View source for National Geographic (American TV channel)

{{short description|American television network}}
{{Redirect|National Geographic Channel|other uses|National Geographic Channel (disambiguation)}}
{{Infobox television channel
| name = National Geographic
| logo = Natgeologo.svg
| logo_size = 250px
| logo_alt = National Geographic Channel logo
| launch_date = {{Start date and age|2001|1|7}}<!-- This is the American launch date -->
| closed_date = 
| picture_format = [[720p]] [[HDTV]] <br/> (downscaled to [[480i]] for the [[Standard-definition television|SDTV]] feed)
| owner = [[The Walt Disney Company]] (2019–present)
| parent = [[National Geographic Global Networks]]
| country = United States
| language = 
| area = Worldwide<br>Nationwide
| headquarters = [[Washington, D.C.]], U.S.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://deadline.com/2024/07/disney-entertainment-television-layoffs-national-geographic-1236026106/ | title=Disney Entertainment Television Lays off 140; National Geographic Heavily Impacted | date=July 31, 2024}}</ref>
| former_names = National Geographic Channel (2001–2016)
| replaced = 
| replaced_by = 
| sister_channels = {{Collapsible list|[[American Broadcasting Company|ABC]]|[[A&E (TV network)|A&E]]|[[Crime & Investigation]]|[[Disney Channel]]|[[Disney Jr.]]|[[Disney XD]]|[[ESPN]]|[[ESPN2]]|[[ESPNews]]|[[Freeform (TV channel)|Freeform]]|[[FX (TV channel)|FX]]|[[FXX]]|[[FX Movie Channel]]|[[FYI (American TV channel)|FYI]]|[[History Channel]]|[[History en Espanol]]|[[Lifetime (TV network)|Lifetime]]|[[LMN (TV channel)|LMN]]|[[Longhorn Network]]|[[Military History (TV channel)|Military History]]|[[Nat Geo Wild]]|[[SEC Network]]|[[Vice (TV channel)|Vice]]}}
| website = {{url|https://www.nationalgeographic.com/|natgeotv.com}}
| online_serv_1 = Affiliated Streaming Service
| online_chan_1 = [[Disney+]]
| online_serv_2 = Service(s)
| online_chan_2 = [[YouTube TV]], [[Hulu + Live TV]], [[Sling TV]], [[FuboTV]], [[Vidgo]], [[DirecTV Stream]]
}}

'''National Geographic''' (formerly '''National Geographic Channel'''; abbreviated and trademarked as '''Nat Geo''' or '''Nat Geo TV''') is an American [[pay television]] [[television network|network]] and [[flagship (broadcasting)|flagship channel]] owned by the [[National Geographic Global Networks]] unit of [[Disney Entertainment]] and [[National Geographic Partners]], a joint venture between [[the Walt Disney Company]] (73%) and the [[National Geographic Society]] (27%),<ref>{{cite web | last=Parker | first=Laura | title=National Geographic and 21st Century Fox Expand Media Partnership | website=Culture | date=2015-09-09 | url=https://www.nationalgeographic.com/culture/article/150909-21st-century-fox-media-partnership | access-date=2024-03-27}}</ref><ref name="vty-deal-close">{{cite web | url=https://variety.com/2019/biz/news/disney-fox-deal-complete-1203167374/ | title =Disney Closes $71 Billion 21st Century Fox Deal | publisher = Variety | first = Cynthia | last=Littleton |  date= March 19, 2019 | access-date = April 3, 2019}}</ref> with the operational management handled by [[Disney Entertainment]].<ref>{{cite web | last=Steinberg | first=Brian | title=Disney Layoffs Affect National Geographic | website=Variety | date=2019-08-29 | url=https://variety.com/2019/tv/news/disney-layoffs-national-geographic-1203318735/ | access-date=2024-03-27}}</ref>

The flagship channel airs non-fiction television programs produced by National Geographic and other production companies. Like [[History (American TV network)|History]] (which is 50% owned by Disney through [[A&E Networks]]) and [[Discovery Channel]], the channel features [[documentary television|documentaries]] with factual content involving [[nature]], science, culture, and history, plus some [[reality television|reality]] and [[pseudo-scientific]] entertainment programming.{{Citation needed|reason='Needs verified sources to claim that National Geographic Channel intentionally aired pseudoscientific programs/shows.'|date=February 2024}} Its primary sister network worldwide, including the United States, is [[Nat Geo Wild]], which focuses on animal-related programs. 

{{As of|2023|11}}, Nat Geo is available to approximately 70,000,000 pay television households in the United States- down from its 2016 peak of 91,000,000 households.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://wrestlenomics.com/u-s-cable-network-households-universe-1990-2023-nielsen-data/|title=U.S. cable network households (universe), 1990 – 2023|website=wrestlenomics.com|date=May 14, 2024|access-date=July 28, 2019}}</ref>

==History==
In the United States, under leadership of its president [[Tim T. Kelly]],<ref>{{cite news |last1=Stilson |first1=Janet |title=Speeding Up the Growth Curve |url=https://archive.org/details/multichannel-news-international-may-2000/page/n17/mode/2up |work=Multichannel News International |publisher=Cahners |date=1 May 2000 |page=18}}</ref> the National Geographic Channel launched on January 7, 2001,<ref>{{cite news |title=Doctoring the Health Channel |url=https://worldradiohistory.com/hd2/IDX-Business/Magazines/Archive-BC-IDX/01-OCR/BC-2001-01-08-OCR-Page-0027.pdf#search=%22national%20geographic%22 |access-date=8 August 2021 |work=Broadcasting & Cable |date=January 8, 2001 |page=12}}</ref> as a joint venture of [[National Geographic Society|National Geographic Television & Film]] and [[Fox Entertainment Group#Cable network programming|Fox Cable Networks]]. National Geographic provides programming expertise and the Fox Networks Group provides its expertise on [[Distribution (business)|distribution]], marketing, and advertising sales.
[[File:National Geographic Channel.svg|left|150px|thumb|National Geographic Channel logo (2004–2013)]]

''[[The '90s: The Last Great Decade]]'', a documentary series narrated by [[Rob Lowe]], pulled in 1.10 million viewers, and was the second highest-rated July telecast in the National Geographic Channel rating history. ''The 2000s: A New Reality'', also narrated by Lowe, premiered on July 12, 2015.<ref name="Hollywood Daily Star The 2000s">{{cite web | title=Nat Geo Channel The 2000s, Rob Lowe Narrates the Naughties| publisher=HollywoodDailyStar.com| author=Gabrielle Pantera | url=http://www.hollywooddailystar.com/?p=4077| access-date=July 12, 2015 }}</ref>

On November 14, 2016, National Geographic Channel changed its name to simply National Geographic to drop the "Channel" from its name.

On December 14, 2017, in a [[Acquisition of 21st Century Fox by Disney|deal]], [[the Walt Disney Company]] announced it would buy the majority of [[21st Century Fox]]. Disney would assume control of Fox's controlling stake in the National Geographic partnership thereafter.<ref name="FoxDisneyPressRelease">{{cite press release |url=https://thewaltdisneycompany.com/walt-disney-company-acquire-twenty-first-century-fox-inc-spinoff-certain-businesses-52-4-billion-stock-2/ |title=The Walt Disney Company To Acquire Twenty-First Century Fox, Inc., After Spinoff Of Certain Businesses, For $52.4 Billion In Stock |publisher=[[The Walt Disney Company]] |date=December 14, 2017 |access-date=December 14, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171214141817/https://thewaltdisneycompany.com/walt-disney-company-acquire-twenty-first-century-fox-inc-spinoff-certain-businesses-52-4-billion-stock-2/ |archive-date=December 14, 2017 |url-status=live |df=mdy-all }}</ref> Following the acquisition, National Geographic and its sister channels were folded into [[Walt Disney Television]], with the president of the National Geographic Partners reporting directly to the Walt Disney Television chairman.<ref name="dl-tv-structure">{{cite news |last1=Andreeva |first1=Nellie |title=Disney Unveils Top TV Executive Structure Post Fox Acquisition: Peter Rice, Dana Walden, John Landgraf, Gary Knell Joining |url=https://deadline.com/2018/10/disney-top-tv-executive-structure-fox-acquisition-peter-rice-dana-walden-john-landgraf-1202473566/ |access-date=October 9, 2018 |work=Deadline |date=October 8, 2018}}</ref> Disney officially closed the deal on March 20, 2019, having then added Nat Geo into its portfolio of networks.<ref name="vty-deal-close"/>

