Here are some reviews on the nations top cable networks. If you have an opinion that you would like to share, please Email the Webmaster.
CNN
The grand daddy of all news channels. The morning show is very good. While most morning shows are full of fluff, CNN provides real news in the morning. The rest of the day goes down hill. Unfortunately CNN spends way too much time on hour long fluff shows like "Larry King Live" and that legal show. Kind of like MTV, they seem to have lost their vision.
CNN Headline News
CNN's red headed step child is a far better news service than CNN. The "1010 WINS" of TV. They give you straight news every hour-minus the fluff that CNN has. A cool looking set, you can see people working in the background, it gives it a urgent feel. Watching Headline News is like watching your nightly newscast - anytime you want.
Fox Newschannel
A direct copy of CNN, fluff and all. Too many hour long fluff shows just like CNN. The talent is not as good as CNN either. They have these constant info blurbs that come up on the screen, very distracting. Kind of "Pop up Video" meets CNN. FOX Newschannel claims to present an unbiased version of the news, not a liberal slant to the news. Does CNN (the obvious target here) really present its news with a liberal slant because Ted Turner is a well known Liberal? That's like saying FOX Newschannel presents their news with a right-wing slant because of Newscorp owner Rupert Murdock. Wheather or not either is true (I personally doubt it) FOX Newschannel has a fairly strong following among people who think that the other news networks are pushing the liberal agenda. We report, you decide.
MSNBC
A great idea, done really bad. The idea that with computers and the internet news will be faster, OK - but that's not what happened. Instead MSNBC is constant fluff and endless single story eye candy reports. I thought that they would try to be more diverse, not just harping on one story. They take the latest scandal and do hour long shows, law shows, call in shows and updates on it until it is beyond being beaten into the ground. I like the set, otherwise I can see why the ratings are so bad.
CNBC
Buisness news and night time talk shows, OK. They are the leader in buisness news, next to Bloomberg (Most people don't have Bloomberg though). The talkers are standard, way too many infomercials on Weekends and overnights.... and Geraldo tries to be a serious reporter here! Not my favorite channel, but I like it better than sister station MSNBC, if only because they don't claim to be a real newschannel. It seems that NBC is putting more money and effort into MSNBC rather than improving CNBC. Too bad.
MTV - Music Television
Oh my....what happened here! MTV used to be responsible for breaking music acts in the eighties and early 90's (good or bad). They started getting away from music videos with shows like "Liquid Television", ok. Then came "Beavis and Butthead", which at least had something to do with music videos. Now it's all these "Real World" and "Road Rules" shows that are just plain weak. Who wants to see a bunch of college kids complain about nothing! "Daria" is lame too. The shows have little or nothing to do with music now, a damn shame. I miss shows like "120 Minutes". While I thought MTV popularized some of the worst music of all time, it was still OK. Now it's worst than UPN in cheesiness. Like the Dead Kennedy's said, "MTV Get off the air!!!"
MUCH Music
What MTV used to be...but better. Much music is a cool Canadian music channel that is seen in the states on a few cable systems like Long Island's "Cablevision" and on DirecTV. They had a studio overlooking a city long before MTV did it. A cool set and some good VJ's. They play some great indie acts and great Alternative Rock, along with all the latest Rap and Dance hits. MUCH also has artists come into their studio and perform live, as well as interviews and other music related programming. Almost worth buying a satellite for!
VH-1
Back when MTV was watchable, VH-1 was really lame. Now it's the other way. I really like the "Behind The Music" biography type shows and accoustic jam sessions "Story Tellers" shows that they do. Even artists that I don't care for are interresting to me! "Pop-Up Video" is a cool show too, although I don't watch it that often. It seems that while MTV is doing lame "real world" and "Road Rules" shows, sister station VH-1 is the real music station. At least VH1's long form shows have something to do with music!
WGN
WGN carries The WB Network in Chicago, but not on its national feed. If you're looking to see "Charmed" on WGN, chances are - if you live outside of Illinois - that you will see something like "Adam 12" here. The syndicated movies and local news are seen on both the local WGN and the national WGN, but that's it. The rest of the programming on the network WGN is all filler. This is pretty much a waste of cable / satellite bandwidth 90% of the day.
