Nellie Andreeva

Twentieth Television will be testing another potential first-run syndication program on the Fox Television Stations. Dish Nation, a half-hour pop culture/celebrity news program in the vein of TMZ, will debut July 25 for a six-week trial run on Fox stations in several markets including New York, Los Angeles, Washington DC, Atlanta, Phoenix, Detroit and Baltimore. It will feature four drive-time radio teams: Scott Shannon and Todd Pettengill (The Big Show with Scott & Todd on New York’s WPLJ), Rick Smiley (Rick Smiley Morning Show on Atlanta’s WHTA), Blaine Fowler and Allyson Martinek (Blaine & Allyson on Detroit’s WDVD and DJ Felli Fel (Los Angeles’ Power 106). Dish Nation will be filmed daily at each of the team’s studios and highlight the top moments from their radio shows that day. Their banter will be illustrated with animation, images and video footage. The show is envisioned as a companion to the Warner Bros-produced TMZ, which airs on the Fox stations, as well as local news or off-network comedy series. Twentieth has been testing syndication prospects on the Fox stations before making a decision whether to go national, most recently with a Craig Kilborn talk show last summer.

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