BLACK ENTERTAINMENT TELEVISION

 

BLACK ENTERTAINMENT TELEVISION, A Rising Star........

By Marc Leepson

NARROWCASTING." You probably will not find the word in an English-Language dictionary. But it has been part of American cable television's vocabulary for more than 30 years. Narrowcasting is a play of the word "broad-casting," and it means offering television programming that is tailored to appeal to a specific, or narrow, section of the audience.

One of cable's biggest narrowcasting success stories is Black Entertainment Television (BET), the first and only cable television in the United States that offers programming specifically design to appeal to African-Americans. BET is the bran child of 46-year-old Robert L. Johnson. In 1976, Johnson have gone to work with the National Cable Television Association, a lobbying group that present the cable industry's interests in Washington. (Cable TV transmits signal by cable rather than over airwaves.) It was there that Johnson develop the idea for a cable network aimed exclusively at the United States' 30 million African-American.

One day in the late 1970s, was talking with the cable entrepreneur Ken Silver-man, who explain his concept of a new cable channel aimed at elderly people. That gave Johnson a similar idea. "So I took [the proposal]," Johnson later told a newspaper reporter, "and whatever [Silver-man] had the word "elderly," I put in the word "black". And it worked."

But not right away. Johnson started BET with a $15,000 personal load from Washington bank. Less than four months later, Tele-Communication, Inc. (TCL), the third largest U.S. Operator of television systems, bought a significant minority interest in the fledgling company. Less than two months after TCL invested in BET, on January 25, 1980, the network made its debut using studio space rented from a small Washington television station.

With a little help from TCL, BET initially was beamed to so me 3.8 million cable sub-scribes on 350 cable systems. BET's first programming effort was exceedingly modest: just two hours of most music videos starting on Friday nights at 11 o'clock. "It was the best way to get in - and the least expensive," Johnson told a newspaper reporter. "Music is universal. Black music is the most pre-eminent culture art form of black people. So, yes, a very large part of our programming then was devoted to music Videos.

Johnson envisioned BET as more than a channel devoted to music, however. From the beginning, He planned to provide other type of entertainment, sporting events, and public affairs shows aimed at African-American. His fiscal goal was to make BET a magnet for national advertisers who were interested in reaching the African-American consumer. Within a year after it started, BET began to expand. In January 1981, it had added more than a million subscribers and nearly 200 cable systems. The network also inaugurated two new half-hour production, one of which, ''The Bobby Jones Gospel Show,'' remains part of BET's programming line-up today. In 1981, BET began broadcasting tape account of African-American college football and basketball games, and it won its first cable television award. Plus, the network won contracts from several large national

advertisers.

And it continued to add more programs. "Video Soul," a half-hour music show featuring to African-American recording artists, for example, went on the air in June 1981. Today, "Video Soul," which has expanded into 90 minute program featuring in-interviews, live performances, and videos, is of BET's most popular programs.

Despite the new shows, the growing numbers of sub-scribes, and the addition of important advertisers, BET's first year evidenced more than a few fiscal growth pains.

Like every cable network, we had our tough growth periods," Johnson says, "ours was made difficult because we were targeting a black consumer at a time when few were pursuing the urban market. The industry had to catch up to the fact that urban market was, and remains, the future of cable."

In 1984, spurred by significant investment from Taft Broadcasting, a large communication company (now known as Great America Communications), and pay cable giant Home Box Office, BET expanded it programming to 24 hours a day. Two years later the network turned a profit for the first time. By 1987, BET has boosted it numbers of subscribers to 17.4 million and was seen on some 1,000 cable systems. In 1989, the network opened a new $10-million, state of the art, video production facility.

Today, BET is what Allan Sloan, the financial columnist for the New York News day, has called "an amazing success story." The network ranks 21st among the 71 U.S. Cable video program networks in number of subscribers. It is seen by more than 31 million household - about 35 percent of all American homes with cable - on some 2,400 cable systems in the United State, Puerto Rico, and the U.S Virgin Islands. BET now have three office in the Washington area, in Chicago, New York City, and Los Angeles. The network employ more than 240 people, most of whom are African-American professionals. BET also has become one of the largest African-American owned business in the United State. In its 1990-91 fiscal year, the network had nearly $51 million in revenue, with a net in come of more than $9 million.The profit represented a threefold increase in just three year, according to The wall street journal. The bulk of BET' s income _ about 60 percent-come from advertising. Most of the rest consists of fees charged to the local cable systems that provide BET to their customers. The network made financial news in 1991 when Robert Johnson announced plan to offer 4.25 million shares, about 21 percent of the company, to the public for the first time. on November 1, 1991, stock in BET' s parent company, BET Holdings, Inc., began selling on the New York Stock Exchange-the first time in history that an African-American-owned company traded on the exchange. On that day, BET Holdings was the fourth most active issue on the stock exchange. By the end of the day, financial analysts pegged the company's worth at some $ 475 million. All of which has catapulted BET from a minor cable TV player into one of the industry's shining stars. ''You can walk outside right now and ask people what BET is, '' Curtis Symonds, a BET vice president, said in 1991. '' Two years ago, they would say, ' I don' t know. ' Even black people. But now, we are getting closer to positioning ourselves like an ESPN or an MTV [two major cable network] to be a household name, especially in the

