TrueReal and Defy TV, a complementary network targeted at men aged 25–54, launched together on July 1, 2021, with broadcast coverage of 92% of the United States. On March 27, 2023, TrueReal's schedule was merged with Defy and its channel space was reused to carry programming from Jewelry Television.[1]
History
On March 2, 2021, Scripps announced that it would launch two new multicast networks—Defy and TrueReal—in the wake of its acquisition of Ion Media and television transmitters across the United States.[2] The channels are part of Scripps's strategy to increase penetration among cord cutters that do not have traditional pay-TV packages.[3] The tentative name for the network before launch was Doozy, but the name was later changed to TrueReal, clarifying the network's content.
The services launched on July 1 with 92% national coverage, mostly through Ion Television stations, but also on subchannels of some Scripps local TV stations and by agreement with other station groups.[4]
On March 10, 2023, Scripps announced that TrueReal would shut down on March 27, merging its programming with that of Defy TV. After its closure, Scripps began leasing the open spectrum it created on its owned and operated stations to Jewelry Television.[5] Defy TV and its schedule would be wound down on June 30, 2024 to make way for a re-launch of Ion Plus over-the-air, with the A&E library moved to a new network, simply called Defy, under the management of Free TV Networks.
