C-SPAN has brought coverage of Congress and the federal government to cable and satellite television audiences for more than four decades. This week, the network will do something rare: Shine the spotlight on itself.
This Wednesday, C-SPAN founder Brian Lamb and former co-CEO Susan Swain will sit down with current network CEO Sam Feist to discuss the founding and history of the cable and satellite political affairs network on “The C-SPAN Story.”
The network was established by the cable television industry — and later joined by the nation’s direct-to-home satellite companies — as a way to offer rolling coverage of Congressional affairs, to include live daily broadcasts from the floor of the U.S. House of Representatives. Later, a companion channel, called C-SPAN 2, did the same for the U.S. Senate, and a third channel — C-SPAN 3 — offers spillover coverage of U.S. House and U.S. Senate committee meetings, plus other events from Washington, D.C. and beyond.
“The C-SPAN Story” will include stories about the people who brought live broadcasts from Washington into the homes of millions of American cable and satellite subscribers, and how it branched into coverage of the British Parliament as well as state, national and international elections of consequence.
In addition to its coverage of the federal government, C-SPAN also offered a rare, real-time look into the unfolding history of television, with live and replay broadcasts of events, discussions and panels that involved a wide range of TV magnates over time, including founders and executives like Ted Turner, Rupert Murdoch, John Malone, James Dolan and Brian Roberts, among others.
The C-SPAN Story will include stories about the people who brought live coverage from Washington into the homes of millions of American cable and satellite subscribers, as well as many of the key moments that made C-SPAN the go-to for live news and information.
C-SPAN will broadcast The C-SPAN Story on Wednesday, March 19 — known as “C-SPAN’s Founders Day,” the 46th anniversary of the network’s launch — starting at 8 p.m. Eastern Time (5 p.m. Pacific Time). While C-SPAN typically requires a cable or satellite subscription to stream events live through their app or website, a spokesperson for the network confirmed to The Desk that The C-SPAN History will be available to everyone online, even those who do not have a traditional pay TV service. An on-demand replay will also be available through the C-SPAN website and apps.