==TV series==
{{main|List of National Geographic original programming}}
National Geographic Channel's TV series, in alphabetical order:
{{div col|colwidth=22em}}
*''[[Abandoned (TV series)|Abandoned]]''
*''[[Access 360° World Heritage]]''
*''[[Mayday (Canadian TV series)|Air Crash Investigation]]''
*''[[Alaska State Troopers (TV series)|Alaska State Troopers]]''
*''American Chainsaw''
*''American Colony: Meet the Hutterites''
*''[[American Genius]]''
*''[[American Gypsies]]''
*''American Weed''
*''America's Lost Treasures''
*''Amish: Out of Order''
*''[[Ancient Secrets]]''
*''Apocalypse 101''<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2716082/|title=Apocalypse 101|via=www.imdb.com}}</ref>
*''[[Are You Tougher Than a Boy Scout?]]''
*''[[Banged Up Abroad]]''
*''Battleground Afghanistan''
*''[[Beast Hunter]]''
*''Bid & Destroy''
*''[[Big, Bigger, Biggest]]''
*''[[The Big Picture with Kal Penn]]''
*''Bizarre Dinosaurs''
*''Borderforce USA: The Bridges''
*''The Boonies''
*''[[Border Wars (TV series)|Border Wars]]''
*''[[Brain Games (2011 TV series)|Brain Games]]''
*''[[Breakout (Canadian TV program)|Breakout]]''
*''Building Wild''<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2903156/|title=Building Wild|via=www.imdb.com}}</ref>
*''[[Cesar 911]]''
*''Chasing UFOs''
*''Construction Zone''
*''[[Cosmos: A Spacetime Odyssey]]''
*''[[Crowd Control (TV series)|Crowd Control]]''
*''[[Diggers (TV series)|Diggers]]''
*''Dino Autopsy''
*''Dino Death Match''
*''Dino Death Trap''
*''Dinosaurs Decoded''
*''Do Or Die''
*''Do Or Die: The Animals''
*''[[Dogs with Jobs]]''
*''[[Doomsday Castle]]''
*''[[Doomsday Preppers]]''
*''Drugged''
*''[[Drugs, Inc.]]''
*''[[Drain the Oceans]]''
*''[[Duck Quacks Don't Echo (American TV series)|Duck Quacks Don't Echo]]''
*''[[Eat: The Story of Food]]''
*''Europe From Above''
*''Expedition Wild Week ''
*''[[National Geographic Explorer|Explorer]]''
*''Eyewitness War''
*''Family Beef''
*''Family Guns''
*''Forecast: Disaster''
*''[[Genius (American TV series)|Genius]]''
*''[[Going Ape]]''
*''Hacking The System''
*''Hard Time''
*''Hell on the Highway''
*''[[Highway Thru Hell]]''
*''[[The Hot Zone (American TV series)|The Hot Zone]]''
*''Inside the American Mob''
*''[[Inside Combat Rescue]]''
*''Inside: Secret America''
*''Inside: Thirumala Tirupathi''
*''[[Kentucky Justice]]''
*''Lawless Oceans''
*''[[Mick Dodge|The Legend of Mick Dodge]]''
*''Let it Ride''
*''[[The World After Dinosaurs|Life After Dinosaurs]]''
*''[[Life Below Zero]]''
*''Life Hacker''
*''The Link''
*''[[Live Free or Die (TV series)|Live Free or Die]]''
*''[[Locked Up Abroad]]''
*''Lords of War''
*''[[Mars (American TV series)|Mars]]''
*''[[Megastructures (TV series)|Megastructures]]''
*''Meltdown''
*''Mountain Movers''
*''Mudcats''
*''The Numbers Game''
*''[[Origins: The Journey of Humankind]]''
*''One World: Together at Home''
*''[[One Strange Rock]]''
*''Phobia''
*''Polygamy, USA''
*''Port Protection''
*''Primal Survivor''
*''[[Race to the Center of the Earth]]''
*''[[Remote Survival]]''
*''[[Richard Hammond's Engineering Connections]]''
*''[[Rocket City Rednecks]]''
*''[[Scam City]]''
*''[[Science of Stupid]]''
*''[[Seconds from Disaster]]''
*''Sky Monsters''
*''Snake Salvation''
*''[[Southern Justice]]''
*''[[StarTalk (American talk show)|StarTalk]]''
*''[[Street Genius]]''
*''[[The Story of God with Morgan Freeman]]''
*''[[The Story of Us with Morgan Freeman]]''
*''Supercars''
*''SharkFest''
*''SuperCroc''
*''[[Taboo (2002 TV series)|Taboo]]''
*''[[To Catch a Smuggler]]''
*''The '80s: The Decade that Made Us''
*''The '90s: The Last Great Decade?''<br />(also entitled ''The '90s: The Decade that Connected Us'')
*''The 2000s: The Decade We Saw It All''
*''The Truth Behind''
*''T-Rex Autopsy''
*''T-Rex Walks''
*''[[Ultimate Airport Dubai]]''
*''Ultimate Dino Survivor''
*''[[Ultimate Factories]]''
*''[[Ultimate Survival Alaska]]''
*''When Crocs Ate Dinosaurs''
*''[[Wicked Tuna]]''
*''[[Wicked Tuna: Outer Banks]]''
*''Wild Amazon''
*''[[Wild Justice (TV series)|Wild Justice]]''
* ''Wild Russia''
*''Witness: Disaster''
*''WW2 Hell Under the sea''
*''You Can't Lick Your Elbow''
*''[[Yukon Gold (TV series)|Yukon Gold]]''
*''[[Yukon River Run]]''{{div col end}}

