2012 in American television

List of years in American television: 2009 2010 2011 – 2012 – 2013 2014 2015

2011–2012 United States network television schedule

2012–2013 United States network television schedule

List of American television shows currently in production

The following is a list of events affecting American television in 2012. Events listed include television show debuts, finales, and cancellations; channel launches, closures and rebrandings; and information about controversies and carriage disputes.

Notable events in 2012 include the launch of several regional sports networks (Fox Sports San Diego, Comcast SportsNet Houston, TWC SportsNet, and Pac-12 Network); as well as the closure of RSN MountainWest Sports Network. Other events include launches of several Spanish language networks (TWC Deportes, Univision tlnovelas, Noticiero Univision, Univision Deportes Network, MundoFox, and beIn Sports en Español).

2012 will also see the debut of several new daytime talkshows, those featuring Katie Couric, Steve Harvey, Jeff Probst, Bethenny Frankel, Trisha Goddard and Ricki Lake. Also, Judge Cristina Pérez will make history when her new court show Justice for All will be recorded in both English and Spanish versions.

Contents 1 Notable events 1.1 January 1.2 February 1.3 March 1.4 April 1.5 May 1.6 June 2 Scheduled future events 2.1 June 2.2 July 2.3 August 2.4 Summer 2.5 September 2.6 October 3 Programs debuting in 2012 4 Programs changing networks 5 Programs returning in 2012 6 Programs ending in 2012 7 Made-for-TV movies and miniseries 8 Stations changing network affiliation 9 Deaths 10 References 11 External links

Notable events

January

Date	Event
1	Regional sports networks MSG and MSG Plus go dark on Time Warner Cable systems in the New York City area and upstate New York after Time Warner and the networks' parent, MSG Media, fail to reach a new fee-for-carriage agreement.[1] The two sides reached a resolution to restore the signals on February 17, a deal that also restores MSG-owned music channel Fuse TV to Time Warner systems (TWC had dropped Fuse in December 2011).[2]
	Three stations and their related satellites in the Casper and Cheyenne, Wyoming markets vanish from the Dish Network lineup due to a retransmission dispute. The stations are Casper's KTWO-TV (ABC), KGWC (CBS), and KFNB (Fox) and Cheyenne's KLWY (Fox/ABC).[3]
2	Versus rebrands as NBC Sports Network, reflecting the sports channel's common ownership and synergies with NBC Sports.[4]
4	The Walt Disney Company and Comcast announce a 10-year distribution agreement to deliver content from Disney-owned networks and ABC owned and operated stations to Comcast's multiple Xfinity platforms, including TV, online, video on demand, smartphones, and tablet computers.[5]
5	Neal Tiles steps down from his position as president and CEO of G4 and is replaced by Adam Stotsky.[6][7]
	Cowles Media announces a reorganization in the news department of its stations in the Santa Maria/Santa Barbara market, KCOY-TV (CBS) and KKFX-CA (Fox), that includes several layoffs of on- and off-screen personnel, the elimination of its sports department, and the move of the evening anchor desk out of market to Monterey Bay area sister station KION-TV.[8]
9	CBS This Morning, the network's attempt at a unique news-and-analysis-intensive morning show, makes its debut, featuring a host team of Erica Hill, Gayle King, and Charlie Rose.[9]
13	A week-long commemoration of Today's 60th anniversary culminates in a gathering of past and current personalities from the NBC morning program.[10]
14	Sunbeam Television's stations in Miami (WSVN) and Boston (WHDH-TV and WLVI) go dark on DirecTV after talks to increase the retransmission fees by a reported 300% failed.[11] The two sides reached an agreement on January 26 to restore the signals.[12]
16	Lionsgate Entertainment and One Equity Partners announce that they will explore a sale of their TV Guide Network, whose conversion over the years from a listings guide to an entertainment channel has made it profitable enough for a sale by the two companies.[13]
17	Food Network personality Paula Deen, known for her high-calorie recipes, reveals on Today that she has Diabetes mellitus type 2, and was diagnosed with the condition in 2008 (choosing not to reveal her condition until now in part to avert health rumors).[14]
23	NBC Sports reaches a four-year deal for exclusive rights (on NBC and NBC Sports Network) to the Breeders' Cup thoroughbred horse racing championships beginning with the November 3 event. The deal includes the first prime time staging of event's premiere race, the Breeders' Cup Classic.[15] The deal reunites the Breeders' Cup with NBC, which broadcast the first 21 editions of the event (with ESPN holding rights from 2006 to 2011).
25	Bill Myers steps down from his position as president and CEO of Starz Entertainment after 10 years with the company.[16]
30	Following the lead of Telemundo (who has done it in one form or another since 2003), Univision becomes the second Spanish-language network to provide English subtitles (appearing as closed captions on CC3) on its weeknight telenovelas, an effort to attract viewers who do not speak or are not fluent in the Spanish language.[17]
30-31	A shakeup in the on-air makeup of Fox's The X Factor takes place: The network confirms on the 30th that host Steve Jones and judge Nicole Scherzinger will not return for the show's 2nd season in the fall. The next day, judge Paula Abdul confirms she will not return either.[18]

February

Date	Event
2	The FCC approves Time Warner Cable's $3 million purchase of Insight Cable, giving TWC access to Insight's 750,000 customers in Indiana, Kentucky, and Ohio.[19]
3	The FCC rules that television stations have the right to refuse to air ads under “reasonable access” provisions of the law pertaining to political candidates. The ruling comes after WMAQ-TV/Chicago rejected an anti-abortion ad that activist that presidential candidate Randall Terry wanted the NBC O&O to run during Super Bowl XLVI.[20]
	NFL Network announces it will expand its Thursday Night Football package from eight to 13 games beginning with the 2012 NFL season.[21]
5	NBC's broadcast of Super Bowl XLVI, in which the New York Giants defeat the New England Patriots, attracts 111.3 million viewers. This is the third straight year that the NFL's championship event sets the all-time record for total viewership.[22]
	During a Super Bowl halftime show headlined by Madonna, guest singer M.I.A. appears to deliver a curse word and obscene gesture that escapes the reach of NBC's censors. The network and the NFL (the event's producer) both issue apologies afterwards for the incident.[23]
6	Video distributor Netflix makes its original programming debut with the release of the comedy-drama series Lilyhammer.[24]
7	With the episode "Life Before His Eyes," CBS' NCIS crosses the 200 episode milestone.[25]
8	CNN suspends commentator Roland S. Martin after he posted homophobic messages on his Twitter and Facebook pages the night of the Super Bowl.[26]
12	CBS' broadcast of the 54th Grammy Awards—an event marked by remembrances of Whitney Houston (who died the previous day) and six wins for Adele—attract 39 million viewers, the biggest audience for the Grammys since 1984.[27]
17	MSNBC announces that it has parted ways with political commentator Pat Buchanan, who was suspended by the network in October 2011 after the publication of a book he had authored that drew controversy for its content.[28]
19	With the episode "At Long Last Leave," Fox's The Simpsons reaches the 500 episode plateau.[29]
20	The Rachael Ray Show marks its 1,000th episode.[30]
	Roberts Broadcasting announced it was exploring the possibility of selling one or all four of its television stations in order to raise enough cash to pay off its creditors.[31]
21	Fulfilling a caveat in its 2011 purchase of NBCUniversal, Comcast announces it will launch four minority-owned networks on its cable systems within the next two years: the children-oriented BabyFirst Americas (which has planned April 2012 launch date); Aspire (summer 2012 launch), which will include positive, family-oriented programming; Revolt (2013 launch), a music- and artist-oriented channel; and El Rey (2014 launch), a general entertainment network.[32]
24	In a cost-saving move, the E.W. Scripps Company announces that they will drop certain syndicated programs from its television stations beginning in September in favor of in-house programming and expansion of local content.[33]
27	Thanks to the event's first ever postponement (due to rain), the Daytona 500 is run for the first time on a Monday night. Fox's broadcast of the race attracts 36 million viewers, the event's second biggest TV audience ever.[34]
29	Molly Solomon is named executive producer for Golf Channel, becoming the first woman to hold such a position on a national TV sports network.[35]
	Video blogger James O'Keefe sues Keith Olbermann and Current TV after Olbermann says O'Keefe was convicted of rape (a charge which was actually reduced to harassment).[36]

