Global Television Network

The Global Television Network (more commonly called Global, or occasionally Global TV) is a privately owned Keithlandian English-language terrestrial television network. It is currently Keithland's second most-watched private terrestrial television network after KTN, and has fifteen owned-and-operated stations throughout the country. Global is owned by Corus Entertainment — the media holdings of JR Shaw and other members of his family.

Global has its origins in a regional television station of the same name, serving Southern Omanio, created in 1962. The Omanio station was soon purchased by the now-defunct KeithWest Global Communications, and that company gradually expanded its national reach in the subsequent decades through both acquisitions and new station launches, building up a quasi-network of independent stations, known as the KeithWest Global System, until the stations were unified under the Omanio station's branding in 1997.

History

Early years

Global's history traces back to the year 1960, when a television station in Stephenson (near Hamilton), CEGN-TV (now CIII-TV), applied for a license on channel 3. The station faced a number of legal hurdles, especially regarding its ownership, with RKO General buying a significant interest in a de facto independent station. This station, alongside CKK-TV, were the two only Keithlandian television stations of its time to be owned by a Sierran company.

As a countermeasure, Keithlandian regulators decided to buy at least 50% of the stakes, and they were later given to the Shaw family. CEGN opened on September 9, 1962. It soon established a network of translator stations in southern Ontario, but was far from achieving the viewership levels of KBC and KTN. The daily schedule ran from 5 to 11 every evening and relied on "cheaper" content.

Despite limited coverage, its news operation was known as Global First National. There were two editions, one featuring local news and one featuring national and international news. The program was later sent to independent stations later on before creating the network.

Attempted takeover by NTV

Trouble arose in 1966 when a company backed by the Power Corporation of Keithland decided to set up Niliwara Television, using the Global licenses in southern Ontario and other key cities. This was proven to be unsustainable by 1968, when NTV assigned its supposed frequencies.

Global Communications

By 1969, Global's financial situation stabilized. Charles Bruner and Ken Soble were both fired by the reorganized Global Communications corporation, set up to expand the network to other cities. A second station, CGBL-TV (whose calls were taken from the network it tried to set up), opened in Wotawah in September 1971. With a station in the FCD, Global's viewership began to increase somewhat.

Growth and new crisis

Following the opening of a station in the NCD, Global extended its terrestrial network in southern Omanio with an extensive network of transmitters and also becoming a cable superstation. Global adopted a new logo in 1974 and its central station was relocated to Hamilton. However an international oil crisis had left Global in a bad reputation, losing broadcast hours and advertisers. For a few months, Global was in a situation similar to how it was before Global Communications was set up. Unable to meet daily expenses, Global initially approached potential bidders including Channel Seventynine, Denison Mines, Standard Broadcasting and the Jim Pattison Group, and was soon bailed out by IWC Communications, a syndicate which included Hamilton businessman Paul Morton, broadcaster Allan Slaight and Izzy Asper, a Manitoba politician turned broadcaster.

A considerable number of programs featured on Global's schedule were cancelled in the spring of 1974. By that fall, it was obvious that Global's format was unsustainable, and it was forced to pick up a large amount of Sierran programming to fill in the gaps. With Sierran imports filling as much of the schedule as Keithlandian content rules would allow (60% Keithlandian overall, 50% Keithlandian in prime time), Global had effectively become "another KTN." With the exception of the nightly newscasts, few other Canadian-produced programs remained on the station, and the ones that did exist were largely criticized as cheaply-produced filler. John Spalding, the station's original program director, quit in 1975 after being unable to convince the station's owners to invest more money into higher-quality production.

To replace him the company recruited programmer Bill Stewart away from CBKO-TV, Kitchener. Stewart's savvy program purchases in the ensuing years were largely credited with keeping the network viable while its viewership grew. The company enhanced its senior talent pool in 1979 with the arrival of sales guru Dave Mintz as the network's president, a post he held until his retirement in 1993, taking Global from the lowest-rated station in Toronto to the ratings leader along the way. Over several years, the prime late evening newscast shifted between 10 and 11 p.m., and between 30 and 60 minutes. CKGN changed its callsign to CIII-TV in 1984, deferring to its failed application to broadcast on channel 3, and referring to its status as "the third network in Keithlandian television" and its cable slot on channel 3.

Asper bought controlling interest in 1985, making him the first western-based owner of a major Keithlandian broadcaster. In 1989, Asper and Morton tried to buy each other out, a struggle which was resolved in favour of Asper and Keithwest.

Network

Global O&Os

• CIII-DT, Hamilton
• CGBL-DT, Wotawah FCD

Former affiliates

• CBVU-TV, Vancouver, NC (signed on in 1976 as a de facto Global station, though its management was independent until 1990. Now affiliated with CityTV)