2010 in American television

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The following is a list of events that affected American television in 2010, a year marked by the usual debuts, cancellations, and continuations of shows; the launches, closures, or rebrandings of channels; but also significant cable/satellite carriage disputes, as well as controversies.

Events

January

Date	Event
1	WPGA-TV/Macon, Georgia drops its ABC affiliation to become independent. WGXA, the Fox affiliate in Macon, adds ABC to its digital subchannel, reuniting the station with the network it was previously affiliated with.
	Unable to reach a deal with Scripps Networks Interactive concerning retransmission fees, Cablevision temporarily drops Scripps-owned HGTV and the Food Network from its lineup. The dispute is resolved on January 21.
2	Time Warner Cable and News Corporation sign a new retransmission deal, thus averting what would have been a blackout of the Fox broadcast network and several cable networks on Time Warner Cable systems.
5	The ABC soap All My Children celebrates 40 years on the air. Additionally, the program will convert to high definition as it moves production from New York to Los Angeles (the first episodes in the format air in February).
6	David Hasselhoff announces that he will not return as a judge for America's Got Talent due to pursuing other projects.
7	Sinclair Broadcast Group reaches a one-year retransmission agreement with Mediacom.
	Reports surface that NBC may move Jay Leno back into the 11:35 p.m. ET/PT slot and move Conan O'Brien's Tonight Show back to 12:05 AM (ET/PT); an NBC representative later confirms that Leno's primetime show will end in February. NBC's plan displeases O'Brien, who in a January 12 open letter states his refusal to do The Tonight Show at any other time slot other than its traditional 11:35PM time. Thus begins a bitter divorce between O'Brien and NBC that would result in a $45 million exit deal from NBC for O'Brien—but not before the controversy becomes a media cause celebre, with O'Brien gaining sympathy from fellow talk hosts and the general public and NBC receiving a public relations black eye.
	Top-ranked Alabama defeats second-ranked Texas, 37–21, in college football's 2010 BCS National Championship Game. It is the last BCS game to air on broadcast television (on ABC), with cable network ESPN taking over coverage of the entire BCS the following season. (Fox's relationship with the BCS ended on January 4 with its broadcast of the Fiesta Bowl.)
10	Fox's animated sitcom The Simpsons celebrates 20 years on the air as a weekly television series with the episode "Once Upon a Time in Springfield" (Anne Hathaway, Jackie Mason and Eartha Kitt are guest voices). A one-hour 20th anniversary special, hosted by Morgan Spurlock, follows the episode.
	Howie Mandel is announced as the new judge for America's Got Talent.
11	Fox announces that Simon Cowell will depart from American Idol in May in order to launch a US version of X Factor in Fall 2011.
20	The FCC votes to close the terrestrial loophole that keeps fiber delivered regional sports networks such as Comcast SportsNet Philadelphia, 4SD, Cox Sports Television, Time Warner Cable SportsNet, and Comcast/Charter Sports Southeast off of satellite systems. Comcast files an appeal the next day.
22	Hope for Haiti Now: A Global Benefit for Earthquake Relief, an international telethon to provide relief for survivors of the 2010 Haiti earthquake, airs live on all major United States broadcast networks, many cable channels, and many other television channels across the world.
	Conan O'Brien's 7½-month, 146-episode run as host of The Tonight Show comes to an end (and with it his 20+ year relationship with NBC). Tom Hanks and Neil Young are his final guests; Steve Carell makes a surprise appearance, conducting an "exit interview" with O'Brien; and Beck, Ben Harper, Billy Gibbons, and Will Ferrell perform "Free Bird" with O'Brien and The Tonight Show Band in the closing segment.
26	Competitors DirecTV and Dish Network team up to file a lawsuit in Massachusetts alleging discrimination in reaction to the state's new 5% satellite TV tax.
28	Samantha Harris announces that she will not return as the co-host of Dancing with the Stars in order to focus on other projects like her correspondent duties at The Insider and Entertainment Tonight.
31	In what can be described as rarity for having a person who works for one network appearing on a competitor, Fox News Channel president Roger Ailes is among the guest panelists on ABC's This Week; in a roundtable discussion, Ailes defends his network's reputation from the other panelists.

February

Date	Event
3	LeSEA announces the sale of KWHD/Denver to Liberman Broadcasting; the station will switch to Liberman's Estrella TV network after the sale is completed.
4	Comcast & Liberty Media rebrands their large-market triple play offerings under the Xfinity name.
7	106.5 million people watch the New Orleans Saints defeat the Indianapolis Colts, 31–17, to win Super Bowl XLIV. Nielsen Media Research calls CBS' broadcast of the game the most watched telecast in history, beating 1983's M*A*S*H series finale.
8	After 28½ years and a shift from music to reality programming, MTV drops the "Music Television" moniker from its logo.
9	DirecTV drops the Sirius XM Radio music channels and replaces them with DMX's Sonic Tap channels.
	After 5½ months in primetime, The Jay Leno Show has its finale on NBC, with guests Ashton Kutcher, Gabourey Sidibe and Bob Costas, plus appearances by Kurt Warner and Donald Trump.
12	The 2010 Winter Olympics begin airing from Vancouver, British Columbia on NBC and its family of networks. The remake of the 1985 song "We Are the World" for victims of the 2010 Haiti earthquake debuts as part of NBC's ceremonies broadcast.
	DirecTV sues competitor Dish Network for false advertising over TV ads which claim Dish Network has the same channels but for a much lower price. Dish Network denies all claims and counter-sues on February 16. DirecTV drops its lawsuit on April 14.
23	WWE replaces its show ECW with WWE NXT on Syfy.
28	The closing ceremonies of the 2010 Winter Olympics are held in Vancouver, British Columbia. Earlier in the day, Canada's 3–2 overtime win against the United States for the gold medal in men's hockey is seen by over 27 million viewers stateside, the best ratings for a hockey game since the 1980 Winter Olympics.

March

Date	Event
1	After securing rights formerly held by Setanta Sports USA, Fox Soccer Channel launches premium companion channel Fox Soccer Plus. As a result, Setanta Sports USA is shuttered.
	Nine months after ceding his host chair to Conan O'Brien and heading to prime-time, Jay Leno returns as host of The Tonight Show. Leno's first guests back are Jamie Foxx, Lindsey Vonn, and musical guest Brad Paisley. Betty White also makes a cameo appearance.
2	Roger Ebert is interviewed on The Oprah Winfrey Show, his first televised appearance since losing his ability to speak due to complications from a 2006 surgery for thyroid cancer.
8	ABC announces that Brooke Burke will be the new co-host of Dancing with the Stars beginning in the Spring 2010 season.
15	After 6½ months of negotiations and attacks, Versus and DirecTV resolve their carriage dispute and the channel is returned to the satellite provider's service—on the same package it was before the dispute began.
20	Dish Network/EchoStar launches its newest satellite, EchoStar XIV.
22	Monty Hall, the original and most well-known host of Let's Make a Deal, returns to the game show for a full week.
	Dish Network sues DirecTV for false advertising for a series of ads themed around the classic game show To Tell the Truth comparing Dish Network and the cable television industry as 'impostors'.
24	Cablevision partners with former sister network MSG Network to create "MSG 3D," the first dedicated 3D television network, airing a hockey game between the New York Rangers and New York Islanders. Cablevision continues to operate the channel as a special event channel, airing portions of the 2010 Masters Tournament under the name "iO TV 1300" and a New York Yankees game in conjunction with rival YES Network.
29	Fox Reality Channel ceases to exist and is converted into Nat Geo Wild. Some providers such as DirecTV and Mediacom, who failed to reach a carriage deal for Nat Geo Wild, continue to broadcast Fox Reality until Fox shutters the channel completely on June 30.

