNBA basketball and NWSL soccer. Ion
5456-654: The Dallas Cowboys . The series was not renewed for the fall 2008 season. Ion also obtained rights to televise games from the American Indoor Football Association , which were slated to begin airing in March 2008. However, the game's producers did not provide a live broadcast and the agreement was terminated. On December 28, 2010, Ion Television signed a deal with the Ultimate Fighting Championship to air
5580-618: The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) that would allow it to acquire additional television stations. NBC later sold its share in the network back to Paxson in November 2003. In lieu of a national news program, in 2000, Paxson Communications signed an agreement with Jackson, Mississippi -based WeatherVision – which mainly produces weather forecast inserts for television stations in certain markets that do not operate an in-house news department or maintain
5704-650: The Federal Communications Commission that it had closed the local facilities of the Ion Media stations (with those in duopoly markets having their operations consolidated with the existing Scripps commercial station), and consolidated the regulatory 'studios' for all of the stations at Scripps Center in Cincinnati . The FCC had repealed the Main Studio Rule in 2019 requiring a facility for each station in their local market, and for all intents and purposes,
5828-483: The Infomall TV Network (inTV), a network launched by Paxson in 1995 that relied mainly on infomercials and other brokered programming . During the late spring and summer of 1998, a half-hour preview special hosted by former Waltons star Richard Thomas , featuring interviews with Lowell Paxson about PAX's development and initial programming, aired on inTV stations slated to become charter outlets of
5952-598: The National Women's Soccer League announced Scripps Sports as a rightsholder beginning in the 2024 season, with Ion to air Saturday night doubleheaders. Ion will also air the 2024 NWSL Draft . As of October 2020 , Ion has 64 owned-and-operated stations, and current and pending affiliation agreements with nine additional television stations encompassing 36 states and the District of Columbia . The network has an estimated national reach of 60.63% of all households in
6076-689: The Women's United Soccer Association , Real Pro Wrestling (which more resembles the amateur form than the theatrically-based ring sport), the Champions Tour of golf, the Paralympic Games and a weekly mixed martial arts program from BodogFight . In its home state of Florida, the network's stations had served as a statewide chain to carry play-by-play coverage of a number of games for Major League Baseball 's Tampa Bay Rays and Florida Marlins (demarcated by each team's territories) until
6200-423: The daytime and late fringe/early graveyard periods over a five-year span (however, this resulted in the network increasing its reliance on regularly scheduled marathon -style blocks of a relatively small inventory of programs in lieu of acquiring a much larger lineup of series to fill out the schedule). More recent theatrically released feature films were also added to the lineup, alongside older movie releases from
6324-415: The "Ion Lounge", a lifestyle segment used mainly to advertise a company's product within the featured program's commercial breaks. In the recent past, Ion Television has aired a limited number of comedy or comedy-drama series that were cycled on-and-off the schedule such as Monk , Psych and Married... with Children , with half-hour sitcoms used on certain occasions to fill scheduling gaps prior to
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#17327807541266448-887: The "Ion Television at the Movies" block. Ion's method of running predominantly syndicated programming is very similar to the international model of broadcasting used in Europe, Canada, Latin America, Asia and Australia, which mixes imported and syndicated shows with original programming – a model used only in United States broadcast television by digital multicast services (particularly those that specialize in acquired programs such as MeTV and Antenna TV ), smaller English language entertainment-based networks (such as America One ), PBS member stations, and networks broadcasting in languages other than English (such as Univision , UniMás , and Telemundo ). The major commercial broadcast networks in
6572-422: The 1960s to the 1990s (such as Green Acres , Amen , and Pax holdover Diagnosis: Murder ) and feature films, reruns of former Pax TV series (such as Doc ) and first-run episodes (and later reruns) of Pax holdover series America's Most Talented Kids were also included as part of the schedule. In turn, the network adapted its programming content standards to those similar to other broadcast networks. During
