# Cartoon Network Cartoon Network is an American cable and satellite channel launched by Turner Broadcasting in October 1992 that became a hub for animated programming, show crossovers, and a games-heavy website. Its lineup of original cartoons and the late-night Adult Swim block turned it into a fixture of 1990s and 2000s pop culture that fans still argue about online. ## Overview Cartoon Network is an American cable and satellite television channel that first went on air in October 1992 as part of the Turner Broadcasting System[3]. The network built its identity around round-the-clock animated programming, playful bumpers, and frequent crossovers between its original shows[3]. Its companion website doubles as a dedicated hub for browser games tied to those shows[3]. Beyond the linear channel, Cartoon Network is best known online for spawning shows that fans keep quoting, screenshotting, and remixing years after they aired. The late-night Adult Swim block, aimed at the 18-34 crowd, is often credited as the network's most culturally durable programming brand[2]. That mix of kid-friendly cartoons by day and edgier animation by night is what gave Cartoon Network its distinct dual personality. The channel is also a recurring target for nostalgia posts and complaints on sites like Urban Dictionary, where users lament the loss of shows like Dexter's Laboratory and Courage the Cowardly Dog in favor of newer programming[5]. That love/hate relationship is a big reason Cartoon Network keeps showing up in meme culture at all. ## How It Spread Cartoon Network expanded well beyond the United States, and its international footprint became a story in its own right. In the UK, Turner ran a full kids' portfolio that included Cartoon Network, Boomerang, Toonami, Cartoon Network Too, and Boomerang +1[4]. On May 24, Toonami was rebranded as Cartoon Network Too across Sky, Tiscali TV, Virgin TV and Top Up TV, mixing top Toonami shows with current Cartoon Network favorites[4]. The Cartoonito preschool block, which had launched in September 2006 with shows such as Barney, Hi-5 and Pororo, was spun out into a standalone preschool channel[4]. Stateside, the channel's programming direction became a flashpoint online. Starting in June 2009, Cartoon Network rolled out several live-action reality shows including Survive This, The Othersiders, and Brain Rush, moving away from its animation roots[1]. Fans revolted. A 14-year-old viewer in Melbourne, Florida named Ashley Rosario posted a YouTube video complaining that shows like Chowder and The Marvelous Misadventures of Flapjack had been pushed aside, and the LA Times noted she was far from alone[1]. Ratings backed up the frustration: from January to August 2009, the network averaged 370,000 viewers ages 9 to 14 in prime time, a 30% drop from four years earlier per Nielsen Media Research[1]. Management churn followed the audience churn. Stu Snyder, who had overseen Turner's animation efforts including Cartoon Network for six years, announced his resignation in March 2014 after tensions with new Turner president David Levy[2]. By that point Adult Swim was widely regarded as the channel's best-known prime-time asset[2]. Fan discourse kept the network's reputation alive in a different way, with Urban Dictionary entries cataloging complaints about lost shows and shifts in the Friday night lineup[5]. ## How to Use As a brand rather than a template, Cartoon Network typically shows up in memes through screenshots, clips, and quotes from its original shows. Common conventions include reaction images pulled from Ed, Edd n Eddy, Courage the Cowardly Dog, and Adult Swim programming, plus nostalgia posts comparing the older lineup to the current one[5]. Fans often frame the network itself as the punchline, riffing on programming decisions or the shift toward live-action shows that drew backlash in 2009[1]. ## Frequently Asked Questions ### What is Cartoon Network? Cartoon Network is an American cable and satellite television channel launched in October 1992 as part of the Turner Broadcasting System, built around 24-hour animated programming[3]. ### Where did Cartoon Network come from? It was launched by Turner Broadcasting in October 1992 to give the company a dedicated home for its Hanna-Barbera, MGM and Warner Bros. animation libraries[3]. ### What does Cartoon Network mean? The name refers to the channel's original mission as an all-animation cable network, though by the late 2000s there were reportedly internal whispers about dropping Cartoon from the name as the lineup shifted toward live-action shows[1]. ### How do you use Cartoon Network in memes? Online, people typically use screenshots, quotes and clips from its original shows as reaction images and nostalgia posts, and often joke about the network's programming decisions[5]. ### Is Cartoon Network still popular? The channel is still on the air and Adult Swim is still considered its strongest brand for the 18-34 audience, though the LA Times documented a 30% drop in the 9-14 prime-time audience between 2005 and 2009[1]. ### Who owns Cartoon Network? Cartoon Network started as part of the Turner Broadcasting System and later operated under Time Warner ownership through Turner[1]. ### What is Adult Swim? Adult Swim is Cartoon Network's late-night animated programming block aimed at the 18-34 demographic, and is widely cited as the channel's best-known brand[2]. ### What happened to Toonami in the UK? On May 24, Toonami was rebranded as Cartoon Network Too across Sky, Tiscali TV, Virgin TV and Top Up TV, blending top Toonami shows with current Cartoon Network favorites[4]. ### Why did fans get angry with Cartoon Network in 2009? Starting in June 2009 the channel launched live-action reality shows like Survive This, The Othersiders and Brain Rush and pushed aside animated favorites like Chowder, which fans complained about in YouTube videos and press coverage[1]. ### Who created Powerpuff Girls and Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends? Craig McCracken created both series, which the LA Times identified as two of Cartoon Network's most popular shows[1]. ### What was Cartoonito? Cartoonito started as a preschool block on Cartoon Network Too in September 2006, airing shows like Barney, Hi-5 and Pororo, and was later spun out into a standalone preschool channel in the UK[4]. ## References 1. [https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2009-aug-17-fi-ct-cartoon17-story.html]() 2. [https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/envelope/cotown/la-et-ct-turner-animation-head-stu-snyder-exiting-20140306-story.html]() 3. [https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/sites/cartoon-network]() 4. [https://www.animationmagazine.net/people/turner-makes-toon-channel-changes/]() 5. [https://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=Cartoon%20Network]() --- Source: https://meme.com/memes/cartoon-network Published by meme.com — The Internet Meme Library