The American Christian Television System (ACTS) was an American

religious Religion is usually defined as a social system, social-cultural system of designated religious behaviour, behaviors and practices, morality, morals, beliefs, worldviews, religious text, texts, sacred site, sanctified places, prophecy, prophecie ...

television network A television network or television broadcaster is a telecommunications network for distribution of television program content, where a central operation provides programming to many television stations or multichannel video programming distributo ...

that was founded by the

Southern Baptist Convention The Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) is a Christian denomination based in the United States. It is the world's largest Baptist denomination, and the largest Protestant and second-largest Christian denomination in the United States. The wor ...

(SBC). Plans for the network involved a distribution reach through a combination of low-power and full-power

broadcast Broadcasting is the distribution of audio or video content to a dispersed audience via any electronic mass communications medium, but typically one using the electromagnetic spectrum ( radio waves), in a one-to-many model. Broadcasting began ...

television station A television station is a set of equipment managed by a business, organisation or other entity, such as an amateur television (ATV) operator, that transmits video content and audio content via radio waves directly from a transmitter on the earth ...

s, most of which were to be built, and carriage on

cable television Cable television is a system of delivering television programming to consumers via radio frequency (RF) signals transmitted through coaxial cables, or in more recent systems, light pulses through fibre-optic cables. This contrasts with broa ...

providers. Religious denominations had long been recipients of free air time from broadcast stations. This was often because stations had a need to fulfill "

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" obligations in order to maintain their

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s. It was estimated that by the mid-1970s, the Southern Baptist Convention received approximately $10 million in donations annually in the form of 2,500 free weekly broadcasts. The programming that religious networks produced included (in addition to

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and teaching) family-oriented entertainment programs and occasionally cartoons, such as '' JOT''. ACTS would expand on these, originally intending on drawing its programming almost exclusively from in-house sources. ACTS was the first television network established by a

Protestant denomination A Christian denomination is a distinct religious body within Christianity that comprises all church congregations of the same kind, identifiable by traits such as a name, particular history, organization, leadership, theological doctrine, worsh ...

. ACTS launched in 1984 as a

non-commercial A non-commercial (also spelled noncommercial) activity is an activity that does not, in some sense, involve commerce, at least relative to similar activities that do have a commercial objective or emphasis. For example, advertising-free community ...

service, but was converted into a for-profit network in 1988. In 1992, ACTS began sharing channel space with a similarly formatted cable network, the

Vision Interfaith Satellite Network The Vision Interfaith Satellite Network (VISN) was an American religious cable and satellite television network that was owned by the interfaith group National Interfaith Cable Coalition, in cooperation with cable operators. The channel became ...

, with the two being co-branded under the name VISN-ACTS. The unified channel later evolved into the Faith & Values Channel and Odyssey, before eventually relaunching (with minimal religious content) as the

Hallmark Channel The Hallmark Channel is an American television channel owned by Crown Media Holdings, Inc., which in turn is owned by Hallmark Cards, Inc. The channel's programming is primarily targeted at families, and features a mix of television movies and ...

in 2001 following its purchase by

Crown Media Holdings Hallmark Media (formerly Crown Media Holdings) is an American media production company with corporate headquarters located in Studio City, California, and is a subsidiary of Hallmark Cards. Hallmark Media consists of Crown Media Productions and ...

. ACTS ceased operations in 2003.

History

ACTS was initially organized in December 1980, and was formed as a subsidiary of the

Southern Baptist Radio and Television Commission The North American Mission Board (NAMB) is the domestic missions agency of the Southern Baptist Convention (SBC). It is involved in Southern Baptist church planting and revitalization, coordinating one of the United States's largest disaster relie ...

(RTVC) and the Southern Baptist Sunday School Board. ACTS was to be a nonprofit venture, and also disallowed any form of on-air solicitation. The network was the brainchild of former SBC president Jimmy R. Allen. Allen had been elected to the post of president of the RTVC immediately following the end of his tenure as convention president. One of his primary goals in the post was to help local churches use radio and television effectively and to "explore the ways and means of accelerating a more direct primetime witness through television." The plan for establishing the network revolved around building 100 or more low power (LPTV) and a small number of full-power stations throughout the United States. Each low-power station was to cost up to $150,000 to build and have a

broadcast range A broadcast range (also listening range or listening area for radio, or viewing range or viewing area for television) is the service area that a broadcast station or other transmission covers via radio waves (or possibly infrared light, which ...

of 10 to 15 miles from each station's transmitter site. In addition, it was planned that the network would eventually be carried by 1,000 cable systems. ACTS was projected to have a potential audience reach of 7 million households by the fall of 1984, and anywhere between 14 and 40 million at the end of 1985. However, some of the SBCs LPTV plans were held back when the

Federal Communications Commission The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is an independent agency of the United States federal government that regulates communications by radio, television, wire, satellite, and cable across the United States. The FCC maintains jurisdiction ...