6696-464: The 1980s and 1990s. In April 2009, it was announced that Ion Media Networks was once again facing balance sheet problems. The company disclosed that it was in discussions with lenders on "a comprehensive recapitalization" of its balance sheet , translating to an effort to restructure its considerable debt, which, according to The Wall Street Journal , stood at $ 2.7 billion as of April 2009. The network launched high definition operations in
6820-453: The 2005–06 season, the network launched only one new series that met the network's new mission of being an 'independent broadcast platform', the teen drama Palmetto Pointe , which only lasted five episodes and was criticized as a poor imitation of Dawson's Creek and One Tree Hill ; the network went entirely to a lineup of reruns with limited original programming for the 2006–07 season (except for Health Report and specials branded under
6944-472: The Canadian drama The Listener for broadcast in 2012, with an option for future seasons through an agreement with Shaw Media (parent of the show's originating broadcaster, Global ); the series would not join Ion's schedule until March 2014, by which time Ion Television had entered into a co-production arrangement for the program. A similar deal reached in September 2014 with Entertainment One gave Ion
7068-443: The Canadian drama series Flashpoint , which gave it first-run rights to the fourth season's final 11 episodes, after CBS aired that season's first eight episodes, as well as rights to air reruns of all episodes produced to date and thereafter; Ion (along with the show's originating Canadian broadcaster, CTV) also renewed the series for a fifth and final season that aired during the fall of 2012. In July 2011, Ion Television acquired
7192-508: The Cover , Balderdash , Dirty Rotten Cheater , a 2002 revival of Beat the Clock , Hollywood Showdown (in conjunction with Game Show Network , which also aired the show) and reruns of Born Lucky . The network would later carry reruns of the syndicated revival of Family Feud (consisting of episodes from Louie Anderson , Richard Karn and John O'Hurley 's tenures as host, airing on
7316-679: The Holiday season which start at 7:00 am. ET; awhile the entertainment programming schedule starts at 8:00 a.m. and ends at 1:00 a.m. from Christmas to New Year's Day), with paid programming filling the remaining vacated hours. A children's programming block of Science Max (one past Qubo series), and Xploration Station from Steve Rotfeld Productions – which features programs compliant with FCC educational programming requirements – airs for three hours each Friday at 7:00 am. Eastern Time. Four hours overnight are programmed with compensated religious or commercial paid programming ,
7440-462: The Ion network under bankruptcy for the second time, saying it had reached an agreement with holders of 60% of its first lien secured debt that would extinguish all of its $ 2.7 billion in legacy debt and preferred stock and recapitalize the company with a $ 150 million new funding commitment. It emerged from bankruptcy in December, under the ownership of its bondholders & secured lenders/first lien holders, wiping out Citadel's ownership. In late 2009,
7564-480: The Main Studio Rule repeal by the FCC in 2019 freed Ion stations from this requirement. Ion also served as the over-the-air broadcast distribution point for TiVo 's Teleworld Paid Program , a weekly 30-minute compilation program – usually carried during the overnight on Wednesdays or Thursdays within the network's designated paid programming time – it was specifically coded to distribute program previews and device tutorials for TiVo's digital video recorders ; in 2011,
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#17327807541267688-546: The U.S. rights to the medical drama Saving Hope (which made its U.S. debut on NBC in the summer of 2012); Ion began airing first-run episodes and repeats of the series in October 2015. In December 2011, Ion Television acquired the syndication rights to Cold Case , which debuted in 2012. On June 25, 2012, Ion Television entered into a deal with WWE to air a new hour-long series titled WWE Main Event on Wednesday nights;
7812-496: The U.S. that did not supply children's programming, and later one of only two until it restored a children's block in 2006 ( UPN eventually joined it in this distinction after it dropped its Disney's One Too block in August 2003, following the termination of a programming agreement with Buena Vista Television ). On September 15, 2006, Ion Television debuted a weekly children's program block called " Qubo on Ion Television", through
7936-486: The U.S. – ABC, NBC, CBS, and Fox – carry first-run programs produced for the network, while leaving the responsibility of acquiring shows from the syndication market to their owned-and-operated stations and affiliates to fill time not allotted to network and, where applicable, locally produced programs ( The CW and MyNetworkTV , which are somewhat similar to Ion Television in their formats, mixes elements of both models as acquired programs are supplied both during prime time by
8060-558: The United States (or 189,453,097 Americans with at least one television set). Ion Television has the most owned-and-operated stations of any commercial broadcast network in the United States, reaching 65.1% of the United States (well above the Federal Communications Commission's coverage-based national ownership limit of 39% ); it is also the only American commercial broadcast network whose stations almost exclusively consist of network-owned stations, similar to
8184-455: The acquisition of broadcast rights to films and series distributed by Sony Pictures Television (now Sony Pictures Television Studios ). Starting in September of that year, series and feature films from both libraries were incorporated onto the network's prime time schedule (including Who's the Boss? , Designing Women , Mama's Family , Growing Pains , Green Acres , and The Wonder Years ). However, these older series were later dropped when
8308-534: The amount of paid programming content on its schedule throughout the early 2000s, at the expense of its general entertainment programming. Infomercials and other types of brokered programs ultimately became the dominant form of programming during the network's broadcast day; by January 2005, the time that PAX had allocated to entertainment programs had been reduced to six hours on weekdays (from 5:00 p.m. to 11:00 pm) and five hours on weekends (from 5:00 p.m. to 10:00 pm. Central Time). Original programming
8432-510: The broadcast television rights to six films produced by Starz Media (now Lionsgate ) as part of its weekend film block (then branded as the "Big Movie Weekend"); the films started airing on the network in November of that year. Ion also acquired the syndication rights to the USA Network series Psych and Monk from NBCUniversal; the two series respectively began airing in late 2011 and early 2012. House , also from NBCUniversal, joined
8556-896: The buyer, revealed in an October 2020 FCC filing to be Inyo Broadcast Holdings , has promised to maintain the stations' Ion Television affiliations after the purchase. However, the number of stations to be sold increased according to a Public Applications Report from the FCC on October 16, 2020, and although unconfirmed, it is possible that Scripps could still operates at least some of these stations. Whether or not that pans out remains to be seen. As of October 17, 2020, 27 stations are likely up for sale; however, three of those stations in Philadelphia , San Francisco and Minneapolis are predicated and contingent upon whether Scripps can complete its sale of New York City's WPIX to Mission Broadcasting (to be operated by Nexstar Media Group ) in time before these transactions are finalized. If WPIX
8680-543: The cable provider's channel lineups. On May 1, 2008, Ion Television held an upfront presentation announcing its programming for the 2008–09 season at the New York Public Library in Manhattan . In addition to the announcement of its programming acquisitions, the network unveiled a new logo (a wordmark that incorporated a positive ion symbol as a pseudo-period next to the "ion" typeface) and slogan for
8804-411: The company and NBC Universal, Lowell Paxson granted NBCU an 18-month transferable option to purchase his shares of the company in an agreement which, if activated, would also trigger a sale of the rest of the company. If Mr. Paxson's shares of the company weren't sold in the option window, the company was obligated to buy them back from Mr. Paxson. Concurrent with this deal, Mr. Paxson left the company, and
8928-566: The company bought low-rated stations that had the same type of signals as established stations with medium to high ratings. These stations included WCFC in Chicago (religious), WTGI in Wilmington, Delaware (brokered), WAKC in Akron, Ohio (Cleveland's secondary ABC affiliate), and channel 35 in Miami (Shopping), among others. In the fall of 1997, a tentative lineup was announced, and it included
9052-495: The company's senior investors from previous rounds of financing. Ion Media Networks signed carriage agreements in May 2010 with Advanced Cable Communications and Comcast Colorado Springs for Qubo and Ion Life and with Blue Ridge Cable for Qubo. By 2012, Media Holdco's stake in Ion Media Networks was at 87%, with the company's senior investors from previous rounds of financing holding 13%. Sometime in 2013, Ion Media Networks signed
