2016 in American television

The following is a list of events affecting American television in 2016. Events listed include television show debuts, finales, and cancellations; channel launches, closures, and rebrandings; stations changing or adding their network affiliations; and information about controversies and carriage disputes.

Notable events

January

Date	Event
1	Bob Eubanks and Stephanie Edwards co-host the local telecast of the Rose Parade on CW affiliate KTLA/Los Angeles for the final time. The duo announced in September 2015 that they were relinquishing their hosting duties for the annual event, an assignment that dated back to 1982.
	Full episodes of The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson return to American television, airing nightly on Antenna TV, the result of an agreement between the Tribune Broadcasting-owned multicast network and Carson Productions. The airings, billed simply as Johnny Carson (as NBC has ownership of The Tonight Show brand) consist of episodes taped in Burbank between 1972 and 1992 (90-minute episodes made from 1980 and earlier air on weekends, while 60-minute broadcasts made from 1980 onward air weeknights at 11:00 p.m. Eastern Time). This date's re-airing of the January 1, 1982 episode, which featured Eddie Murphy and McLean Stevenson as guests, marks the first time the Carson-era Tonight Show has aired on television (outside of a compiled clip series) since his retirement in May 1992.
	WSVI, the ABC affiliate serving the United States Virgin Islands, ends its affiliation with the network due to technical issues and joins Ion Television. Lilly Broadcasting, owners of WSEE-TV in Erie, Pennsylvania which already serves as the default CBS affiliate in the Virgin Islands, is commissioned to provide a replacement ABC affiliate for cable viewers, and promptly imports WENY-TV in Elmira, New York.
4	CMT renames their all-country music video sister network CMT Pure Country to CMT Music.
	CBS affiliate WJHL-TV in Johnson City, Tennessee announces that it is affiliating its DT2 subchannel with ABC effective February 1, taking the Tri-Cities' ABC affiliation from WKPT-TV. In a statement by George DeVault, president of Holston Valley Broadcasting, owners of WKPT-TV, he stated that despite negotiating in good faith with a "loyal" affiliate of ABC, and having agreed in principle on a 5-year extension, the network had chosen to explore other options, and showed a preference to being affiliated with a station owned by a larger group. WKPT-TV subsequently shuts down its news operation on January 29 and switches to MyNetworkTV on February 1 (taking that affiliation from sister station WAPK-CD, who in turn takes WJHL-DT2's former MeTV affiliation).
7	NBCUniversal formally launches Seeso, a subscription-based, over-the-top streaming service that features new and classic comedy programming. The service, which features archived content (including stand-up comedy specials, and episodes of series such as Saturday Night Live and Monty Python's Flying Circus) as well as original series, is initially available for $3.99 per month (the site soft-launched on December 3, 2015 with a one-month, web-only beta trial offered to prospective subscribers).
	More than a dozen television stations owned by Cordillera Communications in the Western and Southern United States are removed from Dish Network in a retransmission dispute. The stations are restored on January 10 after the two sides reach an agreement.
9	The Kansas City Chiefs defeat the Houston Texans in an AFC Wild Card playoff game. ESPN's coverage of the game is simulcast on sister broadcast network ABC, making it the first National Football League game to air on the latter network since Super Bowl XL in 2006. ABC previously held the rights to Monday Night Football from 1970 until it shifted over to ESPN in 2006.
12	ABC Family changes its name to Freeform. The rebranding, the result of audience tests that revealed infrequent viewers perceived the channel as strictly family-oriented, firms the network's programming focus towards teenagers and young adults ages 14–34 (or "becomers", as the network terms them). It also, according to network president Tom Ascheim, refutes claims that founding owner Christian Broadcasting Network has required "Family" to permanently remain in the channel's name since its 1990 sale to International Family Entertainment. Freeform will maintain much of the former ABC Family's existing programming including feature films, series (including Shadowhunters, which premieres on this date), seasonal programming blocks, and religious programs (most notably weekday airings of The 700 Club, which CBN does require the channel to air).
14	TouchVision discontinues operations. Based at Weigel Broadcasting's Chicago headquarters, the service provided newsreel-style news coverage tailored to a younger demographic, offering content to mobile and tablet platforms as well as select television stations.
17	Master of None and Mr. Robot are among the notable TV winners at the 21st Critics' Choice Awards, an event simulcast live on A&E, Lifetime and LMN. For the first time, the event combines categories comprising its previously separate television and film ceremonies into a single three-hour telecast, the result of a September 2015 decision reached by the Broadcast Television Journalists Association and the Broadcast Film Critics Association.
18	In a series of tweets she stated that while she had "only ever liked boys" in the past and that she was "open to liking any gender," Girl Meets World star Rowan Blanchard (who is 14) confirms that she identifies as queer, marking the first time a teenage entertainer from a current Disney Channel television series to come out and reveal their sexual preference.
19	Major League Baseball reaches an agreement to expand its offerings of online game broadcasts, including team-specific packages. The agreement comes on the day a trial against MLB, Comcast, and DirecTV was to have begun. The class action lawsuit, filed by a group of fans, sought to overturn MLB's placement of territorial restrictions for "out of market" broadcasts and blackouts of "in market" games.
23	ABC begins airing a package of eight selected NBA games on Saturday evenings under the NBA Saturday Primetime on ABC banner. The move will also see the network airing only six single Sunday afternoon games, ending the doubleheaders that resulted in the adjustments to the scheduling of NBA broadcasts. Sister cable channel ESPN will continue to air NBA telecasts on Wednesday and Friday evenings.
27	Nexstar Broadcasting Group agrees to acquire Media General in a $4.6 billion deal. Should regulatory approval be obtained, the combined company, to be known as Nexstar Media Group, will become the largest broadcaster in terms of audience reach, owning or operating 171 full-power stations in 100 markets. The deal comes after Meredith Corporation backs out of its deal to acquire Media General. That deal, announced in September 2015, came before Nexstar announced its own larger, unsolicited bid for Media General.
	Sinclair Broadcast Group announces it will acquire Tennis Channel in a $350 million deal.
29	Nexstar Broadcasting Group stations in nine markets are removed from Cox Communications' cable systems at midnight due to a retransmission dispute. The stations return to Cox Cable after the two sides reach an agreement on February 4.

