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A number of different forms of media exist in the world of animation series The Simpsons. Some of these are fictional, such as KBBL Radio. Others are not, inhabitants of Springfield appear to receive and parody all major television networks, most notably Fox News.
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TV & Radio
Stations
KBBL
KBBL is the fictional call sign used for radio and television stations that broadcast from Springfield. All three are owned and operated by the fictional KBBL Broadcasting Inc.
KBBL-HDTV is mentioned by Homer in the episode "Lost Verizon".
KBBL-FM's frequency is 102.5 FM, and its morning show is hosted by Bill and Marty. Its logo is "KBBL" in big red letters. It appears to have a rock-leaning adult contemporary format.
Its co-owned AM sister station KBBL at 970 AM (although until recently it was at 580 AM), is a conservative talk radio and sports station. One of its shows is hosted by hard-core conservative Birch Barlow (a Rush Limbaugh parody) and another by Jerry Rude (a Howard Stern parody). Coincidentally, there was once a real-world KBBL-AM, with a sports talk format, at 1350 AM in Little Rock, Arkansas (the station is now KZTD). According to one episode, KBBL's slogan is "No sports, no rock, no information; for mindless chatter, we're your station," leading to the call letters "KBBL", or "K-Babble".
| KBBL-TV | |
|---|---|
| Springfield | |
| Branding | Channel 6 |
| Slogan | We're Channel 6, Just Catch Us Now! |
| Channels | Analog: 6 VHF Digital: unknown |
| Subchannels | 6.1 KBBL-HDTV |
| Affiliations | Fox |
| Owner | KBBL Broadcasting Inc. |
| Sister station(s) | KBBL-AM, KBBL-FM, QueBBL |
KBBL-TV or KBBL-DT (in recent episodes) (Channel 6) is the fictional television station in Springfield, the home of television personalities Kent Brockman, Krusty the Clown, and Itchy & Scratchy. Its slogan is "We're Channel 6, Just Catch Us Now!" (parody of NBC's 1982-1983 promotional slogan "We're NBC Just Watch Us Now"). Channel 6 is believed to be the local Fox affiliate. Its logo is a red six inside a yellow circle, with a black outline.
In the real world, there are a few television stations that have used the KBBL call letters. Former WB affiliate KBBL-TV, channel 34 in Eureka Springs, Arkansas (now KPBI-TV, located in the market of real-life Springfield, Missouri, but actually serving the Fort Smith-Fayetteville market), which changed from KWFT on July 6, 2006 and joined My Network TV, and the Springfield-licensed low-power relay of another MNT affiliate, KWBM channel 31 in Harrison, Arkansas, which picked up the call sign on July 14, 2006. Prior to July 14, the KBBL call sign was used by the Univision affiliate in Fort Smith, KWNL-CA channel 9 Winslow, Arkansas. The choice of KBBL call letters by Equity Broadcasting, parent of all three stations, likely was not influenced by The Simpsons; Equity likes to use former radio call letters from its hometown of Little Rock, Arkansas as TV call letters, and KBBL was once used by KBBL-AM (see above) and perhaps an FM station. However, since KWBM (and thus the new KBBL-CA) will be affiliates of MyNetworkTV (owned by Fox), it is still possible that the move of KBBL-CA to real-life Springfield was Simpsons-related.
See also List of fictional television shows#The Simpsons
KFSL-Fossil 103
KFSL-Fossil 103 (Presumably broadcasting on 103.1 FM) is the Classic Hits format mentioned in "Homerpalooza". In 1996, its slogan was "Classic hits from ABBA to Zepplin, Led (Led Zeppelin)"; During a Grand Funk Railroad Song, Milhouse says to turn the station off, but Homer refuses, then learns that kids do not know about "dinosaur bands."
KJAZZ-FM
KJAZZ-FM is a jazz station in Springfield with a broadcast range of 23 feet (supposedly making it the "most powerful jazz station in America") and a morning show hosted by Hans Moleman. It appeared in the episode "'Round Springfield". There are three real US stations branded as "K-JAZZ:" KJZZ-FM Tempe, Arizona, KKJZ-FM Long Beach, California and KJJZ-FM Palm Springs, California.
Other radio stations
- In the episode "Home Away from Homer", Lisa is listening to "Nationwide Public Radio" (a parody of National Public Radio), when she wins tickets to an Albanian film, Kosovo Autumn, by being the first (and only) caller to the station.
