Cable TV Celebrates Trans Week of Visibility
In 2018, FX premiered its newest show from acclaimed showrunner Ryan Murphy. “Pose” made headlines, after all it told the story of transgender and queer people building community in 1980s New York, which was a major breakthrough for queer storytelling on TV. But it also made history for the fact that record numbers of trans identifying people were the writers, producers, and stars of the program. Until that point, most projects cast cisgender (a person who identifies with the gender assigned to them at birth) actors to play trans roles, and often focused on tragedy. “Pose,” by comparison, told
TV Stats: How Cable TV Powers the Economy
Since before the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, many Americans have turned to TV for comfort, information, and entertainment. In fact, when the pandemic hit, comfort viewing reached a whole new level, but there were questions about how TV production could forge ahead during a health crisis. Thanks to clever thinking, increased safety protocols, and patience, TV production has continued throughout thanks to those hard-working men and women, both in front of and behind the camera, who make up cable’s workforce and who are helping to deliver the high-quality news, entertainment, and
Comcast Shares its Approaches to Closing the Digital Divide
America fast approaches its second holiday season with the COVID-19 pandemic still at play, and cable internet service providers (ISPs) continue their work to close the gaps in the digital divide wherever, whenever, and however they can. Leaders in the digital equity space spoke earlier this week at the Family Online Safety Institute's annual conference about the great work that took place to help remedy this situation over the past 20 months, and the work that remains to done to resolve this issue. Nowhere was the digital divide more visibly prominent at the onset of the pandemic than in
Cable ISPs and TV Networks Honor and Support America's Veterans
Veterans Day is an important day in America as the country comes together to pay tribute to the brave men and women who have served in the United States Armed Forces. Veterans play an invaluable role within the cable industry as they bring a unique skillset and an unmatched work ethic to the workforce. Cable internet service providers (ISPs) and TV networks recognize the sacrifices they have made for the country and the incredible attributes they contribute to help the industry thrive, which is why many have launched initiatives and programs aimed at recruiting and supporting the needs of
New FCC Data Highlights America’s Broadband Progress
New data from the FCC shows that broadband networks in America continue to reach more households in every corner of the country, continue to offer faster speeds to more consumers and continue to provide more choice of providers across multiple speed tiers. Released in late October, the FCC’s December 2020 “Form 477” data demonstrates broadband progress in both urban and rural areas, even at speeds of a gigabit per second or more, as the cable industry has deployed its DOCSIS 3.1 network technology and as fiber has been deployed more widely, both of which dramatically increase the speed and
New Comedy Shows Help to Expand Authentic Native American Storytelling on TV
As Native American Heritage Month gets underway, there is no better time to spotlight two groundbreaking shows that made their debuts this year and that center around the people who live in and around Native American tribal reservations. These shows stand out not only because Native American people are cast as leads, but many of the writers and producers behind the scenes are also Native American—making the shows and their storylines all the more authentic and genuine. TV networks have made great efforts to diversify their writer’s rooms and casts to ensure that each person’s voice is heard
Broadband Stats: Cable’s Impact on the American Economy
The past year and a half demonstrated how much daily life relies on a broadband connection. Americans have spent more time working, learning, and playing at home via the internet than ever before. While many tasks and commerce moved to the internet in recent months, broadband was vital to the economy long before the COVID-19 pandemic. In fact, every two years, the Bortz Media & Sports Group conducts research on how much the cable broadband and TV industry impacts the American economy. Last week, the most recent version was published and underscores how strongly the industry powers the American
How the Cable Industry Mitigates Cybersecurity Risks
Cybersecurity Awareness Month may be wrapping up as October comes to an end, but the cable industry continues to work every hour of every day to secure its broadband networks and users from harm. With more people going online during the pandemic than ever before, the fight against cyberattacks has never been more critical. "Cable plays a very big role in critical infrastructure," said NCTA Vice President of Technology Matt Tooley. In fact, the Department of Homeland Security identified communications as one of the 17 roles of America's critical infrastructure, and the cable industry falls
Broadband Stats: 10G Is On The Horizon
In 2019, the cable industry announced 10G, an industry-wide commitment to delivering superfast, low latency networks that will reach 10 Gbps speeds in the coming years. Fast forward a few years later, and some major milestones have already been reached on the path to 10G. From Mediacom’s unleashing of the 10G Smart Home to Comcast's groundbreaking test of the Full Duplex DOCSIS technology that supports multigigabit upload and download speeds, cable internet service providers are working to deliver the kinds of next-generation services that will enable life-changing technologies and
Cable's Economic Impact Reaches $460 Billion
A new report, "Investing in America: The Cable Industry's Economic Impact on People, Infrastructure & Programming" finds that the economic impact by America's cable industry has reached approximately $460 billion. The report by Bortz Media & Sports Group looks at how cable's investment in infrastructure and award-winning programming has reached and affected consumers in nearly every community across the United States. A segment of the report also includes data indicative of the essential role that cable broadband played during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic in supporting Americans through