February

Date	Event
1	Viacom Media Networks rebrands Palladia as MTV Live, making it the fifth all-music channel Viacom has rebranded in the last year.
	The National Football League announces that CBS and NBC will share the league's Thursday Night Football package in the 2016 and 2017 seasons. Both networks will each air and produce five games and NFL Network will simulcast those games and air eight additional games exclusively.
	The E. W. Scripps Company and Time Warner Cable quietly come to terms on a new carriage and retransmission consent contract. This is ahead of time for the former Journal Communications stations merged into Scripps in April 2015 (whose previous agreement would have ended on July 31), and averts any threat of Scripps' NBC stations being removed from Time Warner systems during the 2016 Summer Olympics.
3	With advancing age (92) and health issues limiting his abilities to run the company, Sumner Redstone steps down as executive chairman at CBS Corporation. CEO Leslie Moonves is named Redstone's successor, while his daughter Shari Redstone retains her role as vice chairman. Redstone will retain a title of chairman emeritus at CBS, the same title he acquires on February 4 at Viacom, whose board names Philippe Dauman to succeed him as its executive chairman.
7	Super Bowl 50, in which the Denver Broncos defeat the Carolina Panthers, attracts 111.9 million viewers to CBS' English-language broadcast, the third most watched program in TV history. The game is also simulcast in Spanish on ESPN Deportes.
12	Univision and Donald Trump confirm that they reached a confidential out-of-court settlement in a breach-of-contract lawsuit Trump filed against Univision. The Spanish-language broadcaster had backed out of its commitment in 2015 to air the Miss USA pageant in light of comments Trump expressed in the early days of his presidential campaign regarding illegal immigration to the United States. The comments resulted in a major fallout with celebrities, sponsors, and other pageant backers, including NBCUniversal, which exited from its joint venture with Trump in the Miss Universe Organization (Trump would buy out NBCU's stake and later sell the full organization to WME/IMG).
13	Kanye West performs two songs from his album The Life of Pablo on Saturday Night Live, before announcing the release of his album exclusively on Tidal at the conclusion of his second performance.
15	Kendrick Lamar and Taylor Swift are among the notable winners at the 58th Grammy Awards. The show airs on CBS, which offers an option for Pacific and Mountain time zone stations to air the broadcast live, allowing the event to air live in all time zones for the first time ever.
17	ABC announces that its entertainment president, Paul Lee, has left the network. Channing Dungey is immediately tapped as Lee's successor, becoming the first African-American to head programming at a major broadcast network.
28	MSNBC confirms it has parted ways with on-air host Melissa Harris-Perry. The move comes two days after it was revealed that Harris-Perry, in an e-mail to co-workers, voiced frustration over recent pre-emptions of her her eponymous weekend show for expanded election coverage, editorial control of her show, and lack of communication from network executives over those issues.
	Spotlight (best picture) and Mad Max: Fury Road (six awards) are among the notable winners at the 88th Academy Awards. Chris Rock hosts the ABC telecast, an event that faced controversy coming in over the absence of minorities in the major acting categories for the second consecutive year.
	Despite the time difference (Hawaii is five hours behind the Eastern Time Zone), KITV/Honolulu (under their new ownership of SJL Broadcasting) ends its practice of tape-delaying the Academy Awards to prime time and, for the first time, joins the rest of the ABC network in airing the Oscars live as it happens (the event aired at 3:30PM Hawaii time).
29	Raleigh-area stations WRAL-TV and WNCN swap their network affiliations, with WRAL joining NBC and WNCN joining CBS. The switch comes after management of the Capitol Broadcasting-owned WRAL could not meet what it called "one-sided" reverse compensation demands from CBS.
	H2, History's secondary network, becomes Viceland, a lifestyle channel aimed at millennials which will include programming about music, cooking, sports, technology and hard-hitting documentaries. The change comes after A&E Networks purchased a 10% stake in Vice Media, Inc. in August 2014.
	Tribune Media announces that it will review various "strategic alternatives" to increase the company's value to shareholders, which include a possible sale of the entire company and/or select assets, or the formation of programming alliances or strategic partnerships with other companies, due to the decrease in its stock price since its August 2014 spin-off of Tribune Publishing and a $385 million revenue write-down for the 2015 fiscal year, partly due to original scripted programming expenditures for WGN America since it converted the cable network from a superstation in 2014. In addition to WGN America, Tribune Media's assets include 42 television stations (two of which are operated under shared services agreements with Dreamcatcher Broadcasting), regional cable news channel Chicagoland Television and a 30% stake in Food Network (which is majority owned by Scripps Interactive).

March

Date	Event
4	Four Spanish language networks owned by Univision Communications (Univision, UniMás, Galavisión and Univision Deportes) are removed by AT&T U-verse nationwide due to a carriage dispute. The Univision-owned networks were re-added by the provider on March 24, 2016, following the signing of a new retransmission agreement with the broadcaster.
15	Dish Network sues NBCUniversal for breach of contract in reply to their ongoing carriage dispute. Three days later, it announced it will continue to carry NBCU's channels for another 10 days while seeking arbitration from the FCC.
24	Georgia's supreme court overturns a lower court injunction that prevented Gray Television from combining operations of Augusta station WAGT (NBC) with its own WRDW-TV (CBS). Gray acquired WAGT as part of its purchase of Schurz Communications' broadcast properties, a deal the FCC approved on the condition that Gray and Schurz terminate WAGT's shared services and joint sales agreements with Media General-owned WJBF (ABC). Media General won the injunction on February 26 (10 days after Gray took over WAGT), arguing their agreements to operate WAGT were still in force until their expiration in 2020. The FCC on March 10 launched an investigation into Media General's actions in the matter, with license revocation a possible punishment.
28	OK!TV is rechristened Celebrity Page. The retitling of the program is the result of a change in content partners for the Unconventional Studios-produced, Trifecta-distributed entertainment news program, from American Media (parent of OK! magazine) to the Meredith Corporation, whose lifestyle print magazines will provide content for the show. It returns Meredith content to television syndication ten months after the broadcasting and publishing company's national version of the Better Show was canceled.
	Georgia Governor Nathan Deal announces he will veto a bill passed by the state's legislature that would allow businesses in the state to deny services based on their religious beliefs. The legislation, HB 757 (referred to as the Free Exercise Protection Act), faced opposition and boycott threats from several studios, producers, and media companies involved in the state's TV industry, who contend that the bill would allow discrimination against those in the LGBT community.
	A cross-show, cross-network meeting of DC Universe characters takes place, as Barry Allen (Grant Gustin of The CW's The Flash) travels into National City's dimension to team with Kara Danvers (Melissa Benoist) in the "Worlds Finest" episode of CBS' Supergirl. It's the first crossover involving a CW series character on a CBS program. (Both Flash and Supergirl are produced by Warner Bros. Television and DC Entertainment. Their parent company, Warner Bros., owns The CW equally with CBS.)
29	The FCC commences an incentive auction to acquire broadcast spectrum used by television stations. The two-phase process, which is expected to conclude by autumn, begins with a "reverse auction," in which participating stations (about 1,800 in 150 markets that transmit on UHF channels 30 to 51 are eligible) are offered bids from the FCC to sell part or all of their bandwidth, with price estimates descending in each round. A "forward auction" follows starting May 31, in which the repurposed spectrum will be sold to telecommunications providers, at escalating bids, to upgrade and expand their wireless broadband and Wi-Fi networks. Stations that opt to sell their bandwidth will be given the option to cease or continue operations (those choosing the latter can enter into an agreement with another station's owner to share a digital channel). Most stations that remain in operation will be subsequently reassigned to lower channel numbers, with their vacated frequencies reallocated for wireless use. Revenue to be accrued from the sale/repurposing of spectrum is projected to be as much as $60 billion, with most of the proceeds going to the broadcasters.
30	CBS announces an affiliation deal with WWAY/Wilmington, NC to move its programming to the station's DT2 subchannel on January 1, 2017 (The move will not affect WWAY's primary affiliation with ABC; the DT2 channel currently carries The CW). CBS will move from low-powered WILM-LD (owned by Capitol Broadcasting Company, which dropped CBS from WRAL-TV/Raleigh on February 29).
	WTAE-TV/Pittsburgh dismisses news anchor Wendy Bell after she posts material on her official Facebook page considered stereotypical of African-Americans in the aftermath of a mass shooting in Wilkinsburg, PA that claimed five lives. In the post, which was later taken down, Bell described the killers, who were yet to be identified or arrested, as "young black men" who the criminal justice system was familiar with and who "have multiple siblings from multiple fathers and their mothers work multiple jobs." Management for the ABC-affiliated WTAE and parent company Hearst Television said Bell's comments displayed an "egregious lack of judgment" and "were inconsistent with the company's ethics and journalistic standards." Bell, who had been an 18-year veteran of WTAE, claims she was referring to black-on-black crime in general and didn't get a "fair shake" from the station.
31	In the wake of a Hollywood Reporter investigation into "pay-to-play" casting workshops, ABC Studios dismisses Criminal Minds casting director Scott David. David, who had been with the CBS series since its 2005 debut, was profiled as one of several proprietors of acting workshops (David's is named The Actors Link) that charge actors to perform scenes for and gain advice from those directly involved in the casting of TV projects — in essence, paying a fee to audition. Such a practice has been deemed illegal under a 2009 California law (The Krekorian Talent Scam Prevention Act) that has never been fully enforced by local officials.

