Cable Networks Claim 38 News and Documentary Emmy Award Nominations

Six Apiece for CNN, HBO

By Linda Haugsted -- Multichannel News, 7/17/2007 2:30:00 PM

Cable networks claimed 38 of the News and Documentary Emmy Award nominations announced Tuesday by the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences.

Nominations were received by expected sources, such as CNN and HBO, but also by entertainment-dominated networks including WE tv, Travel Channel and VH1. The nominations count includes Broadband Emmy nominations announced last week.

CNN and HBO each received six nominations, with Cinemax, Discovery Channel and The History Channel with five each. National Geographic Channel received three (additionally, last week, its Web site was nominated for a broadband Emmy); and WE, Animal Planet and Discovery HD Theater each received two.

Single nominations were earned by Discovery Times Channel, HDNet (its investment in former CBS newsman Dan Rather paid off with a nomination for best long-form news story), Discovery en Español, VH1, Travel and The Documentary Channel (the latter available via EchoStar Communications’ Dish Network).

Notable among the nominations:

• Five of the six nominations for best documentary were from cable networks: HBO (Dealing Dogs); Cinemax (God Sleeps in Rwanda and The Death of Kevin Carter: Casualty of the Bang Bang Club); Documentary Channel (Shake Hands with the Devil: The Journey of Romeo Dallaire); and Court TV (The Untold Story of Emmett Louis Till). PBS earned the sixth nomination.

• VH1 joined the ranks of news-heavy networks with a nomination for documentary DMC: My Adoption Journey as outstanding arts-and-culture documentary.

• WE got its honors for the same program, Vietnam Nurses with Dana Delany, nominated as best long-form historical documentary and for its editing.

• Chef Anthony Bourdain in Lebanon earned the nomination for Travel.

The awards will be presented in 32 categories in New York Sept. 24.