- Nearby Weevilville has a country music station, KUDD, at 570 AM. Seen in the episode "Colonel Homer", the station played a song by Lurleen Lumpkin. Its slogan is "Don't touch that dial, you've got KUDD on it."
- In one Simpsons Halloween special, an invasion by zombies led a town radio station, presumably KBBL, to change its call sign and format to "KZMB, All-Zombie Radio." The programming consisted of zombies grunting and moaning.
- In the United States, the vast majority of radio stations west of the Mississippi River have call signs beginning with "K," while those in the eastern states begin with "W." Lest viewers interpret call letters as a hint toward Springfield's location, one episode mentions the easy-listening station WKOMA although this was to avoid confusion with real-world station KOMA FM, since US stations cannot have five-letter call signs.
Channel Ocho
| Type | Spanish Language Local |
| Country |  United States |
| Availability | Local terrestrial |
| Owner | KBBL-TV (Channel 6) |
| Key people | Bumblebee Man |
Channel Ocho is the Spanish-language television station for Springfield. The main show is Bumblebee Man's comedy show (sponsored by Goya), a fast-paced, surreal, slapstick comedy show about an unlucky giant bumblebee. It is also known for showing soccer matches. Channel Ocho might also be a parody of Mexican TV, particularly of El Chapulín Colorado and El Chavo del Ocho, by Roberto Gomez Bolaños, both popular and successful comedy shows aired since the 70's in Latin America.
Fox
The Fox Network has frequently appeared in several Simpsons episodes and is constantly the butt of many jokes, e.g., in the episode "Thirty Minutes Over Tokyo" when Homer was once on a computer investing in News Corp stock: Lisa: "Dad, that's Fox!" Homer: (screams) " Undo! Undo!"
When Krusty plans to have his Bar Mitzvah televised, he reluctantly decides to go to Fox Network, due to the fact that no other channel will show the celebration. Fox Network's headquarters is then shown to be nothing more than a group of well-dressed people in a trailer on a hill. While there, Krusty convinces them to show the Bar Mitzvah by saying, "You're Fox! You're known for taking chances on crap!"
In "HOMR" Homer checks his stock and says:
- Computer: For automated stock prices, please state company name.
- Homer: Animotion.
- Computer: Animotion. Up one and one-half.
- Homer: Yahoo!
- Computer: Yahoo. Up six and a quarter.
- Homer: Huh? What is this crap?
- Computer: Fox Broadcasting. Down Eight.
On many occasions, Fox News is negatively portrayed as having a conservative bias; for instance, during a debate televised on the channel in the episode "Mr. Spritz Goes to Washington", Republican candidate Krusty is shown with a halo surrounding his head, while his Democratic opponent, Armstorng is shown with horns in front of a Soviet flag and is called by the others "our little red friend," a reference to Communism. All the while, the ticker displays statements such as "Do Democrats cause Cancer? Find out at FoxNews.com" and "Dan Quayle: Awesome." Matt Groening claims that Fox News threatened to sue the show over their portrayal, but that the writers refused to remove the segment as they felt that Fox head Rupert Murdoch would prevent any attempts by Fox News Network to take legal action against the Fox entertainment channel. Fox News apparently backed down on the condition their scrolling news ticker was not replicated again.[1]
In one episode, Homer pauses to watch a Joe Millionaire advertisement animation appear on the bottom of the screen. Homer simply picks up the advertisement and eats it, then saying one of his "Mmmmm" actions. He then spits out something in disgust and says, "Ewww, Fox!". Also, in the episode "She Used to Be My Girl", various media vehicles can be seen arriving in Springfield to cover a scandal involving Mayor Quimby. The Fox News van is, by far, the largest news van present and displays on its side a sign with the slogan "Bush/Cheney '04" while blasting the song "We Are the Champions."
A couch gag in the 100th episode, featured the Fox symbol appearing at the corner of the screen followed by Homer ripping it off and the whole family stamping on it.
In The Simpsons Movie, at one point, a Fox ticker suddenly appears at the bottom of the screen with an ad for the fictional show Are You Smarter Than a Celebrity? followed by the words "That's right. We even advertise our shows during movies now."
In the episode "Missionary: Impossible", the fate of Homer is never discovered, as at the climax of the episode, the scene cuts to a Fox fundraising telethon, the hosts selfishly unconcerned on this. Like Homer with PBS in the beginning of the episode, Bart pledges $10000 to get back to the show. The phone operators are Bender from Futurama (another show by Matt Groening), Rupert Murdoch (CEO of Fox), Fox Mulder (from The X Files), and more. A program they were campagining for was Family Guy, another show on Fox (during this time, Family Guy was cancelled, then revived in 2002, cancelled again, then brought back by Strong DVD sales in 2005).