(FCC) changed some of the regulations regarding the licensing of such stations. At the time of its launch, the network would consist of 23 broadcast television stations and distribution on 200 cable systems. The

Spacenet Acquired by SageNet in 2014, Spacenet, Inc. was a provider of VSAT satellite-based data network services as well as hybrid satellite/terrestrial networks and network management services. Spacenet was headquartered in Tysons Corner, Virginia in the ...

One satellite was selected for distribution of the signal; it launched in the spring of 1984. The American Christian Television System launched on May 15, 1984, and was dedicated in June at the Southern Baptist Convention. By that time, the network had been granted 75 LPTV station licenses. At launch, ACTS consisted of two channels, ACTS and the Baptist Telecommunications Network (BTN). BTN was oriented toward churches, while the programming of ACTS was aimed at the general public. The programming mix of ACTS was planned to consist of about 75% family-oriented entertainment programs and 25% direct teaching and preaching. Daily programming was to be recycled in loops, up to 16 hours each day of its program content would consist of reruns. The 1980s saw a rapid expansion in the number of cable channels vying for limited space on cable systems; this included a number of religious channels. Channels of this type which had already been established at the time that ACTS was formed included the

National Christian Network The National Christian Network was a religious television network in the United States which formed in 1979. The channel was founded by Ray A. Kassis and located in Cocoa, Florida, where it owned studios. The programming was originated from Jewish ...

, the

PTL Satellite Network The PTL Television Network, often referred to as simply PTL, is an American evangelical Christian television network originally located in Fort Mill, South Carolina, founded by Jim and Tammy Faye Bakker in 1974 and dedicated in April 1977. During ...

, the

Christian Broadcasting Network The Christian Broadcasting Network (CBN) is an American Christian media production and distribution organization. Founded in 1960 by Pat Robertson, it produces the long-running TV series ''The 700 Club'', co-produces the ongoing ''Superbook'' an ...

, and the

Trinity Broadcasting Network The Trinity Broadcasting Network (TBN) is an international Christian-based broadcast television network and the world's largest religious television network. TBN was headquartered in Costa Mesa, California, until March 3, 2017, when it sold its ...

. By 1984, even more networks had been formed, including the

Eternal Word Television Network The Eternal Word Television Network, more commonly known by its initials EWTN, is an American basic cable television network which presents around-the-clock Catholic-themed programming. It is not only the largest Catholic television network in ...

and

National Jewish Television National Jewish Television is a three-hour Jewish television block shown Sundays on religious and public-access television cable TV channels in the United States. National Jewish Television was founded in 1979 by Joel Levitch. History National ...

; each of these competed for limited headend space on cable providers, a situation made more complicated by the fact that some companies would only carry one religious network. By 1986, the network had achieved a potential viewer reach of 2.6 million television households. It had also acquired $8.5 million in debt, leading to a restructuring of the organization. Internal SBC documentation admitted that the planning had been overly optimistic, and the operational and programming expenses were beyond what could be sustained. The SBC sold ACTS in 1988 to a newly formed company called Friends of ACTS, Inc., based in

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Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...

. While the SBC retained ultimate control over the channel, the new arrangement offered several advantages. Friends of ACTS, Inc. had been formed by a group of evangelical multidenominational investors as a for-profit entity, which the network had also now become. It was hoped that the multidenominational composition would attract large cable companies, some of which had shied away from carrying the network citing concerns about the SBC's singular control over content. To some extent, this meant that conservative faith traditions such as

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Presbyterians Presbyterianism is a part of the Reformed tradition within Protestantism that broke from the Roman Catholic Church in Scotland by John Knox, who was a priest at St. Giles Cathedral (Church of Scotland). Presbyterian churches derive their nam ...

and Methodists, as well as

Catholics The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

and

Jews Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...

were represented in the network's programming. Under the terms of the agreement, the SBC would continue to provide the majority of the programming and receive a small portion of revenues from the network. The sale was valued at about $170 million. At that time, the network was reported to have an audience reach of six million viewers. The new management immediately switched satellites to Galaxy III, a move intended to increase ACTS' viewing potential. By 1990, the network was estimated to have a reach of 9.2 million viewers, and distribution on 475 affiliate stations and cable systems. That year, Jack B. Johnson was elected president of the RTVC, replacing Jimmy R. Allen. ACTS acquired FamilyNet from

Jerry Falwell Jerry Laymon Falwell Sr. (August 11, 1933 – May 15, 2007) was an American Baptist pastor, televangelism, televangelist, and conservatism in the United States, conservative activist. He was the founding pastor of the Thomas Road Baptist Church, ...

in 1991. The network was programmed separately from ACTS, ''Religious Broadcasting'' (November 1992). David Clark, President, National Religious Broadcasters. and was carried exclusively on broadcast stations. FamilyNet was sold off to In Touch Ministries (operated by

Dr. Charles Stanley Charles Frazier Stanley (born 1932) is Pastor Emeritus of First Baptist Church in Atlanta, Georgia, after serving as senior pastor for 49 years. He is the founder and president of In Touch Ministries, which widely broadcasts his sermons through t ...

) in 2007, representing the end of the SBC's direct ventures in television. In July 1992, ACTS entered into a merger agreement with the

(VISN). Each network was to provide part of the programming, but maintain separate branding identities during their allocated timeslots. The Southern Baptist Church would provide eight hours of programming daily for the network, which would produce substantial savings. At the time of the merger, ACTS had a viewer reach of 8.2 million television homes and VISN 12.8 million; the combined network would reach about 20 million and allow a potential audience of 57.5 million households with at least one television set. The merger opened up large markets that ACTS had been unable to get a foothold into including

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and

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. ''Religious Broadcasting'' (November 1992). Steve Gregory, Director of Public Relations, Southern Baptist Radio and Television Commission. The new deal would add over 1,000 cities to ACTS' audience, and the number of cable providers carrying the channel increased from 655 to 1,374. The new network would continue to ban activities such as proselytizing, on-air fundraising, and maligning other faiths. Even so, some Baptists expressed concerns about the merger. Some were disturbed by the composition and programming of VISN. Whereas ACTS had specific content guidelines based on the views of the SBC, VISN did not rely on any form of

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or universal statement of faith. VISN was represented by member organizations of 54 faiths including non-Christians, ranging from

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groups to

Buddhists Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and gra ...

, to others that some conservative Baptists considered

cult In modern English, ''cult'' is usually a pejorative term for a social group that is defined by its unusual religious, spiritual, or philosophical beliefs and rituals, or its common interest in a particular personality, object, or goal. This ...

ish. ''Religious Broadcasting'' (November 1992). Rod Payne, Minister of Media, First Baptist Church, Wichita Falls, Texas. One former producer for ACTS expressed that "ACTS will be working with those many would consider to be

false prophets In religion, a false prophet is a person who falsely claims the gift of prophecy or divine inspiration, or to speak for God, or who makes such claims for evil ends. Often, someone who is considered a "true prophet" by some people is simultaneous ...

, assisting to build a large audience for their message... I feel that they have taken a step backwards in their effort to accomplish their mission." ''Religious Broadcasting'' (November 1992). Ron Harris, Minister of Media, First Baptist Church, Dallas. This was made even more problematic by the fact that local Baptist-owned resources including churches and schools were sometimes providing the downlink to local cable systems. Also, partially because the

Baptist Press Baptist Press (BP) is the official news service of the Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) and is headquartered in Nashville, Tennessee. Baptist Press is a ministry assignment of the executive committee of the Southern Baptist Convention. Baptist P ...

had been prohibited from reporting on the matter, those local affiliates were not informed about the deal until after it was signed. Still others expressed concern that the goal of VISN had been to replace and supplant ACTS. ''Religious Broadcasting'' (November 1992). Jerry Rose, President, WCFC-TV38 / Chicago. VISN-ACTS went through several relaunches in the 1990s including its 1992 revamp as the Faith and Values Channel and the 1996 format change into the Odyssey Network, with direct religious content erosion occurring along the way. In 2001, it became the

, focusing mainly on entertainment programming aimed at a family audience. Support was withdrawn in 2003, and the ACTS network ceased operations.

References

;Extended resources * * * * * * * *{{cite journal , date=November 1992 , title=The ACTS-VISN Agreement: A Necessary New Direction? , journal=Religious Broadcasting , issn=0034-4079 , pages=22–25 , publisher=

National Religious Broadcasters National Religious Broadcasters (NRB) is an international association of evangelical communicators. While theologically diverse within the evangelical community, NRB members are linked through a Declaration of Unity that proclaims their joint comm ...

, volume=24 , issue=10 Evangelical television networks Television channels and stations established in 1984 Television channels and stations disestablished in 2003 Baptist organizations established in the 20th century Baptist missions English-language television stations in the United States

History

See also

References