Merit Street (Dr. Phil Cable Network).

[AaronQ 292]

5 hours ago, Rusty Muck said:

There's two EWTNs: the first is the channel that shows masses for shut-ins and daily rosaries (along with Bishop Sheen reruns). The second is the news service, which is to the right of OAN and Newsmax. Raymond Arroyo is their lead "anchor" when he's not chumming up with Laura Ingraham, a friendship that goes back to her conversation to the Church 20 years ago.

 

The Vatican is in a tough spot, it's not like there's enough of an audience to justify the existence of a competing network with a more liberal ideology.

 

It always had been a euphemism for the right-wing. CBN, TBN, PTL and even individual televangelists have had those beliefs for practically forever.

Don't forget Daystar. 

[tyrannical bastard 4106]

Does the TV version of EWTN still air Mother Angelica's reruns?  EWTN was her mission as a nun and was an extension of her creating a monastery in the South after experiencing a miracle of her own healing from a devastating injury.

 

Her original TV efforts were through WBMG (now WIAT) but she decided to start forming EWTN after she objected to CBS's content at the time.

 

As tormented as the Catholic Church has been throughout its history, this is probably the only religious TV channel purely devoted to faith.

[NYAZSporty 152]

2 hours ago, tyrannical bastard said:

Does the TV version of EWTN still air Mother Angelica's reruns?  EWTN was her mission as a nun and was an extension of her creating a monastery in the South after experiencing a miracle of her own healing from a devastating injury.

 

Her original TV efforts were through WBMG (now WIAT) but she decided to start forming EWTN after she objected to CBS's content at the time.

 

As tormented as the Catholic Church has been throughout its history, this is probably the only religious TV channel purely devoted to faith.

Yes

[AmericanErrorist 168]

16 hours ago, mer764KCTV5 said:

 

Then air it on cable... oh right... Cable is dying as we speak.

 

Merit Street is complaining that TBN didn't help it get on cable enough.

[nathannah 2548]

2 hours ago, AmericanErrorist said:

Merit Street is complaining that TBN didn't help it get on cable enough.

That can be attestable (TBN lost most of their Spectrum carriage over the years for their other channels outside regular TBN and enlace) but there's also the reality that cable providers are not up to paying $2 more for a channel with a shaky business model (big star with their own show tricking down an audience on generic other content already found on other channels) and whose product is already otherwise free or available in rerun form elsewhere or on podcasts. TBN is hard into digital first as then they don't need to bother with the middlemen negotiating carriage or the costs of the analog era translator network they sold off to speculators and subfarm operators.

 

That he had no control of his network library at all certainly didn't help matters, but also that broadcast surcharge fees are getting near $50/month, it's beginning to be a losing battle for bundles, with providers beginning to fight back (re: the old Cinci Bell fighting Nexstar because they don't want NewsNation just to carry Dayton's NBC/CW stations) or having to capitulate (Spectrum getting back the dumped Disney networks in exchange for Hulu access at their own terms). Phil refused to do the most basic research that TBN simply doesn't negotiate carriage well outside must-carry and their JVs like Hillsong have had a high failure rate, that .1 channel leases for stations rarely watched, even must-carry on pay TV systems are a money pit (CHSN learned that too even as subchannels), and now he's learning that lesson in bankruptcy.

Edited Thursday at 07:39 PM by nathannah

[tyrannical bastard 4106]

TBN also did themselves no favors by cashing out many of their stations in the spectrum auction, and subsequently selling the licenses to other parties, much like WDLI in Canton living on as a re-packed station on Ion's (Inyo's) WVPX.

 

These TBN stations (and other full-power god-casters) exploited the must-carry obligation to get them on cable while the others opted for retransmission consent.  Donations went down over time and the spectrum was a way to make some quick cash.

Edited Thursday at 08:20 PM by tyrannical bastard

[Rusty Muck 4450]

"powergate92" on RadioDiscussions found the bankruptcy docket and this looks really bad. I'll quote them:

 

"So I found the bankruptcy docket. It looks like the plan is for Merit Street assets to be sold at auction with final sale to be completed by the end of September."

 

 

Here's the link to the dockets.

[mre29 1597]

So, for those of us who don't read legalese, what assets...er, Assets, does Merit Street have?

 

[AmericanErrorist 168]

1 hour ago, mre29 said:

So, for those of us who don't read legalese, what assets...er, Assets, does Merit Street have?

 

The ability to be plaintiffs in lawsuits against TBN and the Professional Bull Riders, supplier contracts (including carriage deals, program rights and the uplink), the "Merit Street" and "Merit TV" trademarks, a year and a half of (dated) newscasts and commentary programs including Dr. Phil Primetime, and office space and supplies, along with the repeat farm that the channel is still operating as and its few remaining employees, along with the website and Merit+ free streaming platform.

Edited 1 hour ago by AmericanErrorist

[TheRolyPoly 2692]

It sounds like come the end of the year, if this goes through, Merit TV will either be finished (shut down) or something and COMPLETELY different with new ownership.