Word: cinq
(lookup in dictionary)
(lookup stats)
Dates: during 1980-1989
Sort By: most recent first
(reverse)
...American viewers, it might have looked like a routine week of programming. But in France, the debut of La Cinq (Channel 5), the nation's first privately owned non-cable network, marked the start of a new broadcasting era. La Cinq's Feb. 20 launch was followed last week by the official premiere of La Six, an MTV-style rock-music channel. With a seventh channel that will present cultural programs planned for later this year, the TV picture in France has never been so lively or diverse. Yet the new offerings have sparked a heated debate. Political opponents...
...common sights across Europe these days. Established government-owned -- and frequently dull -- networks are facing a feisty new array of commercial competitors. In Italy the state-owned RAI-TV has been joined by three popular networks run by TV Magnate Silvio Berlusconi, who is also part owner of La Cinq. In West Germany, the government is spending an estimated $10 billion to wire the nation for cable (which is already widespread in countries like Belgium and Holland). German cable viewers can choose from such new channels as the Luxembourg-based RTL-Plus and SAT 1, run by a consortium...
...cultural community, meanwhile, warned that La Cinq's predominantly foreign-made fare would lower standards and squeeze out indigenous programming. French filmmakers were upset that movies shown on La Cinq would be interrupted by commercials (ads on government channels are bunched at the beginning and end of programs). "I find it disgraceful," said Director Bertrand Tavernier (A Sunday in the Country), "that a government which was supported by creative people is in the process of stabbing them in the back...
...Cinq's programming is following Berlusconi's successful formula, with several Italian-produced game shows, movies like Saturday Night Fever and such U.S. series as Flamingo Road and Murder, She Wrote. Berlusconi insists that La Cinq "will bring in new blood and raise the level of professionalism on all the other networks." Though opening night drew mixed reviews ("Clumsy," declared Liberation, an independent Paris daily), ratings were good: an estimated 62% of the Paris audience watched at least one minute of the programming...