April

Date	Event
1	The Nexstar-owned Lafayette, Louisiana duopoly of KLAF-LD (NBC) and KADN (Fox) launch a news department, beginning with three weekday and two Saturday and Sunday newscasts on KLAF, and a weeknight-only prime time newscast on KADN. A weekday morning newscast on KLAF subsequently debuted on April 4. The programs on KLAF-LD replace news simulcasts from Baton Rouge sister station WVLA-TV, which KLAF had carried since it became Lafayette's NBC affiliate on July 1, 2015, while the KADN newscast replaces a five-minute news summary that previously aired on the station. The launch of the news department follows the physical expansion and equipment upgrade of the KLAF/KADN studios in Lafayette.
4	Fox affiliate WZDX/Huntsville, Alabama debuts its in-house news department with the relaunch of its nightly 9:00 p.m. newscast, which expands from 30 to 60 minutes. The change followed the April 3 termination of a news share agreement with Calkins Media-owned WAAY-TV that – since it took over production of the program from the Independent News Network in September 2009 – saw the ABC affiliate produce news content for WZDX (which was acquired by Nexstar Broadcasting Group as part of its 2013 purchase of Grant Broadcasting System II), as well as Nexstar's $3.3 million renovation of the station's studio facility in northern Huntsville.
	The Villanova Wildcats defeat the North Carolina Tar Heels 77-74 in the NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship, which aired on cable television for the first time ever as part of a deal which will see the championship alternate between TBS and CBS.
5	The Starz Inc. channels undergo a brand reformatting, as Starz introduces a new universal logo for its channels and Encore is renamed Starz Encore to unify the brand identity for the group's two flagship premium cable channels. The extension of the Starz brand to Encore (which ironically launched Starz in 1994, as part of its themed multiplex) will also include the addition of repeats of Starz original programming on some of the latter's channels. The Starz reformat also corresponds with the launch of the network's over-the-top/TV Everywhere service equivalent to HBO Now and Showtime's OTT service for mobile devices and digital media players simply known as Starz, and the merger of Encore and MoviePlex content from their individual apps – Encore Play and MoviePlex Play – into that service.
7	The Fox reality talent competition series American Idol airs its final episode after fifteen seasons. Trent Harmon is named the final winner, while La'Porsha Renae is runner-up. The finale showcased featuring appearances by all fourteen previous winners, several finalists and personalities from the series' history.
11	Calkins Media announces that the company will sell its three television stations (all of which are ABC affiliates) to Raycom Media. Raycom will acquire WWSB/Sarasota and WTXL-TV/Tallahassee, Florida outright, while its partner company American Spirit Media will acquire the license assets of WAAY-TV/Huntsville, Alabama, with Raycom likely operating it under an outsourcing agreement with its existing NBC affiliate in that market, WAFF.
12	Al Jazeera America ceases programming with a three-hour retrospective special. Lauded for its journalism since its August 2013 launch, the network was plagued by persistently low ratings (particularly during prime time), lack of tanglible cable carriage, and internal controversies. A limited number of the approximately 700 staffers laid off by the shutdown of AJAM and its website (which went into archive-only mode on February 26) may be transferred to its sister network, the Qatar-based Al Jazeera English.
14	After 11 years, USA Network retires its "Characters Welcome" slogan in favor of a new brand positioning, "We the Bold", that encapsulates the network's evolved programming strategy.
17	The Sunday edition of NBC's morning news/talk show Today makes a revamp with the debut of Sunday Today with Willie Geist. The newly reformatted program, anchored by the weekday show's third-hour anchor Willie Geist, provides news coverage and in-depth profiles of the people and ideas shaping American culture (a behind-the-scenes look at the Broadway musical Hamilton is featured on the premiere episode). The new format brings it into line with its rival, CBS News Sunday Morning (where Geist's father Bill has been a longtime contributor).
20	Curt Schilling is dismissed by ESPN after sharing a photo on Facebook deemed critical of transgender people, the latest in a series of controversial political statements made by the former Major League Baseball pitcher turned analyst. "ESPN is an inclusive company," the network said in a statement. "Curt Schilling has been advised that his conduct was unacceptable and his employment with ESPN has been terminated."
21	With the sudden passing of Prince at his Paisley Park Studios complex/home on this date, TV Guide changed their background logo from red to purple, joining the local media outlets in the Minneapolis-St. Paul market, along with other businesses based in the area, in honor of the musician. In addition, MTV also changed its logo to purple and suspended its regular programming to air Prince's videos and movies as a tribute to being a core artist on the channel during its days as a non-stop music video channel. Two days later, Jimmy Fallon hosted a retrospective Saturday Night Live special titled "Goodnight Sweet Prince" featuring Prince's past performances on the show, as well as a compilation of clips of "The Prince Show", in which Fred Armisen as Prince and Maya Rudolph as Beyoncé hosted a talk show together.
25	KICU-TV/San Jose rebrands from "TV 36" to "KTVU Plus." The new branding for the Fox-owned independent station reflects KICU's relationship to its Fox-affiliated Bay Area sister station KTVU/Oakland and includes an expansion of KTVU-produced news programming on KICU.
26	The Department of Justice and the FCC approves the merger between Time Warner Cable and Charter Communications, including Charter's acquisition of Bright House Networks. The finalized deal is subject to conditions, including requirements for Charter to refrain from implementing usage-based billing, nor use its dominant position to hinder online video services (including a prohibition on interconnection fees). Charter would formally complete the transactions on May 18, becoming the second-largest cable provider in the U.S. On the same day, Time Warner and Charter both rebrand as Spectrum.
27	Core Media Group – the parent of 19 Entertainment, the production company behind American Idol and So You Think You Can Dance – files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in the wake of falling profits and the ratings decline of Idol that resulted in the series ending its 15-year run. Among the parties who Core owes money to include $3.37 million to creator Simon Fuller and an additional $398 million to third parties, including Tennenbaum Capital Partners and Crestview Media Investors.
28	After setting his own car on fire, a 25-year-old man dressed in a panda costume and surgical mask who claimed to have a bomb strapped to his chest enters the lobby of the facility housing Sinclair Broadcast Group's Baltimore flagship stations, WBFF (Fox), WNUV (The CW) and WUTB (MyNetworkTV), and demands them to broadcast his message about the U.S. space program, resulting in the evacuation of staff from the studio complex. After exiting the studios, the man is later shot and wounded by police, who discover that the supposed bomb was in fact a flotation device filled with aluminum foil-wrapped chocolate candy bars with wiring attached to them.