March

Date	Event
1	Nick Jr., Nickelodeon's 24-hour preschool-oriented cable channel, receives a brand new look produced by Gretel, Inc. and a new advertising campaign created by BBDO to coincide with the permanent retirement of the network's former mascots, Moose A. Moose and Zee D. Bird.[37]
	Univision tlnovelas, a Univision Communications-owned cable channel devoted to Spanish-language telenovelas, launches on Dish Network as part of a carriage deal with the satellite provider to give it initial carriage of the channel and two other upstart cable networks owned by Univision.[38]
7	WNBC/New York announces it has declined to renew the contract of Sue Simmons, who has anchored the news on NBC's flagship station since 1980. Simmons will remain at WNBC until June.[39]
11	NBC Sports begins its relationship with Major League Soccer with an NBC Sports Network broadcast of a season-opening match between the New York Red Bulls and FC Dallas.[40]
13	Tony Cassara submits his resignation as CEO of TV-station owner Young Broadcasting.[41]
14	In the wake of the deaths of three horses during production, HBO announces that all production of Luck will permanently cease.[42] The freshman series set in the world of thoroughbred racing had previously been renewed for a second season in 2013.[43]
15	The CW announces the launch of a smartphone app that will offer next-morning streaming of CW primetime episodes (coinciding with a similar change in the timing of episode streaming on the network's website).[44]
	WLNY/Melville, New York announces the suspension (effective March 29) of its 11 p.m. newscast, along with giving 20 of its 55 news staffers buyout offers. About 30 WLNY employees (including news anchor Richard Rose) will remain with the station following the completion of its purchase by CBS Corporation, after which WLNY's news operations will be combined with that of CBS' New York City flagship, WCBS-TV.[45]
	National Communications announces it will purchase Fox affiliate KUQI/Corpus Christi from High Maintenance Broadcasting, with its intent to enter into a shared services agreement with London Broadcasting-owned ABC affiliate KIII-TV.[46]
16	Almost a year after announcing that it would sell the station, the deal between the owners of former PBS outlet WMFE-TV/Orlando and Daystar falls through due to the former's decision to seek a better offer for the station.[47]
17	Fox Sports San Diego, the newest affiliate of Fox Sports Net, makes its debut. It serves as the exclusive local TV home of the San Diego Padres, which is also its minority owner.[48][49]
23	Disney Junior, Disney Channel's daytime children's programming block, becomes a standalone 24-hour cable channel. The channel replaces Soapnet, which remains available (in a limited, automated form) for some cable and satellite providers who have not yet finalized carriage deals for Disney Junior, as well for Cablevision and Verizon FiOS (both of them have kept Soapnet on the air and added Disney Junior to their lineups as an additional channel).[50]
26	Providence Equity Partners announced that it will put all of Newport Television's 56 stations on the selling block in a effort to pay off debt.[51]
	The FCC approves the sale of WUPW/Toledo from LIN TV to American Spirit Media. The sale includes American Spirit ceding WUPW's daily operations (including news) to Raycom's Toledo station, WTOL-TV, via a shared services agreement (mirroring similar arrangements in four other markets where Raycom operates American Spirit stations).[52]
30	Current TV announces the firing of Keith Olbermann, with his Countdown immediately replaced on this date by Viewpoint with Eliot Spitzer.[53] Olberman filed a wrongful termination suit against Current TV on April 5.[54]

April

Date	Event
1	Twenty-three broadcast stations owned by Tribune Broadcasting (notably stations in New York, Los Angeles, and Chicago) as well as WGN America disappear from DirecTV after the two companies fail to reach a carriage agreement before a midnight (ET) deadline.[55] The stations and WGN America were restored on April 4, after a new carriage deal was reached.[56]
	C-SPAN founder Brian Lamb steps down from his position as CEO of the public affairs network, with Rob Kennedy and Susan Swain stepping in as co-CEOs (Lamb remains with C-SPAN as executive chairman).[57]
2	Four Arkansas NBC stations operated by Nexstar Broadcasting jointly launch a statewide noon newscast titled Arkansas Today. The newscast originates from KARK-TV/Little Rock and is simulcast on and utilizes the news divisions of KTAL-TV/Texarkana, KTVE/El Dorado, and KNWA-TV/Fayetteville (the latter station produces sports segments for the program).[58]
	Nexstar launches a combined news operation, under the Eyewitness News banner, at its virtual duopoly in Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, Pennsylvania, on Nexstar-owned WBRE-TV and Mission Broadcasting's WYOU. The newscasts utilize existing WBRE news staff, and marks the return of local news on WYOU since that station's news division was shuttered in April 2009. The newscasts (along with existing outsourced newscasts on New Age Media-owned Fox affiliate WOLF-TV) are also upgraded to high-definition.[59]
7	The Univision Deportes Network commences programming. The Spanish language sports network owned by Univision Communications primarily features soccer from the Mexican Primera División.[60]
	Fox Saturday Baseball premieres a new pregame studio show, produced by and featuring personalities from MLB Network.[61]
10	MLB Strike Zone, a commercial-free subscription cable and satellite network, launches as a companion service to MLB Network. The channel allows viewers to watch various Tuesday and Friday evening Major League Baseball regular season games and features up-to-the-minute highlights from around the league.[62]
12	A ruling by a judicial panel on the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit strikes down a FCC ban against political campaign and issue advertising on public television and radio stations, stating that the ban violates the First Amendment's free speech clause.[63]
13	ABC's Good Morning America ends the week with 31,000 more viewers than Today, topping the NBC morning show in weekly ratings for the first time since December 1995 (ending an unprecedented 852-week win streak for Today).[64]
14	Fox begins a regular (April through December) block of live Saturday night sports programming, featuring broadcasts of NASCAR, UFC, Major League Baseball, and Pacific 12 Conference football.[65]
16	DirecTV and Starz Entertainment reach a new carriage agreement which will allow the satellite provider to carry the online versions of Starz and Encore, as well as the linear, online and on demand versions of MoviePlex, IndiePlex and RetroPlex for the first time.[66]
18	Cartoon Network announces plans to begin live streaming its linear television channel on its website and Apple mobile devices to customers of participating cable and satellite providers as part of parent company Time Warner's TV Everywhere initiative.[67]
22	Fox commemorates its 25th anniversary of prime time programming with a two-hour retrospective special, preceded by re-airings of the first episodes to two of Fox's most noteworthy shows, Married... with Children (Fox's first prime time series) and The Simpsons (the network's longest-running scripted series).[68]
23	CBS Television Distribution files a lawsuit against FamilyNet and its parent company ComStar, claiming that FamilyNet has aired CTD-owned shows without paying licensing fees (CTD claims FamilyNet's most recent payment was in June 2010).[69]
30	A federal judge in Los Angeles rules that Dick Clark Productions acted properly when it negotiated a deal with NBC to produce the Golden Globe Awards broadcast for the network through 2018. The ruling is the outcome of a lawsuit against DCP by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, the Globes' organizers, who argued that DCP acted without their approval.[70]

May

Date	Event
2	Lifetime rebrands itself with a new logo and slogan.[71]
3	Time Warner Cable announces a carriage agreement with News Corporation that will allow the provider to add four channels owned by India's STAR TV (Star Plus, STAR Gold, Life OK and STAR News) to its systems in certain markets with a large Southern Asian/Indian population.[72]
4	Dish Network announces it will no longer carry AMC Networks' cable channels (AMC, IFC, Sundance Channel and WE tv) upon the June 2012 expiration of its distribution agreement with the company, citing the expense of retransmission consent payments for carrying the channels and their low audience viewership. AMC Networks alleges the decision to drop the channels is related to a 2008 breach of contract lawsuit against Dish by former company parent Rainbow Media's Voom HD Networks.[73]
	Journal Communications files an application with the FCC to acquire, for $2 million, MyNetworkTV affiliate WACY/Appleton, which has been operated through Journal-owned NBC affiliate WGBA/Green Bay since 1994. Journal includes a "failed station" request to waive ownership limits that apply to the Green Bay/Appleton market, basing the request on WACY's condition prior to 1994 (the station had gone bankrupt under prior ownership and ceased operations in 1992).[74]
7	ABC News and Univision announce that they will partner on a new English-language news network that will cater to a Hispanic audience. The network, as yet unnamed, has a target launch date of 2013.[75]
	LIN Media announces that it will acquire the 13 television stations owned by New Vision Television in eight markets (KOIN/Portland, Oregon, WIAT/Birmingham, KSNT-KTMJ/Topeka, KSNW/Wichita and its satellites KSNC/Great Bend, KSNG/Garden City, KSNK/McCook and KSNL/Salina, KHON/Honolulu, WJCL/Savannah, WKBN-WYFX/Youngstown, and KIMT/Mason City) for $330.4 million, along with the assumption of $12 million in debt. The agreement includes operational control of three stations owned by PBC Broadcasting (KTKA/Topeka, WYTV/Youngstown and WTGS/Savannah) involved in shared service agreements with New Vision-owned stations in those markets.[76]
8	H3 Communications (owned by the adult children of Charles Harker, owner of local ABC affiliate WABG and NBC affiliate WNBD-LD through licensee Commonwealth Communications) announces its intent to purchase CBS affiliate WXVT/Greenville, Mississippi from Saga Communications for $3 million. If approved by the FCC, the Harker family will have control of all three major network affiliates in the Greenville-Greenwood market.[77]
9	ESPN extends its agreement with the Atlantic Coast Conference, expanding coverage of ACC athletic events through the 2026–2027 academic year in a deal reportedly worth $3.6 billion.[78]
	TV Land rebrands with a new logo, retiring the multi-squared logo the network had used in various forms since its 1996 inception.[79]
13	After 10 seasons on air, CBS announced that they have canceled CSI: Miami, the first show in the CSI franchise to reach a conclusion.[80]
14	Charter Communications signs a carriage agreement with Liberman Broadcasting to carry its Spanish-language network Estrella TV on Charter systems in certain Latino/Hispanic markets.[81]
	Fox confirms that Demi Lovato and Britney Spears will join the judges' panel of The X Factor for the show's second season in the fall.[82]
15	Sinclair Broadcast Group and Fox extend an affiliation agreement with Sinclair's 19 Fox affiliates for five years through 2017. The deal inculdes an option, exercisable from July 2012 thru March 2013, for Sinclair to purchase Fox-owned MyNetworkTV affiliate WUTB/Baltimore, while also allowing Fox the option to purchase Sinclair-owned stations in three of four markets: Raleigh, Las Vegas, Cincinnati and Norfolk (all of which are either MNT standalones or CW/MNT duopolies).[83]
16	Time Warner Cable and Viacom settle a lawsuit filed in April 2011 over carriage of Viacom-owned cable channels on TWC's in-home streaming app for tablets and computers. As part of the agreement, Time Warner Cable resumes carriage of Viacom channels made available on the app prior to the lawsuit such as MTV, CMT and Comedy Central, and also adds additional channels such as MTV Hits and MTV Jams and the high-definition versions of TV Land and BET.[84]
17	Intermountain West Communications Company announces two of its Idaho stations, KXTF/Twin Falls and KFXP/Pocatello (the latter is operated by Intermountain West through a management agreement with Compass Communications), will disaffiliate from Fox effective July 1, 2012 due to a retransmission consent dispute between Intermountain West and Fox citing demands for compensation payments that the company alleged exceeds both stations' current revenue. Intermountain West has announced it will seek primary affiliations with This TV (a joint venture between Weigel Broadcasting and MGM) for the two stations.[85][86]
22	Donald Driver wins the 14th season of Dancing with the Stars. [87]
23	Dish Network files lawsuits against ABC, CBS, Fox and NBC in response to litigation threats by those networks regarding the recently-unveiled AutoHop feature on its Hopper DVR device's "PrimeTime Anytime" service, which automatically skips commercials during pre-recorded programming. Dish is asking for a declaratory judgment that the AutoHop feature does not infringe copyrights. CBS, Fox and NBC countersue Dish alleging the feature violates copyright law and may compromise their advertising revenue.[88]
	A visitor identified as Ray Miles enters the studios of CBS affiliate WIBW-TV/Topeka and demands to have the station investigate how the local Department of Veterans Affairs was handling his case. After the station's news director refuses Miles' request for the second time (he had previously visited the station on March 22 to discuss the issue), Miles turns violent: he destroys the studio lobby, threatens newsroom staffers and stabs the station's sales manager and a sales associate in the leg before being taken down and held until police arrive.[89]
	Phillip Phillips wins the 11th season of American Idol. [90]
	After debuting in February, independent station WADL/Mount Clemens, Michigan cancels its half-hour 9 p.m. newscast (produced under a partnership with Journal Register Company and the Independent News Network). The news department's existence saw the abrupt firing of initial news director Matt Stevens in February after one day of employment (following a confrontation between acting station president Kevin O'Brien and station management regarding O'Brien's firing), replaced the following month with WADL program host Joelle Lukasiewicz (wife of Kevin Adell, CEO of owner Adell Broadcasting).[91]
25	Time Warner Cable reaches an agreement with Cordillera Communications, restoring four stations owned by the Evening Post Publishing Company subsidiary in TWC's Corpus Christi, Texas service area (NBC affiliate KRIS-TV along with its CW-affiliated digital subchannel, Telemundo affiliate K68DJ and independent station K47DF), ending a five-month retransmission consent dispute between the two companies that resulted in the stations being pulled on December 12, 2011.[92]
	Three Honolulu television stations — PBS member station KHET, TBN O&O KAAH, and multicultural independent KIKU — are served with a Notice of Violation by the FCC for failure to retransmit the monthly Emergency Alert System test on May 1 and failing to air the audio script on the March 1 test.[93]
26	Discovery Networks-owned Planet Green — a channel that originally aired eco-centric programming before concentrating on archived Discovery Channel documentaries — is rebranded and revamped to Destination America, which features American-centric food, travel, history and adventure programming.[94]
	After a four-year hiatus, the action-oriented animated programming block Toonami returns to Cartoon Network as part of their Adult Swim programming block.[95]
28	The premiere of the History miniseries Hatfields & McCoys draws 13.9 million viewers, a record for a non-sports program on ad-supported cable.[96]
30	Fox Television Stations signs an agreement with AccuWeather to provide on-air and online weather content to Fox-owned stations in 11 markets, which include providing meteorological data and online weather products, and the addition of 24-hour weather services on digital multicast channels. WNYW/New York City, KTTV/Los Angeles, WFLD/Chicago and WTXF/Philadelphia are exempt from the agreement due to AccuWeather's existing partnerships with ABC-owned stations WABC-TV, KABC-TV, WLS-TV and WPVI-TV in the respective markets.[97]
31	At 11:59 PM MDT, MountainWest Sports Network (informally known as The Mtn.) discontinues operations.[98] The channel, a joint venture between the Mountain West Conference, NBCUniversal and CBS Corporation, has been dedicated to MWC sporting events since its 2006 launch, but struggled through its life trying to get full cable coverage in the conference's territory. The closure comes at a time when the conference is about to undergo a membership reorganization.

