Coyote Revs Crawfish Pie-Powered Hummer

Coyote TV says it has cleared eco-friendly syndicated reality show, Coolfuel Roadtrip, in 70% of the country for a Sept. 5 debut. That includes Viacom's UPN affiliates--that deal was announced in May--as well as some Emmis and Weigel Broadcasting stations, according to Coyote's Diana Foster.

The FCC-friendly show--it will carry the educational/informational (E/I) bug--has been cleared for primarily weekend play in mostly mid-sized and smaller markets, with the station count nearing 90.

Foster says she was not rooting for gas prices to skyrocket, but it has certainly proved good timing for pitching a show about alternative auto fuels.

The 18-episode, half-hour series looks at the year-long, 16,000-mile cross-country trek of some alternately-fueled vehicles helmed by "Australian TV adventurer" Shaun Murphy and his dog, Sparky.

Green machines they profile include an RV running on soybeans, a vegetable oil-powered pickup, and a stretch hummer limo running on sun, hydrogen, and cajun food.

The show will also include weekly celebrity guests including alternate-fuel fans Daryl Hanna, Jackson Browne and Ed Begley Jr.

John Eggerton

Contributing editor John Eggerton has been an editor and/or writer on media regulation, legislation and policy for over four decades, including covering the FCC, FTC, Congress, the major media trade associations, and the federal courts. In addition to Multichannel News and Broadcasting + Cable, his work has appeared in Radio World, TV Technology, TV Fax, This Week in Consumer Electronics, Variety and the Encyclopedia Britannica.