April

Date	Event
4	ESPN360, an ESPN Internet site that streams live sporting events, is rebranded as ESPN3.
5	Galaxy 15, a TV communications satellite operated by Intelsat, is reportedly drifting out of control thousands of miles above the Earth. The satellite, which transmits programming feeds from MTV Networks, Lifetime Entertainment Services, Univision, Hallmark, Showtime, C-SPAN and A&E, threatens to wander into another satellite's orbit and interfere with cable programming across the United States.
8	ESPN's first round coverage of the 2010 Masters Tournament becomes the most-watched golf telecast in cable history, as 4.9 million people tune in to see Tiger Woods' first golf outing since his highly publicized scandal.
12	After months of speculation about Conan O'Brien's future in television following his controversial exit from NBC, TBS announces that O'Brien will host a new show to air Monday-thru-Thursdays at 11PM ET beginning in November. Lopez Tonight, which had been airing in that time slot, will move to midnight.
	Kevin Eubanks, bandleader for Jay Leno's Tonight Show and prime-time series, announces his departure after 18 years with Leno.
13	LIN TV Corporation re-brands itself LIN Media in an effort to emphasize its internet and mobile interests (although the corporate name remains LIN TV Corporation).
14	Comedy Central airs the 200th episode of South Park, with many of the celebrities the series has previously mocked banding together to sue the town. After the broadcast, Islamic website Revolution Muslim posts a warning to co-creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone, stating they could face serious repercussions for their depictions of the Islamic prophet, Muhammad. The followup to the episode, "201", is heavily censored and airs only once, with the network disallowing streaming of the original, unedited version on the Internet. Authorities later investigate whether there is a connection between South Park and the Times Square car bomb attempt, which was discovered near Comedy Central parent Viacom's headquarters at One Astor Plaza in New York City on May 1.
15	Executives at Fox News Channel cancel a taped broadcast of Hannity from Cincinnati, Ohio after it was discovered that the event's organizers, the Cincinnati Tea Party, were billing host Sean Hannity as a centerpiece of the event and charging admission to the taping.
17	Matt Smith's U.S. debut as the Eleventh Doctor on the long-running British series Doctor Who pulls in the highest ratings in BBC America's history (with 1.2 million viewers).
22	Entering into a joint bid with Turner Sports, CBS is granted the rights to continue broadcasting the NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament, which it has done since 1982. From 2011 to 2015, CBS and Turner will split coverage of early rounds through the Sweet Sixteen, with CBS carrying the regional finals, Final Four and national championship. Turner will then pick up the later rounds on an alternating basis beginning in 2016. Turner's coverage will air on TBS, TNT, and truTV.
	The NFL Draft, starting in prime time for the first time ever, sets a record for number of viewers (8.3 million total between NFL Network and ESPN, 7.29 million on the latter network alone).
30	PBS Kids stops broadcasting It's a Big Big World.

May

Date	Event
2	Conan O'Brien makes his first TV appearance since his Tonight Show finale, sitting down with Steve Kroft for an interview on CBS' 60 Minutes to discuss the Tonight Show controversy and its aftermath.
4	London Broadcasting Company announces a deal to acquire KIII/Corpus Christi from McKinnon Broadcasting Company for $10 million.
8	Thanks to a successful campaign by her fans on Facebook, Betty White hosts Saturday Night Live, a show that features a Mother's Day weekend appearance by former SNL cast members Tina Fey, Amy Poehler, Molly Shannon, Maya Rudolph, Ana Gasteyer and Rachel Dratch. White's performance gains critical acclaim, and she earns an Emmy Award in August for Guest Actress in a Comedy Series, the 7th Emmy of her career.
10	Barbara Walters announces on The View that she will take a leave of absence to undergo surgery to repair a faulty heart valve.
12	Haim Saban's Saban Brands purchases the Power Rangers franchise back from Disney; the company plans to air a new 19th season of Power Rangers on Nickelodeon in Spring 2011, with the previous 700 episodes also being rerun on that network.
13	Former Food Network celebrity Juan-Carlos Cruz is arrested in Santa Monica, California for attempting to recruit homeless people to perform a murder-for-hire plot. Cruz pleads "no contest" in November to a charge of soliciting murder, and is sentenced to a 9-year prison term the following month.
14	NBC confirms it has canceled Law & Order. Series executive producer Dick Wolf reportedly considers moving the police-and-legal drama to TNT, where it has aired in reruns for several years (AMC considers making an offer as well). No network offers a move, however, and the series leaves the air on May 24 tied with Gunsmoke as the longest-running (20 seasons) prime time drama on American television.
	After a single season, Fox cancels The Wanda Sykes Show, its most recent attempt at original late-night programming on Saturdays (a time slot that previously aired MADtv and Talkshow with Spike Feresten). Since November 2010, reruns of current and older Fox shows (e.g. Terra Nova, New Girl) have occupied the time slot, though Fox later makes plans to launch new animated programming in the slot in 2013.
18	CNN prime time host Campbell Brown announces she is leaving the channel, citing difficulty in competing with Fox News' Bill O'Reilly and MSNBC's Keith Olbermann as her main reason as well as a desire to spend more time with her family.
20	The Parents Television Council announces that it plans to target CBS and its affiliates after the network's addition of the sitcom $#*! My Dad Says to its 2010–2011 fall TV lineup, with the PTC citing both the show's vulgar title and its Thursday night 8:30PM timeslot as reasons. The show is cancelled after one season.
21	In a dispute over carriage fees and allegations of the network's gravitation from information to entertainment-based programming, Dish Network drops The Weather Channel and replaces it with its own channel, "The Weather Cast." The dispute is resolved 3 days later as Dish restores The Weather Channel and shutters The Weather Cast, making it the shortest-lived cable/satellite channel in history.
22	Fuse TV airs Gulf Aid: Concert For The Coast a benefit concert in response to the Deepwater Horizon oil spill.
23	Daystar launches the digital signals of the remaining stations it purchased from Equity Media Holdings, which had been caught in limbo due to Equity's bankruptcy and the digital transition. The sign-ons come just three weeks before the stations' licenses would have automatically been forfeited back to the FCC.
26	Disney/ABC announces plans to shut down SoapNet in 2012 and replace it with a channel aimed at pre-schoolers named Disney Junior.
29	Cartoon Network rebrands with a new logo and look also holding a new slogan CHECK it.
31	Fine Living Network is shut down, relaunched and rebranded as Cooking Channel, an instructional counterpart to Food Network.

