Stellar TV
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  • STELLAR TV TO LAUNCH AS BLACK-OWNED AND OPERATED 24/7 AD-SUPPORTED BLACK LIFESTYLE NETWORK, AND BECOME THE FIRST ‘HOME OF GOSPEL MUSIC ENTERTAINMENT’

    Driven by culture, lifestyle, history, and music,the network will air uplifting programs onlinear and streaming television platformsin addition to its current programs in broadcast syndication. Stellar TV’s launch will be announced duringthe 37thannual Stellar Gospel Music Awards weekend in Atlanta, Georgia, July 15and 16

    (CHICAGO) July 6,2022—Central City Productions announces the launch of the Stellar TV network,setto premiereinfourthquarter of2022.The Stellar TV network is a wholly owned subsidiary of Central City Productions, Inc.,the oldest Black-ownedandoperated televisionproductioncompany inthe country. Central City Productions has been in operationsince 1970 andremains dedicated to creatingBlack excellence in television programming.


    Central City Productions is the creator of the StellarGospel Music Awards, the longest-airingBlack ad-supportedawards showon televisionfeaturingthe best in Gospel Music, plus a multitude of other uplifting and original television programs such as Black Music Honors, Black College Quiz, America’s Black Forum, Mentoring Kings, Mentoring Queens,Family Night,and many others. The network’s owned and operated library of 50 years isprimed with more than 5,000 hoursoffamily-friendly entertainment.


    The Stellar TV launchwill be hosted by Marc Morial, Presidentand CEOof the National Urban League,the nation’s largest historic civil rights and urban advocacy organization. MarcMorialis also a leadingadvocate forthe growth of Black-owned televisionnetworks and a leading voice on the national stage inthe battle for jobs, education, housing,and voting rights equity.The formal announcement will take place on July 15, during an invitation-onlypress announcement eventduring theStellarGospel MusicAwards weekendof tapingin Atlanta, Georgia.


    “Now more than ever, Black audiences want to see themselves reflected in what they watch on television, including programs that are safe forthe entire family.We are excited about our early engagement and commitments withour charter media partners, who include Procter & Gamble, Walmart, Verizon, Toyota, State Farm, AT&T, General Motors, Dentsu/Carat, PublicisMedia, Hearts and Science,and Nielsen Audience Measurement; along with our distributioncarriagepartners Charter Communications, Verizon FIOs, XUMO,and STIRR TV, who are walking the talk as they do business with Black-owned networks to reach Black consumers,”said Don Jackson, Chairman and CEO of Central City Productionsand founder of the Stellar TV network. “Withthe launch of Stellar TV, Black America and others have another avenue to witnesspositive, uplifting andmultifaceted representationof our culture, our voice and ourmusic.”


    According to a February 2022 diverse-owned media report from Nielsen, Black families are accessing more content than ever, and are leaning intoprogramming where they can feel seen and represented. Black-owned media networks are more than two-and-half times more likely to attract Black audiences, underscoring the value of programs created for and by the community, both to audiences themselves and to advertisers and marketers.


    Upon launch, Stellar TV programming components will includeexclusive original contentfrom StellarTV’s library, plus its annual and quarterly flagship specials, along with newpremiere content.In addition, Stellar TV’s charter partner, Procter &Gamble’s Chief Brand Officer Marc Pritchard,will be the keynotespeaker at Stellar TV network’s press announcement and will highlight P&G’s “Widen The Screen” Black creative producers initiative, which will air on Stellar TV.


    Stellar TV is also an active member of Publicis Media’s Once & For All Coalition, which is a cross-industry consortium that aims to break down industry barriers to equitable representation and financial opportunity for diverse-owned media suppliers.



    Distribution carriage partnersas of this press release include:Charter Communications, a leading cable operator serving more than 32 million customers in 41 states through its Spectrum brand, which is set to premiere the Stellar TV network during the fourth quarter of 2022; Verizon FIOS, a television service operating over a fiber optical network that covers roughly 11% of the U.S. population; XUMO, a free ad-supported streaming service that offers over 200 channels ofpremium programming; and STIRR TV, an ad-supported video streaming service owned by Sinclair Broadcast Group.


    The Stellar TV network is also committed to building the next generation of televisionproduction professionals. Stellar TV iscommitted to providingBlack andBrownstudentsin film and televisionprogramsatcommunity collegesin urban cities with hands-on production training, shadowing, mentorship, internships, and employment opportunitiesin Stellar TV productions.


    Founded in 1970 by Don Jackson, Chicago-based Central City Productions, Inc. is a national broadcast television production, sales and broadcast syndication company of its exclusively owned African American programming content. Celebrating over 50 years of broadcasting Black excellence with uplifting and entertaining original television content, CCP’s award-winning television programs include the Stellar Awards (www.stellarawards.com), Black Music Honors (www.blackmusichonors.com), Stellar Tribute to the Holidays, Black College Quiz Show Series (www.blackcollegequiz.com), America’s Black Forum (www.americasblackforum.com), Mentoring Queens (www.mentoringqueen.com) and Mentoring Kings (www.mentoringking.com), among many others. For more information, visit www.stellartv.com.

    Media interested in covering the Stellar TV network launch or attending the announcement eventcan contact StellarsPR@explorefcg.com.

    FORMOREINFORMATION,VISIT:WWW.CCPTV.COM AND WWW.STELLARTV.COM