9176-446: The entirety of its $ 2.7 billion legacy debt and preferred stock, and recapitalize the company with a $ 150 million new funding commitment. On July 15, 2009, RHI Entertainment entered into a settlement agreement to resolve a dispute with Ion Media Networks, which resulted in the termination of a programming distribution agreement between RHI and Ion. In November 2010, Ion Television began airing its first made-for-TV movies, in
9300-415: The family in their rush to get ready for the day, he sits in the kitchen with his empty food bowl in his mouth and lets it drop to the floor. The show's producers received a constant trickle of letters each week from viewers who thought this was cruel, so in the final episode's opening credits, a bag of dog food spills out of a nearby cabinet. During the show's first year, the main focus was on Corky. Much of
9424-432: The father Drew. Eldest sister Paige Thatcher was played by Monique Lanier during the 1989–1990 season and by Tracey Needham during the 1990–1993 seasons as Lanier left the series to have a child. Becca's boyfriend and Corky's buddy, Tyler Benchfield, was played by Tommy Puett . Jerry Berkson ( Ray Buktenica ) was Libby's quirky boss. In the last two seasons, Becca's boyfriend Jesse McKenna was played by Chad Lowe . The show
9548-442: The films are produced by independent film and television studios such as Reel One Entertainment, Hybrid, LLC, The Cartel, and Vancouver -based MarVista Entertainment without the network's financial involvement (Ion does not maintain exclusivity to most of the films, which are also distributed via syndicated film packages or carried by other networks); the network extended these themed made-for-TV movies to other holidays in 2015, with
9672-496: The first national sports broadcast carried by Ion since 2011, and marks the first ever television contract for Scripps Sports, which was founded by the E. W. Scripps Company in December 2022 to acquire sports events for Ion and the group's local television stations. The agreement also grants local rights to selected Ion O&Os for games involving regional WNBA teams, which stations may carry in early- or late-evening broadcast windows depending on tip-off time. On November 9, 2023,
9796-424: The first three seasons, episodes included Tyler Benchfield (Tommy Puett), Becca's high school crush, who also had a brother with Down syndrome. Corky eventually got a job as an usher at a local movie theater. He later found a girlfriend, Amanda Swanson ( Andrea Friedman ), who also had Down Syndrome. They married by the series' end. By the second season, the writers began to expand the show's scope beyond Corky, and
9920-428: The form of Christmas-themed films that air between the weekend after Thanksgiving (airing the weekend before that holiday in 2013) and Christmas Day, with up to five films premiering each year on the network, although they are advertised as "original movies" in on-air promotions (the 2012 film Anything But Christmas is the only movie aired to date in which Ion Television had actually held a production interest), most of
10044-495: The fringes of markets which targeted lower-profile cities in the analog age, it has not been an issue with Ion Media itself. The network was launched by Bud Paxson , co-founder of the Home Shopping Network and chairman of parent company Paxson Communications (the forerunner to Ion Media). It was originally to be called Pax Net , but was renamed Pax TV (often referred to as simply "Pax"; stylized as "PAX") –
10168-637: The late 2000s, when cable's Fox Sports Florida and Sun (now Bally Sports Florida and Sun ) acquired the exclusive rights to both teams. Ion Television aired NFL Films ' weekly highlight program, the NFL Films Game of the Week on Saturday evenings from September 16, 2007, to January 5, 2008, with its initial broadcast focusing on the September 9, 2007 game between the New York Giants and
10292-575: The latter of which moved to the network following the revival series' cancellation by CBS earlier in 1998). The network also produced some original drama series such as Sue Thomas: F.B.Eye , Doc , Mysterious Ways (which originated on NBC ), Hope Island and Twice in a Lifetime through its programming division, Paxson Entertainment. PAX also aired many game shows including first-run revivals of established games that originated on cable networks such as Supermarket Sweep and Shop 'til You Drop , along with some original game shows such as On
10416-534: The license to channel 16 (which was, and still is, occupied by WINP-TV ), with channel 40 used for educational purposes. The two agreed on a purchase price, but the Federal Communications Commission had too many questions about the deal, most relating to the type of broadcast license to be operated on each channel, and it fell through. The PAX network was launched in 1998 with family dramas such as Life Goes On , Our House , Touched by an Angel , Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman , Highway to Heaven , and Bonanza ,
10540-595: The name iHealth). At one point in this era, the network programmed eighteen hours of paid programming per day, ⅔ of the network's broadcast day, with the network only programming the early fringe and prime time periods with traditional programming. In November 2005, NBCUniversal was granted a transferable option to purchase a controlling stake in Paxson Communications. Had this option been exercised, NBC would have acquired approximately 63 i owned-and-operated stations (though this could have resulted in
10664-466: The network in September 2012. In September 2011, Ion Television acquired the syndication rights to George Lopez and Leverage . George Lopez began airing on September 29, while Leverage debuted in July 2012, the former has since been dropped from the network, while the latter has been cycled on-and-off the schedule. On October 4, 2011, Ion Television acquired the rights to the first two seasons of
10788-435: The network is unable to maintain a main channel affiliation with or own a standalone station, for the same purpose as the distribution of Ion's main network feed via pay-TV providers and streaming services. The network's stations cover all of the top 20 U.S. markets and 37 of the top 50 markets. Ion's owned-and-operated stations cover 64.8% of the United States population, by far the most of any U.S. station ownership group; it
10912-463: The network shifted its programming to feature extended blocks of its acquired series (which consist mostly of drama series, with sitcoms becoming an increasingly less integral part of the schedule); it also began a gradual expansion of the number of hours devoted to entertainment shows, starting with the addition of a two-hour block of programming in the late afternoon (from 3:00 p.m. to 5:00 pm. Central) in January 2008, and expanding further into
11036-461: The network shifted towards more recent series. Ion also struck a library content deal with NBCUniversal , which gave it access to shows such as Law & Order . In September 2008, Ion Television reached a multi-year film rights agreement with Warner Bros. Television Distribution to broadcast more recent movies from Warner Bros. and its related studios. Meanwhile, three series from CBS Television Distribution (now CBS Media Ventures ) were added to
11160-418: The network stole the "Ion" branding. Positive Ions had registered trademarks on the word "Ion" and had used the mark commercially since 1999. On May 14, 2007, Positive Ions filed for an injunction that, if granted, would have required Ion Media Networks to change its name once again. On May 4, 2007, Ion, Citadel Investment Group , and NBC Universal announced a deal to transfer NBC Universal's rights to purchase
11284-466: The network's Sunday afternoon and evening schedule ( holiday -themed made-for-TV films are also broadcast under the banner throughout the entertainment programming day on weekends between Thanksgiving and Christmas, as well as on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day regardless of where either holiday falls during the calendar week). Ion Television occasionally airs short hosted segments during its prime time lineup – particularly during film presentations – known as
11408-434: The network's broadcast day, or 126 hours of a 168-hour broadcast week. To appease DirecTV management, the network launched a secondary feed of the network for providers adverse to its over-the-air programming direction, replacing paid programming time with older public domain programs and cancelled Pax TV original series. DirecTV and Paxson then reached a new carriage agreement in May 2006. In September 2006, i launched Qubo,
11532-413: The network's format is predominantly devoted to marathon blocks of hour-long drama series, with consecutive episodes of a given series airing between two and 16 hours a day (depending on the day's schedule, with fewer hours in the morning and late fringe). The network broadcasts feature films released between the 1980s and the 2000s under the banner "Ion Television at the Movies", which fill the majority of
11656-437: The network, "Positively Entertaining" (a form of wordplay, as ions are atoms or molecules that have a positive or negative electrical charge). With the September 8, 2008, rebrand, the network also retooled its focus, emphasizing the key demographic of adults between ages of 18 and 49, and airing more recent acquired programming aimed at young adults (such as Boston Legal , NCIS , and Criminal Minds ). By this point,
11780-538: The networks on the former Ion Media stations will be repurposed to carry the Katz-owned networks starting March 1, with the initial slate of Ion Television O&Os adding those networks following the expiration of Scripps/Katz's existing contracts with other broadcasting companies the day prior, and other stations following suit as contracts with existing affiliates expire throughout 2021 and 2022; in markets where major network affiliates operated by Scripps already carry