Superstation WTBS
Better than WGN. Pretty much a re-run station with some decent movies - and Atlanta Braves baseball games. "Dinner and a Movie" is a pretty cool idea too. They start their shows five minutes past the top and bottom of the hour - so they stand out in the TV guides. A smart idea. TBS seems to be the place to catch "Gilligan's Island" and other old cheesey re-run fav's.
USA_Network
Another re-run channel. Their USA Studios productions are pretty cheesy. Occasionally a decent movie. Owned by Barry Diller (USA Studios, Home Shopping Network, Ticketmaster) who sure has the cash to spend on the network, but for some reason doesn't. USA is very much like rival TNT, but instead of NBA Basketball, they have WWF Wrestling. USA also has "Movie Of The Week" type movies that are made especially for the network. Some aren't bad, but basically the same quality as the broadcast network's version of these TV movies.
The Sci-Fi Channel
USA's sister station has been making major improvements in the last two years. When Sci-Fi first started, they pretty much only showed old dated shoes like "Battlestar Galactica" and 'B' movies. They still show a lot of re-runs, but the re-runs are gettin newer. Shows like "The Outer Limits" (which ended in 2000) are now being showed more often, rather than the 70's fare like "The Bionic Woman". The Sci-Fi Channel seems to walk the line between cheesey "campy" type programming, and recent science fiction type shows. A huge improvement from just last year.
Cartoon Network
Ok, Scooby's cool, but ENOUGH! Every time I put on the Cartoon Network, it's Scooby, either in normal size or in miniature! I like the original toons (Cow and Chicken, Space Ghost Coast to Coast, Dexter's Laboratory) a lot. Bugs and Tom & Jerry are cool too. During the day hours the toons are really bad, I guess for the kids. My only complaint is too much Scooby! This is probably because Turner (owner of Cartoon Network) also owns Hana-Barbera, the makers of Scooby Doo and a big part of the networks schedule.
Comedy Central
Comedy Central started off being really bad. They are slowly getting better. Less stand up comics and more original programming is a very good start. I think that "South Park" saved the channel, it's their only bona-fide hit show. The game shows are kind of lame, but Comedy Cental is trying. The Daily Show is a pretty good idea, why not do more shows like it? I would also like to see them stop playing the same 10 or so 80's movies over and over too!
TNT - Turner Network Television
TNT is pretty much the same kind of channel as sister station TBS. TNT does create some original programming, and from what I have seen, it's not bad. Not up to the level of an HBO movie, but ok. Also the place to catch a lot of NBA action, which gives TNT a big boost in ratings. WWF Wrestling is also popular (?) on TNT, and is proving to be a ratings winner on many other low-brow networks as well.
A&E NETWORK
When A&E first started, I didn't like the mostly english and theatre style shows. Now with shows like "Biography" (which everyone seems to be ripping off these days) and "Investigative Reports" I really like A&E. It's a different station in a good way from the rest of the pack. It even has some quality re-runs like "Law and Order" and "Northern Exposure". "McCloud" and some of the other "A&E Daybreaks" shows have to go though!
DISCOVERY CHANNEL
Discovery is a cool unique channel. "Shark Week" and shows like that have become staples of the network. A great way to learn about everything from UFO's to Africa. Always something on when nothings on everywhere else! They even have learning shows geared towards kids that run during the early part of the day.
ANIMAL PLANET
Discovery Channel's sister station is ok, but gets old real quick. I am not a huge animal lover, so maybe that's why. Kids like this channel almost as much as cartoons, which is a great thing. Why not have junior learn something from the idiot box, eh?