June

Date

Event

1

WDRB, a Fox affiliate in Louisville, Kentucky owned by Block Communications, along with Salem, Indiana-licensed sister station WMYO, which is affiliated with MyNetworkTV, and their associated subchannels of Antenna TV and My Family TV are removed from the cable systems of Insight Communications throughout central Kentucky and southern Indiana in a compensation dispute with Time Warner Cable, which purchased Insight in February 2012 and asked for a re-negotiation of their retransmission consent agreement.[99]

Scheduled future events

This section may need to be updated. Please update this section to reflect recent events or newly available information, and remove this template when finished. Please see the talk page for more information. (April 2012)

The following is a list of scheduled events to take place in 2012. Be aware that the events detailed may be changed or rescheduled depending on a variety of factors.

June

Date	Event
2	News-Press & Gazette Company will launch low-power Fox affiliate KNPN-LD in the company's homebase of St. Joseph, Missouri. Plans for the station are to carry 22 hours of local newscasts per week, and operate two digital subchannels respectively affiliated with The CW and Telemundo. The station will replace WDAF/Kansas City as the default Fox affiliate on area cable provider Suddenlink Communications (carriage agreements have yet to be made with DirecTV and Dish Network), and its CW-affiliated subchannel will replace cable-only "WBJO" as the CW affiliate for Suddenlink subscribers and KXVO/Omaha as the default CW affiliate for area DirecTV subscribers.[100][101]
30	Aspire, a digital cable and satellite network targeting an African-American audience and owned as a joint venture between Magic Johnson and Comcast, will launch.[102]

July

Date	Event
7	NBC will replace its Saturday morning Qubo children's program block with NBC Kids, a preschool-oriented lineup that is programmed by PBS Kids Sprout (which NBC's parent company NBCUniversal jointly owns with Sesame Workshop, Apax Partners and PBS). Qubo will continue as a program block on Telemundo and Ion Television, and as a 24-hour multicast channel on Ion Television stations (NBCUniversal will also continue to maintain an ownership stake in the channel).[103]
9	ABC will launch Good Afternoon America, an afternoon extension of Good Morning America, hosted by Josh Elliott and Lara Spencer. The show is a temporary (9 weeks) placeholder for ABC's 2PM (ET) slot, an hour where General Hospital will move after ABC cedes the 3PM (ET) slot (GH's longtime home) to its affiliates on September 10.[104]

August

Date	Event
1	Al Jazeera will launch beIn Sports USA and beIn Sports en Español, two new sports channels dedicated to soccer.[105]
13	The Spanish-language broadcast network MundoFox, a partnership between Fox International Channels and Colombia's RCN TV, will make its debut.[106][107]
TBA[specify]	The Pacific-12 Conference will launch the national sports channel Pac-12 Network as well as six regional sports networks.[108]

Summer

Date	Event
July 27 – Aug. 12	The 2012 Summer Olympics will be broadcast on NBC and other NBCUniversal-owned cable channels.[109]
TBA[specify]	HDNet will rebrand as AXS TV and refocus its emphasis towards lifestyle and live event programming. The change is a result of the purchase of a share of the channel by a joint venture consisting of Ryan Seacrest, Anschutz Entertainment Group, and Creative Artists Agency, a deal announced on January 18 (Original owner Mark Cuban will still retain a share).[110]
	Luken Communications (in a joint venture with Jim Owens Entertainment) will relaunch The Nashville Network as an over-the-air digital multicast network, resurrecting the brand and country music-oriented format of the old cable network that existed from 1983 to 2000 (a channel now known as Spike).[111]
	Univision Noticias, a Spanish-language news channel owned by Univision Communications, will launch.[112]

September

Date	Event
2	The MDA Labor Day Telethon will be pared down once again, this time from six hours to three hours and will air during primetime.[113]

October

Date	Event
1	Time Warner Cable will launch two Los Angeles-based regional sports networks, TWC SportsNet and TWC Deportes. The networks will serve as exclusive homes to the NBA's Los Angeles Lakers. It will also carry the WNBA's Los Angeles Sparks, and MLS' Los Angeles Galaxy, in partnership with KDOC-TV. TWC Deportes will broadcast in Spanish, the first RSN to do so.[114]
TBA[specify]	Comcast SportsNet Houston, the newest affiliate of Comcast SportsNet, will launch. It will become the new exclusive home of the NBA's Houston Rockets and MLB's Houston Astros, and is majority owned by both teams.[115]

Programs debuting in 2012

This section may need to be updated. Please update this section to reflect recent events or newly available information, and remove this template when finished. Please see the talk page for more information. (April 2012)

The following is a list of shows scheduled to premiere in 2012. Be aware that the premiere dates may be changed depending on a variety of factors.

Due to the economic slowdown, there will be notably fewer television pilots in 2012 than in the years immediately prior to that, which reduces the number of roles available for actors.^[116]

The fall of 2012 is also expected to mirror 1993 in the volume of new daytime talk shows. The new talk roster will include shows hosted by first-timers Katie Couric, Steve Harvey, Jeff Probst, and Bethenny Frankel (Frankel's show will have a Summer trial run on six Fox-owned TV stations after an earlier effort to gain a wider fall clearance failed).^[117][118] New talk shows will also feature Trisha Goddard (who hosted a talk show in her native United Kingdom) and Ricki Lake (whose new show will take a more mature tone compared to her 1993–2004 series).^[119]

Also expected to make history in 2012, its first ever television series to be produced in English and Spanish simultaneously, Justice for All with Judge Cristina Pérez, which is being produced by Entertainment Studios and will air on both English and Spanish language broadcasting outlets starting in September.^[120]

Start Date	Show	Channel	Source
January 1	Oprah's Next Chapter	OWN	[121]
January 2	Early Start	CNN	[122]
	Starting Point		[123]
January 3	Jane by Design	ABC Family	[124]
	Work It	ABC	[125]
January 8	The Firm	NBC	[126]
	House of Lies	Showtime	[127]
January 10	Shipping Wars	A&E	[128]
January 11	Are You There, Chelsea?	NBC	[129]
January 12	The Finder	Fox	[130]
	¡Rob!	CBS	[131]
January 15	Napoleon Dynamite	Fox	[130]
January 16	Alcatraz	Fox	[130]
	Betty White's Off Their Rockers	NBC	[132]
	Fred: The Show	Nickelodeon	[133]
	The Revolution	ABC	[134]
January 17	ReModeled	The CW	[135]
January 19	Unsupervised	FX	[136]
January 20	On Freddie Roach	HBO	[137]
January 25	Touch	Fox	[130]
January 27	Spartacus: Vengeance	Starz	[138]
February 4	How to Rock	Nickelodeon	[139]
February 6	Smash	NBC	[140]
February 7	The River	ABC	[125]
February 12	Comic Book Men	AMC	[141]
	Full Metal Jousting	History	[142]
February 18	Melissa Harris-Perry	MSNBC	[143]
February 27	Lab Rats	Disney XD	[144]
March 1	Awake	NBC	[145]
March 4	Good Christian Bitches	ABC	[125]
March 11	Shahs of Sunset	Bravo	[146]
March 13	Fashion Star	NBC	[147]
March 15	Missing	ABC	[148]
March 25	Leave It to Niecy	TLC	[149]
March 29	The Pauly D Project	MTV	[150]
April[specify]	Hit Music Central USA	NBC Nonstop	[151]
April 3	Holliston	Fearnet	[152]
April 4	Best Friends Forever	NBC	[153]
April 5	Scandal	ABC	[154]
April 6	Magic City	Starz	[155]
April 8	The Client List	Lifetime	[156]
April 11	Don't Trust the Bitch in Apartment 23	ABC	[154]
April 15	Girls	HBO	[157]
	NYC 22	CBS	[158]
April 22	Veep	HBO	[157]
May 8	United Stats of America	History	[142]
May 11	Common Law	USA Network	[159]
May 20	Mrs. Eastwood & Company	E!	[160]
May 24	Duets	ABC	[161]
May 28	The Annoying Orange	Cartoon Network	[162]
June 4	Are You Normal, America?	OWN	[163]
	Hotel Hell	Fox	[164]
June 7	Saving Hope	NBC	[165]
June 8	Lives on Fire	OWN	[163]
June 9	Million Dollar Neighborhood
	Real Life: The Musical
June 11	Bethenny	Fox O&O's	[118]
	Bunheads	ABC Family	[166]
June 12	World's Worst Tenants	Spike	[167]
June 15	Gravity Falls	Disney Channel	[168]
June 18	The Glass House	ABC	[169]
June 19	Bristol Palin: Life's a Tripp	Lifetime	[170]
June 20	The Soul Man	TV Land	[171]
	Baby Daddy	ABC Family	[166]
	School Spirits	Syfy	[172]
	Paranormal Highway
June 21	Snooki and JWoww	MTV	[173]
June 24	The Great Escape	TNT	[174]
June 28	Anger Management	FX	[175]
	Brand X With Russell Brand
July 9	Perception	TNT	[174]
	Opening Act	E!	[176]
July 11	Beverly Hills Nannies	ABC Family	[166]
July 29	Black Dynamite	Adult Swim	[177]
July[specify]	Super Saver Showdown	OWN	[163]
August 13	Major Crimes	TNT	[174]
August 17	A Chance to Dance	Ovation	[178]
August 19	Married to Jonas	E!	[176]
August[specify]	Lovetown USA	OWN	[163]
September 3	Daniel Tiger's Neighborhood	PBS
September 10	Jeff Probst	Syndication	[179]
	Katie		[180]
	The Steve Harvey Show		[181]
	Trisha		[182]
November	Malibu Country	ABC	[183]
	666 Park Avenue
Fall[specify]	Care Bears: Welcome to Care-a-Lot	The Hub	[184]
	Kaijudo: Rise of the Duel Masters
	Littlest Pet Shop
	Spooksville
	The Neighbors	ABC	[183]
	Nashville
	Last Resort
TBA[specify]	Transporter: The Series	Cinemax	[185]
	The Sector		[186]
	Banshee		[187]
	Sandbox		[188]
	Hunted		[189]
	Vikings	History	[142]
	Forever Young	TV Land	[190]
	Smoke Jumpers	Current TV	[191]
	Garo Unleashed	Sundance Channel	[192]
	Quirky
	Shoebox Sessions
	Diva of Distressed
	The Indestructibles	Nat Geo	[193]
	Rocket Men
	American Knights in the U.S.
	CSI Me
	Bush Cowboy with Matt Wright	Nat Geo Wild	[194]
	America the Wild with Casey Anderson
	Animal Superpowers
	Randy to the Rescue	TLC	[195]
	Homecoming
	I Kid
	Big Fat Gypsy Wedding
	Romance is Dead	Animal Planet
	Sweet Avenger
	Saved
	Real Crime/Reel Story	Investigation Discovery
	Homicide Hunter: Lt. Joe Kenda
	Real Streets Miami
	Hostage: Do or Die
	Hunting Justice with William Phelps
	Crimes of Passion
	Deadly Sins
	Unraveled: Countdown to a Kill
	Confronting...	OWN	[196]
	I Owe You My Life
	Louie Spence Dance Project
	My Mom and Me
	Sweetie Pies
	Unfaithful: Stories of Betrayal
	Boar Hunters	A&E	[197]
	Southie Rules		[198]
	Silent Partner	USA Network	[199]
	On We Go
	M. Diety
	The Special
	Big in Japan
	We the Jury
	TGIM
	The Enclave
	The Exceptions
	Hard Cover
	Winslow
	Regular Einstein
	Amsale Girls	WE tv	[200]
	Texas Multi Mamas
	The Willis Clan
	The Sheriff	Spike	[167]
	Pawn Games
	Hungry Men at Work
	Auction in My House
	The Hustler
	The Art Factory	Ovation	[178]
	Don't Sleep	BET	[201]
Apollo Live	Centric
Betsey + Lulu	Style Network	[202]
Ultimate Home with Bill Rancic
Chicagolicious
Empire Girls: Julissa & Adrienne
Party Fabulous Vegas
Celebrity Closet Confidential
Absolutely MARvelous
Pop Style
The Cat Deeley Celebrity Project
House of Fab
Built
Barn Finds	Travel Channel	[203]
Power Trip with Jason Harper
Kevin Michael Connolly Project
Coffee Hunters
City Swappers
Catfish	MTV	[204]
Underemployed
The Inbetweeners
Wake Brothers
Zach Stone is Gonna be Famous
Girlfriend Confidential: NY	Oxygen	[205]
Girlfriend Confidential: LA
All the Right Moves
My Shopping Addiction
I'm Having Their Baby
The Next Big Thing: NY
#Videostar
Props'd
Longest.Date.Ever
Love Scouts		[206]
Dance Complex
The Face		[207]
Collection Intervention	Syfy	[172]
Viral Video Showdown
Ghost Mine
Hot Set
The Eyes of the Dragon
The Lotus Caves
Grave Sight
The Adjustment Bureau
Booster Gold
Battlestar: Blood and Chrome		[208]
Me and Lee
In the Dark
Fort Bragg	TruTV	[209]
Killer Karaoke
Guiness World Records Gone Wild
Container Wars
Upload with Shaquille O'Neal
Turbulence
Jeff & Curtis Lose Weight
Anne of Hollywood	E!	[176]
Upstarts
Amy Devlin Mysteries
Dorothy
Fascination Street
The 400
Juror Number 9
King David
Untitled Assistant Project
Love You, Mean It