==Theme fanfare music==
The National Geographic Channel's signature theme [[fanfare]] music, which is played at the beginning of many of the channel's television programs, was composed by [[Elmer Bernstein]]. It was originally written in 1964 for the Society's [[television special]]s, which were broadcast on [[CBS]], [[American Broadcasting Company|ABC]], [[PBS]] and [[NBC]] from 1964 until the early 2000s.

==Other National Geographic American channels==
===National Geographic HD===
The United States [[720p]] [[High-definition television|high definition]] simulcast of the National Geographic Channel launched in January 2006. It is available on all major cable and satellite providers.

===Nat Geo Wild===
{{Main|Nat Geo Wild}}
Nat Geo Wild (stylized as Nat Geo WILD or abbreviated as NGW) is a cable/satellite TV channel focused on animal-related programs. It is a sister network to National Geographic Channel and it is the latest channel to be jointly launched by the National Geographic Society and Fox Cable Networks. It was launched in United States on March 29, 2010, focusing primarily on wildlife and natural history programming.

===Nat Geo Mundo===
{{Infobox television channel
| name = Nat Geo Mundo
| logo = Natgeologo.svg
| logo_caption = Logo used since 2016
| logo_alt = 
| image = 
| launch_date = {{start date and age|2011}}
| closed_date = 
| picture_format = 480i SDTV
| owner = The Walt Disney Company
| parent = National Geographic Global Networks
| country = United States
| language = [[Spanish language|Spanish]]
| area = Nationwide
| headquarters = 
| former_names = 
| replaced = 
| replaced_by = 
| sister_channels = 
| online_serv_1 = Service(s)
| online_chan_1 = [[FuboTV]], [[YouTube TV]], [[Vidgo]], [[Sling TV]], [[DirecTV Stream]]
| website = 
}}
Nat Geo Mundo is broadcast in American Spanish, and was launched in 2011.<ref>{{cite news|title=National Geographic Launches Nat Geo Mundo, New Network For Multi-Generational And Bicultural U.S. Latinos|url=http://www.cesarsway.com/news/appearances/National-Geographic-Launches-Nat-Geo-Mundo|access-date=July 6, 2011|date=April 4, 2011|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110701201441/http://www.cesarsway.com/news/appearances/National-Geographic-Launches-Nat-Geo-Mundo|archive-date=July 1, 2011|df=mdy-all}}</ref> It shares programming with the Nat Geo Channel available in Hispanic American countries. The channel is fully owned by the National Geographic Society with no involvement from Disney General Entertainment Content.

===Nat Geo TV===
Nat Geo TV is an [[Mobile app|application]] for [[smartphone]]s and [[tablet computer]]s, along with [[Windows 10]]. It allows subscribers of participating pay television providers (such as [[Spectrum (brand)|Spectrum]] and [[Comcast|Comcast Xfinity]]) numerous viewing options, including individual episodes of National Geographic and [[Nat Geo Wild]]'s original series and documentaries (which are made available live). On August 23, 2024, Disney began notifying its carriage partners it would discontinue the mobile and digital media player apps for Nat Geo TV, along with [[DisneyNow|DisneyNOW]], [[Freeform (TV channel)|Freeform]], [[FX Networks|FXNOW]] and [[American Broadcasting Company|ABC]], effective September 23. TV Everywhere content would still be available via their respective websites in order to funnel viewers towards Disney+ and [[Hulu]].<ref>{{Cite web|last=Bouma|first=Luke|title=Disney is Shutting Down Disney, Freeform, FXNow, & National Geographic Channel Apps|url=https://cordcuttersnews.com/disney-is-shutting-down-disney-freeform-fxnow-national-geographic-channel-apps/|access-date=2024-08-24|date=2024-08-24|website=Cord Cutters News|language=en-US}}</ref>

