truTV | |
---|---|
Launched | July 1, 1991 January 1, 2008 (as truTV) |
(as Court TV)
Owned by |
Turner Broadcasting System (Time Warner) |
Picture format |
1080i (HDTV) (HD feed downgraded to letterboxed 480i for SDTVs) |
Slogan | Funny Because It's Tru. |
Country | United States |
Broadcast area | United States |
Headquarters | Atlanta, Georgia, United States |
Formerly called | Court TV (1991–2007) |
Sister channel(s) | |
Website | www |
Availability
|
|
Satellite | |
Dish Network | 148 (HD/SD) 242 (HD/SD) |
DirecTV (U.S.) | 246 (HD/SD) 1246 (VOD) |
Cable | |
Available on most U.S. cable systems | Contact your local cable provider for channel availability |
IPTV | |
Verizon FiOS | 183 (SD) 683 (HD) |
AT&T U-verse | 164 (East, SD) 165 (West, SD) 1164 (East, HD) 1165 (West, HD) |
Streaming media | |
PlayStation Vue | Internet Protocol television |
Sling TV | Internet Protocol television |
truTV (formerly Court TV) is an American cable and satellite television channel owned by the Turner Broadcasting System division of Time Warner. The network was originally launched in 1991 as Court TV, a network that focused on crime-themed programs such as documentary series, legal dramas, and coverage of prominent criminal cases. With its relaunch as truTV in 2008, the network revamped its lineup with a focus on reality shows and "caught on camera" programs, which the network marketed as "actuality" television. In October 2014, TruTV's lineup was reoriented with a focus on comedy programming and comedy-based reality series.
As of February 2015, approximately 89.7 million US households (77% of households with television) receive truTV.
The Courtroom Television Network, or Court TV for short, was launched on July 2, 1991, and was available to three million subscribers. Its original anchors were Fred Graham, who was still at the network twenty years later, and Cynthia McFadden, who later joined ABC News. The network was born out of two competing projects to launch cable channels with live courtroom proceedings, the American Trial Network from Time Warner and American Lawyer Media, and In Court from Cablevision and NBC. Both projects were present at the National Cable Television Association in June 1990. Rather than trying to establish two competing networks, the projects were combined in December 14, 1990. Liberty Media would join the venture in 1991.
The channel featured continuous live trial coverage, with analysis by anchors. It was led by law writer Steven Brill, who left the network in 1997. The network came into its own during the Menendez brothers first trial and later during the O.J. Simpson murder trial. In 1998, NBC sold its share of the network to Time Warner. That same year, it began running several original and acquired programs in prime time, such as Homicide: Life on the Street and Forensic Files.