Programs changing networks

The following shows will air new episodes on a different network than previous first-run episodes:

Show	Moved From	Moved To	Source
The Ultimate Fighter	Spike	FX	[210]
Dog Whisperer with Cesar Millan	National Geographic Channel	Nat Geo Wild	[211]
The Bill Cunningham Show	Syndication	The CW	[212]
World's Wildest Police Videos	Fox	Spike	[213]
Cougar Town	ABC	TBS	[214]

Programs returning in 2012

This section may need to be updated. Please update this section to reflect recent events or newly available information, and remove this template when finished. Please see the talk page for more information. (April 2012)

The following shows will return with new episodes after being canceled previously:

Show	Last Aired	Previous Channel	Retitled as/Same	New/Returning/Same Channel	Return Date	Source
CBS This Morning	1999	CBS	Same	Same	January 9	[9]
The Wonderful World of Disney	2008	ABC	The Magical World Of Disney Junior	Disney Junior	March 23	[215]
Punk'd	2007	MTV	Same	Same	March 29	[216]
Cartoon Planet	2000	Cartoon Network	Same	Same	March 30	[217]
Dancin' On Air	1987	Syndication	Same	WPHL-TV	March 31	[218]
World's Wildest Police Videos	2001	Fox	Same	Spike	May 7	[213]
Hollywood Squares	2004	Syndication	Hip Hop Squares	MTV2	May 22	[219]
Toonami	2008	Cartoon Network	Same	Same	May 26	[95]
Figure It Out	1999	Nickelodeon	Same	Same	June 11	[220]
Dallas	1991	CBS	Same	TNT	June 13	[174]
In Living Color	1994	Fox	(reunion specials only)	Same	June 17[specify]	[221]
Ricki Lake	2004	Syndication	The Ricki Lake Show	Same	September 10	[222]
Cristina's Court	2009	Syndication	Justice for All with Judge Cristina Perez	Same (both English and Spanish broadcasting platforms)	September 10	[120]
TV's Bloopers & Practical Jokes	2007	ABC	Bloopers	Syndication	September 18	[223]
Overhaulin'	2009	TLC	Same	Velocity	Fall	[224]

Programs ending in 2012

This section may need to be updated. Please update this section to reflect recent events or newly available information, and remove this template when finished. Please see the talk page for more information. (April 2012)

This section needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (May 2012)

