The 2005 B&C News Quiz

1) Several cable networks launched new ID taglines this year. Which of the following is not the correct tagline?

A) USA: Characters Welcome

B) Bravo: Watch What Happens

C) Court TV: Seriously Entertaining

D) IFC: One To Watch

E) BET: It's My Thing

2) In recent years, one thing ABC anchor Peter Jennings, who died of cancer Aug. 7, always carried with him:

A) A copy of the U.S. Constitution

B) Private numbers of world leaders

C) A St. Christopher medal

D) A copy of the Freedom of Information Act

3) Former CPB Chairman Ken Tomlinson said what about his efforts to add more conservative programming to PBS, according to e-mails released by the Wall Street Journal about the show it developed for Tomlinson:

A) “I'm trying to pressure Pat Mitchell to produce a real conservative counterpoint to [Bill] Moyers.”

B) “This could be fun. But watch Pat. She is slick as grease [sic] lightning.”

C) “We are supposed to believe that the vast bureaucracy that is PBS, with all of its inbred policies and interests, was somehow cowed by a single, conservative board member who lacked any real management power?”

D) All of the above

4) Verizon and AT&T (aka SBC) rocked cable and Wall Street this year with ambitious plans to launch video services over existing wires. How many subscribers did the telcos' new video systems have toward year-end?

A) 20,000

B) 200,000

C) 2 million

D) 12 million

5) How many subscribers have dumped their local telco to buy telephone service from cable operators?

A) 50,000

B) 500,000

C) 5 million

D) 15 million

6) Who said the following about indecency: “The final edit is a parent turning off the TV. The ultimate responsibility in a consumer-driven economy is for people to say, 'I'm not going to watch it' and turn the knob off”?

A) TV Watch Executive Director Jim Dyke

B) Former MPAA President Jack Valenti

C) U.S. President George W. Bush

D) Parents Television Counsel President Brent Bozell

7) Approximately how many links come up in a search of “Anderson Cooper” on Google Video, which has a partnership with CNN?

A) 1

B) 68

C) 46,000

D) 110,000

8) How much domestic revenue did shopping channels bring in last year?

A) $1.5 billion

B) $3 billion

C) $4.1 billion

D) $6.9 billion

9) Who said of his new cable program, “It's not Anderson Cooper interviewing Tucker Carlson about Jon Stewart”?

A) Geraldo Rivera

B) Anderson Cooper

C) Stephen Colbert

D) James Cramer

10) Which term would not be included in a Fox Reality Channel glossary of foreign slang used to describe women of ill repute?

A) Slag

B) Slapper

C) Slickee

D) Slut

11) TV execs aren't quite getting the hang of new technology and are committing plenty of missteps. Which of these is false?

A) Fox's podcast of Family Guy offered no sound bites from the cartoon hit but only recapped a recent episode.

B) Sprint launched a $15-a-month cellphone-TV service that offers a jerky video slide show accompanied by a network's audio feed.

C) CNN offers its entire coverage of the 2004 presidential election on-demand for $6.99.

D) DirecTV is selling NBC shows on-demand only to DVR owners, who can readily record them for free.

E) NBC Universal offers old episodes of Adam-12 for video iPods at $1.99 each.

12) Videogames, the Internet and DVDs all threaten to hurt stations and networks by disrupting TV viewing. How much time does Nielsen now believe is spent watching TV in the average household each day?

A) 3 hours 15 minutes

B) 5 hours 23 minutes

C) 6 hours 50 minutes

D) 8 hours 11 minutes

13) Over the past 10 years, the ratings gap between ABC's Good Morning America and NBC's Today show has narrowed but is widening again. In which season has it been the closest?

A) 1997-98

B) 1999-2000

C) 2002-03

D) 2004-05

14) What is the reason that Oprah Winfrey most likely avoided appearing on Late Night With David Letterman for 16 years until last month?

A) In 1987, when she was in a hefty phase, he referred to her on-air as “Mrs. Butterworth.”

B) She said she was treated rudely in the two times she had been on his old NBC show.

C) Oprah Winfrey doesn't really need exposure on Letterman's show.

D) All of the above

15) Indecency continued to be a hot issue in Washington, as powerful political players closed the year with harsh demands for changes by both broadcast and cable networks. How much did the FCC levy in fines for TV indecency in 2005?

A) $0

B) $500,000

C) $5 million

D) $25 million

16) After Hurricane Katrina ravaged the Gulf Coast, which New Orleans TV station broadcast continuously throughout the ordeal?

A) WPXL

B) WDSU

C) WGNOI

D) WWL

17) Which cable network series set a record this summer to become the highest-rated showing ever for a basic-cable original scripted series, earning a 4.8 household rating?

A) TNT's The Closer

B) TNT's Wanted

C) USA's The 4400

D) FX's Rescue Me

E) MTV's The Real World

18) This year, Nielsen deployed its new local people meter electronic ratings system in which two of the following TV markets?

A) Philadelphia

B) Los Angeles

C) Washington

D) Dallas-Ft. Worth

19) Emmis is getting out of the TV business and, so far, has sold off 13 of its 16 stations for how much money?

A) $560 million

B) $780 million

C) $940 million

D) $1.1 billion

20) On the six broadcast networks, what was the first new series pulled from the schedule this fall?

A) UPN's Sex, Love & Secrets

B) The WB's Just Legal

C) Fox's Head Cases

D) NBC's Inconceivable

21) During November sweeps, what TV station scored the top 20 markets' highest-rated late newscast, with an average 14.3 household rating/24 share?

A) WDIV Detroit

B) WXYZ Detroit

C) WLS Chicago

D) KUSA Denver

22) Apparently, fashion matters when it comes to baseball ratings, as Red Sox clearly outdraw White Sox. How much did Fox's World Series ratings fall in the 18-49 demo versus last year?

A) 27.6%

B) 30.1%

C) 33.7%

D) 36.4%

23) In recent years, household ratings for new sundicated weekday strips have plunged. Of the 54 first-run syndicated weekday shows introduced from 2000-05, how many are still on the air today?

A) 2

B) 5

C) 8

D) 11

24) Over his 30-plus years in the television business, Commander in Chief (and former NYPD Blue, L.A. Law and Hill Street Blues) executive producer Steven Bochco has won how many Emmys?

A) 0

B) 3

C) 8

D) 10

E) 14

25) On Apple's iTunes download service, customers can buy $1.99 episodes of all but which of the following ABC shows?

A) Desperate Housewives

B) Night Stalker

C) Grey's Anatomy

D) Lost

BONUS:

Which former Love Boat star was a contender for president of the National Association of Broadcasters?

A) Captain Stubing

B) Gopher

C) Isaac

D) Julie the Cruise Director