ION Media Networks (AMEX:ION), a leader in the national effort to combat childhood obesity, today announced innovative advertising and media initiatives for its qubo® and ION Life digital networks aimed at improving children's health and reducing the rates of childhood obesity in the U.S.

qubo, ION's multi-platform children's entertainment partnership, has made a commitment not to air national advertising that features unhealthy food and beverage choices. Furthermore, qubo will work with its advertising and marketing partners to promote the importance of healthy eating and active lifestyles and will actively seek to grow advertising categories that emphasize these topics. In addition, in selected episodes of new original content, qubo will create storylines addressing good eating habits and physical activity.

?ION remains committed to raising the bar for children's programming through positive messaging directly in our programming content and by setting distinct standards for our advertisers,? said Brandon Burgess, C.E.O., ION Media Networks. ?We are pleased to join our industry, the Federal Communications Commission and Congress to focus on providing a constructive television environment that will promote healthy lifestyle choices for children. Chairman Martin, Commissioners Copps and Tate and Senators Brownback and Harkin's leadership is resulting in major positive changes in how our children will be exposed to food advertising on television.?

qubo is committed to leveraging its digital multi-platform offerings to promote children's healthy eating and lifestyles. It will create over-the-air packaging and a PSA campaign that will emphasize the importance of eating healthy foods and performing physical activities. Moreover, qubo.com will have a special section devoted to healthy lifestyle choices and a parents' section which will highlight the importance of maintaining healthy, active lifestyles for kids at home and at school. In addition to qubo's dedicated 24/7 digital network, ION Media Networks provides three hours a week of qubo programming on ION Television, which reaches over 93 million households nationwide.

?We can't think of a more important goal than to help kids and families learn about how to lead healthier and stronger lives,? said Rick Rodriguez, President and General Manager, qubo. ?Educating families about these subjects is an important element of the qubo mission and we are excited to work with our production, marketing and advertising partners to highlight these important issues on our many different content platforms.?

The ION Life network, a digital multicast channel also distributed by ION Media Networks, has agreed to provide a dedicated amount of program time focused on the diet, nutrition and fitness needs of children. Examples of this programming will include Kids Healthworks, which provides information on children's health at each parenting stage; Growing up Hispanic, which will address childhood obesity and Type II diabetes in the U.S. Hispanic population; and general programs promoting exercise, nutrition and active lifestyles for the whole family. In addition to the digital network, ION Life presents a weekly, one-hour branded program on the company's flagship network, ION Television.

?ION Life remains dedicated to providing quality programming which inspires people of all ages to live healthier lives,? said Marc Zand, Senior Vice President, Digital Networks, ION Media Networks. ?We are buoyed by Chairman Martin and the FCC's leadership and welcome a heightened focus on the early development of healthy eating habits and promotion of physical exercise for children to address the childhood obesity crisis in the U.S.?

ION Media Networks has long demonstrated leadership on children's health and fitness, including participation in the Task Force on Media and Childhood Obesity, a government and industry initiative created to examine the impact of the media on childhood obesity rates and to collaborate on voluntary recommendations addressing the alarming rise in the number of obese children.

About ION Media Networks

ION Media Networks, Inc. owns and operates the nation's largest broadcast television station group and ION Television, reaching over 93 million U.S. television households via its nationwide broadcast television, cable and satellite distribution systems. ION Television currently features popular television series and movies from the award-winning libraries of Warner Bros., Sony Pictures Television and CBS Television, among others. ION Media also has partnered with RHI Entertainment, which owns over 4,000 hours of acclaimed television content, to provide weekend primetime programming consisting of exclusive original programming and quality library titles. Utilizing its digital multicasting capability, the company has launched several new digital TV brands, including qubo, a television and multimedia network for children formed in partnership with several leading media and entertainment companies, and ION Life, a television and multimedia network dedicated to health and wellness for consumers and families. For more information, please visit www.ionmedia.tv.

About qubo

qubo® is a new multi-platform entertainment destination for children that focuses on literacy and values and celebrates the unlimited possibilities of a child's imagination. Formed in 2006 by an unprecedented alliance of leading distribution partners and content players in children's television, including Scholastic, ION Media Networks, NBC Universal, Corus Entertainment and Classic Media/Big Idea, qubo offers dynamic content in multiple environments. Currently broadcast on NBC Saturday mornings, ION TV network Fridays afternoons and Telemundo weekend mornings (check local listings) qubo also includes a 24/7 digital broadcast channel and Web site, www.qubo.com.

For ION Media Networks, West Palm Beach
Nancy Zakhary, 212-986-6667
nancy@braincomm.com