End Date	Show	Channel	First Aired	Status	Source
January 1	Dragon Ball Z Kai	Nicktoons	2012	Ended	[225]
January 6	Wizards of Waverly Place	Disney Channel	2007	Ended	[226]
January 7	The Early Show	CBS	1999	Ended	[9]
January 8	All-American Muslim	TLC	2011	Canceled	[227]
January 10	Work It	ABC	2012	Canceled	[228]
January 13	Extreme Makeover: Home Edition		2003	Ended	[229]
	One Life to Live		1968	Canceled	[230]
January 19	Man, Woman, Wild	Discovery Channel	2010	Canceled	[231]
January 22	Prime Suspect	NBC	2011	Canceled	[232]
January 26	Bakugan Battle Brawlers	Cartoon Network	2010	Ended	[233]
January 27	Chuck	NBC	2007	Ended	[234]
	Jim Rome is Burning	ESPN2	2003	Ended	[235]
January 30	Who's Still Standing?	NBC	2011	Canceled	[236]
February 9	Money & Power	Fox Business Network	2010	Canceled	[237]
	Follow The Money
	Freedom Watch
February 10	The Increasingly Poor Decisions of Todd Margaret	IFC	2010	Ended	[238]
February 12	Fear Factor	NBC	2011	Canceled	[239]
February 17	The Life & Times of Tim	HBO	2008	Canceled	[240]
March 1	NY Ink	TLC	2011	Canceled	[241]
	Rob	CBS	2012	Canceled	[242]
March 2	A Gifted Man	CBS	2011	Canceled	[243]
March 3	Bud United Presents: The Big Time	ABC	2012	Canceled	[citation needed]
March 4	Napoleon Dynamite	Fox	2012	Canceled	[244]
March 3	Love Broker	Bravo	2012	Canceled	[citation needed]
March 19	Pam Am	ABC	2011	Canceled	[245]
March 20	The River	ABC	2012	Canceled	[246]
	I Hate My Teenage Daughter	Fox	2011	Canceled	[247]
March 24	Luck	HBO	2011	Canceled	[248]
March 25	So Random!	Disney Channel	2011	Canceled	[249]
March 26	Alcatraz	Fox	2012	Canceled	[250]
March 28	Are You There, Chelsea?	NBC	2012	Canceled	[251]
March 29	Countdown with Keith Olbermann	Current TV	2011	Canceled	[252]
March 30	The Rosie Show	OWN	2011	Canceled	[253]
March 31	Ben 10: Ultimate Alien	Cartoon Network	2010	Ended	[254]
April 2	Zeke and Luther	Disney XD	2009	Ended	[255]
April 4	One Tree Hill	The CW	2003	Ended	[256]
	Bent	NBC	2012	Canceled	[257]
April 5	I Just Want My Pants Back	MTV	2011	Canceled	[258]
April 8	CSI: Miami	CBS	2002	Canceled	[259]
April 11	Man v. Food	Travel Channel	2008	Ended	[260]
April 15	Eastbound & Down	HBO	2009	Ended	[261]
April 17	Ringer	The CW	2011	Canceled	[262]
April 25	Swift Justice with Jackie Glass	Syndicated	2010	Canceled	[263]
April 29	Breakout Kings	A&E Network	2011	Canceled	[264]
May 4	In Plain Sight	USA Network	2008	Ended	[265]
May 6	Good Christian Bitches	ABC	2012	Canceled	[266]
May 8	Unforgettable	CBS	2011	Canceled	[267]
May 10	The Secret Circle	The CW	2011	Canceled	[268]
May 11	The Finder	Fox	2012	Canceled	[269]
	Martha	Hallmark Channel	2005	Canceled	[270]
May 13	Desperate Housewives	ABC	2004	Ended	[271]
May 14	Make It or Break It	ABC Family	2009	Ended	[272]
May 17	Missing	ABC	2012	Canceled	[273]
May 18	Who Do You Think You Are?	NBC	2010	Canceled	[274]
May 21	House	Fox	2004	Ended	[275]
May 24	The Nate Berkus Show	Syndication	2010	Canceled	[276]
	Awake	NBC	2012	Canceled	[277]
May 27	Harry's Law	NBC	2011	Canceled	[278]
June 1	Best Friends Forever	NBC	2012	Canceled	[279]
June 23	The Firm	NBC	2012	Canceled	[280]
July 6	The Revolution	ABC	2012	Canceled	[281]
August 13	The Closer	TNT	2005	Ended	[282]
October 15	Eureka	Syfy	2006	Ended, but originally Canceled	[283]
November	iCarly	Nickelodeon	2007	Ended	[284]
TBA[specify]	Cash Cab	Discovery Channel	2006	Canceled	[285]
	Tyler Perry's House of Payne	TBS	2006	Ended	[286]
	NYC 22	CBS	2012	Canceled	[287]
	Breaking In	Fox	2011	Canceled	[288]
	How to Be a Gentleman	CBS	2012	Canceled	[289]

Made-for-TV movies and miniseries

This section may need to be updated. Please update this section to reflect recent events or newly available information, and remove this template when finished. Please see the talk page for more information. (April 2012)

Premiere Date	Title	Channel	Source
January 7	Fixing Pete	Hallmark Channel	[290]
	Walking the Halls	Lifetime	[291]
January 13	Frenemies	Disney Channel	[292]
January 14	Sexting in Suburbia	Lifetime	[291]
	A Taste of Romance	Hallmark Channel	[290]
January 21	Drew Peterson: Untouchable	Lifetime	[291]
January 28	Goodnight for Justice: The Measure of a Man	Hallmark Channel	[293]
	The Pregnancy Project	Lifetime	[291]
January 29	A Smile as Big as the Moon	ABC	[294]
February 4	Cupid	Lifetime	[295]
February 11	Secrets of Eden	Hallmark Channel	[290]
February 17	Radio Rebel	Disney Channel	[296]
February 25	Black Forest	Syfy	[297]
	Gretl: Witch Hunter
March 3	Blue-Eyed Butcher	Lifetime	[298]
March 10	Game Change	HBO	[299]
	Of Two Minds	Lifetime	[300]
March 17	Leprechaun's Revenge	Syfy	[301]
April 14	Titanic	ABC	[302]
April 21	Space Twister	Syfy	[303]
April 22	Firelight	ABC	[304]
April 28	Alien Tornado	Syfy	[303]
May 5	Treasure Island		[305]
May 13	Notes from the Heart Healer	Hallmark Channel	[306]
May 19	Lake Effects		[307]
May 20	Jesse Stone: Benefit of the Doubt	CBS	[308]
	Kiss at Pine Lake	Hallmark Channel	[306]
May 26	Super Shark	Syfy	[309]
May 28	Hatfields and McCoys	History	[142]
	Hemingway & Gellhorn	HBO	[310]
	Rags	Nickelodeon	[311]
June 9	Hannah's Law	Hallmark Channel	[306]
	Jersey Shore Shark Attack	Syfy	[312]
June 16	Blue Lagoon: The Awakening	Lifetime	[313]
	Operation Cupcake	Hallmark Channel	[314]
	Piranhaconda	Syfy	[312]
June 23	Arachnoquake		[312]
June 30	Bigfoot		[312]
July 8	Puppy Love	Hallmark Channel	[306]
July 15	How to Fall in Love		[306]
	Political Animals	USA Network	[159]
July 21	Always a Bride	Hallmark Channel	[306]
August[specify]	The Week the Women Went	Lifetime	[315]
August 12	The Music Teacher	Hallmark Channel	[316]
August 19	Cedar Cove		[306]
August 25	Strawberry Summer		[306]
TBA[specify]	Baby Jane	BET	[201]
	Gun Hill

Stations changing network affiliation

The following is a list of television stations that have made or will make noteworthy network affiliation changes in 2012. In addition to the changes listed below, other stations were affected by the move of Universal Sports from an over-the-air to cable/satellite network,^[317] with affiliated stations either moving to other services (including some NBC O&O stations, which added the network's Nonstop-branded information channel) or letting the channel go dark.

Date	Market	Station	Channel	Prior Affiliation	New Affiliation	Source
January 1	Jackson, Tennessee	WBBJ-DT3	7.3	Weather radar	CBS (primary), Me-TV (secondary)	[318]
January 23	Boise, Idaho	KTRV-TV	12.1	Independent	MyNetworkTV	[319]
February[specify]	Dallas, Texas	KTXD-TV	47.1		Me-TV	[320]
April 2	Paducah, Kentucky	WPSD-TV	6.2	Weather forecasts	Antenna TV	[321]
April 8	Biloxi, Mississippi	WLOX	13.2	Weather radar	CBS	[322]
May 21	Honolulu, Hawaii	KHNL	13.2	NBC Plus	Antenna TV	[323]
		KUPU	56.1	Antenna TV	Independent
June[specify]	Hattiesburg, Mississippi	WDAM-TV	7.2	This TV	ABC	[324]
June 24	Portland, Oregon	KATU	2.2	This TV	Me-TV	[325]
July 1	Biloxi, Mississippi	WXXV	25.2	MyNetworkTV (moving to 25.3)	NBC	[326]
	Pocatello/Idaho Falls, Idaho	KFXP	31.1	Fox	TBD	[85]
	Twin Falls, Idaho	KXTF	35.1			[86]

