The Last 2 Networks Airing Bill Cosby's Shows Have Now Pulled Them

As news broke that Bill Cosby had admitted to supplying drugs to young women he intended to have sex with, two more networks are severing ties with him. Bounce announced today that it will stop airing Cosby—a sitcom that aired on CBS from 1996 to 2000—"effective immediately." The network had no further comment. The last network left regularly running a Cosby series in syndication—BET-owned Centric, which calls itself "The First Network Designed for Black Women"—has also thrown in the towel. A Centric rep told Adweek that the network will pull all Cosby Show episodes beginning tomorrow "until further notice." Formerly known as BET Jazz, Centric aired three episodes of The Cosby Show each day as part of a lineup that includes Family Matters and The Steve Harvey Show. The network, available in 51 million homes, had previously scheduled two Cosby Show marathons this weekend, with nine episodes airing Saturday starting at 10 a.m. ET and six episodes set for Sunday. Bounce, aimed at African Americans, is an ad-supported channel available for free on the digital broadcast signals of local television stations around the country. The network aired Cosby weekdays at 5 p.m. and 5:30 p.m., alongside shows like The Bernie Mac Show, The Hughleys, Roc and A Different World. Cosby was not airing on Bounce last fall when dozens of women stepped forward to accuse Cosby of sexual assault over the past several decades. On Monday, the Associated Press reported it obtained documents revealing Cosby testified in 2005 that he got Quaaludes with the intent of giving them to young women he wanted to have sex with, and he admitted giving the sedative to at least one woman and "other people." Last November, as the shocking sexual assault allegations continued to mount, several outlets cut ties with the suddenly radioactive comedian, including NBC (which had been developing a new sitcom with him), Netflix (which was set to debut a standup special during Thanksgiving) and TV Land (which pulled Cosby Show reruns from its lineup). But at the time, Centric and Aspire—a Magic Johnson-owned cable network—said they would continue to air their respective Cosby series. Aspire reversed course a couple weeks later, removing both The Bill Cosby Show (which ran from 1969 to 1971) and I Spy (1965 to 1968) from its schedule on Dec. 12. Bounce and Centric aren't the only networks to have had a change of heart regarding Cosby. Singer Jill Scott, one of the few celebrities to stand by Cosby last fall, reversed her stance Monday in light of Cosby's testimony, tweeting, "I stood by a man I respected and loved. I was wrong."

Convergent TV

The Last 2 Networks Airing Bill Cosby's Shows Have Now Pulled Them

Centric and Bounce TV throw in the towel

Jason Lynch

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Jason Lynch