Cable TV and FX's Pose Lead in LGBTQ Representation
As Transgender Awareness Month kicks off, the recent release of GLAAD's annual "Where We Are on TV" report gives audiences all the more reason to celebrate the transgender community, LGBTQ people and diversity across the spectrum. According to the report, TV is airing more LGBTQ stories than ever before, with the number of LGBTQ characters at its highest in several categories across all platforms—cable, broadcast, and streaming. Cable led the way ahead of broadcast TV and streaming platforms with 208 regular and recurring LGBTQ characters throughout its programming, up from 173 last year. For
This Election Day, the C-SPAN Bus Celebrates 25 Years of Civic Outreach
It's been 25 years since C-SPAN launched its traveling C-SPAN Bus Program, and to celebrate the occasion the network sent its award-winning state-of-the art motor coach on a "50 Capitals Tour" which started last year. Throughout the tour, teachers, students, elected officials and others climb aboard to learn about the network's multi-platform public service resources. This anniversary is a timely one given that today is Election Day, and that C-SPAN's role in providing political coverage is one of the most unique in journalism. What many people don't realize is that the network is not a tax
Charging Into the Gigabit Future
Five years ago, the notion that much of America would have access to blazing fast gigabit internet service seemed like a fantasy. In fact, only four percent of U.S. homes had access to gigabit speeds at the end of 2016. But in just 18 months, cable operators across the country have increased gigabit availability by almost 16 times. Today, fantasy has turned into reality as cable's internet networks are now offering gig speeds in more than 40 states, in both urban and rural communities. A new white paper from CableLabs®—the industry's R&D consortium—highlights this tremendous gigabit feat and
A CableLabs Engineer Discusses Today's Trends in Cybersecurity
As October and Cybersecurity Month wrap up, NCTA caught up with Steve Goeringer, principal security architect at CableLabs®, to delve a little deeper into the work that is going on behind the scenes to secure the networks and user experiences of today and to prepare for the emerging technologies of tomorrow. Goeringer, whose background includes engineering stints in the U.S. Army and at the National Security Agency, is not your traditional engineer with your typical set of technical certifications. Instead, his work brings a whole new mindset on how to rethink how the industry discusses and
Parents Find TV Ratings Valuable
In today's vibrant TV marketplace, every viewer–children included–can find content tailored to their unique tastes and preferences. But more importantly, cable programmers and content creators know how important it is for kids to grow up watching shows that are not only educational, stimulating and fun, but age appropriate as well. The TV Parental Guidelines, which are labels shown in the upper left corner of the screen at the start of a program and often after commercial breaks, were established to help parents choose programming that they feel is right for their kids. A recent survey
Why Cable ISPs are Best Suited to Power America's Smart Cities
The concept of a smart city is something that we've heard a lot about and seems to offer significant benefits for local municipalities. And with most of a community's important utilities and urban infrastructure now being managed through digitally connected information technology systems, more cities are seeking out ways to find efficiencies and information sharing by linking their networks together. A new report released this morning highlighting how cable ISPs can make smart cities become a reality offers city planners successful case studies and useful planning steps for how to make their
Circle With Disney Device is Instilling Healthy Online Habits Through Parental Controls
Every year, the internet welcomes a new wave of online tools and sites that make education and socialization more fun and rewarding, especially for kids. But as with most things in life, safety and moderation are key to making the most of what the internet has to offer. Internet service providers across the cable industry are committed to protecting today's kids from a range of threats that lurk online, from cyberbullies to social media addiction to obsessive online habits that affect the time spent with family members. Charter, Comcast, Cox, Mediacom and Midco all offer online parental
More Than $1.4 Million Raised at 35th Annual Walter Kaitz Foundation Dinner
Last night's annual Walter Kaitz Foundation Dinner in NYC raised over $1.4 million, and was full of inspiring speeches and celebrations. Every year, industry executives, leaders and innovators come together at this dinner—which serves as the culmination of the industry's Diversity Week—to honor the organizations that implement strategies to diversify the workplace and advance opportunities for women and people of color. The Walter Kaitz Foundation has a long history of furthering diversity initiatives throughout the industry. Through surveys, grants, sponsorships, and partnerships, the
Three Questions: The Walter Kaitz Foundation's Michelle Ray Talks About Diversifying the Cable Industry
In an interview with NCTA, The Walter Kaitz Foundation's new executive director Michelle Ray shed light on how the Foundation came to be and how it continues to lead the charge for cultivating diverse talent and initiatives across the internet and television landscape. With Diversity Week in full swing, and as leaders and key stakeholders ranging from cable operating executives to content creators gather in NYC for critical discussions around diversity and inclusion, Ray offered insights into the state of diversity throughout the industry and the direction the Foundation will take as the
A Fresh Look at the 5.9 GHz Band
It’s time for the FCC to take a fresh look at the 5.9 GHz band. After two decades and millions of dollars in wasted government subsidies, the Dedicated Short Range Communications (DSRC) experiment in the 5.9 GHz band has clearly failed. The growth of Wi-Fi over the last two decades and the potential of this spectrum to deliver better Wi-Fi only amplify this failure in policy. The time is now for the Commission to open all or a substantial part of the 5.9 GHz band to unlicensed innovation and consider flexible options for addressing the spectrum needs of automotive technologies. Most of us use