History (TV channel)

Infobox_TV_channel
name= History
logofile=History channel us.png logoalt=
logo2 = History logo in the United States
logosize= 150px
slogan=
launch=January 1, 1995
owner= A&E Television Networks
former names= The History Channel (1995-2008)
headquarters= New York City, United States
picture format=480i (SDTV)
1080i (HDTV)
sister names=History International, A&E Network, The Biography Channel, Military History Channel, The History Channel en español, Crime & Investigation Network
web= [http://www.history.com/ www.history.com]
terr avail=Not Available| comcast cable 60
sat serv 1=DirecTV
sat chan 1=Channel 269
Channel 1269 (VOD)
sat serv 2=Dish Network
sat chan 2=Channel 120
cable serv 1 = Available on most cable systems
cable chan 1 = Check local listings for channels
|

History, formerly known as The History Channel, is a satellite and cable TV channel, with shows on historical events and persons—often with observations and explanations by noted historians as well as reenactors and interviews with witnesses. Some of the original programming is also shown on History Television in Canada.

History

[
January 1, 1995 until February 16, 2008 in the United States. Still used in other markets.]

Launched on January 1, 1995, the channel is owned by A&E joint venture (Hearst, Disney, NBC) [cite web|url=http://www.aetn.com/about.html|title=About AETN|publisher=AETN.com|accessdate=2007-08-04] and operates, in various forms, in the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, Portugal, Israel, Spain, Italy, The Netherlands and Latin America. The network is also currently available in South Asia under a deal between STAR TV and AETN International. Interestingly, the channel has consistently produced prime time ratings in the U.S. comparable to or higher than the A&E Network itself.

In 2007 The History Channel launched "Take a Veteran to School Day," designed to foster relationships between U.S. military veterans and students; R. Lee Ermey is the spokesman for the initiative.

On February 16, 2008, a new logo was launched on the flagship American network. While keeping their trademark "H", the triangle shape on the left acts as a play button for animation and fly-outs during commercials and shows. The former logo form remains in place for the rest of the world. On March 20, 2008, The History Channel dropped the "The" and the "Channel" parts of its name to become "History". [ International Herald Tribune [http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2008/03/20/arts/TV-History-Channel.php Television's The History Channel drops 'the' and 'channel' from its name, keeps History] March 20, 2008 ]

Programming

Programming covers a wide array of periods and topics, while similar topics are often organized into themed weeks or daily marathons. Subjects include military history, medieval history, the 19th, 20th, and 21st centuries, modern engineering, and historical biographies. Many programs compare contemporary culture and technology with the past, while some programs have a more esoteric focus such as conspiracy theory, religious interpretation, UFO speculation, or reality television. The History Channel maintains a corporate initiative called Save Our History, dedicated to the preservation of history and historical sites and artifacts, similar in spirit but not to be confused with the National Trust for Historic Preservation.

Criticism and evaluation

The History Channel received the nickname "the Hitler Channel" [ [http://archive.salon.com/may97/media/media970508.html "All Hitler, all the time"] by Mark Schone ( [http://www.salon.com/index.html "Salon"] , May 8, 1997).] for its extensive coverage of World War II, though much military-themed programming has now been shifted to its sister network, the Military History Channel, and the network's programming now covers a diverse range of topics on history. The U.S.-based network has also been criticized for devoting most of its coverage to US and Western history. [cite web|url=http://www.channel4.com/history/microsites/H/history/guide03/explore1.html|title=Time traveller's guide to the Roman Empire|publisher=Channel4.com|quote=The History Channel:The website of the American cable channel has a bias towards American history.|accessdate=2007-08-04] Their sister network, History International, does focus primarily on non-US history however. The network has also received criticism for emphasizing the history of relatively recent times, as opposed to ancient or medieval eras.

The History Channel has been reproved for giving too much attention to arguably non-historical subjects, such as UFOs. [ [http://www.jumptheshark.com/topic/History-Channel/History-Channel-General-Comments/914 Jump the Shark - History Channel] ] Also, the network's "Ice Road Truckers" series garnered record ratings in the U.S. despite its debatably non-historical nature. [cite web|url=http://www.realitytvworld.com/news/ice-road-truckers-debut-sets-history-channel-ratings-records-5383.php|title='Ice Road Truckers' debut sets The History Channel ratings records|author=Steve Rogers and Christopher Rocchio|date=2007-06-20|publisher="Reality TV World"|accessdate=2007-11-17]

The network has won praise from professional historians such as Stanley Kutner for its willingness to examine the biases of its own programming – in particular, a series on the John F. Kennedy assassination. [cite web|url=http://hnn.us/articles/4504.html|title=Why the History Channel Had to Apologize for the Documentary that Blamed LBJ for JFK's Murder|author=Stanley Kutner|publisher=History News Network|date=2004-07-04|accessdate=2007-08-04|quote=The History Channel has made a start in the right direction as it has totally disavowed the program and publicly promised it never will be shown again.] Programs such as "Modern Marvels" have been praised for their presentation of detailed information in an entertaining format. [cite web|url=http://www.dvdtalk.com/reviews/read.php?ID=28158|title=Modern Marvels: Technology|author=Scott Weinberg|publisher="DVD Talk"|date=2007-05-29|accessdate=2007-08-04|quote=If you're trying to throw your kids a little education, but in a fast-paced and colorful presentation, these "Modern Marvels" series come pretty highly recommended. Then again, I'm a mid-30s guy and I'm learning tons of new stuff from these programs.]