black community.I don't think we are totally there, but I think we are gradually getting there.'' with the advent of its own production facility, BET, in 1990, began airing original programming for the first time. The current list of BET originated programs includes;''Our Voices,'' a four -a week talk show hosted by out spoken journalist Bev Smith;''Lead Story,'' a week half hour news and public affairs show in which prominent African-American journalist interview public officials; '' Teen Summit, ''a Saturday African American teenagers; and ''Kimboo & Kids, ''a cartoon program featuring an African boy that is aimed at young children.

BET also offers a steady diet of African-American college sports programming, music programming-including shows that concentrate on gospel, rap, love songs, jazz, reggae and rock-re-runs of formal network series, and religious programs.

In another move towards developing original programming, BET and actor producer Tim Reid in October 1990 set up a production company, United Image Entertainment, based. "In Hollywood, California the U.S. Entertainment capital. "We have some deals that are in the works," Johnson say of the venture.'' we have signed agreements with MGM/UA to produce programming for television and with Miramax Films produce feature film. And we have some scripts that are being considered.'' The projects, says Johnson,'' will depict the diversity of black lifestyle, in fact and fiction."

Original programming created by African-American is important part's of BET mission, According to Johnson. "We are tired of Hollywood making the decision about what kind of black characters white American Accept," Johnson said in 1990 newspaper interview. "We want BET's programming to address black culture themes and lifestyle.... To show blacks in dominant character roles and have as its primary interest black information, black culture, black thought, and black philosophy. "Robert Johnson has big plans for BET's future. The central concept is to expand the company into other communications areas, including magazines, a radio network, a new cable channel featuring rap and rhythm, and blues, music videos, a presence in the lucrative pay-per-view cable television, and a program on black American produced for the African television market. BET took a first step in broadening its operation in November 1990 by creating a magazine called [Young Sister and Brother]. The magazine, a music and culture monthly aimed at African-American teenagers, published its first issue in August 1991 with a circulation of 150, 000. YSB produced by Paige communications, a BET subsidiary that Johnson created just for that task. YSB, say Johnson, is designed both to entertain and to address issues such as teenage sex and drug abuse. ''Our objective is to make money, of course, but that's not [the only] reason to do this thing,'' say Johnson. ''We are targeting young black teenagers [and providing them] with positive self-esteem information. I think that this magazine in the next three years is going to become almost like a rite of passage for young black teenagers - it will be their lifestyle magazine. ''BET's second magazine venture began in May 1991 when the company acquired a majority interest in Emerge, an African-American lifestyle magazine. The two years - old Emerge is published 10 time a year and is designed to appeal to young, college educated African - Americans, Emerge, which was

created by Wilmer Ames, a former Time magazine, also has a 150, 000 circulation. ''

''Emerge is about one year from breaking even [financially] , ''according to Johnson . ''It has survived and is growing during one of the toughest print-ad climates in a long time. I think that augurs well when economy comes back and more advertising dollars start to flow . ''BET put on its first pay - per - view effort, a live Los Angeles concert by the legendary rhythm and blues singer James Brown, in June 19991. [As its name implies, a pay - per - view program - usually movies, championship boxing matches, or live musical concerts - is one for which cable companies charge subscribers on a per - view basis.] The pay - per - view broadcast was a large success, reaching the third largest music audience ever for such a broadcast.

More BET pay-per - view events are on the drawing broad-but not in the immediate future. ''I do not think we will do any more until we get more people who are able to receive pay - per - view, ''Johnson says. ''Right now, there are not enough pay-per-view home in the [cable] universe. If you do not get the high rate of purchases, you do not make enough money to cover your production and marketing costs. I would say we are two years away from being heavily involved in the pay-per-view business. ''

BET 's pay-per-view participation may be two years away, but the company is continuing to move ahead rapidly in several other areas at the present time. And its future looks bright. ''The future for Black Entertainment Television,'' Johnson says,'' is to become the pre-eminent black media company in the country, if indeed not the world, during the next decade.

We are the only black owned publicly traded company on the New York Stock Exchange. We are part - owned by two of the largest communication companies in the world.... We have a tremendous growth potential in the cable universe, both in terms of distribution and revenue. So we are without a doubt the fastest - growing black media company in the country and will continue to be that probably for the next five or 10 years. And we have a management team that has been with the company, on average, about eight years..

"so we have all of the right ingredients to become the primary way that blacks get, on a targeted basis, information and entertainment. That' s our objective; to turn BET into a multimedia company that will be in magazines, in cable programming, in radio, and in direct marketing.''

Reference; Robert L. Johnson is the founder of Black Entertainment Television (BET), a U.S. cable television network designed to appeal to African-American audiences.

New York, New York 10037

TOPIC ISSUE NO.200