June

Date	Event
2	The New York Post reports that General Electric has finalized an exit deal for Jeff Zucker, president and CEO of NBCUniversal, worth between $30 million and $40 million. The exit would take place shortly after Comcast takes over as majority owner of the company.
4	WLGA/Columbus, GA ceases operations as an Independent station.
11	ESPN launches ESPN 3D, the country's first nationwide 3DTV channel, to coincide with the start of the 2010 FIFA World Cup.
14	Cablevision buys out Bresnan Communications for $1.365 billion.
15	Local TV buys Portsmouth, Virginia station WGNT from CBS Corporation for $16.5 million, pending FCC approval. Until the sale closes, Local TV will operate WGNT through a local marketing agreement before they move the studios to Local's CBS affiliate in the Hampton Roads market, WTKR.
16	The premiere of the TV Land series Hot in Cleveland draws 4.75 million viewers, making it the most watched program in the network's 14-year history.
17	28.2 million people watch the seventh and deciding game of the 2010 NBA Finals on ABC, in which the Los Angeles Lakers defeat the Boston Celtics to win the NBA Championship; it is the most watched NBA telecast since 1998.
22	Dish Network removes the HD feeds of Disney Channel, Disney XD, ABC Family, and ESPNews due to a carriage dispute that continues to this day.
	CNN announces the 8 PM ET time slot Campbell Brown is vacating will be filled by a talk show hosted by Eliot Spitzer and Kathleen Parker.
28	Steve Carell confirms he will leave The Office, where he portrays Michael Scott, at the end of the 2010–11 season.
	Disney Channel late night Disney's animation is discontinued.
29	Larry King announces he will end his long-running CNN program Larry King Live in the fall.

July

Date	Event
1	DirecTV and Panasonic launch n3D, the world's first 24-hour 3DTV channel.
7	Due to poor sales and possibly a decline in ratings and interest in American Idol's 9th season, the accompanying "American Idols LIVE! Tour 2010" cancels eight of its 38 shows.
8	NBA player LeBron James buys an hour of airtime on ESPN to announce he will sign with the Miami Heat via free agency instead of staying with the Cleveland Cavaliers. The advertising proceeds from the special, titled The Decision, go to the Boys & Girls Clubs of America.
9	A profanity-laced video parody involving the news department at NBC affiliate KARK-TV in Little Rock, Arkansas that later surfaces on YouTube leads to station management dismissing four employees involved in the stunt.
10	Dish Network/EchoStar launches its newest satellite, EchoStar XV.
11	The final match of the 2010 FIFA World Cup, in which Spain defeats the Netherlands, becomes the most watched soccer match in American television history, with 24.3 million people tuning into ABC and Univision to watch the final.
12	MTV Tr3́s drops the "MTV" from its name and simply becomes Tr3́s, with a new slogan "MTV: Musica y Mas" (Spanish for MTV: Music and More).
	With over 7.5 million viewers, the premiere of the TNT drama Rizzoli & Isles sets a record as the highest-rated debut for a commercial-supported cable series; it is also the second-highest debut ever for a basic cable TV series.
15	AT&T Uverse and Rainbow Media reach a new carriage deal, resolving a dispute that would have kept WE tv, AMC, Sundance Channel and IFC from being on the IPTV provider.
16	Rich Fields announces on his website that he has been let go as announcer of The Price Is Right, as producers look to change certain aspects of the game show, including adding performances by live bands and putting a comedian at the podium Fields occupied for six years. Fields is the only announcer in the history of the long running CBS game show to leave without dying. Fields however, would be one of the group of guest announcers on Wheel of Fortune (U.S. game show) in November following the death of longtime wheel announcer Charlie O'Donnell.
27	Residents in the state of Hawaii lose cable, television, telephone and Internet service from Oceanic Time Warner Cable for nearly two hours after its fiber optic cable system, located 3,000 feet deep in the Molokai Channel, is severely damaged. The hardest hit areas are the island counties of Maui and Hawaii (The Big Island). A new fiber optic cable system is expected to be in place within three to five weeks.
29	American President Barack Obama pays a visit to The View, making him the first sitting president to appear on a daytime talk show.
30	PBS Kids stops broadcasting the Emmy Award Winning cartoon Cyberchase due to a hiatus that is until 2013 though it still airs on most PBS stations like KLCS in Los Angeles and WNET in New York City.
	Ellen DeGeneres announces that she will leave as American Idol judge after one season, saying in a statement that the series "didn't feel like the right fit for me". This is followed by the announcement that Kara DioGuardi had been fired from her role as a judge after two seasons on the show.
31	Baylor University-owned PBS outlet KWBU-TV/Waco, Texas signs off the air after 21 years due to the university's budgetary concerns.

August

Date	Event
1	HSN launches a companion channel, HSN2.
	Producers of ABC's Detroit 1-8-7 announce a change to the format from mockumentary to crime drama, in response to an incident in May in which a 7-year-old Detroit girl was accidentally killed by police during the taping of an episode of A&E's The First 48.
3	Comcast announces the formation of its newest regional sports network, Comcast SportsNet Houston, which will become the exclusive home of the NBA's Houston Rockets starting in the 2012–13 NBA season and the MLB's Houston Astros starting in the 2013 MLB season.
5	After 30 years as co-host, Mary Hart announces her exit from Entertainment Tonight, effective in 2011.
7	The CW4Kids ends
10	Just two weeks after it was reported that she would be joining American Idol, Jennifer Lopez turns down the offer amid reports that she and Idol producers could not come to terms that Lopez wanted to add to her contract.
11	After 63 years as a reporter and anchorman at KTLA/Los Angeles (ever since its sign-on in 1947), Stan Chambers officially announces his retirement.
14	Toonzai debuts
16	HBO reverses a plan to cancel The Life & Times of Tim, which they announced 2 months earlier.
29	At the 62nd Primetime Emmy Awards, Mad Men wins Outstanding Drama Series, Temple Grandin nabs the Outstanding Television Movie category and Modern Family is awarded Outstanding Comedy Series. Jimmy Fallon hosts the event on NBC, which broadcasts the event live to all time zones for the first time ever.
30	An affiliation switch takes place in San Antonio, with KMYS joining The CW and KCWX taking My Network TV
31	After 11 years on the air, PBS Kids airs Dragon Tales for last time. The show has been on the network since September 6, 1999 the day of the rebrand.

September

Date	Event
1	AT&T Uverse drops Crown Media Holdings-owned channels Hallmark Channel and Hallmark Movie Channel due to a carriage dispute.
	James Lee, a gunman and armed bomber, takes the Discovery Communications Building in Silver Spring, Maryland hostage for several hours. Lee is subsequently confirmed dead by a shot to the head and the hostages are released unharmed.
2	A deal is reached between Time Warner Cable and The Walt Disney Company that prevents Disney networks such as ESPN, Disney Channel, ABC Family, and ABC owned-and-operated stations from being taken off TWC's lineup. The agreement also adds ESPN's 3D channel and Internet streaming of live sporting events.
3	Kara DioGuardi confirms she will not return as American Idol judge.
17	After 54 years on television, As the World Turns, the last of the Procter and Gamble Productions soap operas, airs its final CBS episode.
22	The producers of Sesame Street pull a taped segment featuring singer Katy Perry performing a modified "kid friendly" version of her song "Hot n Cold" with Elmo after a preview on YouTube draws complaints from parents for Perry's wearing a costume with too much cleavage showing. Later that week, Perry alludes to the incident on Saturday Night Live by wearing a low-cut Elmo T-shirt in a skit.
	American Idol confirms plans for its 10th season in 2011, including the return of Nigel Lythgoe as executive producer and a 3-judge panel of Randy Jackson, Jennifer Lopez, and Steven Tyler.
23	NBCUniversal CEO Jeff Zucker announces he will depart the company once its purchase by Comcast is completed. He has since been replaced by Comcast COO Stephen Burke.
24	CNN President Jonathan Klein resigns and is replaced by Ken Jautz.
27	Filmation's programming are transferred to Qubo night owl.