11904-435: The new network. PAX launched on August 31, 1998, with the network's initial schedule being much larger in scope than it would be in later years. At launch, Pax aired general entertainment programming on weekdays from 11:00 a.m. to 11:00 p.m. and weekends from 3:00 p.m. to 10:00 pm. Central Time. Through an agreement with then- Disney owned animation studio DIC Productions L.P. , its schedule also included
12028-412: The operation, sold the station for about $ 225 million in May 1997, and shut down S+ that June in favor of Bloomberg Business News , Fox Sports Net and a block previewing new networks, IntroTV. Channel 31 was renamed WPXN with plans to be the flagship station of PAX TV in the fall of 1998. In Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania , the company wanted to buy WPCB , channel 40, from Cornerstone Television , and move
12152-497: The ownership model of many commercial broadcast networks in Europe, Canada, Latin America, Asia and Australia, and to a somewhat more expansive extent, many U.S.-based religious broadcast networks. Life Goes On (TV series) Life Goes On is an American drama television series that aired on ABC from September 12, 1989, to May 23, 1993. The show centers on the Thatcher family living in suburban Chicago : Drew, his wife Libby, and their children Paige, Rebecca and Charles, who
12276-468: The partner station; in a few cases, the agreement partner produced live newscasts for the PAX station (as examples of the latter, NBC affiliate WTHR in Indianapolis produced a prime time newscast for PAX O&O WIPX-TV from February to June 2005, after CBS affiliate WISH-TV (now a CW affiliate) took over production of the newscast that WTHR had been producing for UPN affiliate WNDY-TV (now
12400-548: The preliminary fights to the January 1 pay-per-view event UFC 125 . Ion also aired the preliminary fights for UFC 127 and UFC 140 later in 2011, before the organization signed an exclusive programming agreement with Fox . On April 20, 2023, Ion Television, through Scripps Sports , signed a multi-year deal with the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) to air a 15-week slate of doubleheader games on Friday nights (branded as WNBA Friday Night Spotlight on ION ), beginning with that year's regular season . It will be
12524-641: The premieres of the romance films Meet My Valentine (which aired as part of the network's Valentine's Day programming slate) and You Cast a Spell on Me (which aired as part of its "Wicked Week" Halloween block). On September 24, 2020, E. W. Scripps Company agreed to buy Ion Media for $ 2.65 billion. The transaction, which closed on January 7, 2021, saw Ion Television and its sister networks absorbed into Scripps' Katz Broadcasting subsidiary, which already operates five specialty networks , most notably Bounce TV and Court TV . In regards to Ion Television's programming, Scripps indicated it would maintain
12648-410: The purchase. The transaction, which is projected to close in the first quarter of 2021 and is subject to FCC approval, would see Ion Media and its networks combined with Scripps' Katz Broadcasting subsidiary, which already operates five specialty networks , most notably Bounce TV and Court TV . Scripps would also sell 23 of Ion Media's 71 television stations to comply with national ownership caps;
12772-919: The radio group and major-network affiliated television stations in 1998, focusing on building its own independent TV network, "PAX TV". The company focused on acquiring UHF television stations. Some of these stations are out-of-market stations, such as WPXD in Ann Arbor, Michigan (45 miles (72 km) from Detroit), KXLI in St. Cloud, Minnesota (60 miles (97 km) from Minneapolis), WTLK in Rome, Georgia (45 miles (72 km) from Atlanta), WPXJ in Pavilion, New York (45 miles (72 km) from both Buffalo and Rochester , New York), and WAYK in Melbourne , Florida (60 miles (97 km) from Orlando ). Still in some markets
12896-532: The recapitalization of Ion. Citadel acquired the public common stock of the company, as part of the plan to take the company private. In addition, Citadel invested $ 100 million of new capital into the company to further support management's plan to revitalize the TV network. In November 2007, Ion Media Networks was taken to trial, having been sued in Federal Court by Positive Ions, Inc for trademark infringement of
13020-463: The remaining three seasons will be released. The DVD release has a replacement theme song at the beginning of each episode, with the exception of the show's pilot. The replacement was due to high licensing costs for the Beatles ' song " Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da ." The new song aptly titled "Life Goes On" was written by composer Marc Jackson of MoonLab Music and sung by singer/songwriter Tara Johnston. The song
