NEW YORK, Feb 29, 2008 — SIRIUS Satellite Radio (Nasdaq: SIRI) announced today that it will offer listeners nationwide unprecedented access when His Holiness Pope Benedict XVI embarks on his first pastoral visit to the United States from April 15-20, 2008.

SIRIUS’ The Catholic Channel (channel 159) will be the flagship for coverage of the first visit to the U.S. by a Pope since 1999, providing hourly updates with the latest news and information on the Pope’s activities during his visit, live coverage of all the major events, and more. SIRIUS, in addition to The Catholic Channel coverage, will dedicate multiple channels to the Pope’s visit, to provide listeners with simultaneous access to Papal events, commentary, and rare archival recordings of Masses and speeches from historic Papal visits — which will include, among others, Pope John Paul II’s 1995 address to the United Nations General Assembly.

The Catholic Channel, an exclusive collaboration between SIRIUS and the Archdiocese of New York, will offer the most comprehensive coverage available as Pope Benedict journeys to Washington, D.C. and New York City. The Catholic Channel airs 24 hours a day, all year long exclusively on SIRIUS channel 159 and will carry all major Papal events and speeches live, including the Masses from Nationals Park in Washington, D.C., Yankee Stadium and St. Patrick’s Cathedral in New York, the Youth Rally at St. Joseph’s Seminary in Yonkers, NY, and Pope Benedict’s visits to the United Nations and Ground Zero. In addition to broadcasting the events, hosts from The Catholic Channel will broadcast live, on-site at every public event with pre and post-event coverage, expert guests and the perspective from the people that will gather from all over the world to witness the Pope’s visit.

The Catholic Channel’s exclusive daily programming lineup-which features shows hosted by His Eminence Edward Cardinal Egan, Archbishop of New York, Dave and Susan Konig, Fr. Dave Dwyer, Gus Lloyd, Fr. Paul Keenan, Bob Dunning, “The Catholic Guy” Lino Rulli, and others-will present daily news and commentary on the Papal Visit and offer a forum for people throughout the U.S. to call in and discuss this historic event.

“The Catholic Channel will be the radio home for the visit of our Holy Father,” said Cardinal Egan. “Our listeners will hear everything related to the Papal Visit, plus the insights and commentary of our on-air hosts. We’ll have complete coverage and exclusive features, all on The Catholic Channel.”

“Together with the Archdiocese, SIRIUS will cover this historic event in an unprecedented manner, giving SIRIUS listeners around the country access to Pope Benedict on every step of his journey,” said Scott Greenstein, SIRIUS President, Entertainment and Sports. “The unique coverage and commentary from The Catholic Channel’s diverse on-air team will provide a one-of a-kind listening experience for people from all generations, religious affiliations and walks of life.”

The Catholic Channel launched in December 2006 and airs nationally 7 days a week/24 hours a day exclusively on SIRIUS. The lifestyle radio channel features contemporary daily talk shows focused on Catholicism in the 21st century, live daily Mass from Saint Patrick’s Cathedral in New York, plus Notre Dame football and basketball games. Listeners can call in to talk about the issues that are on their minds and in the news — everything from what’s happening in the Church today, to the headline stories of current events, and the latest in the world of entertainment, the arts and sports.

Posted by RyanM on Friday, February 29th, 2008 at 12:43 pm.
Filed in Press Release, Sirius.
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