October

Date	Event
1	Sony launches a new movie channel called Sony Movie Channel, its first wholly owned American channel.
	Fox Sports en Español changes its name to Fox Deportes.
	Dish Network drops Fox-owned channels FX, National Geographic Channel, and 19 FSN affiliates due to a carriage dispute. Fox Cable Networks also informs Dish Network customers that the contracts for owned and operated Fox and MyNetworkTV broadcast stations, along with Fox affiliates formerly owned by the network and since sold to Local TV LLC expire on November 1.
	Dish Network drops MSG Media-owned channels MSG Network and MSG Plus due to a carriage dispute that continues to this day.
	CNN announces it has terminated Rick Sanchez, one day after the anchor made comments on a radio show that referred to Jon Stewart as a "bigot" and suggested that CNN is run by Jewish people.
6	BET's 106 & Park celebrates 10th anniversary of the past years of broadcasting since 2000.
8	For the first time in its 46 years, PBS affiliate KCET/Los Angeles announces that it will become an independent educational station and drop PBS on December 31, 2010.
10	After more than 13 years, Discovery Kids is relaunched (and rebranded) as The Hub, a new kids and family channel jointly operated by Discovery Communications and Hasbro, Inc.
11	Caitlin Sanchez, the voice of Dora the Explorer, sues Nickelodeon for $7 million in back pay stemming from a contract dispute.
14	A debate about the Ground Zero mosque controversy with Fox News host Bill O'Reilly results in Whoopi Goldberg and Joy Behar storming off the set of The View.
16	Cablevision pulls Fox-owned channels WNYW, WWOR-TV, WTXF-TV, National Geographic Wild, Fox Business Network, and Fox Deportes due to a carriage dispute.
21	NPR fires commentator Juan Williams for saying he gets worried and nervous when he sees people wearing Muslim attire on planes during a segment on Fox News Channel's The O'Reilly Factor the previous day. Williams would later accept a lucrative contract (worth $2 million) to join Fox news full-time.
29	Dish Network and Fox come to terms on a renewal of their carriage agreement for their broadcast stations and cable networks two days before Fox's broadcast stations, along with the formerly Fox-owned affiliates now owned by Local TV LLC were to be removed.
30	Cablevision and Fox come to terms on a new carriage agreement, restoring Fox's networks and cable channels to their systems in New York, Connecticut and New Jersey, although Cablevision calls the cost for the channels "unfair" in their release detailing the new deal under undisclosed terms.
31	Video on Demand service Fearnet launches a linear high definition channel. Currently, no carriage deals have been reached for the channel.

November

Date	Event
1	After a 21-year run on Univision, Cristina Saralegui's self-titled talk show, El Show de Cristina airs its final episode; though Saralegui was against Univison's cancellation, she continues to work with the network on a number of projects and specials.
	DirecTV removes G4 due to a carriage dispute. This marks the beginning of a slow decline, which led to G4 discontinuing all operations more than four years later.
	Dish Network and Belo Corporation come to terms on a new carriage agreement minutes before the Belo-owned stations were to be pulled in a separate carriage dispute.
4	ABC announces it will sell WTVG/Toledo and WJRT-TV/Flint back to former owner SJL Broadcasting, pending FCC approval.
5	MSNBC suspends Keith Olbermann for donating to three Democratic congressional candidates in the last weeks before the November general election against NBC News policies. Initially an indefinite suspension, MSNBC reinstates Olbermann on November 9, when the host thanks his supporters and viewers but slams MSNBC, claiming that he did not know about their policy against donating money to political candidates or parties.
	AT&T Uverse removes the suite of Scripps Networks channels, (excluding Travel Channel, which remains under a previous carriage agreement under former owner Discovery Networks) in a carriage dispute. They are restored on November 7, 2010.
	A woman on Wheel of Fortune solved the puzzle ("I've Got a Good Feeling About This!") with one letter. In the same episode hosts Pat Sajak and Vanna White pay tribute to their announcer Charlie O'Donnell who died earlier in the week on November 1.
7	Jo Frost announces that she is leaving Supernanny to start a family of her own, thus ending the series' run after seven seasons.
8	Conan debuts on TBS, 9½ months after host Conan O'Brien's departure from The Tonight Show. The premiere, which attracts 4.2 million viewers, features guest appearances by Arlene Wagner, Seth Rogen, and Lea Michele; a musical performance from Jack White; pre-taped warm wishes from Ricky Gervais; and a filmed cold-open sketch that features Larry King and Jon Hamm (as his Mad Men character Don Draper).
	ESPN announces the breakup of its longtime ESPN Sunday Night Baseball announcing team of Jon Miller and Joe Morgan, as Morgan's contract is not renewed and Miller is asked to move to radio broadcasts (Miller declines the move and leaves ESPN entirely).
	ION Media Networks announces it is acquiring ShopNBC affiliate WQEX/Pittsburgh from WQED Multimedia for $3 million. If the FCC approves, the move will give Pittsburgh its first Ion affiliate (under the new call sign WINP).
10	Oprah Winfrey invites former talk show hosts Phil Donahue, Sally Jessy Raphael, Geraldo Rivera, Ricki Lake and Montel Williams as guests on her show, the first time Winfrey had fellow talk hosts appear together since their programs left the air.
	Fox Business Network announces ex-CNN anchor Lou Dobbs will join the channel in 2011.
11	After more than 40 years, Gene Shalit leaves The Today Show.
13	In the wake of Demi Lovato's decision to enter a treatment facility to deal with "emotional and physical issues," The Disney Channel announces that her sitcom Sonny With a Chance will be temporarily revamped, focusing on sketches from the show-within-a-show "So Random," until she returns for the show's third season in January 2011.
15	St. Louis television stations KSDK (NBC affiliate owned by Gannett Company) and KDNL-TV (ABC affiliate owned by Sinclair Broadcast Group) announce that they will start joint-venturing on daily 5PM and 10PM newscasts for KDNL beginning January 3, 2011. The move will create the first local newscasts on KDNL since it dropped its own low-rated news in 2001.
16	Former reality TV producer Bruce Beresford-Redman is arrested for the murder of his wife.
17	Freedom Communications puts all of its 10 television stations on the selling block for $500 million.
19	Two weeks after Keith Olbermann's suspension for political donations, MSNBC suspends Morning Joe host Joe Scarborough for making contributions to Florida Republican candidates.
24	Dish Network drops Comcast SportsNet California after losing in FCC arbitration.
30	Susan Boyle abruptly stops her live performance of "O Holy Night" on The View after starting to cough. The singer asks to start over, but the segment ends instead with thanks from hosts Whoopi Goldberg and Sherri Shepherd and Boyle stating that she had a "frog in (her) throat." The performance is rerecorded for the West Coast airing, but the live version makes its rounds through YouTube.

