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 Bethpage, NY - The new season of MSG Varsity’s The Challenge will feature teams from 32 Westchester/Hudson Valley high schools competing in television matches beginning in November.
This award-winning high school quiz show is premiering on MSG Varsity, Cablevision’s new 24/7 television network dedicated to everything high school, with new episodes Sunday through Friday at 6:30 pm on Cablevision’s iO TV (Channel 14).
The Challenge features the best and brightest high school students across the tri-state area. For the first time in the show’s history, viewers can watch the competition unfold in other regions - the Westchester/Hudson Valley matches can be viewed at 6:30 pm on Wednesday evenings. The Challenge will repeat during the weekend on News 12 Westchester/Hudson Valley at 6:30 PM and 9:30 PM.
New this season is Jared Cotter, former FUSE TV host and a popular semi-finalist from American Idol. Cotter will serve as moderator, asking competing high school teams questions based on their knowledge of history, arts and literature, current events, math and science.
“MSG Varsity is all about celebrating students and we’re thrilled to work hand-in-hand with students and schools to air programs like The Challenge that both resonate and inspire,” notes Theresa Chillianis, MSG Varsity’s General Manager. “With new host Jared Cotter and a new home on MSG Varsity, this thirteenth season will be especially energized and exciting.”
The Challenge began as a Long Island effort 13 years ago and now includes the entire tri-state area — Long Island (with Nassau and Suffolk as two distinct regions), the Bronx, Brooklyn, Westchester/Lower Hudson Valley, New Jersey and Connecticut. This season, 184 high schools will be participating with the goal of becoming the Tri-State Challenge Champion and winning $10,000 for their school and $500 for each team member competing in that final round.
Fans of the show can also visit a dedicated page on Facebook that provides a behind-the-scenes look at the actual studio tapings and offers visitors a chance to sound off, share their experiences and cheer on their high school team.
The Challenge is produced in partnership with Cablevision’s education initiative, Power to Learn – the company’s ongoing commitment to the development and learning of students in the tri-state area. The show has received a Beacon Award – the industry’s highest award for public affairs excellence – as well as a New England Cable & Telecommunications (NECTA) Award for Public Service and Excellence in Cable Television.
More information on The Challenge, including standings, statistics and short contestant bios, is available on www.powertolearn.com.
About MSG Varsity
MSG Varsity is a multi-platform suite of services comprised of: a 24/7 television network, a comprehensive online destination, and a groundbreaking interactive service, all dedicated to high school sports, academics and activities happening throughout the tri-state area. Content for these services includes MSG Varsity’s professionally produced programming as well as content created by the high schools themselves. Working in partnership with MSG Varsity, students and faculty are given extraordinary access to curriculum and training in multimedia creation and distribution, empowering them to become active participants in telling their school’s stories. MSG Varsity is a Cablevision exclusive service not available to satellite or phone company TV subscribers and reaches three million households throughout the New York market. For more information, please visit www.msgvarsity.com.
About Cablevision
Cablevision Systems Corporation (NYSE: CVC) is one of the nation's leading media and entertainment companies. Its cable television operations serve more than 3 million households in the New York metropolitan area. The company's advanced telecommunications offerings include its iO TV® digital television, Optimum Online® high-speed Internet, Optimum Voice® digital voice-over-cable, and its Optimum Lightpath integrated business communications services. Cablevision operates several successful programming businesses, including AMC, IFC, Sundance Channel and WE tv, through Rainbow Media Holdings LLC, and serves the New York area as publisher of Newsday and other niche publications through Newsday Media Group. In addition to these businesses, Cablevision owns Madison Square Garden and its sports teams, the New York Knicks, Rangers and Liberty. The company also operates New York's famed Radio City Music Hall, the Beacon Theatre, and the Chicago Theatre, and owns and operates Clearview Cinemas.
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