May

Date	Event
1	General Hospital and the Live hosting team of Kelly Ripa and Michael Strahan are among the notable winners at the 43rd Daytime Emmy Awards. The ceremony has an online-only broadcast for the second time in three years, one year after a successful conventional telecast on Pop.
7	A revamped weekend edition of CBS' evening newscast debuts. Titled the CBS Weekend News and anchored by Reena Ninan (on Saturdays) and Elaine Quijano (on Sundays), the newscast draws from the resources of the network's online news channel, CBSN.
9	NBC Sports confirms that Mike Tirico will join the network effective July 1, becoming its lead play-by-play announcer for the late half of the season of Thursday Night Football, which is shared with NFL Network. Tirico had been a 25-year veteran of ESPN, where he covered various sports in an anchor or announcer capacity, most notably play-by-play on Monday Night Football since 2006. Tirico will be succeeded in the ESPN MNF booth by Sean McDonough.
12	CBS officially announces the cancellation of CSI: Cyber after two seasons, ending the sixteen season television run of the CSI franchise. The network also announces that freshman drama Supergirl will move to The CW for its second season, with the latter network now airing four original DC Comics based series across its prime time lineup (alongside Arrow, DC's Legends of Tomorrow and The Flash).
13	Michael Strahan ends his four-year-run as co-host of Live with Kelly and Michael. It is a bittersweet end to what had been a controversial situation, which began on April 19 when Strahan announced he would leave the show to become a full-time host on ABC's Good Morning America, which he joined as a correspondent in 2014. Caught by surprise by Strahan's announcement, Live co-host Kelly Ripa was absent for three episodes (the latter two coinciding with an already planned vacation with husband Mark Consuelos), reportedly in protest over what she felt was ABC's prioritization of GMA over Live (the latter is distributed by ABC's syndication arm). With Strahan's departure, guest co-hosts will sit alongside Ripa on Live until a permanent co-host is named.
14	Logo broadcasts the 2016 Eurovision Song Contest. This was the first time that the annual pan-European song competition was broadcast live on American television.
15	For the first time in its history, The Simpsons incorporates a live-to-air animation segment featuring motion capture technology. The three-minute live scene, part of the episode "Simprovised" (in which Homer Simpson takes up improvisational theatre), features Homer (voiced by Dan Castellaneta) talking about things he "could only be saying live on that day" and answering questions fielded from viewers on Twitter between May 1 and May 4.
	In recognition of his retirement from CBS News, Morley Safer is feted by 60 Minutes with a one-hour tribute titled "Morley Safer: A Reporter's Life", a special – airing as part of an extended two-hour edition of the newsmagazine – which chronicled his journalism career and notable stories during his tenure with the program. Safer (who died four days later on May 19) had been a correspondent with 60 Minutes since 1970.
16	A U.S. District Court judge dismisses WHDH/Boston's lawsuit against NBC parent Comcast, clearing the way for the network to set up its own NBC O&O station in the Boston market (possibly using the company's existing Telemundo station WNEU) on January 1, 2017, one day after its contract with WHDH expires. WHDH owner Sunbeam Television filed the suit on March 10 in a challenge to the move NBC originally announced on January 7. WHDH contended that NBC's move would violate a caveat in the 2011 Comcast/NBCUniversal merger to commit to over-the-air broadcasting and public interest issues (the signal of the Merrimack, New Hampshire-based WNEU reaches only the northern half of the Boston market, with marginal coverage in the city proper).
	MyNetworkTV affiliate KRON-TV/San Francisco launches an hour-long newscast at 10:00 p.m. The program (which resulted in the station reducing its half-hour 11:00 p.m. newscast to 15 minutes and moving MyNetworkTV's second hour of programming to late night) competes with those aired in that hour on fellow Bay Area stations KTVU/Oakland (Fox) and KBCW (The CW, the latter is produced by CBS O&O sister KPIX). KRON had previously attempted a 10:00 p.m. newscast when it experimented with timeshifting network prime time programs and its late news one hour early in August 1992 as an NBC affiliate, only to resume airing them in the traditional 8:00-11:35 p.m. (Pacific Time) slot in September 1993 due to declining ratings (with its late news ratings falling behind KTVU's long-dominant prime time newscast).
20	Due to technical issues, a Whitney Houston hologram that was going to perform with Christina Aguilera on The Voice for the season finale the following Tuesday was axed.
22	The Weeknd and Adele are among the notable winners at the 2016 Billboard Music Awards. The ceremony (which also featured Adele's music video premiere for "Send My Love (To Your New Lover)", Madonna's special tribute performance to Prince (who died on April 21) and Britney Spears and Celine Dion being honored as Millennium Award and Icon Award recipients respectively) broadcasts live on ABC in all time zones for the first time (following the same practice done by CBS' 58th Grammy Awards in February), and sets a record of 3.1 rating and 9.60 million in total viewers, the lowest for the awards ceremony since the 2012 telecast.
23	Tribune Media reaches a new affiliation deal with The CW after months of stalled negotiations between itself and CBS Corporation, the network's co-owners. The deal involves 12 of Tribune's CW-affiliated stations (including WPIX in New York City and KTLA in Los Angeles) except company flagship WGN-TV in Chicago, which will instead become an independent station on September 1. Tribune cites its heavy use of sports coverage (the station owns the local rights to Chicago Cubs and Chicago White Sox baseball, Chicago Bulls basketball, and Chicago Blackhawks hockey) and the frequent pre-emptions of CW programming it has caused as the reason they chose not to involve WGN-TV. CBS subsequently signs a deal with MyNetworkTV O&O WPWR-TV to become The CW's new Chicago affiliate, marking the second time Fox Television Stations has owned and operated a CW affiliate (Fox O&O WJZY in Belmont-Charlotte, North Carolina had to fulfill its existing affiliation deal with The CW before it joined Fox in July 2013), but the first time Fox has signed a long-term deal to affiliate one of its stations with The CW.
24	Nyle DiMarco is crowned the 22nd season winner of Dancing with the Stars, becoming the first deaf contestant to win the show.
27	Nexstar Broadcasting Group announces the sale of five television stations, including one it is divesting to comply with ownership conflicts with Media General-owned stations prior to receiving FCC approval of its merger with that group. Nexstar plans to sell CW affiliate WCWJ/Jacksonville, Florida and NBC affiliate WSLS/Roanoke-Lynchburg, Virginia to Graham Media Group for $120 million (with the former's sale creating a duopoly – Graham's first – with independent station WJXT pending approval, and the latter alleviating a conflict with the Nexstar-owned duopoly of Fox affiliate WFXR and CW affiliate WWCW); Fox affiliate KADN-TV and NBC affiliate KLAF-LD to Bayou City Broadcasting for $40 million (to alleviate a conflict with Media General-owned CBS affiliate KLFY-TV); and CBS affiliate KREG-TV/Glenwood Springs, Colorado to Marquee Broadcasting for $350.000 (KREG, which is considered part of the Denver DMA, is expected to cease operating as a satellite of KREX-TV/Grand Junction upon consummation of the sale).
	In celebration of its 100th original television movie Adventures in Babysitting, Disney Channel celebrates the milestone by airing all 99 of the network's previous original movies released between 1997 and 2015 in the lead-up to the June 24 premiere of the made-for-TV remake of the 1987 feature film, starting with a four-day marathon of 51 of the channel's most popular original movies over the Memorial Day long weekend, followed by airings of these and the remaining 48 films afterwards and through the month of June.
	In interviews with The Cincinnati Enquirer and public radio station WVXU, talk show host Bill Cunningham announces he will end his self-titled television talk show produced by Tribune Media and ITV Studios America for the CW after five seasons to focus solely on his local radio show for WLW/Cincinnati and family, leaving the future of the network's remaining daytime hour in doubt for the next television season.
29	With tickets for the race sold out, the local TV blackout is lifted for the Indianapolis 500. It's the first time since 1950, and the first time since ABC began live "flag-to-flag" coverage of the event in 1986, that the race airs live in central Indiana. WRTV/Indianapolis carries the ABC broadcast live after airing it only on tape-delay in previous years.

Future events

June

Date	Event
1	Trinity Broadcasting Network and the international congregation Hillsong Church will launch the joint venture Hillsong Channel in line with Hillsong's American expansion plans, which will replace The Church Channel over-the-air on TBN's O&O second subchannels, with the fate of current TCC programming yet to be determined.
	Fox affiliate WTGS/Savannah, Georgia will assume production responsibilities for its nightly 10:00 p.m. newscast. The transfer of news operations in-house by the station will follow the May 31 termination of a news share agreement with Hearst Television-owned WJCL, under which the ABC affiliate had been producing a prime time newscast for WTGS since 1996 (WTGS was co-managed with WJCL under a concurrent shared services agreement from 1993 until 2014, when, to alleviate a conflict with its existing ownership of NBC affiliate WSAV-TV that was created by the group's merger with LIN Media, Media General sold WJCL to Hearst and the non-license assets of WTGS to Sinclair Broadcast Group, which later acquired the latter's license outright).

August

Date	Event
5–21	The 2016 Summer Olympics will air on NBC and its sister cable networks.

September

Date	Event
1	The CW affiliation in Chicago will move from Tribune Media flagship station WGN-TV to Fox-owned MyNetworkTV station WPWR-TV, resulting in WGN becoming an independent station for the first time since January 1995, having been affiliated with The WB from that month until September 2006 and partial successor The CW afterward. This will mark the first time a Fox-owned station will serve as a CW affiliate (as the network initially chose to affiliate with most of Tribune and CBS's WB and UPN stations, instead of Fox's UPN affiliates), and will allow WGN-TV to carry additional sports telecasts that it previously had to lease to WPWR (and WCIU-TV beforehand) due to yearly network preemption limits imposed by The CW. The deal was announced as part of the May 23 renewal of Tribune's affiliation agreement with its 12 other CW-affiliated stations through the 2020-21 season, ending a year-long disagreement concerning financial terms, specifically the amount of reverse compensation that The CW sought from Tribune's stations in exchange for carrying its programming.
18	The 68th Primetime Emmy Awards will air on ABC.