December

Date	Event
2	Over 7 million people tune into TNT to watch the Miami Heat defeat the Cleveland Cavaliers in LeBron James' first appearance in Cleveland since controversially leaving the team 5 months earlier; it is the third most-watched NBA regular season telecast on cable since 1996.
9	Idaho Falls-Pocatello, Idaho outlets KIDK (a CBS affiliate owned by Fisher Communications) and KIFI (an ABC affiliate owned by News-Press & Gazette Company) announced a shared-services agreement, which will result in the termination of 27 employees.
16	CNN's Larry King Live airs its last original episode, with President Barack Obama, former President Bill Clinton, and news anchors Barbara Walters, Diane Sawyer, Katie Couric and Brian Williams among those appearing to wish host Larry King well on his retirement.
17	WSB-TV/Atlanta anchor/reporter John Pruitt anchors the 6PM newscast for the last time, ending a 46-year run at the station.
20	Salinas/Monterey, California NBC affiliate KSBW announces it will add ABC to a digital subchannel in Spring 2011, returning ABC to the market for the first time since San Jose's KNTV became a Bay Area-centric NBC affiliate in 2002.
21	The studios of ABC affiliate WSOC-TV/Charlotte are shut down for an hour and its 5PM newscast ends early after a woman enters the lobby with a gun and apparently intending to commit suicide. The woman is later apprehended and her gun is discovered to be unloaded.
26	A blizzard in the Philadelphia area postpones an NBC Sunday Night Football game between the Eagles and Minnesota Vikings to Tuesday the 28th, the 2nd postponement of an NFL game this month. (A December 12 Vikings home game with the New York Giants is moved to December 13 and played in Detroit due to damage to the Vikings' home stadium, the Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome. That game's broadcast was limited to Fox stations in the New York, the Twin Cities, Albany, Mankato, and Rochester markets.)
27	After 2 years, Adult Swim changed from 10:00 PM – 6:00 AM to 9:00 PM – 6:00 AM.
30	Hearst Television reaches a carriage fee agreement with DirecTV, keeping Hearst-owned stations on the satellite provider after December 31.
31	Time Warner Cable and Sinclair Broadcast Group announce a temporary agreement (through January 14, 2011) to keep Sinclair-owned-or-operated stations on Time Warner and Bright House Networks cable systems. The announcement comes during heated negotiations over carriage fees, during which Sinclair threatened to pull its signals on December 31 and Time Warner announced intentions to continue affected network programming through other means if that happened.
	Dish Network's current deal for E! and Style Network runs out, but a temporary agreement allows the channel to remain on while negotiations continue.

Television Programs

Programs debuting in 2010

Date	Show	Network	Source
January 1	Curb Appeal	HGTV
	The Outdoor Room
January 3	101 Tastiest Places to Chowdown	Travel Channel
	Frank the Entertainer in a Basement Affair	VH1
	Secrets of Aspen
	Worst Cooks in America	Food Network
January 4	Blood, Sweat and Takeaways	Planet Green
January 5	Wild Recon	Animal Planet
January 8	Operation Wild	Planet Green
January 11	Border Wars	Nat Geo
	Fantasia for Real	VH1
	Let's Talk About Pep
January 12	Blue Mountain State	Spike
January 13	Solving History with Olly Steeds	Discovery Channel
January 14	Carnie Wilson: Unstapled	GSN
January 16	Pit Boss	Animal Planet
January 17	Human Target	Fox
January 18	American Pickers	The History Channel
	The Buried Life	MTV
	My Life as Liz
	Life Unexpected	The CW
	Rick's List	CNN
January 19	Paranormal Cops	A&E
January 21	The Deep End	ABC
January 22	Caprica	Syfy
	Spartacus: Blood and Sand	Starz
January 25	Team Umizoomi	Nickelodeon
February 1	Kell on Earth	Bravo
February 2	The Michael Vick Project	BET
February 6	SciGirls	PBS Kids Go!
February 7	Undercover Boss	CBS
February 8	NFL Full Contact	TruTV
February 10	Inside NASCAR	Showtime
February 11	Past Life	Fox
February 13	Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood	Adult Swim
	Kick Buttowski: Suburban Daredevil	Disney XD
February 14	How to Make It in America	HBO
February 19	The Ricky Gervais Show
February 20	The Robert Verdi Show	Logo
February 23	WWE NXT	Syfy
March 1	Hero: 108	Cartoon Network
	Parenthood	NBC
March 4	The Marriage Ref
March 5	Who Do You Think You Are?
March 7	Pink Panther and Pals	Cartoon Network
March 14	Minute to Win It	NBC
	The Antonio Treatment	HGTV
	The Pacific	HBO
	Sons of Tucson	Fox
March 15	Basketball Wives	VH1
	The Price of Beauty
	TRANSform Me
March 17	Addicted	TLC
March 21	Unique Autosports: Miami	Spike TV
March 22	John King, USA	CNN
March 27	Victorious	Nickelodeon
April 2	Miami Medical	CBS
April 3	Doodlebops Rockin' Road Show	Cookie Jar TV
	ESPN Sports Saturday	ABC
	Winners Bracket
April 4	Good Luck Charlie	Disney Channel
April 5	Adventure Time	Cartoon Network
April 6	Paris Hilton's British Best Friend	TVGN
April 11	Treme	HBO
April 19	Romantically Challenged	ABC
April 23	Ben 10: Ultimate Alien	Cartoon Network
	Generator Rex
April 28	Happy Town	ABC
May 19	The Good Guys	Fox
May 27	100 Questions	NBC
May 29	Mall Cops: Mall of America	TLC
	The Special Relationship	HBO
June 1	Losing It With Jillian	NBC
June 6	Top Shot	History Channel
June 7	Neighbors from Hell	TBS
	Persons Unknown	NBC
June 8	Pretty Little Liars	ABC Family
June 10	The Green Room with Paul Provenza	Showtime
	Late Night Liars	GSN
June 11	Dual Survival	Discovery Channel
June 13	Holly's World	E!
	Rubicon	AMC
	Unnatural History	Cartoon Network
June 16	Bert the Conqueror	Travel Channel
	Hot in Cleveland	TV Land
June 20	The Real L Word	Showtime
	The Gates	ABC
	Scoundrels
June 22	Memphis Beat	TNT
June 24	Rookie Blue	ABC
June 27	Mary Shelley's Frankenhole	Adult Swim
June 28	Huge	ABC Family
	The Kilborn File	Some Fox O&O stations
July 9	Haven	Syfy
July 11	The Glades	A&E
July 12	Rizzoli & Isles	TNT
	Scooby-Doo! Mystery Incorporated	Cartoon Network
July 13	Covert Affairs	USA Network
July 19	RuPaul's Drag U	Logo
July 20	If You Really Knew Me	MTV
July 23	The Pillars of the Earth	Starz
July 26	The Huckabee Show	Fox
July 27	MasterChef
July 28	Plain Jane	The CW
August 3	18 to Life
August 5	The Real Housewives of D.C.	Bravo
August 9	Bachelor Pad	ABC
August 14	Toonzai	The CW
August 16	The Big C	Showtime
August 17	Big Lake	Comedy Central
	Melissa & Joey	ABC Family
September 1	Changing Lanes	BET
September 3	Fish Hooks	Disney Channel
September 5	Mel B: It's a Scary World	Style
September 6	The Cat in the Hat Knows a Lot About That!	PBS Kids
	NFL Rush Zone	Nicktoons
	Mad	Cartoon Network
	Regular Show
September 8	Terriers	FX
	Hellcats	The CW
September 9	Nikita
September 13	The Nate Berkus Show	Syndication
	World of Jenks	MTV
September 14	Sextuplets Take New York	TLC
September 15	Outlaw	NBC
September 17	Sym-Bionic Titan	Cartoon Network
September 18	Pair of Kings	Disney XD
September 19	Boardwalk Empire	HBO
September 20	Chase	NBC
	The Event
	Hawaii Five-0	CBS
	Mike & Molly
	Lone Star	Fox
September 21	Raising Hope
	Running Wilde
	Detroit 1-8-7	ABC
September 22	Better with You
	The Whole Truth
	The Defenders	CBS
	Undercovers	NBC
September 23	My Generation	ABC
	$h*! My Dad Says	CBS
September 24	Blue Bloods
	Outsourced	NBC
September 25	Noodle and Doodle	Sprout
September 26	Sister Wives	TLC
September 27	The Last Word with Lawrence O'Donnell	MSNBC
	qubo night owl	qubo
September 28	No Ordinary Family	ABC
September 29	Law & Order: LA	NBC
October 2	Planet Sheen	Nickelodeon
	T.U.F.F. Puppy
October 3	IRT Deadliest Roads	History
October 4	The A-List: New York	Logo
	The Arrangement
	Parker Spitzer	CNN
October 8	Gigantic	TeenNick
October 10	Food Feuds	Food Network
	Cosmic Quantum Ray	Hub Network
	Deltora Quest
	Dennis the Menace and Gnasher
	Family Game Night
	Pound Puppies
	My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic
	Strawberry Shortcake's Berry Bitty Adventures
	The Twisted Whiskers Show
October 11	Animal Mechanicals
	In the Night Garden...
	Pictureka!
	The WotWots
	Zevo-3	Nicktoons
October 12	Nick Swardson's Pretend Time	Comedy Central
October 14	The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills	Bravo
	The Vanilla Ice Project	DIY Network
October 15	The Adventures of Chuck and Friends	Hub Network
	School Pride	NBC
October 18	Bret Michaels: Life as I Know It	VH1
	The Talk	CBS
October 19	Tower Prep	Cartoon Network
October 20	The Avengers: Earth's Mightiest Heroes	Disney XD
	That's Tough	G4
October 25	American Restoration	History
	Robotomy	Cartoon Network
October 28	Police Women of Dallas	TLC
October 29	R. L. Stine's The Haunting Hour: The Series	Hub Network
October 30	America Now	Syndication
October 31	The Walking Dead	AMC
November 5	Hubworld	Hub Network
November 7	Married to Rock	E!
	Shake It Up	Disney Channel
November 8	Conan	TBS
November 16	Glory Daze
November 22	Skating with the Stars	ABC
November 26	The Fran Drescher Show	Some Fox O&O stations
	G.I. Joe: Renegades	Hub Network
November 29	Transformers: Prime
December 1	Storage Wars	A&E
December 5	The Hasselhoffs
December 6	Next Great Baker	TLC
December 20	Million Dollar Money Drop	Fox
	Perfect Couples	NBC
December 29	I Used to Be Fat	MTV
	My Strange Addiction	TLC
December 31	Wild Kratts	PBS Kids Go!