C-SPAN and C-SPAN2
C-SPAN is probably the dullest network out there, and they like it like that. They re-run the same things all day when they are not covering the House and Senate live. The morning call in talk show is ok if your into politics, but real boring otherwise. The station strives to keep it's on air people as generic and personality free as possible, which I think is just so lame. I was told by Brian Lamb (the owner) that this was to keep the focus soley on C-SPAN's content and not the host. C-SPAN makes its money from cable/satellite subscribers. They get a few cents from every bill you mail in, whether you want them too or not. They also meet the requirements imposed on cable companies to provide public affairs programming, which is why so many cable companies carry them instead of a channel that would draw in more viewers. There might be a use for one C-SPAN, but two?
THE WEATHER CHANNEL
The Weather Channel has went from a joke to a necessity in the last few years. Great for taking trips (like I do regularly) and great for local forcasts. The look of the station has improved greatly over the years along with the talent. The web site is really good too. I do find it comical how the station goes into overdrive during Hurricane season, but that sort of thing must be what they live for!
Nickelodeon / Nick At Nite
Nickelodeon is a cool station. It has the kiddie shows all day and re-runs at nite. Amazing the way that they turned re-runs into "Classic TV". Some cool toons like "Rocko" and I liked "Ren and Stimpy", but unfortunately they cancelled that. I also like "Taxi" and "The Wonder Years". Nick doesn't keep its re-runs around forever, they seem to change them yearly. New (to the station) re-runs are welcomed usually with an all day marathon of episodes. Where else can you see 48 hours of non-stop "Charlie's Angels" re-runs! Wow, they even figured out a way to keep campy re-runs fresh! Like the Discovery Channel, Nick is good when nothing else is on.
HBO - Home Box Office
HBO is the best of the pay tv services. Unfortunately they run the movies a bit too much and they are terrible during the day hours. The made for HBO movies are usually very good and their original shows are good too. Most of the HBO shows seem to win critical praise. "Sex and the City" as well as "The Sopranos" are some of the best shows on TV. Some of the movies that are shown are gems that you didn't know about, others are low budget trash that were out in theatres for a day. "HBO Signature" is one of the HBO "package" channels, and it's really good. It focuses of HBO original programming, both old and new. If your going to splurge for HBO, it's well worth getting the package for "HBO Signature".
SHOWTIME
Showtime is not a bad pay tv network, but not as good as HBO. They show the same caliber of movies in prime time, but after about 11pm they show low budget T&A flicks. Their original programming also isn't as good as HBO. Most of Showtime's original shows are pretty forgetable. They have produced a few hits, probably the biggest hit was "The Outer Limits", which ended its run in 2000. Showtime does have the ability to draw big name movie stars to their productions, but they seem to fizzle quickly.
THE SUNDANCE CHANNEL
The Sundance Channel is a really bizarre cable network. It's the place to catch odd things such as a 1985 documentary on the L.A. band "X". Also movies like "1900", starring people that are big now, but surely not at the time the movie was made. Lots of famed director's choice flicks....that sometimes aren't all that watchable. It seems that if you are looking to catch something great on Sundance, you won't. If you are just scanning the channels...there's a good chance that you'll end up in the middle of an excellent indie movie! It just always seems to work that way. Sundance has a great website with things like live streaming and clips of indie flicks.
THE GAME SHOW NETWORK
When I first heard that Sony was going to be doing this network, I have to admit....I laughed. Now that I have DirecTV (which is one of the only ways still to get GSN) I kind of like it! They mostly show old shows like "The Match Game", "Family Feud", "Let's Make A Deal" and "The Newlywed Game" along with "Inquisition" (a daily live show) and some other oddball stuff. They even show really old "Price is Right" shows from the 50's! Real campy stuff, and somehow it's amusing. Not the kind of channel that is watchable for long periods of time or anything, but good for an occasional flashback.
Spike-TV
This station started off playing Country Music videos, and called themselves "The Nashville Network". They since dropped the Country Music, moved the studios to New York, and left "Nashville" behind - calling themselves "The National Network" and showing things like 'Dukes of Hazzard' re-runs. The name was changed again to "Spike-TV" and now the network is targeting men with low-brow humor, three stooges, James Bond, and shows about cars and trucks.
We will be adding more stations as we get the time.