==Controversy and criticism==
Archaeologists have protested that National Geographic shows such as ''Diggers'' and ''Nazi War Diggers'' promote the looting and destruction of archaeological sites by promoting the work of metal detecting souvenir hunters and collectable dealers.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.huffpost.com/entry/archaeologist_n_1315867|title=Two Popular TV Shows Under Fire From Archaeologists|date=March 2, 2012|website=HuffPost}}</ref>  In 2013 the National Geographic Channel set off a firestorm of controversy with its reality show ''Diggers''. Professional archaeologists from the [[Society for Historical Archaeology]], the largest scholarly group concerned with the archaeology of the modern world (A.D. 1400–present), roundly criticized the network for promoting the theft of cultural materials on public and private land.<ref>{{cite web|title=National Geographic's Diggers: is it better?|url=https://sha.org/blog/2013/02/national-geographics-diggers-is-it-better/|website=Society for Historical Archaeology|date=February 2013 |access-date=13 July 2016}}</ref>

The show ''Nazi War Diggers'' was accused of showing unscientific and disrespectful handling of human remains.  A promotional quote from a military relic dealer, "I feel that by selling things that are Nazi-related and for lots of money, I am preserving things that museums don't want to deal with," was removed from the channel's website in March 2014. National Geographic expressed regret for how the series was presented by its own website but maintained that many of the accusations against the series were based on misinformation.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2014/03/29/arts/television/tv-series-is-criticized-in-handling-of-deceased.html|title=TV Series Is Criticized in Handling of Deceased|first=Tom|last=Mashberg|work=The New York Times |date=March 28, 2014|via=NYTimes.com}}</ref> The program was subsequently pulled from the schedules while National Geographic reviewed allegations against the series.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Mashberg |first=Tom |date=2014-03-31 |title=National Geographic Channel Pulls 'Nazi War Diggers' Series |url=https://archive.nytimes.com/artsbeat.blogs.nytimes.com/2014/03/31/national-geographic-channel-pulls-nazi-war-diggers-series/ |access-date=2025-10-29 |website=[[The New York Times]] |language=en}}</ref> The show was repackaged, amid controversy, as ''Battlefield Recovery'' for air during 2016 on [[Channel 5 (UK)|Channel 5]] in the UK.<ref>{{Cite web|date=2016-01-08|title=Channel 5 accused of supporting 'grave-robbing' over TV show Battlefield Recovery|url=http://www.theguardian.com/media/2016/jan/08/channel-5-accused-of-supporting-grave-robbing-over-tv-show-battlefield-recovery|access-date=2021-01-07|website=the Guardian|language=en}}</ref>

==See also==
* [[List of documentary television channels]]
* [[List of National Geographic documentary films]]
* [[List of programs broadcast by National Geographic Channel]]
* [[National Geographic Abu Dhabi]]
* [[National Geographic (Asian TV channel)|National Geographic (Asia)]]
* [[National Geographic (Australian and New Zealand TV channel)|National Geographic (Australia and New Zealand)]]
* [[National Geographic (Canadian TV channel)]]
* [[National Geographic (French TV channel)|National Geographic (France)]]
* [[National Geographic (German TV channel)|National Geographic (Germany)]]
* [[National Geographic (Greek TV channel)|National Geographic (Greece)]]
* [[National Geographic (Indian TV channel)|National Geographic (India)]]
* [[National Geographic (Dutch TV channel)|National Geographic (Netherlands)]]
* [[National Geographic (South Korean TV channel)|National Geographic (South Korea)]]
* [[National Geographic (British and Irish TV channel)|National Geographic (UK and Ireland)]]
* [[National Geographic (Latin American TV channel)|National Geographic (Latin America)]]
* [[National Geographic Farsi]]
* [[Nat Geo People]]

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
* [https://www.nationalgeographic.com/tv/ National Geographic U.S.A.]
* [http://www.nationalgeographicla.com/ National Geographic Latin America]
* [https://www.natgeotv.com/uk National Geographic UK]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20100507100520/http://natgeotv.com/ru National Geographic Russia]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20101115203354/http://natgeotv.com/in National Geographic India]
* [https://geographyscout.com/ National Geographic Australia]
* [https://www.natgeotv.com/nl National Geographic Netherlands]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20111015223427/http://natgeotv.com/farsi/ National Geographic Iran] {{in lang|fa}}

{{National Geographic}}
{{EmmyAward GovernorsAward}}
{{Walt Disney Television}}
{{programs}}

{{Authority control}}

{{Use mdy dates|date=October 2015}}

[[Category:National Geographic Society|Channel]]
[[Category:Entertainment companies of the United States]]
[[Category:Mass media companies based in Washington, D.C.]]
[[Category:Television channels and stations established in 2001]]
[[Category:English-language television stations in the United States]]
[[Category:National Geographic (American TV channel)| ]]
[[Category:National Geographic Partners]]
[[Category:Disney television networks]]
[[Category:Peabody Award winners]]
[[Category:Television networks in the United States]]
[[Category:Shorty Award winners]]