RFD-TV Lands Imus Simulcast
Rural Network to Carry Six Hours Daily of Imus
By Steve Donohue -- Multichannel News, 11/14/2007 7:20:00 AM
Little known cable TV channel RFD-TV scored a deal to simulcast the new radio show from Don Imus when he returns to the air next month.
RFD-TV said Wednesday that it signed a five-year agreement to simulcast Imus In The Morning, which will debut on ABC Radio Dec. 3.
Imus hasn’t been on the air since April, when he was dropped from CBS Radio and MSNBC after directing racial insults at members of the Rutgers University women’s basketball team.
RFD-TV said it will run Imus in The Morning from 6 a.m. to 9 a.m. ET. A repeat of the show, called Imus In The Evening, will run from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m.
The simulcast agreement could provide a significant distribution boost for RFD-TV, which is only available in 30 million homes nationwide. The network established a relationship with Imus last summer after running a special about the Imus Ranch in Arizona.
“The Imus Ranch Special that aired on RFD-TV this past summer, which focused on the history and good work being performed by the Imus family’s non-profit organization for kids with cancer, was a huge hit. We expect the same overwhelmingly positive response from our audience with the addition of Imus In The Morning and Imus In The Evening to our program schedule,” RFD-TV president Patrick Gottsch said in Wednesday’s announcement.
