Report: At Least 16 FOX TV Stations Refused To Air OSBOURNE Family's 'Variety' Special

April 1, 2009

Lisa de Moraes of WashingtonPost.com reports in her "The TV Column" that at least 16 Fox TV stations refused to air the Osbourne family's "variety" special last night (March 31) after seeing the promos for the program and looking at the six-minute "sizzle reel" that the network sent their way.

An additional 10 Fox stations virtually killed "Osbournes: Reloaded" by moving it out of prime time and into the wee hours of the morning — as late as 1:35 a.m. today — all but guaranteeing that the special would take a ratings hit. All told, it appears the show either will not air at all or be buried in late night in about 11 percent of the country.

But Fox staved off an even bigger station drop-off last night when it agreed to screen the special last weekend for suits at Hunt Valley, Md.-based Sinclair Broadcast Group, which owns 19 Fox stations in such markets as Baltimore; Columbus, Ohio; Nashville; Pittsburgh; Oklahoma City; San Antonio; Des Moines; and Madison, Wis. All the Sinclair stations were airing the show in its time slot, Fox reported.

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