The Fox satellite in the Simpsons is shown bobbing within the atmosphere, suspended by tied-on balloons, with broken solar panels. During the shot, a piece falls off.
PBS
Earlier in the episode "Missionary: Impossible", Homer is watching Springfield's PBS affiliate, which is airing a British sit-com called Do Shut Up. The station interrupts the show with a pledge drive, and Homer calls to pledge enough money for the show to resume, hoping they don't find out who made the call. When the "PBS Enforcement Van" arrives, Homer runs from a mob of personalities and characters associated with the network, including Fred Rogers, the Teletubbies and characters from Sesame Street.
Television shows
Eye on Springfield
Eye on Springfield is a show presented by Kent Brockman. The show within a show is a parody of KABC-TV's "Eye on LA" and other television newsmagazines and entertainment journalism, particularly when they are attempted by small media market TV outlets. It could also be seen as a takeoff on PM Magazine or Evening Magazine.
In the U.S., television networks are required to have "local interest" programming to show concern for the community needs, and stations frequently satisfy this requirement with local arts programming. Eye on Springfield is a parody of such programs, in that it shows a small market local events program attempting to imitate network journalism and entertainment reporting. At times Eye on Springfield seems to be taking 60 Minutes as its target, but it most consistently satirizes Entertainment Tonight and Access Hollywood. Whenever Lisa Simpson or Homer Simpson do something newsworthy or controversial, they appear on Eye on Springfield.
The show is often used as a way to open an episode of The Simpsons, with Brockman standing in front of a lake saying "Hello. I'm Kent Brockman, and this is Eye on Springfield". The starting sequence varies slightly in each appearance, but always feature a montage of bikini-clad women at various Springfield monuments and clips of Kent Brockman living a celebrity lifestyle.
Krusty the Clown Show
The Krusty the Clown Show is a children's afternoon television show presented by Krusty the Clown. It was noted in "Krusty Gets Kancelled" that the show begins at 4:00 PM. The first appearance of the show in the series was in the episode "The Telltale Head". Originally Krusty's Sideshow host was Sideshow Bob, but he was jailed for framing Krusty in "Krusty Gets Busted". Since this episode, Sideshow Mel has taken on the role as the Sideshow host. The Krusty the Clown Show features "The Itchy and Scratchy Show", and in the episode "Girly Edition" included a kids' news section, but this was cancelled at the end of the episode.
Smartline
Smartline is a parody of network television cultural affairs programs. Kent Brockman hosts the show-within-the-show. While "Smartline" might be a parody of the NBC news show Dateline, its clearest model is ABC's Nightline as it features only the host and a single guest being questioned skeptically. There is also a satirical hint that Nightline takes its intellectual credentials too seriously. It is also interesting to note that Smartline's logo and Springfield's night-time skyline also parody the logo of Nightline during the 1980s. However, Smartline is also a parody of small market television stations that attempt to emulate serious journalism. Instead of having nationally known political leaders, Kent Brockman's "Smartline" will feature local personalities such as Lisa Simpson or Professor Frink.
My Two Cents
Another Channel 6 program, usually shown at the end of a news broadcast, Kent Brockman (and sometimes others) give their own personal, and often dire opinions on the going-ons in Springfield and what should be done to solve the problem. The name stems from the American idiom "my two cents (worth)" meaning a personal opinion of a topic.
I Can't Believe They Invented It!
An infomercial marketing weird inventions, often created by Dr. Nick Riviera. The program is hosted by Troy McClure. Products featured on the show include "Spiffy" (a cleaning chemical designed for tombstones), the "Juice-Loosener" (a juicer), the "SS Microwave" (a floating microwave for use in swimming pools), the "Jet Walker" (a rocket-powered transportation device), "Mr. Sugar Cube" (a device that forms sugar into (often misshapen) cubes) and the "Mobilier" (a chandelier for use in automobiles).
Rock Bottom
A tabloid show which, during the episode "Homer Badman", edits a video to portray Homer as a sexual pervert. "Rock Bottom" is a parody of the now-defunct syndicated sensationalist news television show Hard Copy.
Other TV
- A channel 3 was seen reporting the birth of nonuplets in Shelbyville in "Eight Misbehavin".
