RADIO NETWORKS

The most prominent religion on the radio in the United States is Christianity, particularly the evangelical sect. It has changed since its inception with a growing audience and different regulations. The audience for Christian radio has grown in the past twenty years and has a dispersed audience throughout the U.S.. The Moody Bible Institute was the first religious organization to use satellite radio to reach a larger audience than before. The Moody Bible Institute was also one of the first religious broadcasting networks to receive a non-commercial educational FM license from the FCC allowing them to open other stations. Religious broadcasting in the United States is mainly the province of local or regional networks which produce programming relevant to their community, and is usually heard on stations holding non-commercial educational broadcast licenses. Although religious radio began as locally owned, because of the deregulation in the 1996 Telecommunications act it has become more consolidated with local affiliates under a national radio company. Several national networks do exist, which include:

 

TV / CABLE NETWORKS

Christian television outlets in the U.S. usually broadcast in the UHF band. While there are many religious content providers for religious and faith-based television, there are few nationally recognized non-commercial television networks—funded by soliciting donations—such as Daystar Television Network (operated by Marcus Lamb and Joni Lamb) and Trinity Broadcasting Network (TBN) (operated by Paul Crouch and Jan Crouch). Unlike the larger religious network providers available to the mass public, many smaller religious organizations have a presence on cable television systems, either with their own channels (such as the 3ABN service) or by transmissions on public-access television (common for local congregations) or leased access channels. Religious programs are sometimes also transmitted on Sunday mornings by general commercial broadcasters not dedicated to religious programming. Religious broadcasters in the U.S. include: