TV News
Dr. Phil's new Dallas-Fort Worth network snags ex-true crime queen
Nancy Grace
Merit Street Media, the new Fort Worth-based network founded by Dr. Phil McGraw, is throwing down a slate of crime shows headlined by Nancy Grace, the one-time crime queen who hosted shows on Court TV and HLN.
According to a release, the news and entertainment cable broadcasting network will air a daily four-hour "true crime block" that includes:
- Crime Stories with Nancy Grace, an all-new show from the former prosecutor and renowned legal analyst
- Cops re-runs
- Jail re-runs
- True Crime: Dr. Phil, consisting of repackaged classic Dr. Phil episodes where McGraw investigated headlining cases.
In addition, The Behavior Panel, a YouTube sensation, will air a weekly show on Fridays.
Grace left her primetime show on HLN in October 2016, due to a shrinking audience, after 12 years on air. In a statement, McGraw calls Grace "an unmatched expert and legend in this field," and also "a longtime friend which makes her joining Merit Street even more special."
Grace says, "I can now take the mission to fight crime and let the voices of crime victims be heard to an incredible new platform. As a crime fighter and victim of violent crime myself, this message is my life’s work.”
The crime programming will begin airing February 26 — the network's premiere date — starting at 2 pm CST. The schedule is as follows:
2 pm Monday-Friday: Cops, the long-running 30-minute reality show filmed on location with real police departments, created by the late John Langley, which has aired for 35 seasons.
2:30 pm Monday-Friday: Jail, a behind-the-scenes look into the toughest jails and prisons in America through the eyes of Corrections Officers dealing with hardened criminals. Also created by the late John Langley, this 30-minute show ran for 5 seasons.
3 pm Monday-Thursday: Cops re-runs.
3:30 pm Monday-Thursday: Jail re-runs.
3 pm Friday: The Behavior Panel, a one-hour show starring body language and behavioral analysts Mark Bowden, Greg Hartley, Chase Hughes, and Scott Rouse, collectively known as The Behavior Panel, who for years have provided military, law enforcement, and Fortune 500 companies with expert interpretation of the gestures, fidgets, posture, and speech patterns that reveal human behavior. Their YouTube videos have amassed more than 4 million views.
Their weekly show will analyze news conferences, interviews, and public appearances by headline-makers that capture worldwide attention, tipping off viewers to signs of dishonesty and deception.
4 pm Monday-Friday: True Crime: Dr. Phil, a one-hour show featuring classic episodes from McGraw’s longtime running daytime talker, Dr. Phil, where exclusive interviews and investigations have included Gypsy Rose Blanchard, Ariel Castor’s kidnapped survivor Michelle Knight, and Burke Ramsey, brother to murdered toddler JonBenet Ramsey.
5 pm Monday-Friday: Crime Stories with Nancy Grace, a one-hour show wherein she will explore the inside stories of true crimes — ripped from today’s headlines — as well as cold cases waiting for new leads.
Merit Street's majaor media presence is its television network, established in partnership with Trinity Broadcasting Network, a fully cable, satellite, and free over-the-air broadcast media brand that potentially reaches more than 65 million television homes.