13144-472: The schedule was filled by paid programming. Initial programming on PAX consisted of first-run shows (such as the true story profile series It's a Miracle , game show The Reel to Reel Picture Show , and talk shows Woman's Day and Great Day America ), along with reruns of older programming (including Highway to Heaven , Here's Lucy , The Hogan Family , Dave's World , Touched by an Angel , and new episodes and older reruns of Candid Camera ,
13268-547: The schedule: NCIS joined the lineup in September 2008, while Criminal Minds and Ghost Whisperer were added to the Ion Television lineup in 2009. In January 2009, the network announced that it had acquired the broadcast rights to the Canadian television drama series Durham County ; that show aired on the network for less than a year. On January 21, 2011, Ion Television acquired the U.S. television rights to
13392-459: The school board did not waive the math requirement. In Canada , the show aired on Crossroads Television System . In New Zealand , the show aired Saturday afternoons on TVNZ 's Channel 2. In the United States , reruns have previously aired on The Family Channel , FX and PAX TV . On May 9, 2006, Warner Home Video released Season 1 of Life Goes On on DVD in Region 1 . It is unknown if
13516-414: The series debuted on October 3, 2012 and ran until April 2, 2014. Prior to Ion Television's original launch as Pax TV in 1998, the network had reached an agreement with DIC Entertainment to produce a five-hour children's programming block called Freddy's Firehouse , to air on Saturday and Sunday mornings. The block of animated series was instead launched on September 5, 1998, as "Cloud Nine", featuring
13640-449: The services and by their stations at all other times). A limited number of non-Ion-owned stations that are merely affiliated with the network (such as former Louisville outlet WBNA ) do carry additional local or syndicated programming that, in some instances, pre-empts certain programs within the Ion master schedule. In 2006, Ion Media Networks reached several programming deals, two with major programming suppliers that were announced within
13764-563: The show examined the challenges of a family whose son had Down Syndrome. The Thatchers sought to have Corky interact with regular society after spending years socializing him amongst other kids with Down syndrome in "special" classes. The need to integrate Corky into normal society was Season 1's main storyline, as the Thatchers opted to enroll Corky in a regular high school despite the principal's demand that he be placed in an alternative program for those with Down syndrome. In addition, during
13888-401: The status quo, with no plans at the time to invest in original content or deviate from the channel's off-network programming approach. To get FCC approval for the transaction, 23 Ion Television stations were sold by Scripps to Inyo Broadcast Holdings . On April 8, 2024, Scripps announced that they would reposition Ion into a general entertainment channel, turning live sports broadcasting as
14012-430: The studios were all office suites with almost no broadcast equipment containing mainly the station's public file with a minimum staff of one engineer and one general manager (both often regional and maintaining multiple Ion stations) merely maintaining the network's transmitters. The network's operations remain based out of West Palm Beach. Ion Television Ion Television (referred to on-air as simply Ion )
14136-449: The surprise of those around them, Becca and Jesse began a relationship despite his HIV. The writers explored life with HIV through Jesse's character, and the difficulties the disease causes with romantic relationships. The relationship between Corky and Becca, previously portrayed as close, was also explored, as Corky briefly turned his back on his sister for dumping a mutual friend to date Jesse. The fourth season's first episode, in which
14260-419: The telecast of its late-morning film presentations (usually in the 10:00 am. Central Time half-hour, if the succeeding film ran for at least 2 1 ⁄ 2 hours) because of their erratic scheduling; the network shifted to a more exclusive focus on dramas as part of its series content in January 2015, although the network continued to carry comedic programming in the form of select feature films aired within
14384-490: The third and fourth seasons centered on Becca and a new character, Jesse (Chad Lowe), a junior who met Becca through the school's theatre department. As they become friends, Jesse told Becca he was HIV positive. Tyler became less prominent in Becca's life and was jealous of Becca's closeness with Jesse. His character was written out and he was given the memorable sendoff of dying in a car accident with Corky as passenger. Much to