Network changes

Show	Moved From	Moved To	Source
American Chopper: Senior vs. Junior	TLC	Discovery Channel
The Doodlebops	Playhouse Disney	Cookie Jar TV
Hole in the Wall	Fox	Cartoon Network
King of the Hill		Adult Swim
Childrens Hospital	The WB
The Mighty B!	Nickelodeon	Nicktoons
Transformers	Cartoon Network	The Hub
The Martha Stewart Show	Syndication	Hallmark Channel
He-Man and the Masters of the Universe		Qubo
She-ra Princess of Power
Ghostbusters
Bravestarr
The Magic School Bus	Discovery Family
Southland	NBC	TNT
Merlin		Syfy
WWE SmackDown	MyNetworkTV

Programs returning in 2010

Show	Last Aired	Previous Network	Retitled as/Same	New/Returning/Same Network	Returning	Source
The Tonight Show with Jay Leno	2009	NBC	Same	Same	March 1
Jon & Kate Plus 8		TLC	Kate Plus 8		June 6
Last Comic Standing	2008	NBC	Same		June 7
Futurama	2009	Fox		Comedy Central	June 24
MADtv			MAD	Cartoon Network	September 6
Judge Karen		Syndication	Judge Karen's Court	Same	September 20
Spliced		qubo	Same		September 28

Programs ending in 2010

Date	Show	Debut	Source
January 22	The Tonight Show with Conan O'Brien	2009
January 26	Better Off Ted
January 29	Dollhouse
January 30	The Secret Saturdays	2008
February 8	Heroes	2006
February 9	The Jay Leno Show	2009
February 11	American Chopper	2003
February 16	ECW	2006
February 21	Wow! Wow! Wubbzy!
February 25	The Deep End	2010
March 3	Nip/Tuck	2003
March 12	Numb3rs	2005
March 17	Gary Unmarried	2008
	Scrubs	2001
March 20	Seducing Cindy	2010
	Solitary	2006
March 24	MonsterQuest	2007
March 26	Ben 10: Alien Force	2008
March 27	Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles	2003
April 2	Worldfocus	2008
April 13	Melrose Place	2009
April 14	Ugly Betty	2006
April 15	The Sarah Silverman Program	2007
April 21	Accidentally on Purpose	2009
April 26	Trauma
April 28	High Society	2010
April 30	Amanpour	2009
	NOW	2002
May 2	Cold Case	2003
May 12	The New Adventures of Old Christine	2006
	Mercy	2009
May 15	The Wanda Sykes Show
May 16	The Pacific	2010
May 17	Romantically Challenged
May 20	King of the Hill	1997
May 21	Ghost Whisperer	2005
May 22	Legend of the Seeker	2008
May 23	Lost	2004
	'Til Death	2006
May 24	24	2001
	Law & Order	1990
	10 Things I Hate About You	2009
May 27	FlashForward
May 28	The Bonnie Hunt Show	2008
	Deal or No Deal (syndicated version)
	The Tyra Banks Show	2005
May 30	The Backyardigans	2004
June 1	Totally Spies	2001
June 11	Past Life	2010
June 16	Happy Town
June 20	The Tudors	2007
June 21	Saving Grace
July 1	100 Questions	2010
July 2	Miami Medical
July 3	The Forgotten	2009
	Three Rivers
July 13	The Hills	2006
	The City	2008
July 21	Campbell Brown
July 23	Cyberchase (returned in 2013)	2002
July 26	Neighbors from Hell	2010
July 30	Aaron Stone	2009
August 1	Sons of Tucson	2010
August 7	Chowder	2007
	The CW4Kids	2008
August 14	At the Movies	1986
August 17	18 to Life	2010
August 23	Pink Panther and Pals
August 30	Huge
	The Marvelous Misadventures of Flapjack	2008
September 8	Criss Angel Mindfreak	2005
September 12	My Boys	2006
September 15	Dark Blue	2009
September 17	As the World Turns (CBS Daytime)	1956
September 21	Unnatural History	2010
September 27	Lonestar
September 30	My Generation
October 1	Rick's List
	Daily 10	2006
October 3	Caillou	2000
	Jonas L.A.	2009
October 8	Ready Set Learn	1992
October 9	My Friends Tigger & Pooh	2007
October 10	Discovery Kids	1996
October 17	Rubicon	2010
October 21	The Real Housewives of D.C.
November 1	El Show de Cristina	1989
November 2	Barney & Friends	1992
November 4	Fetch! with Ruff Ruffman	2006
November 13	Angelina Ballerina: The Next Steps	2009
	Outlaw	2010
November 21	The Venture Bros. (returned in 2013)	2003
December 1	Terriers	2010
December 5	The Hasselhoffs
	Tim and Eric Awesome Show, Great Job!	2007
December 6	Little People, Big World	2006
December 10	The Good Guys	2010
December 18	Larry King Live	1985
December 28	Tower Prep	2010
December 29	Undercovers
December 31	Discovery Health Channel	1999