Deaths

Date	Name	Age	Notability	Source
Jan. 2	Jim Huber	67	Anchor/reporter for CNN and CNN/SI (The Sporting Life, Pro Golf Weekly); announcer and essayist for Turner Sports	[327]
Jan. 6	Robert Dozier	81	Writer (Have Gun–Will Travel, Dr. Kildare, Hawaii Five-O) and producer (Harry-O, The Devlin Connection)	[328]
Jan. 13	Andrea Moar	55	Actor (All My Children)	[329]
	Richard Threlkeld	74	Reporter for CBS News and ABC News; anchor of CBS Morning News (1977–1979)	[330]
Jan. 14	David Dziedzic	49	Senior VP/business development for National Association of Broadcasters	[331]
Jan. 20	Etta James	73	American singer/songwriter (Performed her 1961 song "At Last" on Dancing with the Stars in 2009)	[332]
Jan. 22	Dick Tufeld	85	Announcer (ABC Daytime and several shows), on-air personality (KABC-TV), and voiceover actor (the robot on Lost in Space)	[333]
Jan. 24	James Farentino	73	American television and film actor (The Bold Ones: The Lawyers, Blue Thunder)	[334]
Jan. 26	Robert Hegyes	60	Actor (Welcome Back Kotter, Cagney & Lacey)	[335]
Jan. 28	Ian Abercrombie	77	Actor (Seinfeld, Wizards of Waverly Place)	[336]
Jan. 29	John Rich	86	Emmy-winning TV director (Where's Raymond?, Mister Ed, The Dick Van Dyke Show, All in the Family, The Jeffersons, Maude, Good Times, Barney Miller, Newhart, Benson, The Brady Bunch, and Gilligan's Island).	[337]
Jan. 31	Leslie Carter	25	American actress, singer and reality TV personality (House of Carters)	[338]
Feb. 1	Don Cornelius	75	Creator and original host of Soul Train	[339]
Feb. 3	Ben Gazzara	81	Actor (Run for Your Life, An Early Frost, Hysterical Blindness)	[340]
Feb. 6	Peter Breck	82	Actor (Maverick, Black Saddle, The Big Valley)	[341]
Feb. 8	Philip Bruns	80	Actor (The Jackie Gleason Show, Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman)	[342]
	Laurie Main	89	Actor (Welcome to Pooh Corner)	[343]
Feb. 9	D. Thomas Miller	86	Former GM of WLS-TV/Chicago and executive with CBS Television Stations	[344]
Feb. 11	Whitney Houston	48	American Grammy and Emmy Award-winning singer, actress, and producer (TV work includes the made-for-television movie Cinderella, guest appearances on Gimme a Break! and Silver Spoons, 2-time host of the Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards, performance appearances including Dancing with the Stars and Saturday Night Live, and commercial pitch work including Diet Coke)	[345]
Feb. 13	Carlos DeJesus	67	American radio and television host (New York Hot Tracks)	[346]
Feb. 20	Jeff Rice	39	TV producer (The Amazing Race)	[347]
Feb. 24	Jan Berenstain	88	Co-author of the Berenstain Bears book franchise, which was adapted into an American and Canadian animated TV series.	[348]
Feb. 29	Davy Jones	66	British actor and musician (star of the TV series The Monkees and member of the band of the same name, as well as a successful solo career)	[349]
March 1	Andrew Breitbart	43	Political commentator and frequent pundit for several TV networks who broke the Anthony Weiner sexting scandal story and the controversial story that resulted in the forced Resignation of Shirley Sherrod, both of which resulted in media circuses.	[350]
March 9	Joseph Donnelly	52	Chief financial officer of Comcast and NBCUniversal.	[351]
March 28	Earl Scruggs	88	American musician and actor (co-sang the theme song to The Beverly Hillbillies)	[352]
April 5	Gil Noble	80	Reporter/anchor for WABC-TV/New York; host of Like It Is	[353]
April 7	Mike Wallace	93	American journalist for CBS News, original correspondent on the network's 60 Minutes program	[354]
April 14	Jonathan Frid	87	Canadian actor (Dark Shadows)	[355]
April 15	Chris Lonergan	54	TV executive for Discovery Communications	[356]
	Paul Bogart	92	American television and film director (All in the Family, Get Smart, The Defenders)	[357]
April 18	Dick Clark	82	American television host (The Dick Clark Show, Pyramid, American Bandstand, Dick Clark's World of Talent, TV's Bloopers & Practical Jokes, The Other Half, Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve) and producer (founder of Dick Clark Productions)	[358]
April 29	Joel Goldsmith	54	American composer (Stargate Atlantis, Stargate SG-1, Stargate Universe)	[359]
April 30	Robert Finkel	94	American television producer and director (credits include work on television specials for Bing Crosby, Elvis Presley and John Denver; TV directing credits include Barney Miller and The Bob Newhart Show)	[360]
May 2	Junior Seau	43	Football player for the San Diego Chargers, Miami Dolphins and New England Patriots. TV work includes Sports Jobs with Junior Seau	[361]
	Digby Wolfe	82	British-born writer (Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In), actor, and singer	[362]
May 4	Bob Stewart	91	American television game show producer, creator of To Tell the Truth, Password, and The Price Is Right for Goodson-Todman and Pyramid, among a dozen other shows, for his own company.	[363]
May 5	Stephen Lord	85	American writer (Bonanza, CHiPs, Fantasy Island, Ironside, Kolchak: The Night Stalker, Kung Fu: The Legend Continues, Matlock, McCloud, The Outer Limits, T.J. Hooker)	[364]
May 6	George Lindsey	83	American actor (The Andy Griffith Show, Mayberry R.F.D., Hee Haw)	[365]
May 8	Maurice Sendak	83	American children's book and television writer (Little Bear, Seven Little Monsters, Really Rosie, various segments for Sesame Street)	[366]
May 17	Donna Summer	63	American singer/songwriter and actress (TV credits include guest appearances on Family Matters and Hollywood Squares and performance appearances including American Idol and America's Got Talent)	[367]
May 20	Eugene Polley	96	Engineer for Zenith Electronics (1935-1982) and inventor of the wireless remote control for TV	[368]
May 22	Janet Carroll	71	American television, stage and film actress (TV credits include guest appearances in Hill Street Blues, Married... with Children, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, The Bronx Zoo, Quantum Leap, Still Standing, Melrose Place and Murphy Brown)	[369][370]
May 23	Al Gordon	89	American television writer (TV credits include The Jack Benny Program, That's My Mama, The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour, The Flip Wilson Show, Three's Company, The Carol Burnett Show, Carter Country, Hello, Larry and 227)	[371]
May 24	Howard Shapiro	86	Chairman of Weigel Broadcasting	[372]
	Lee Rich	93	Co-founder and chairman of Lorimar Television	[373]
May 29	Jim Paratore	59	Former Telepictures production executive and American television producer (producing credits include TMZ on TV and Lopez Tonight)	[374]

References

External links

• "NBC Announces 2011–2012 TV Schedule." from Aoltv.com (May 15, 2011.)

Years in television: 2012
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