What if I told you that some of the most popular Black TV networks aren’t actually Black-owned?
On this video we’re going to get into the concept of Black owned television.
We’re going to reveal the truth if it’s really a concept or does it really exist. Is there such a thing as a Black owned television network?
I know what you’re thinking. Yes and there are a few. As a matter of fact, I know that you can even name some of them. The biggest one of them all, BET, Black Entertainment Television.
That must be black owned. After all, why else would it be named Black Entertainment Television, right?
Okay. Now let’s get into the truth and find out if any of these networks are truly Black owned. You’re going to be shocked as we reveal the truth on what mainstream media doesn’t want you to know about so-called Black television network ownership.
Stay tuned and you don’t want to miss the shocking details about Oprah’s OWN network. Does she really OWN it?
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BET! BLACK OWNED OR NOT?
Let’s be clear. BET, the cable network that today reaches 90 million US households, was founded by a Black couple. Robert L. Johnson and Sheila Johnson founded BET in 1980 as a Black-owned network.
However, in 2001, BET was acquired by Viacom, which is now Paramount Global. It’s an American multinational corporation that is absolutely not Black owned.
In addition to owning BET, Paramount Global also owns a sleuth of other television networks that include: CBS, The CW, VH1, Nickelodeon and many others.
Now that we’ve made it clear that BET is not Black owned. Let’s go on to the next one:
ASPIRE! BLACK OWNED OR NOT?
Aspire entered the television broadcasting market in 2012. Its motto was “Family driven content, positive images of African-Americans.”
Though originally majority owned at its launch by former NBA player and Hall Of Famer Magic Johnson, Aspire TV was acquired in full by Atlanta-based UP Entertainment in 2019.
UP Entertainment is a white owned company that also has an owner, InterMedia Partners.
InterMedia Partners is a private equity investment firm founded in 2005 by notable private equity investor Leo Hindery.
Former professional NBA basketball player Earvin “Magic” Johnson was given control of the Network at its launch by Comcast Corp.
It is one of the largest broadcasting and cable television companies in the world.
UP Entertainment, LLC is not only the parent company of UP TV but it also became the parent company of Aspire TV.
We’ve made it clear, Aspire is also not Black owned.
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BOUNCE TV! BLACK OWNED OR NOT?
Bounce TV aims to provide entertainment that reflects and celebrates the diversity of Black experiences and culture. And the network has done well for itself.
Bounce TV, launched in 2011, has grown significantly since its inception. It’s available in over 94 million homes across the United States, covering approximately 80% of African American television households.
But the question is, is Bounce TV Black owned? The answer is no. Bounce TV was founded by this guy, Jonahtnan Katz. He’s clearly not Black, as you can tell (watch video).
He would later sell the company to E. W Scripps Network, which is owned by these guys (watch video), whom I can tell you are not Black. That is the Scripps headquarters in Cincinnati, Ohio.
OPRAH WINFREY NETWORK (OWN). BLACK OWNED OR NOT?
OWN television network is available to over 80 million pay television households in the United States.
With that said, Is OWN Black own-ed? Though it’s clear that Oprah is Black, the fact is that OWN is not. OWN is not Black OWN-ed.
Oprah launched OWN in 2011 after leaving her popular “The Oprah Winfrey Show,” which was on air for 25 seasons from 1986 to 2011.
Oprah launched OWN with the intention of creating a television network that reflects her personal brand and values, with the intent to inspire, uplift and empower others.
While Oprah started OWN with majority ownership, making it a Black owned television network, that eventually changed.
Oprah is now no longer the majority owner of OWN.
The network she founded is now a joint venture with Warner Bros. Discovery, a multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate who now owns and controls a substantial amount of OWN television network.
A few other networks owned by Warner Bros. Discovery includes HBO, TNT, TBS, CNN, TLC, HGTV and numerous others.
REVOLT TV! BLACK OWNED OR NOT?
Revolt TV, currently available in over 50 million US homes, was launched in the same fashion as Aspire TV.
Launched in 2013, multinational Comcast agreed to distribute the network into television households as part of a larger agreement. Though we do not know too much on exactly what the larger agreement was.
But what we do know is that Revolt TV was launched with Sean “Diddy” Combs, a Black man as the founder.
However, what many people don’t know is that Revolt TV has two founders. The second founder is Andy Schuon and if you didn’t know, he’s not Black.
Due to Diddy’s many legal troubles he stepped down as Chairman of Revolt in November 2023. And in May 2024 he sold his stake in Revolt TV.
The company’s CEO in a recent press run said that current employees of Revolt TV will become the largest shareholders of the television network.
In addition he stated that: “There’s no structure that we would have accepted that was not Black-owned.” He also said that the company plans to keep “dreaming bigger and Blacker.”
However, based on our calculations, unless all of the employees at Revolt TV are Black, the network will not be Black owned. Disclosure. Of all the employees at Revolt TV 80% are Black, the rest are not.
And not to mention, the second founder of Revolt TV, as we mentioned, is not Black. How much percentage of the company shares he owns or not was not disclosed in the press briefing.
Which of these networks did you believe were Black owned? Are you surprised with the revelations? If so, which one surprised you the most?
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CONCLUSION
And as always we like to close with a saying, quote or adage and today’s is from Cam’ron: PEOPLE ONLY GO TO PLACES THEY HAVE VISITED IN THEIR MINDS FIRST.
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