Deaths

Date	Name	Age	Notability	Source
January 2	David Gerber	86	TV executive (Columbia Pictures Television and MGM Television) and producer (Police Woman, Batman, Room 222, thirtysomething)
January 4	Rory Markas	54	TV and radio sportscaster (Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim and Milwaukee Brewers play-by-play announcer; Sports anchor/reporter at Fox Sports West/Prime Ticket and Los Angeles TV stations KCBS-TV and KTTV)
January 8	Art Clokey	88	Animator (Creator of Gumby)
January 13	Teddy Pendergrass	59	R&B singer (Pink Lady and Jeff, 1985 Live Aid Telecast)
January 19	Jennifer Lyon	37	Reality television participant (Survivor: Palau)
January 22	James Mitchell	89	Actor (All My Children, The Edge of Night, Where the Heart Is)
	Jean Simmons	80	Actress, Emmy Award winner for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Miniseries for The Thorn Birds
	Johnny Seven	83	Character actor (Ironside, Amy Prentiss)
January 24	James Henry Quello	95	Broadcaster, politician, lawyer, consultant, and commissioner of the FCC; VP of Capital Cities Communications
	Pernell Roberts	81	Actor/singer (Bonanza, Trapper John, M.D.)
January 27	Zelda Rubinstein	76	Actress and activist (Jennifer Slept Here, Picket Fences)
January 29	Tom Brookshier	78	All-pro football player and NFL commentator for CBS
January 30	Aaron Ruben	95	TV creator, screenwriter, director and producer (The Andy Griffith Show, Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C., The Headmaster, Sanford and Son)
February 1	Justin Mentell	27	Actor (Boston Legal)
February 3	Frances Reid	95	Actress (Days of Our Lives)
February 4	Cecil Heftel	85	Politician (Hawaii's 1st congressional district), broadcaster and television/radio station group owner (Founder of Heftel Broadcasting, the first owners of KGMB/Honolulu, Hawaii)
February 5	Frank Magid	78	Broadcasting/marketing consultant (founder of Frank N. Magid Associates)
February 9	Phil Harris	53	Fishing boat captain and reality show participant (Deadliest Catch)
February 11	Caroline McWilliams	64	Actress and director (Soap, Benson, Another World, Guiding Light)
February 14	Andrew Koenig	41	Actor (Growing Pains)
February 16	Bo Griffin	51	TV/radio personality (Good Day Live, Extra, GSN Live, & The Big Reveal on HGTV)
March 4	Nan Martin	82	Actress (The Drew Carey Show)
March 10	Corey Haim	38	Actor (half of the acting duo The Two Coreys, also appeared in a reality show of the same name).
March 11	Merlin Olsen	69	Football player (Los Angeles Rams) and commentator (NBC/CBS Sports), actor (Little House on the Prairie, Father Murphy), commercial spokesman (FTD Florists)
March 14	Peter Graves	83	Actor (Mission: Impossible, 7th Heaven), host of Biography
March 18	Fess Parker	85	Actor (Davy Crockett, Daniel Boone)
March 19	Bill McIntyre	80	Actor (Newhart, Dallas, Murphy Brown)
March 21	Margaret Moth	58	New Zealand-born photojournalist for CNN
March 24	Robert Culp	79	Actor (I Spy, The Greatest American Hero, Everybody Loves Raymond)
March 25	Chet Simmons	81	Sports executive, first president of ESPN, later commissioner for the United States Football League
March 30	David Mills	48	Screenwriter (NYPD Blue, The Corner, Kingpin, ER, The Wire)
April 1	John Forsythe	92	Actor (Blake Carrington on Dynasty, voice of Charlie on Charlie's Angels, and starred in Bachelor Father)
April 9	Meinhardt Raabe	94	Actor (Played Munchkin who declares "the witch is dead" in The Wizard of Oz)
April 10	Dixie Carter	70	Actress (Designing Women, Diff'rent Strokes, Out of the Blue, The Edge of Night, Family Law)
April 12	Peter Haskell	75	Actor (Bracken's World, Ryan's Hope)
April 15	Benjamin Hooks	85	Former executive director of NAACP, first African- commissioner on the FCC
April 18	Allen Swift	86	Voice actor (The Howdy Doody Show, Mighty Mouse, Underdog)
April 20	Myles Wilder	77	Screenwriter (McHale's Navy, The Dukes of Hazzard)
April 27	Dorothy Provine	75	Actress, comedienne, dancer and singer (The Roaring 20s, The Alaskans, Man Without a Gun)
May 1	Helen Wagner	91	Actress (As the World Turns)
May 2	Lynn Redgrave	67	Actress (House Calls, Whatever Happened to Baby Jane?, spokesperson for Weight Watchers)
May 4	Ernie Harwell	92	TV/radio sportscaster (voice of the Detroit Tigers for 42 seasons, called the "Shot Heard 'Round the World" on TV, recipient of the Ford C. Frick Award).
May 9	Lena Horne	92	Actress, singer and entertainer (hosted her own special in 1969 and 1973; performed on Kraft Music Hall, The Ed Sullivan Show, The Dean Martin Show, The Judy Garland Show, The Hollywood Palace, and The Andy Williams Show; appeared on The Muppet Show, Sesame Street, The Cosby Show and A Different World)
May 12	Allan Manings	86	TV creator and screenwriter (McHale's Navy, Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In, Good Times, One Day at a Time)
May 19	Martin Cohan	77	Screenwriter and producer (Diff'rent Strokes, Silver Spoons, Who's the Boss?)
May 28	Gary Coleman	42	Actor, politician and former child star (Diff'rent Strokes)
May 29	Dennis Hopper	74	Director and actor (Crash, spokesperson for Ameriprise Financial)
June 3	Rue McClanahan	76	Actress (Maude, Mama's Family, The Golden Girls)
June 5	Robert Wussler	73	Broadcasting executive (CBS, Turner Sports)
June 13	Jimmy Dean	81	Singer, TV personality (The Jimmy Dean Show) and businessman
June 19	Vince O'Brien	91	Character actor (Westinghouse Studio One, Dark Shadows, Ryan's Hope, Law & Order; known as the Shell Answer Man)
June 23	Allyn Ferguson	85	Composer (Charlie's Angels and Barney Miller theme songs)
June 28	Robert Byrd	92	Politician and musician (appeared on Hee Haw as a musical guest)
