NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jan. 6, 1997--The Odyssey Channel, a national interfaith cable channel, will provide daily coverage of the historic visit of Pope John Paul II to Cuba, January 21 - 25, 1998. The channel will carry live telecasts of liturgical and other events, as well as specially-produced background segments.
Odyssey's coverage, presented as special editions of the channel's News Odyssey program, begins each day at 10 a.m. (ET) with the papal liturgy of the day. Each evening during the Papal visit, Odyssey will present 90-second News Odyssey updates at 9 p.m. (ET).
Live coverage will commence with the Pope's scheduled arrival in Havana on Wednesday afternoon, Jan. 21, and will include all major liturgical events during his visit.
The Pope's trip will be the first visit by a pope to Cuba. In addition to its historic significance, it is expected to be a watershed event in relations between the Catholic Church and the Communist government of Fidel Castro. Odyssey's coverage will explore the religious revival in Cuba, of which the Pope's visit is a part.
Odyssey regularly covers contemporary events in the world of religion and spiritual belief. In addition to its weekly religious news program "News Odyssey," the channel has recently carried live interfaith coverage of such diverse events as the Promise Keepers rally in Washington, DC, and the funeral of Mother Teresa in Calcutta.
Anchoring Odyssey's coverage will be News Odyssey's regular host, Demetria Kalodimos. The coverage will be produced by veteran correspondent Bill Turpie. News Odyssey is a co-production of United Methodist Communications and Odyssey Productions Ltd.
The Odyssey Channel is jointly owned by VISN Management Corp. a subsidiary of the National Interfaith Cable Coalition, Inc., and Liberty Media Corp. (LBTYA), a subsidiary of Tele Communications Inc. (TCOMA). NICC is a consortium of 66 Protestant, Catholic, Eastern Orthodox and Jewish faith groups and evangelical traditions.
The 24-hour channel is available to more than 30 million homes through 1,500 cable systems, the Primestar direct-to-home satellite service (Channel 84), and C-Band dish owners across the country. (See also: http://www.businesswire.com)
04:33 p.m Jan 06, 1998 Eastern
Copyright 1998, Business Wire