Fall

Event
Los Angeles Dodgers announcer Vin Scully will likely retire from broadcasting after a record 67 years in the booth, currently for Time Warner Cable SportsNet LA.
Supernatural will become the first series to reach a record 12 seasons on The CW. The show is the last remaining CW series that carried over from predecessor networks UPN or The WB (it debuted on the latter network in September 2005).
NBC will partner with Litton Entertainment to expand The More You Know into a three-hour Saturday morning E/I block aimed at 13- to 16-year-olds, giving Litton editorial control of four of the five educational children's blocks for the major commercial networks.
ABC's medical drama series Grey's Anatomy will surpass NYPD Blue as the network's longest-running primetime one-hour drama series when it enters its 13th season. The Shonda Rhimes-produced drama debuted on the network as a mid-season replacement in March 2005.

Fourth quarter

Event
AT&T will begin to sell DirecTV subscriptions which won't require the use of satellite dishes or set top boxes with new TV Everywhere services called DirecTV Now, DirecTV Mobile and DirecTV Preview, all of which will instead only require a smartphone, computer or tablet with an internet connection.

TBA

Event

Apple plans to launch an online TV service, and is in talks with programmers to offer a slimmed-down bundle of TV networks featuring 25 channels, including three of the five major networks (ABC, CBS and Fox). The service will be available on Apple devices such as Apple TV. Apple is hoping that Comcast will be part of the proposed new venture, but a fall out between the two companies over Comcast's decision to launch its X1 Web-enabled set-top box on its own has made it impossible to set up a deal.

Television programs

Programs debuting in 2016

These shows are scheduled to premiere in 2016. The premiere dates may be changed depending on a variety of factors.

First aired	Show	Channel	Source
January 1	The Rap Game	Lifetime
	Shock Trauma: Edge of Life	Discovery Life
January 3	Bordertown	Fox
	Cooper Barrett's Guide to Surviving Life
	Glada Entertains	Food Network
January 4	Diesel Brothers	Discovery Channel
	Bachelor Live	ABC
January 5	Pitch Slapped	Lifetime
	10 Things	truTV
	The Shannara Chronicles	MTV
	Killing Fields	Discovery Channel
	Zoe Ever After	BET
January 6	Skin Tight	TLC
	Criminals at Work	BET
January 7	Angel from Hell	CBS
	My Diet Is Better Than Yours	ABC
	Shades of Blue	NBC
January 8	Ex Isle	WE tv
January 10	Live to Tell	History
January 11	Lego Nexo Knights	Cartoon Network
January 12	Shadowhunters	Freeform
January 13	Second Chance	Fox
	Teachers	TV Land
January 14	Colony	USA Network
	Idiotsitter	Comedy Central
January 17	Angie Tribeca	TBS
	Billions	Showtime
	Mercy Street	PBS
	The Real Housewives of Potomac	Bravo
January 19	Planet Primetime	Travel Channel
	Fit to Fat to Fit	A&E
January 20	Kocktails with Khloé	FYI
January 21	Baskets	FX
	Dark Net	Showtime
	Legends of Tomorrow	The CW
	Recipe for Deception	Bravo
January 23	NBA Saturday Primetime on ABC	ABC
January 25	Lucifer	Fox
	Recovery Road	Freeform
	Stevie J & Joseline: Go Hollywood	VH1
January 26	Outsiders	WGN America
January 28	You, Me and the Apocalypse	NBC
	Jo Frost: Nanny On Tour	Up TV
February 2	American Crime Story	FX
	Rattled	TLC
February 5	Animals.	HBO
February 8	Full Frontal with Samantha Bee	TBS
February 9	Not Safe with Nikki Glaser	Comedy Central
February 11	Those Who Can't	truTV
February 14	Vinyl	HBO
February 16	11.22.63	Hulu
February 17	Fat Chance	TLC
February 19	Love	Netflix
February 26	Fuller House
February 29	truInside	truTV
March 1	Tour Group	Bravo
March 2	Hap and Leonard	SundanceTV
	Lab Rats: Elite Force	Disney XD
	The Real O'Neals	ABC
March 3	The Family
	Late Night Snack	truTV
March 4	Slasher	Chiller
March 7	Little People	Sprout
	Damien	A&E
March 8	Of Kings and Prophets	ABC
	Little Big Shots	NBC
	Separation Anxiety	TBS
March 9	Underground	WGN America
	The Internet Ruined My Life	Syfy
March 11	Flaked	Netflix
	Netflix Presents: The Characters
March 12	Party Over Here	Fox
	School of Rock	Nickelodeon
March 13	Life Or Debt	Spike
March 15	Crowded	NBC
March 16	Criminal Minds: Beyond Borders	CBS
March 22	Heartbeat	NBC
March 24	The Catch	ABC
March 29	Like A Boss	Oxygen
March 30	Lopez	TV Land
	The Path	Hulu
	Quit Your Day Job	Oxygen
March 31	Rush Hour	CBS
April 1	The Ranch	Netflix
	Wynonna Earp	Syfy
April 5	America's Greatest Makers	TBS
	Chasing Destiny	BET
April 10	Dice	Showtime
	The Girlfriend Experience	Starz
April 11	The Detour	TBS
	Hunters	Syfy
April 12	Game of Silence	NBC
April 13	Strong
April 14	American Grit	Fox
	The Dude Perfect Show	CMT
April 16	Dramaworld	Viki
April 19	Containment	The CW
April 20	There Goes The Motherhood	Bravo
April 21	Comedy Knockout	truTV
May 2	Houdini and Doyle	Fox
	The Loud House	Nickelodeon
May 8	Food Network Star. Comeback Kitchen	Food Network
May 11	Chelsea	Netflix
May 17	Coupled	Fox
May 20	Lady Dynamite	Netflix
May 22	Preacher	AMC
May 23	Mygrations	National Geographic Channel
May 31	Maya & Marty	NBC
June 3	Outcast	Cinemax
June 5	Feed the Beast	AMC
June 12	Still the King	CMT
June 13	BrainDead	CBS
	Spartan: Ultimate Team Challenge	NBC
June 14	Animal Kingdom	TNT
	Uncle Buck	ABC
June 22	American Gothic	CBS
	Any Given Wednesday with Bill Simmons	HBO
June 26	Roadies	Showtime
June 28	Dead of Summer	Freeform
July 15	Stranger Things	Netflix
July 17	Vice Principals	HBO
July 19	Shooter	USA Network
August 12	The Get Down	Netflix
August 14	Chesapeake Shores	Hallmark Channel
September 30	Luke Cage	Netflix
October	Channel Zero: Candle Cove	Syfy
November	Million Dollar Quartet	CMT
Summer	Cleveland Hustles	CNBC
	The Partner
Fall	Justice League Action	Cartoon Network
	Riverdale	The CW
	Van Helsing	Syfy
TBA	Big Fan	ABC
	Woody Allen project	Amazon
	Kevin Can Wait	CBS
	Quarry	Cinemax
	Legends of Chamberlain Heights	Comedy Central
	Mariah's World	E!
	Rob & Chyna
	Famous	Fox
	Divorce	HBO
	Insecure
	Westworld
	The Good Place	NBC
	This Is Us
	Timeless
	The Crown	Netflix
	The OA
	Crashletes	Nickelodeon
	Jagger Eaton's Mega Life
	Bunsen is a Beast!
	Welcome to the Wayne
	Pinky Malinky
	Cleverman	SundanceTV
	Good Behavior	TNT
	Queen of the South	USA Network

Miniseries debuting in 2016

First aired	Title	Channel	Source
January 18	War & Peace	A&E, History, and Lifetime
January 24	The X-Files	Fox
February 3	Madoff	ABC
February 20	Serial Thriller: The Headhunter	Investigation Discovery
March 6	Race for the White House	CNN
April 19	The Night Manager	AMC
May 30	Roots	A&E, History, and Lifetime
June 11	The American West	AMC
July 10	The Night Of	HBO
TBA	The Young Pope

