Country United States Broadcast area Nationwide | Language English | |
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Launched December 24, 2005; 11 years ago (2005-12-24) Slogan World's Faith Children's Network Owned by | ||
Smile (shortened from its original name of Smile of a Child) is an American Christian-based digital broadcast, digital cable and satellite television network owned and operated by the Trinity Broadcasting Network. The network is aimed at children between the ages of 2 and 12 years, and offers a mix of children's religious and family-oriented programming. The network was founded as the television arm of TBN's Smile of a Child ministry, created by TBN co-founder Jan Crouch.
Contents
- Early history as Smile of a Child
- Multicasting consolidation with JUCE TV
- Programming
- Current programming
- Awards and honors
- References
Although since June 1, 2015, it shares channel space with sister network JUCE TV over-the-air, Smile continues to operate as a separate channel from JUCE on pay television providers as well as on select digital streaming services that offer TBN's six U.S. networks.
The network is available in the U.S. on DirecTV and Dish Network and throughout North and Central America as a free-to-air channel on Galaxy 14 C-band, Galaxy 19 Ku band and available with Glorystar Christian Satellite. Internationally, Smile is on the Hot Bird satellite service in Europe, ABS1 satellite to Asia, India and the Middle East, and Agila 2 both C-band and Ku band signal in some areas of Asia and the Philippines. The network is also livestreamed on both its own and TBN's website.
In addition, a parent network TBN runs a "Smile" block on Saturday mornings. On October 26, 2015, Kids & Teens TV began to air a block of Smile programming.
Early history, as Smile of a Child
Founded by TBN co-founder Jan Crouch, the network was developed and named after Smile of a Child, a children's outreach ministry founded by Jan and Paul Crouch in the 1990s to provide services and donations to needy children worldwide. The network launched on December 24, 2005 at 3 a.m. Eastern Time, with the holiday-themed special Martin the Cobbler as its inaugural program.
Smile was initially available as a 24-hour-a-day service on all platforms, debuted on digital subchannels of TBN owned-and-operated station in 13 markets. Over the subsequent years, Smile expanded its national coverage to all of TBN's owned-and-operated and affiliated stations in nearly 40 markets, carried usually on the fifth subchannel (for example, if the local TBN station broadcasts on channel 17, then Smile would be carried on digital subchannel 17.5). The network's original butterfly logo is a visual representation of the initials of Jan Crouch's maiden name, JWB (Janice Wendell Bethany).
Multicasting consolidation with JUCE TV
On June 1, 2015, Smile was combined into a single subchannel with sister network JUCE TV (which targets teenagers and young adults 13 to 30 years of age), under a timeshare arrangement. As a result of the realignment, for over-the-air viewers, Smile was originally reduced to a nine-hour daily programming schedule (from 6 a.m. to 3 p.m. Eastern Time) on the third subchannel occupied by JUCE (which continues to air over its existing subchannel slot for the remainder of the broadcast day) on the 38 stations owned directly by TBN and through its subsidiary Community Educational Television. The following week, the time share was modified so that Smile now airs from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. (Eastern), with JUCE airing the remainder of the day, giving each network a daily 12 hour window on subchannel 3.
The change – due to technical limitations with its stations' existing digital compression equipment – is a byproduct of the launch of TBN Salsa, a digital subchannel network targeting English-speaking Hispanic viewers which launched on that date.
While it now has a reduced presence on broadcast television, Smile continues to maintain a 24-hour-day schedule, with all programming not shown over-the-air remaining available via live stream on TBN's website, and mobile and digital media players as well as on select cable and satellite providers that carry the TBN multicast networks, as was the case before the over-the-air consolidation of the two networks. Jan Crouch died from the effects of a stroke on May 31, 2016.
Smile adopted its new shortened branding on New Year's Day of 2017.
Programming
Although primarily a Christian-based network, Smile has acquired some secular programming from outside producers and the public domain, such as Lassie, Davey and Goliath, VeggieTales, 3-2-1 Penguins, and The Big Garage, as well as acquiring the U.S. rights to Canadian series such as Mickey's Farm, and Japanese anime shows such as Swiss Family Robinson and Little Women. It also airs family-oriented movies with religious/inspirational themes on Friday afternoons and Saturday evenings.
Current programming
Programs in bold indicate that the program also airs Saturdays on TBN as part of their "Smile" children's block.
All programs listed are designated as E/I by Smile, fulfilling the Federal Communications Commission's educational programming requirements.
Awards and honors
2008: Parents Television Council Entertainment Seal of Approval