Programming Briefs

CNN Defines Silver- Anniversary Plans

AtlantaCable News Network will celebrate its silver anniversary with a primetime special highlighting 25 stories that have touched people around the world over the past quarter-century,

CNN will air Defining Moments: 25 Stories That Touched Our Lives on June 1, a two-part special that runs from 8 p.m. to 9 p.m. and 10 p.m. to 11 p.m.

CNN will also host the 2005 World Report Conference in Atlanta May 30 to June 1. As part of the festivities, CNN’s Christiane Amanpour, Wolf Blitzer, Jim Clancy, Anderson Cooper, Daryn Kagan, Michael Holmes and Zain Verjee will join international journalists and world leaders to discuss issues at the forefront of the news media today.

Bravo’s 'Sports Kids’ Takes to the Web

New York — Complementing the series’ TV screen bow on June 1, Bravo will launch eight short exclusive “Webisodes” of its Sports Kids Moms & Dads show.

The computer screen installments will be available on Bravo’s site (www.bravotv.com/Sports_Kids_Moms_&_Dads), with a new Webisode debuting each week.

The series, narrated by former tennis star Tracy Austin, looks at the trials faced by young athletes and their parents around the nation in the worlds of football, cheerleading, basketball, figure skating and equestrian.

For instance, father and son team Craig and Trenton live and breathe the pigskin, with dad working seven days a week to get his son ready for the National Football League.

“This is the first time we can deliver an entire extra story line that plays out online over the course of the series,” Bravo president Lauren Zalaznick said in a statement. “We’re excited to invite viewers into BravoTV.com to see how the character 'lives’ online as a complement to the on-air experience.”

NY1 Noticias Gets Political

New YorkNY1 Noticias, Time Warner Cable’s local Spanish-language news channel, is launching a show dedicated to New York City politics.

Pura Politica Voces de la Ciudad will debut June 3 at 6 p.m. The weekly half-hour show will feature prominent political guests, local elected officials, community activists, reporters and columnists.

Series Gets College Try From Sundance, Logo

New YorkSundance Channel is collaborating with Viacom Inc. service Logo on a limited series about the lives of four college undergraduates undergoing gender transition.

TransGeneration, the eight-episode co-production, will bow on Sundance this fall before premiering on Logo, the gay, lesbian and transgender service that is slated to bow June 30, in next year’s first quarter. Sundance is a venture between NBC Universal, Viacom Inc. and Robert Redford.

“The series allows us to leverage production dollars for both networks, which have distinct audience targets,” Sundance executive vice president of programming and marketing Laura Michalchyshyn said.  “The project will have different on-air windows and different promotional windows for the two networks.”

Premiering on Sundance Sept. 20 at 9 p.m. with a one-hour installment, TransGeneration tracks the lives of students who attended Smith College, Michigan State University, the University of Southern California and the University of Colorado during the 2004-05 school year.

The show will then air a half-dozen half-hour episodes in that Tuesday-night time slot before concluding with a one-hour finale.