Television films and specials

First aired	Title	Channel	Source
January 4	The Breaks	VH1
January 9	My Sweet Audrina	Lifetime
January 23	Toni Braxton: Unbreak My Heart
January 30	Lila & Eve
January 31	Grease: Live	Fox
February 26	Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon: Sword of Destiny	Netflix
March 18	Pee-wee's Big Holiday
March 20	Ice Age: The Great Egg-Scapade	Fox
	The Passion
April 16	Confirmation	HBO
April 29	Special Correspondents	Netflix
May 17	Megyn Kelly Presents	Fox
May 21	All the Way	HBO
May 30	The Dresser	Starz
June 24	Adventures in Babysitting	Disney Channel
	The Fundamentals of Caring	Netflix
August 5	The Little Prince
Fall	Electronic Music Awards & Foundation Show	Fox
December	Hairspray Live!	NBC
TBA	Jadotville	Netflix
	Legends of the Hidden Temple	Nickelodeon
	Sharknado 4	Syfy

Programs changing networks

Show	Moved from	Moved to	Source
Miss USA and Miss Universe pageants	NBC (Miss Universe) Reelz (2015, Miss USA)	Fox
Impact Wrestling	Destination America	Pop
Sesame Street	PBS	HBO / PBS
WWE SmackDown	Syfy	USA Network
Hoarders	Lifetime	A&E
SportsNation	ESPN2	ESPN
America's Next Top Model	The CW	VH1
Motive	ABC	USA Network
Sports Jeopardy!	Crackle	Crackle / NBCSN
Supergirl	CBS	The CW
The Last Alaskans	Animal Planet	Discovery Channel
High Maintenance	Vimeo	HBO

Programs returning in 2016

The following shows will return with new episodes after being canceled or ended their run previously:

Show	Last aired	Previous channel	New/returning/same channel	Return date	Source
The Increasingly Poor Decisions of Todd Margaret	2012	IFC	same	January 7
The X-Files	2002	Fox		January 24
The Powerpuff Girls	2005	Cartoon Network		April 4
Disappeared	2013	Investigation Discovery		April 11
To Tell the Truth	2001	Syndication	ABC	June 14
$100,000 Pyramid	2012	Game Show Network		June 26
Match Game	1999	Syndication
Arrested Development	2013	Netflix	same	TBA
Gilmore Girls	2007	The CW	Netflix
Samurai Jack	2004	Cartoon Network	Adult Swim
Mad TV	2009	Fox	The CW

Milestone episodes in 2016

Show	Network	Episode #	Episode title	Episode air date	Source
2 Broke Girls	CBS	100th	"And the Coming Out Party"	January 13
Last Man Standing	ABC		"The Ring"	January 29
New Girl	Fox		"Reagan"	February 9
Saturday Night Live	NBC	800th	"Melissa McCarthy/Kanye West"	February 13
The Big Bang Theory	CBS	200th	"The Celebration Experimentation"	February 25
Once Upon a Time	ABC	100th	"Souls of the Departed"	March 6
RuPaul's Drag Race	Logo		"Keeping It 100!"	March 7
Grimm	NBC		"Into the Schwarzwald"	March 11
NCIS	CBS	300th	"Scope"	March 15
American Dad!	TBS	200th	"The Two Hundred"	March 28
Bob's Burgers	Fox	100th	"Glued, Where's My Bob?"	May 22
Person of Interest	CBS		"The Day the World Went Away"	May 31
Royal Pains	USA		TBA	June 8
Pretty Little Liars	Freeform	150th	TBD	appx. late August
The Simpsons	Fox	600th	TBD	TBD

Programs ending in 2016

End date	Show	Channel	First aired	Status	Source
January 10	Austin & Ally	Disney Channel	2011	Ended
January 22	Unforgettable	A&E		Canceled
January 29	Undateable	NBC	2014
January 31	Galavant	ABC	2015
February 3	Lab Rats	Disney XD	2012	Ended
February 4	Angel from Hell	CBS	2016	Canceled
February 7	Melissa Harris-Perry	MSNBC	2012
February 15	Gravity Falls	Disney XD		Ended
February 22	Telenovela	NBC	2015	Canceled
March 1	Agent Carter	ABC
	The Muppets
March 2	The Mysteries of Laura	NBC	2014
March 6	MythBusters	Discovery Channel	2003	Ended
March 13	CSI: Cyber	CBS	2015	Canceled
March 15	Of Kings and Prophets	ABC	2016
March 25	Second Chance	Fox
March 28	Recovery Road	Freeform
April 7	American Idol	Fox	2002
April 10	Togetherness	HBO	2015
April 15	Childrens Hospital	Adult Swim	2010	Ended
April 26	Limitless	CBS	2015	Canceled
April 30	Monopoly Millionaires' Club	Syndication
May 8	The Good Wife	CBS	2009	Ended
May 9	Damien	A&E	2016	Canceled
May 10	Grandfathered	Fox	2015
	The Grinder
May 15	The Family	ABC	2016
May 16	Castle		2009
	Mike & Molly	CBS	2010	Ended
May 17	Faking It	MTV	2014	Canceled
May 19	Game of Silence	NBC	2016
May 20	Banshee	Cinemax	2013	Ended
	The Meredith Vieira Show	Syndication	2014	Canceled
May 22	Crowded	NBC	2016	Canceled
	Bordertown	Fox
May 25	Heartbeat	NBC
	Nashville	ABC	2012
June 4	Littlest Pet Shop	Discovery Family		Ending
June 12	House of Lies	Showtime		Canceled
June 15	The Soul Man	TV Land		Ending
June 21	Person of Interest	CBS	2011
June 27	Wander Over Yonder	Disney XD	2013
July 6	Royal Pains	USA	2009	Canceled
August 18	Beauty & the Beast	The CW	2012	Ending
September TBA	Crazy Talk	Syndication	2015	Canceled
September 23	FABLife
October TBA	The Leftovers	HBO	2014

Television stations

Station launches

Date	Market	Station	Channel	Affiliation	Source
January 1	Nashville, TN	WZTV-DT3	17.3	Antenna TV
	Bowling Green, KY	W14DG-D	14.1	Laff
	Anderson, SC	WMYA-TV	40.4	Grit
January 27	Bowling Green, KY	WCZU-LD3	39.3	Bounce TV
May 5	Sidney, NE	KNEP-DT2	4.2	NBC
	Scottsbluff, NE	KSTF-DT2	10.2	NBC
September (Date TBA)	Alexandria, LA	KALB-DT3	5.3	The CW
	Watertown, NY	WNYF-CD2	28.2	MeTV

Stations changing network affiliation

Date	Market	Station	Channel	Prior affiliation	New affiliation	Source
January 1	Christiansted, VI	WSVI	8.1	ABC	Ion
	Asheville, NC	WLOS	13.3	Grit	Antenna TV
February 1	Nashville, TN	WKRN-DT2	2.2	Weather	MeTV
	Tri-Cities, TN/VA	WJHL-DT2	11.2	MeTV	ABC
		WKPT-TV	19.1	ABC	MyNetworkTV
		WAPK-CD	36.1	MyNetworkTV	MeTV
February 29	Raleigh/Durham, NC	WRAL-TV	5.1	CBS	NBC
		WNCN	17.1	NBC	CBS
July 1	Hagerstown, MD	WHAG-TV	25.1	NBC	Heroes & Icons
August 1	Fort Wayne, IN	WPTA-DT2	21.2	The CW	NBC
		WISE-TV	33.1	NBC	The CW
September 1	Chicago, IL	WGN-TV	9.1	The CW	Independent
		WPWR-TV	50.1	MyNetworkTV	The CW
September 12	Savannah, GA	WSAV-DT2	3.2	MyNetworkTV/MeTV	The CW
		WSAV-DT3	3.3	Weather	MyNetworkTV/MeTV
		WGSA	35.1	The CW	TBA
	Waterloo, IA	KWWL-DT2	7.2	This TV	The CW
	Iowa City, IA	KWKB	20.1	The CW	TBA
September (Date TBA)	Madison, WI	WBUW	57.1	The CW	TBA
		WMTV-DT2	15.2	WeatherNation TV	The CW
	Alexandria, LA	KBCA	41.1	The CW	TBA