14508-884: The time was used in early September to preview the pilot of Fox 's new sitcom New Girl , before its actual Fox premiere on September 20. TiVo discontinued the program in 2016 as broadband had become commonplace enough to end it. Most programs broadcast by Ion Television are distributed by either NBCUniversal Syndication Studios , Disney–ABC Domestic Television , CBS Media Ventures , or Warner Bros. Domestic Television Distribution . Ion Television also maintains film distribution deals with Universal Pictures , Paramount Pictures , 20th Century Studios and Warner Bros. Pictures . Series broadcast by Ion Television (as of October 2015 ) are mostly dramas such as Criminal Minds , Law & Order , Law & Order: Special Victims Unit , Law & Order: Criminal Intent , Numb3rs , Bones , Blue Bloods , and The Listener . As of 2014,
14632-482: The use of the word Ion , resulting in a $ 1.7 million settlement awarded to Positive Ions, Inc. In 2008, Ion Media Networks and Comcast reached an agreement to not only continue to carry Ion Television , but also introduced two new digital networks Qubo (its block launched two years later) and Ion Life . By January 2009, Ion had another subchannel network, Urban TV, in the works with BET founder Robert L. Johnson targeted to African-Americans. In April 2009, it
14756-763: The venture. An analyst felt the proposed partnership was hampered by Ion Media's decision to assert must-carry status over its stations rather than retransmission consent , as Fox would be unable to immediately benefit financially from the partnership's scale , which would have included being able to collect carriage payments for all of the stations. The analyst added that Ion stations alone did not have enough leverage to negotiate with television providers, because of their limited local or first-run programming. On September 24, 2020, Ion Media agreed to be acquired by The E. W. Scripps Company for $ 2.65 billion, with Berkshire Hathaway making an investment in Scripps to help finance
14880-430: Was also affected by the network's programming changes; PAX was originally offering five or six new series each season. However, in 2003, the number of new series that aired on PAX dwindled to just two: Sue Thomas: F.B.Eye , which was cancelled in 2005, and Doc , which was cancelled in 2004 after PAX's international backer, Canadian broadcast network CTV , pulled out of producing the shows. The network seemingly recovered
15004-453: Was announced that Ion Media Networks was once again facing balance sheet problems. The company disclosed that it was in discussions with lenders on "a comprehensive recapitalization" of its balance sheet. That translates to an effort to restructure its considerable debt, which stands at $ 2.7 billion as of April 2009, according to The Wall Street Journal . On May 19, 2009, Ion Media Networks filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, putting
15128-481: Was eventually abandoned as black coloring became the industry norm. Some Ion-owned and affiliate stations which carry the network as a multicast offering continue to carry the network in 480i widescreen over-the-air. On May 19, 2009, Ion Media Networks filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection , putting the Ion network under bankruptcy for the second time in its history; it had reached an agreement with holders of 60% of its first lien secured debt that would extinguish
15252-974: Was sold before these transactions, then those stations will be retained. On October 20, broadcast industry website TV News Check confirmed the pending sales in a "station roundup" report outlining the stations slated to be sold, and the number being reduced to 26 again. That number, again, is cut down to 23, after Scripps was able to complete its sale of WPIX to Mission Broadcasting on December 30, 2020. As such, Scripps would keep its Ion stations in San Francisco, Philadelphia and Minneapolis. The transaction, which closed on January 7, 2021, saw Ion Television, Ion Plus, Qubo, and Ion Shop integrated into Scripps' Katz Broadcasting subsidiary (operator of fellow multicast networks Court TV , Ion Mystery , Bounce TV , Laff and Grit ). On January 14, 2021, Scripps announced that it would discontinue Ion Plus, Qubo and Ion Shop effective February 28, 2021. The spectrum allocated to
15376-421: Was succeeded by R. Brandon Burgess in the role of President and CEO. In early 2006, the company adopted its current name. A few months later, Ion launched a children's brand along with NBC Universal (along its now-defunct subsidiary Classic Media), Scholastic and Canada's Corus to plan an afternoon block and a 24/7 channel in January. In May 2007, Ion, NBC Universal, and Citadel LLC reached an agreement for
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