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Revision as of 01:56, 15 July 2004 by Minesweeper (talk | contribs) (add launch dates)(diff) ← Previous revision | Latest revision (diff) | Newer revision → (diff)C-SPAN, which originally stood for Cable-Satellite Public Affairs Network, was the first United States cable television network dedicated to 24 hour-a-day coverage to national government and public affairs. C-SPAN often will show live sessions of the U.S. House of Representatives while in progress; this coverage is referred to as "gavel to gavel".
History
Brian Lamb, C-SPAN's chairman & CEO, conceived of C-SPAN while working at the Cablevision company. It was created as a cable-industry financed, non-profit network for televising sessions of the U.S. Congress. It receives no funding from any government source and does not sell sponsorships or advertising. Its coverage of public affairs is widely cited for its neutrality and lack of bias.
C-SPAN first went on the air on March 19, 1979. C-SPAN 2, a spinoff network, covers live sessions of the U.S. Senate and went on the air on June 2, 1986, with the original channel then focusing on the House. The latest spinoff, C-SPAN 3, began broadcasting on January 22, 2001, and focuses on judicial coverage. Since 1979, the cable industry has spent US $230 million to operate the networks.
On October 9, 1997, C-SPAN launched C-SPAN Radio which broadcasts on WCSP 90.1 FM in Washington, DC. The radio station, which also broadcasts on the XM and Sirius satellite radio systems, covers similar events as its sister TV networks.
All of C-SPAN's feeds are available live free of charge on its world wide web site.
Coverage
The three channels also air government hearings, press conferences and meetings of various political, media, and non-profit organizations, book discussions, Q&A sessions, and occasionally show proceedings of the Canadian Parliament, British Parliament (whose more spirited and raucous proceedings are often an entertaining contrast to the more ordered and somber sessions of the U.S. Congress), and other governments while they are discussing matters relevant to the U.S.
Past chairmen include: