C-SPAN turns 40

By MixDex Article may include affiliate links

C-SPAN, which is short for Cable-Satellite Public Affairs Network, turns 40 March 19, 2019.

  • The cable network, which originally was aimed at providing live coverage of Congress, is funded almost entirely from a small fee charged to cable and satellite TV subscribers.
  • The network launched C-SPAN 2 in 1986, which shifted coverage of the U.S. Senate to the spin-off network, while the original C-SPAN focused on the U.S. House of Representatives.
  • When Congress is not in session, C-SPAN provides a variety of other public affairs programming, all of it commercial free.