In the first major effort at synergy since Viacom Inc. bought Black Entertainment Television in 2001, the cable channel announced that it will be the home for reruns of three TV series with primarily black casts that are produced by Viacom’s Paramount unit: “The Parkers,” “Girlfriends” and “Soul Food.”
Reruns of “The Parkers,” a comedy starring Countess Vaughn and Mo’Nique on UPN, will begin in the fall, followed by “Girlfriends” (also a UPN series) and “Soul Food” (on Showtime, another Viacom unit) in 2004.
In another example of the cross-promotional efforts, BET said it will rerun 12 “Soul Food” episodes beginning Jan. 21 “as a means of preparing viewers for ‘Soul Food’s’ fourth season on Showtime premiering April 9.”
President Debra Lee said the channel is seeking to diversify its programming. The outlet has been criticized for relying too heavily on music videos.