The History Channel is sometimes humorously and critically referred to as "The Armageddon Channel" for its seeming focus on the apocalypse (In the series "Decoding The Past" alone, there are four episodes about it.). "The Lost Book Of Nostradamus" is the most recent special focusing on such material.

Other media

DVD

*"The Unknown Hitler" DVD collection, [The History Channel Online Store: [http://store.aetv.com/html/product/index.jhtml?id=76782 The Unknown Hitler DVD Collection] ] including "Hitler and the Occult"
*"Dogfight: Season 1" DVD set

Video games

* [http://www.strategyinformer.com/pc/historychannelgreatbattlesofrome/interview.html "The History Channel: Great Battles of Rome"]
*""
*
*
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*" [http://www.gamespot.com/pc/adventure/historychannellostworlds/index.html The History Channel: Lost Worlds] "
*" [http://www.gamespot.com/pc/sim/battleofbritain1940/index.html The History Channel: Battle of Britain 1940] "
*" [http://www.gamespot.com/pc/strategy/crusadesquestforpower/index.html The History Channel: Crusades - Quest for Power] "
*" [http://www.gamespot.com/pc/strategy/thealamo/index.html The History Channel: Alamo - Fight for Independence] "
*" [http://www.mobygames.com/game/history-channel-civil-war-great-battles The History Channel: Civil War - Great Battles] "
*" [http://www.gamespot.com/pc/adventure/historychanneldiggingfortruth/index.html?tag=result;title;0 The History Channel: Digging for Truth] "

International

Canada

History is not to be confused with a similar, independently-owned, Canadian service, History Television. Indeed, the phrase "Not available in Canada" became a "de facto" slogan for the channel in its early years, as a result of its use in promotional ads, at least those aired on A&E (which is available in Canada). [cite web|url=http://www.lisnews.com/index.pl?issue=20040722&mode=|title=Librarian and Information Science News|publisher=LIS News|accessdate=2007-08-04|quote=I always wondered why the History Channel commercials said not available in Canada.]

Asia

The History Channel started its operations in India in late 2003, with News Corp's STAR as its sales partner. [cite web | url = http://www.indiantelevision.com/interviews/y2k3/executive/zubin.htm | title = Indiantelevision.com's interview with NGC India managing director (South Asia) Zubin Jehanbux Gandevia | date = 2003-12-20 | accessdate = 2007-10-15 | publisher = Indiantelevision.com] A joint venture of A&E and Astro All Asia Networks plc is launching the History Channel in Singapore, Hong Kong, Thailand, the Philippines, Malaysia, Indonesia, Vietnam and Brunei in the second and third quarters of 2007, and in Taiwan and China by the end of the year. [cite web|url=http://www.aetninternational.com/news.jsp?id=17683138|title=A&E Television Networks & Astro Form Joint Venture|date=2007-04-16|accessdate=2007-06-08
cite web|url=http://www.aetninternational.com/news.jsp?id=9992256|title=The History Channel Expands Through Asia|date=2003-02-10|accessdate=2007-06-16] Some other Asian countries such as Israel, Japan and South Korea currently have their own versions of the network.

Scandinavia

A Scandinavian version was launched in September 1997, broadcasting for three hours per day on the analogue Viasat platform. Initially time-sharing with TV1000 Cinema, it was later moved to the Swedish TV8 channel and continued broadcasting there until November 2004 when Viasat launched their own history channel, Viasat History, in the Nordic region and closed down the History Channel. On February 1, 2007 the History Channel returned to Denmark, Norway, Finland and Sweden when the UK version was launched as a stand-alone channel on the Canal Digital satellite platform.

United Kingdom

A British version of the History Channel is a joint venture between A&E and British Sky Broadcasting; a high-definition version was launched at 8pm BST on Thursday October 26 2006, on the Sky HD platform in the United Kingdom.

See also

* A&E Television Networks
* The Biography Channel
* History International
* Military History Channel
* List of DirecTV channels
* List of Dish Network channels
* List of documentary channels

References

External links

* [http://www.annakeay.co.uk Dr Anna Keay - Historian and History Channel Presenter]
* [http://www.historychannel.com/ History Channel Official Site]
* [http://www.thehistorychannel.co.uk/ The History Channel UK]
* [http://www.historychannel.it/ The History Channel Italy]
* [http://www.historychannel.com.au/ The History Channel Australia]
* [http://www.historychannelasia.com/ The History Channel Asia]
* [http://www.historychannelindia.com/ The History Channel India]
* [http://www.thehistorychannel.co.nz/ The History Channel New Zealand]
* [http://www.historychannel.tv/ The History Channel Around the World]
* [http://www.thehistorychannel.de/home/index.php The History Channel Germany]
* [http://www.historyinternational.com/ The History Channel International]
* [http://www.saveourhistory.com/ Save Our History]
* [http://www.medialifemagazine.com MediaLifeMagazine website (source of cable network ratings)]