- There are also public access channels 3 (which aired The Innoncent Report with Homer Simpson) and 92 (airing Homer's Mr. Plow commercial).
- In the episode "Lisa's Wedding" where a futuristic story is told of The Simpsons' in the year 2010 (centering around Lisa getting married), Kent Brockman is seen reading the news for CNNBCBS (a division of ABC). This suggests the four major US networks have merged into one. In the same episode, the Fox Network has also slowly become a hard-core sex channel - so slow hardly anyone noticed.
- During a car chase, Kent Brockman mentioned that the event was also being carried on channels 2, 4, 5, 7, 9, and 63. It is assumed these broadcast in or near Springfield.
- Other stations that have been shown in the Springfield area are ION (when it was PAX), The WB, and UPN (where Homer is sitting at the bar in Moe's with a sad look on his face when Moe remarks "What's the matter Homer, still miss the UPN?")
- Thames Television, a former ITV franchise holder, has its ident appear in one show ("Missionary: Impossible").
- A parody of Access Hollywood was made, titled Access Springfield.
Newspapers
The Springfield Shopper
| Type | Daily local newspaper |
|---|---|
| Format | Broadsheet |
| Owner | Springfield News Group, Inc. (formerly Burns Media, Inc.) |
| Founded | 1883 by Johnny Newspaperseed |
| Political alignment | Varies |
| Headquarters | Springfield |
The Springfield Shopper is the most commonly-recurring local newspaper in Springfield. It carries opinion, sports, food, world, arts, religion and leisure sections. It tends towards tabloid stories, with such headlines as 'Woman Weds Ape', 'Hippo promoted to detective' and 'Crazed Mom Goes Topless (Photos Pages 3–28)'. It was founded in 1883 by Johnny Newspaperseed (a parody of Johnny Appleseed), a small boy who travelled America founding newspapers. The Shopper was created by the merger of the Springfield Times, Post, Globe, Herald, Jewish News, and Hot Sex Weekly. There actually is a Springfield Shopper in Springfield, Illinois.
Homer Simpson has worked for the newspaper as a food critic. After initially being too kind (giving a slice of pizza he found under the sofa at least 8 out of 10, deducting a point for having a Hot Wheels car stuck on it), he switched to becoming a cruel critic, and was almost murdered by a disgruntled baker with a poisoned éclair. The newspaper was also bought briefly by Montgomery Burns, who was on a mission to control all the media of Springfield, and by the The Movementarians, an evil cult who were attempting to brainwash all Springfieldians.
The lower headline will generally be a joke either about the upper headlines, or about journalism in general ("Second headline less important, studies show"). In one episode, it is revealed that Shelbyville has a newspaper called The Shelbyville Daily, whose slogan is "Once a week, every week". In "Three Gays of the Condo", Julio is seen reading The New York Times. Homer asks why he reads the Times even though he doesn't live in New York. Julio says he dislikes the Shopper because all the headlines are a joke. A real-life Springfield Shopper was published in 2007, written by Simpsons creator Matt Groening himself. It was found inside other newspapers as a feature to advertise The Simpsons Movie.
The DVD of The Simpsons Movie also features a small "Springfield Shopper" paper, the inside of it advertising various Simpsons merchandise.
The Shopper was used in a Simpsons couch gag for the season seventeen episode "Simpsons Christmas Stories" (and the season 18 episode "Marge Gamer") where The Simpsons are pictured on the couch and the headline reads: "COUCH GAG THRILLS NATION".
The Shopper was also used in the video game The Simpsons Hit & Run to comment on events between levels. It continued the tradition of joke headlines ("Local man ruins hot dog eating contest") and sub-headlines ("Study: 90% of video games start with easy tutorial level").
The Red Dress Press
| Type | Daily newspaper |
|---|---|
| Format | Broadsheet |
| Owner | Lisa Simpson |
| Founded | May 19, 2004 by Lisa Simpson |
| Ceased publication | May 23, 2004 |
| Headquarters | 742 Evergreen Terrace, Springfield |
A newspaper which lasted Four Days, written by Lisa Simpson is called The Red Dress Press (with Bart, Nelson, Milhouse and Ralph playing various roles in its publication) and was introduced in the last episode of the Simpsons' 15th season, called "Fraudcast News", in which after Mr. Burns controls all of the media in Springfield, Lisa tries to fight back with this newspaper, and succeeds after inspiring others to make newspapers of their own.
References
See also
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