For Wisdom Television, a fledgling network that takes self-help as its programming theme, finding an interested network buyer would contribute significantly toward its own self-empowerment in the distribution fray.

The Bluefield, W. Va.-based service has been in what it calls a ?soft launch? since 1998 but is now embarking on a more concerted effort to improve its subscriber numbers. The current thrust of this effort is an affiliate-marketing campaign called ?A Time for Renewal,? in which Wisdom is being offered for free to operators until the end of the year. To help get the message out, the network recently hired its first four affiliate salespeople.

At the same time, Wisdom ? through its parent company Wisdom Media ? is also exploring possible buyers or partners, inside and outside of television, to help in making swift distribution gains. Its president and CEO, Cynthia Sheets, didn't name a specific target that Wisdom was wooing but said that several other networks and network groups were potential partners and that she had initiated talks with them. ?We have some great opportunities to partner with people within the category,? says Sheets, ?and expand outside of television. Our main goal is still to increase distribution, and what we do in terms of a deal depends on what someone lays on the table where distribution is concerned.?

Currently, Wisdom's primary source of revenue ? in the absence of license fees ? is advertising, which executives say is limited. Wisdom has 4 million subscribers, and many potential advertisers, according to Sheets, who are waiting for fuller distribution before jumping in. (Wisdom also has an agreement ? though by no means guaranteed carriage ? with the National Cable Television Cooperative, a coalition of small operators nationwide with more than 12 million subscribers.) Its fiscal lifeline, however, is provided by privately held Turner Vision Inc., which is part of Wisdom Media and has been a satellite marketer for 15 years.

Other networks, such as the Inspiration Network and the faith channel Trinity Broadcasting Network (TBN) have, to a lesser extent, focused on personal empowerment as a content theme. In TBN's case, the network has built a base of more than 55 million subscribers by offering itself free to operators since its inception and asking for viewer support, much like PBS does.

At a time when Joyce Brothers is showing up on CNBC in the mornings to counsel viewers on how to cope with travel anxiety, there's little doubt that Americans' nerves and emotions are frayed.

One of Wisdom's own programming contributions is an original four-part series called Power of Peace which debuted Nov. 18 and will continue through December. The show is hosted by Harry Belafonte and Uma Thurman and profiles different contexts in which peace is being strived for ? Israeli and Palestinian teenagers convening at a retreat in Maine, for instance.

Operators still need to be convinced that their subscribers need Wisdom Television.

?We really have to guard our bandwidth,? says Gary Shorman, president and CEO of Eagle Communications, a small MSO in Kansas with 15,000 subscribers. ?And unless interest in a network is something really significant, we're just not that interested in adding more channels, even to our digital service.?

Bob Gessner, president of Massillon Cable in Massillon, Ohio, says, ?You can get a few months free from just about any new network. The free months aren't the problem; it's what happens after that makes the big impact.?

Neither operator carries Wisdom as yet.

While the network hasn't specified the terms under which carriage agreements might continue after the end of the year, it has said that if operators signed on during the ?Time for Renewal? promotion, they would be eligible for contract terms including license-fee abatement and other incentives.

The network has also offered local ad sales as another carrot for operators. Currently, the network has limited ad support, according to Sheets, but it would like to attract local advertisers like chiropractors, health-food stores and environmental organizations.

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