Celebrity deaths

Date	Name	Age	Notability	Source
January 5	Elizabeth Swados	64	American writer and composer; guest roles on ABC soap operas (Loving, All My Children, One Life to Live, and General Hospital), NBC soap operas (Days of Our Lives, Another World, and Santa Barbara) and CBS soap operas (The Young and the Restless, The Bold and the Beautiful, As the World Turns, and Guiding Light)
January 6	Pat Harrington, Jr.	86	American actor, best known for his role of building superintendent Dwayne Schneider in One Day at a Time, also voiced the "Inspector" in the animated series The Inspector (other roles include Make Room for Daddy, The Steve Allen Show, The Man from U.N.C.L.E., The Superman/Aquaman Hour of Adventure, The New Scooby-Doo Movies, Love, American Style, Wait Till Your Father Gets Home, Owen Marshall: Counselor at Law, Captain Caveman and the Teen Angels, The Love Boat, Murder, She Wrote and Yo Yogi!)
January 7	Richard Libertini	82	American actor (Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman, Soap, Barney Miller, Family Man, DuckTales, The Fanelli Boys, Pacific Station, Murder, She Wrote, Jenny and Law & Order)
January 10	David Bowie	69	Ground-breaking British singer, songwriter, musician, and actor (TV credits include appearing on Soul Train, the second non-R&B artist to do so after Elton John; a voice over role in SpongeBob SquarePants and guest starring in Dream On; and promos for the "I Want My MTV" campaign)
	Michael Galeota	31	American actor, best known for his roles as Bailey Kipper in Bailey Kipper's P.O.V. and Nick Lighter in The Jersey
January 11	David Margulies	78	American actor (Kojak, Tales from the Darkside, The Equalizer, Spenser: For Hire, Northern Exposure, Touched by an Angel, Law & Order, The Sopranos)
January 13	Jim Simpson	88	Sportscaster (most notable work with NBC Sports and ESPN as well as WRC-TV/Washington, D.C. and WMAR-TV/Baltimore)
January 14	Alan Rickman	69	British actor (American TV work includes guest spots on Fallen Angels and King of the Hill)
January 15	Dan Haggerty	74	American actor, best known for his role as James Capen "Grizzly" Adams in The Life and Times of Grizzly Adams film and television series
	Noreen Corcoran	72	American actress, dancer and singer, best known for her role as Kelly Gregg in Bachelor Father
January 17	Mike Sharpe	64	Canadian professional wrestler, best known for his time in the World Wrestling Federation
January 18	Glenn Frey	67	American singer/songwriter (The Eagles) and actor (TV credits include Miami Vice and South of Sunset)
	Gary Menteer	76	American writer, director and producer (Family Matters, Happy Days, Laverne & Shirley and Punky Brewster)
January 23	J. Stewart Bryan III	77	American media executive (Chairman of Media General)
January 24	Nick Wiltgen	39	Meteorologist with The Weather Channel's TV, radio, and digital broadcasts
	Ted Brown	36	Producer for ESPN
January 25	Mike Minor	75	Actor/singer, best known as Steve Elliot on Petticoat Junction, Brandon Kingsley on All My Children, Dr. Royal Dunning on Another World and supporting roles on The Donald O'Connor Show, The Beverly Hillbillies, CHiPs, Vega$, L.A. Law, The Edge of Night, and As the World Turns
January 26	Abe Vigoda	94	Actor, best known as Detective Phil Fish on Barney Miller and its spinoff Fish
February 1	William E. Mayher III	77	Chairman of the Board of Gray Television since 1993
February 2	Bob Elliott	92	Comedian (half of the Bob and Ray duo), game show host (The Name's the Same), and actor (Get a Life)
February 3	Joe Alaskey	63	American comedian, actor, voice actor, and author (notable for his role as Beano Froelich on Out of This World; the voice of Bugs Bunny and Daffy Duck and numerous Warner Bros. Animation characters, including his Daytime Emmy Award for Duck Dodgers; an additional voice in Back to the Future; the voice of Grandpa Lou Pickles in both Rugrats and All Grown Up!; host of Couch Potatoes)
	Jack Eaton	86	Sportscaster/director at WMC-TV/Memphis from 1956 to 1991, the voice of University of Memphis' football and basketball broadcasts from 1959 to 1987, and wrestling announcer/host
February 4	Kristine Miller	90	American Emmy-award winning television/film actress (Stories of the Century) and television station owner (co-founder of Monterey/Salinas/Santa Cruz, California CBS affiliate KION-TV in 1968 and Entravision-owned Univision affiliate KSMS-TV in 1986)
	Dave Mirra	41	Champion BMX cyclist and host of MTV's Real World/Road Rules Challenge (2004-2005)
	Axl Rotten	44	Best known for his time in Extreme Championship Wrestling
	Jim Pederson	68	Actor, best known throughout Wisconsin and the Midwest as the fictional face and personality of Rocky Rococo Pizza in its television commercials.
February 5	Ray Colcord	66	American composer (Double Trouble, The Charmings, Trial and Error, The Facts of Life, My Two Dads, Singer & Sons, Scorch, The Torkelsons, Where I Live, Dinosaurs, Maybe This Time, Hiller and Diller, You Wish, Promised Land, Boy Meets World, Family Affair, Lost at Home and Girl Meets World)
February 6	Sam Spence	88	American compsoser (in-house composer for NFL Films and NFL Network telecasts, work also heard on KaBlam!, Everybody Loves Raymond and SpongeBob SquarePants)
February 7	Dave Anderson	55	Comedian and television personality at KATU-TV/Portland, Oregon
February 8	Norman Hudis	93	British writer (Green Acres, Garrison's Gorillas, The Man from U.N.C.L.E., Hawaii Five-O, It Takes a Thief, Marcus Welby, M.D., Switch, Paw Paws); special guest appearance in I Dream of Jeannie, Bewitched, and Murder, She Wrote
February 15	Denise "Vanity" Matthews	57	Canadian-American actress/singer and evangelist (credits include Miami Vice, Friday the 13th: The Series, and Highlander: The Series)
	George Gaynes	98	Actor (several TV series, most notably Punky Brewster and Hearts Afire)
February 16	Lex McAllister	31	Reality television participant who appeared in season 14 of The Bachelor
February 18	Paul Gordon	52	American musician and composer, was a member of The B-52's; composed the music for Power Rangers Turbo, Power Rangers in Space, Digimon Adventure, Digimon Adventure 02, Action Man, Transformers: Robots in Disguise and Power Rangers Wild Force
	Angela Raiola	55	American reality television personality (Mob Wives)
February 19	Charlie Tuna	71	Los Angeles-based radio personality, TV host (Cinema, Cinema, Cinema) and announcer (Time Machine, Scrabble, Scattergories, The $25,000 Pyramid, The Quiz Kids Challenge, The New Battlestars, Mike Douglas Show, and Thicke of the Night)
February 24	Fred Lozano	67	Television news anchorman, reporter, and journalist, who was a fixture on San Antonio television stations KENS and WOAI-TV from 1977 to 2012
	Eddie Einhorn	80	Founder of TVS Television Network, executive with CBS Sports, and sports promoter; credited with introducing men's college basketball on television to a nationwide audience
February 25	Sam Merrill	55	News anchor for WNEM-TV/Saginaw/Flint, MI since 1990
	Tony Burton	78	American actor (TV works included starring in Frank's Place and an appearance in Gibbsville)
February 27	Bruce Golin	58	Emmy Award winning Post-production producer (notable work includes Knight Rider, Sliders, CSI, CSI: Miami, CSI: NY, The Last Man on Earth, Transparent, Hindsight, and Daredevil)
February 28	George Kennedy	91	American actor, (The Phil Silvers Show, The Asphalt Jungle, Have Gun - Will Travel, Gunsmoke, Dr. Kildare, The Virginian, Sarge, The Blue Knight, Backstairs at the White House, The Love Boat, Dallas and The Young and the Restless)
March 1	Lee Reherman	49	Actor, best known as Hawk on American Gladiators; recurring guest role on General Hospital and Guiding Light
March 3	Ralph Baruch	92	Executive with CBS and the first president & chief executive of Viacom
March 4	Bud Collins	86	Boston-based sportswriter and tennis analyst for CBS, NBC, and ESPN
	Joey Feek	40	Reality television participant who appeared in season 1 of Can You Duet
March 6	Nancy Reagan	94	Former First Lady of the United States to husband Ronald Reagan, actress, author, member of the board of directors of the Screen Actors Guild, and activist against drug and substance abuse with the "Just Say No" campaign (notable work includes Diff'rent Strokes, Dynasty, Zane Grey Theatre, Wagon Train, and The Tall Man)
March 12	James Sheldon	95	Director (several series, notably Mr. Peepers, The Twilight Zone, Batman, and Sanford & Son)
March 15	Sylvia Anderson	88	British television and film producer, writer and voice actress (Thunderbirds, Space: 1999)
March 16	Frank Sinatra, Jr.	72	American singer/songwriter/composer and actor (Family Guy, The Sopranos and Son of the Beach)
March 17	Larry Drake	66	Actor, best known for winning two Emmy Awards for playing Benny Stulwicz on L.A. Law
March 18	Joe Santos	84	Actor, best known as Dennis Becker on The Rockford Files. Also roles on The Sopranos, Santa Barbara, Magnum, P.I., Hardcastle and McCormick, a.k.a. Pablo, and Me and Maxx
	John Schnabel	96	Goldminer who appeared on the reality show Gold Rush
March 21	Peter Brown	80	American actor (Maverick, Lawman, Cheyenne, Wagon Train, Laredo, The Virginian, One Life to Live, Days of Our Lives, The Young and the Restless and The Bold and the Beautiful)
March 22	David Smyrl	80	Amnerican actor, best known as Mr. Handford (owner of Hooper's Store) on Sesame Street from 1990 to 1998, also appeared on numerous episodes of The Cosby Show
March 23	Joe Garagiola, Sr.	90	Former baseball player and announcer for the Arizona Diamondbacks and NBC Sports. Also game show host (He Said, She Said, Memory Game, Sale of the Century, To Tell the Truth, Strike It Rich), guest host of The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson, panelist on The Today Show and Match Game, and co-host of the Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show
	Ken Howard	71	American actor (Adam's Rib, The Manhunter, The White Shadow, It's Not Easy, Dynasty, The Colbys, Murder, She Wrote, Melrose Place, Crossing Jordan, Cane, The Young and the Restless and 30 Rock)
March 24	Earl Hamner, Jr.	92	American writer and producer, best known as the creator of The Waltons, Apple's Way and Falcon Crest (other credits include The Twilight Zone, Gentle Ben, Nanny and the Professor and Morningstar/Eveningstar)
	Garry Shandling	66	Actor and comedian best known as the star of The Larry Sanders Show and It's Garry Shandling's Show, also a regular guest host on The Tonight Show
March 26	Dick Fabian	81	News anchor at WNEM-TV/Saginaw/Flint and radio DJ at WKNX
March 27	Eric Engberg	74	Reporter for WTOP-TV, Group W, and CBS News
	Mother Angelica	92	Catholic nun, founder of Eternal Word Television Network, and host of EWTN's Mother Angelica Live
	Howard Berk	91	American novelist, producer, and television writer (Columbo, Mission: Impossible, The Rockford Files)
March 28	James Noble	94	Actor, best known for the role of Governor Eugene Gatling on Benson
March 29	Patty Duke	69	Actress best known as the star of The Patty Duke Show
April 3	Bill Henderson	90	American jazz singer and actor (The Bill Cosby Show, Harry O, Ace Crawford, Private Eye, Dreams)
April 5	Barbara Turner	79	American actress, writer and producer, mother of actress Jennifer Jason Leigh
April 7	Blackjack Mulligan	73	Professional wrestler and WWE Hall of Famer
	Philip Scheffler	85	American producer, was the senior producing for 60 Minutes from 1980-2003.
April 8	Daisy Lewellyn	36	American style expert who appeared on the reality show Blood, Sweat and Heels. Also editor for fashion magazines Essence, InStyle, and Glamour
April 9	Arthur Anderson	93	American actor, best known for voicing Lucky the Leprechuan in Lucky Charms commercials from 1963-1992, was also the second voice of Eustace Bagge in Courage the Cowardly Dog
	Stacy Fawcett	45	Radio and television personality in the Dallas-Ft. Worth media market, notably as a food critic blogger and host of a cooking segment for WFAA-TV's newscasts.
April 11	Doug Banks	57	American radio and television personality (alumni of WLS-TV/Chicago as a contributor on the station's 190 North, fill in host on NASCAR Now, guest starred on My Wife and Kids)
April 12	Anne Jackson	90	American actress
	Balls Mahoney	44	American professional wrestler (most notably with Extreme Championship Wrestling)
April 17	Doris Roberts	90	Actress, best known as Marie Barone on Everybody Loves Raymond, a role that won her four Emmy Awards.
April 19	Denise Stewart-Bohn	47	Radio personality (WCXT/Benton Harbor, Michigan) and television reporter (WSBT-TV/South Bend)
	Scott Nimerfro	54	American television/film screenwriter and producer (Once Upon a Time, Pushing Daisies)
April 20	Joanie Laurer	45	WWE wrestler better known as Chyna. Also appeared on 3rd Rock from the Sun, The Surreal Life, and Celebrity Rehab with Dr. Drew
April 21	Prince	57	American musician, songwriter, producer, and actor (notable credits include Muppets Tonight, New Girl and Saturday Night Live)
April 25	Madeleine Sherwood	93	Canadian actress, singer, writer, producer, and Civil Rights activist (notable for playing Mother Superior Placidos in The Flying Nun and daytime roles in Guiding Light, One Life to Live and As the World Turns)
April 27	Philip Kives	87	Canadian businessman, founder of K-Tel and a pioneer of the Infomercial concept who coined the term "As seen on TV"
May 6	Rickey E. Smith Jr.	36	American reality television participant and singer who competed in season 2 of American Idol
May 8	Mike Fleming	74	Conservative television/radio journalist and host in the Memphis media market
	William Schallert	93	American character actor, best known for playing patriarch Martin Lane on The Patty Duke Show
	Reg Grundy	92	Australian television producer, creator, and syndicator, known for creating American game shows (Scrabble), adapting American programs to international viewers (Sale of the Century), and bringing Australian shows to the United States via his syndication company (Prisoner:Cell Block H and Neighbours)
May 12	Julius La Rosa	86	Italian-American singer, actor, and television/radio personality (notable for being a regular on Arthur Godfrey and His Friends, the host of The Julius La Rosa Show, a recurring role on Another World, and a frequent contributor to the Labor Day telethon)
May 19	Morley Safer	84	Canadian-American television and radio journalist, reporter, and author, who was a mainstay at CBS News for 61 years, including 46 as co-host of 60 Minutes
	Rosemary Gernette	81	Television personality and talk show host at WISN-TV/Milwaukee, and a alumni of WSAU/Wausau, Wisconsin
	Alan Young	96	Actor, best known as Wilbur Post on Mister Ed, the voice of Scrooge McDuck on DuckTales, star of The Alan Young Show, and several more voice roles
May 23	Joe Fleishaker	62	Actor best known for his work with Troma Entertainment. Also appeared in numerous skits on Late Show with David Letterman
May 24	Buck Kartalian	93	American actor (My Favorite Martian, Friends, and Curb Your Enthusiasm)
May 27	Michael Dann	94	Television executive (VP/Programming for CBS, 1963-1970)
May 31	Jan Crouch	78	Co-founder of the Trinity Broadcasting Network and founder of Smile of a Child TV; co-host of TBN's flagship programs Praise the Lord and Behind the Scenes