Black Entertainment Television

Black Entertainment Television (BET) is a cable network geared toward blacks and/or urban audiences.[1] It programming ranges from reruns of old sitcoms and movies to reality shows to rap and R&B music videos (sometimes censored for content)[2] to Christian programming. It is run by Viacom, parent company of MTV.

## Contents

* 1 Entertainment and music
* 1.1 Religious
* 2 Criticism
* 3 References and notes
* 4 External links

## Entertainment and music[edit]

Most programs on BET are entertainment type, hence the word "Entertainment" in the channel's name. A significant amount of airtime is devoted to showing rap and R&B music videos. Other programming includes but is not limited to reruns of cancelled primetime series with black lead roles and third-rate movies. While most programs on BET are geared toward older audiences, there are occasionally more family-friendly content such as reruns of the early 1980s sitcom Diff'rent Strokes and Cosby Show spinoff A Different World. On Saturday mornings, the children's shows Just Jordan and Romeo!, from sister network Nickelodeon, are rerun on BET.

### Religious[edit]

Mornings from approximately 4:00 A.M. to 9:00 A.M. (Eastern Time Zone), BET broadcasts various Christian preachers in a block titled Morning Inspiration. On Sundays, the network shows other types of religious programming, including gospel music.

## Criticism[edit]

BET has run into much criticism from African American activists, who claim the channel perpetuates harmful black stereotypes.[2] The hip-hop videos shown on BET have been known often for containing misogynistic, materialistic, and/or violent themes.[3] Network executives claim to censor out excess profanity or sexual content from videos, though.[2]

## References and notes[edit]

1. ↑ Fabrikant, Geraldine. BET to Establish a Film Unit Aimed at Black Urban Market. The New York Times: July 13, 1998
2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Lee, Felicia R. "Protesting Demeaning Images in Media". The New York Times: Nov. 5, 2007
3. ↑ Eggerton, John. "PTC, Enough Is Enough Campaign Take On MTV, BET. Broadcasting & Cable: April 9, 2008

## External links[edit]

* Official Website