BET Networks and CENTRIC Kick Off 2010 With Five NAACP Image Award Nominations

BET Networks and CENTRIC Kick Off 2010 With Five NAACP Image Award Nominations

The "BET AWARDS '09," "THE MO'NIQUE SHOW," "THE INAUGURATION OF BARACK OBAMA, 44th PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES" Special and Coverage of the "MICHAEL JACKSON MEMORIAL SERVICE" on BET and Episodes of "LEADING WOMEN" Featuring India.Arie and Dr. Maya Angelou on CENTRIC Have All Been Nominated for The 41st NAACP Image Awards

LOS ANGELES, Jan. 7 /PRNewswire/ -- Starting the new decade with a bang, BET Networks and CENTRIC snagged five nominations for the 41st NAACP Image Awards. The BET AWARDS '09 and coverage of the MICHAEL JACKSON MEMORIAL SERVICE (Outstanding Variety), THE MO'NIQUE SHOW (Outstanding Talk Series), THE INAUGURATION OF BARACK OBAMA, 44th PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES special (Outstanding News/ Information), and episodes of CENTRIC original series LEADING WOMEN featuring India.Arie and Dr. Maya Angelou (Outstanding News/ Information) have all been recognized for exceptional programming in 2009.

(Logo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20070716/BETNETWORKSLOGO )

From over 1,200 submissions, BET and CENTRIC programming were selected to represent the top five nominees in the Outstanding News/Information, Outstanding Talk, and Outstanding Variety categories. The winners are chosen by NAACP members and will be announced during the live airing of the 41st NAACP Image Awards.

The programs nominated have all proven to be groundbreaking shows and specials for BET Networks and CENTRIC. THE MO'NIQUE SHOW brings side-splitting laughs, celebrities, and hot musical performances to late-night, hosted by queen of comedy, Mo'Nique; the BET AWARDS '09, hosted by Jamie Fox, recognized the achievements of the brightest stars in music, sports and entertainment; THE INAUGURATION OF BARACK OBAMA, 44th PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES special extensively covered the historic inauguration of President Barack Obama with all day news coverage and star-studded events; BET's coverage of the MICHAEL JACKSON MEMORIAL SERVICE gave fans of the iconic singer a chance to take part in commemorating the King of Pop; and episodes of the half-hour original series LEADING WOMEN intimately chronicling the dynamic lives of talented singer/songwriter India.Arie and the legendary Dr Maya Angelou.

For more information about BET programming, please visit www.bet.com

About BET Networks

BET Networks, a division of Viacom Inc. (NYSE:VIA)(NYSE:VIA.B), is the nation's leading provider of quality entertainment, music, news and public affairs television programming for the African-American audience. The primary BET channel reaches more than 98 million households and can be seen in the United States, Canada, the Caribbean, the United Kingdom and sub-Saharan Africa. BET is the dominant African-American consumer brand with a diverse group of business extensions: BET.com, a leading Internet destination for Black entertainment, music, culture, and news; CENTRIC, a 24-hour entertainment network targeting the 25- to 54-year-old African-American audience; BET Digital Networks - BET Gospel and BET Hip Hop, attractive alternatives for cutting-edge entertainment tastes; BET Home Entertainment, a collection of BET-branded offerings for the home environment including DVDs and video-on-demand; BET Event Productions, a full-scale event management and production company with festivals and live events spanning the globe; BET Mobile, which provides ringtones, games and video content for wireless devices; and BET International, which operates BET in the United Kingdom and oversees the extension of BET network programming for global distribution.

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Source: BET Networks

CONTACT: Crystal Thomas, +1-310-481-3779, Crystal.Thomas@bet.net; or
Tracy McGraw, +1-212-205-3158, Tracy.McGraw@bet.net

Web Site: http://www.bet.com/

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