July 11	Bob Sheppard	99	Public address announcer for the New York Yankees (1951–2007) and for the New York Giants (1956–2006). Voice can be heard in shows and films set at Yankees and Giants games (including several episodes of Seinfeld), as well as in commercials for YES Network.
July 13	George Steinbrenner	80	Businessman, owner of the New York Yankees since 1973, founder and owner of YES Network
July 15	Peter Fernandez	83	Voice actor (Speed Racer, Courage the Cowardly Dog)
July 16	James Gammon	70	Actor (Nash Bridges, Bagdad Cafe)
July 20	Peta Rutter	51	New Zealand actress (Udonna the Sorceress in Power Rangers: Mystic Force).
July 23	Daniel Schorr	93	Radio/TV news reporter and journalist for CBS News and CNN
July 27	Maury Chaykin	61	Actor who portrayed Nero Wolfe in the TV film The Golden Spiders: A Nero Wolfe Mystery and the A&E 2001–02 series A Nero Wolfe Mystery.
July 28	John Aylesworth	81	Screenwriter and producer (Co-creator of Hee Haw; writer for Your Hit Parade, The Sonny and Cher Show, The Julie Andrews Hour, Hullabaloo, and Kraft Music Hall)
July 29	Bernie West	92	Actor, screenwriter and director (All In The Family, Maude, Three's Company, The Jeffersons)
	Lorene Yarnell	66	Actress, mime performer, dancer and television personality (Shields & Yarnell)
July 31	Dan Resin	79	Actor (On Our Own, Edge of Night, Lovers and Friends, Captain Kangaroo, Madhouse Brigade, Remember WENN)
	Mitch Miller	99	Musician, band leader, record executive and television personality (Sing Along With Mitch)
August 8	Patricia Neal	84	Actress (played Olivia Walton in The Homecoming: A Christmas Story and as herself in The Patricia Neal Story )
August 9	Ted Stevens	86	Politician (U.S. Senator from Alaska, 1968–2009); member of The United States Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation, which oversees Communications in the United States, including the television industry, of which he made critical opinions and decisions about during his tenure
August 10	David L. Wolper	82	Producer (North and South, Roots, The Thorn Birds and the opening and closing ceremonies of the 1984 Olympic Games in Los Angeles)
August 13	Edwin Newman	91	Broadcast journalist, NBC anchor, and author (Today, Meet the Press)
August 14	Gloria Winters	78	Actress and author (Sky King)
August 15	James J. Kilpatrick	89	Conservative commentator, journalist, newspaper editor and television personality (60 Minutes)
August 21	Harold Dow	62	Radio and television journalist for CBS News
September 2	Morgan White	86	Actor and children's television host (Pogo Poge on Checkers & Pogo at KGMB-TV/Honolulu and on Hawaii Five-O)
September 5	David Dortort	93	TV producer and screenwriter (Bonanza, The High Chaparral)
September 8	John Kluge	95	German-born television/radio broadcaster and founder/chairman of Metromedia
September 11	Harold Gould	86	Character actor (Rhoda, The Mary Tyler Moore Show, The Golden Girls)
	Kevin McCarthy	96	Character actor (Flamingo Road)
September 17	Marilyn Cantor Baker	89	Screenwriter and actress (Love, Sidney)
September 23	Arthur Holch	86	Emmy Award-winning TV director and producer
September 25	Art Gilmore	98	Actor and voice actor (Highway Patrol)
September 29	Greg Giraldo	44	Stand-up comedian (Last Comic Standing, The Comedy Central Roasts)
	Tony Curtis	85	Actor (Some Like It Hot, The Defiant Ones, guest spots on several TV shows, including his only starring series, McCoy)
September 30	Stephen J. Cannell	69	TV creator, screenwriter, director, author, and actor (The A-Team, Riptide, The Greatest American Hero, Hunter, The Rockford Files, 21 Jump Street)
October 16	Barbara Billingsley	94	Actress (June Cleaver on Leave It to Beaver, the voice of "Nanny" on Muppet Babies)
October 19	Tom Bosley	83	Actor (Happy Days, Murder, She Wrote, Father Dowling Mysteries, Wait Till Your Father Gets Home)
October 27	Denise Borino-Quinn	46	TV actress and lawyer (The Sopranos)
	James Wall	92	TV actor and stage manager (Mr. Baxter on Captain Kangaroo; stage manager for CBS shows including 60 Minutes and Face the Nation)
October 28	James MacArthur	72	Actor (played Danny "Danno" Williams in the original Hawaii Five-O)
October 30	Arthur Bernard Lewis	84	Producer (Dallas)
November 1	Charlie O'Donnell	78	Announcer (Wheel of Fortune, Bandstand) and news anchor (KCOP-TV)
November 4	Julien Hug	35	Reality TV participant and restaurant owner (The Bachelorette Season 5)
	Sparky Anderson	76	Major League Baseball manager (led both the Cincinnati Reds and Detroit Tigers to World Series titles), later a baseball color commentator on TV and radio.
November 5	Jill Clayburgh	66	Actress (Ally McBeal)
November 10	Dave Niehaus	75	Ford C. Frick Award-winning sportscaster, voice of the Seattle Mariners since the team's inception in 1977.
November 28	Leslie Nielsen	84	Actor and comedian (The Naked Gun, Forbidden Planet, The Poseidon Adventure, and Airplane!)
November 29	Al Masini	80	TV producer (creator of Entertainment Tonight, Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous, Solid Gold, and Star Search)
December 5	Don Meredith	72	NFL player (Dallas Cowboys), later color commentator on Monday Night Football and NBC's NFL coverage
December 14	Neva Patterson	90	Actress (The Governor and J.J., V: The Original Miniseries, V: The Final Battle)
December 15	Blake Edwards	88	Producer, director and screenwriter (Peter Gunn)
December 20	Steve Landesberg	74	Actor and comedian (Barney Miller)
December 25	Bud Greenspan	84	Documentarian, screenwriter and sports reporter
December 26	Teena Marie	54	R&B/Dance singer, songwriter and actress (The Beverly Hillbillies; her 1981 song "Square Biz" was re-worked by Marie as the theme for The Hollywood Squares)

External links

• TV.com
• IMDB 2010 Search Page