DStv's Oscar Pistorius Trial TV channel from Combined Artistic Productions dumps bad green screen, adds new desk, back panels.

It wasn't Judge Masipa ordered, but Combined Artistic Productions dumped the terrible green screen idea and made it a real TV set again - with a beautiful new desk and back panels - when the M-Net provided Oscar Pistorius Trial TV channel (DStv 199) resumed yesterday and concluding its coverage today.

The Oscar Pistorius Trial TV channel in its final two days of broadcast on Thursday and Friday looked "right" again -  a sophisticated, real, credible studio and presentation instead of the shocking trashed down virtual monstrosity the beautiful original set was suddenly and inexplicably reduced to during July.

The Oscar Pistorius Trial TV channel on DStv produced by Combined Artistic Productions responsible for Carte Blanche on M-Net started off with a simply beautiful set in March - white, vast, sleek, multi-purpose and wonderful to look at. It's long gone now.

Then it shamefully dumbed down the beautifulness with a small boxed in horrible green screen corner, completely unbecoming and unfitting for what the channel itself called coverage of the "biggest South Africa court case this century".

When the channel "popped up" for the last time on Thursday, the bulk of the terrible badness was gone. No green screen, no staccato camera angles. 

The Oscar Pistorius Trial TV channel's set was once again good.Not as great as when it started, but back to being above average after the dismal failure during the middle.

The Oscar Pistorius Trial TV channel resumed with a Star Trekkian type desk - beautiful! - replacing the "ship sail" design desk which was also beautiful and functional, and a blue mosaic wall panel design was added to give very nice dimension in a good blue hue to the backdrop as it mimic TV panels.

Other mistakes like the ridiculously incorrect and totally untrustworthy DStv EPG during the middle phase of the channel's run is now also fixed and corresponds with the actual on-air programming.

Oscar Pistorius Trial TV channel on DStv shutting down until 7 August when it will broadcast again when closing arguments are to be heard.

The Oscar Pistorius Trial TV channel (DStv 199) on MultiChoice's DStv satellite pay-TV platform is shutting down tonight at midnight for a third time since it began.

The Oscar Pistorius Trial TV channel will broadcast again from 08:00 on 7 August when the trial of the former paralympic athlete who shot and killed his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp last year on 14 February will resume.

The court is expected to hear closing arguments on 7 August and the Oscar Pistorius Trial TV channel,produced by Combined Artistic Productions for DStv, will carry that court proceedings again live from this date.

Katy Katopodis, asked what she is going to be doing now with all her free time during evenings, told viewers on Tuesday night during her show Court Today with Katy, "grade two homework".

The most recent start-up of the Oscar Pistorius Trial TV channel on DStv was a definite misfire: a toned-down, torn-down, reduced and redacted version of how the channel initially started.

The Oscar Pistorius Trial TV channel suddenly had reduced hours, changed shows and an altered schedule, none of which was not communicated, nor explained, in addition to a new amateurly and bad looking, green-screened virtual block fake-remake of the once amazing studio.

Oscar Pistorius Trial TV channel dumps shows, changes schedule; swops studio for fake, bad virtual set, can't bother to ensure correct DStv EPG.

They're not on trial here but it's very bad that the Ocar Pistorius Trial TV channel (DStv 199) on MultiChoice's DStv decided to dump shows in primetime and change the schedule of the just-resumed channel without even bothering to tell the press or to even ensure a proper and correct electronic programme guide (EPG) on DStv.

Furthermore the Oscar Pistorius Trial TV channel dumped its beautiful real set and now does coverage from a cheap and fake-looking virtual rendering of how the set used to look, but added blue lines and souped up flooring (because when you're colouring in with them Crayola's, why stop?)

The cut-out superimposed virtual insertion of the desk and chair floating in the air looks rough and clumzy.

The baby blue line and floor screening doesn't fit and someone forgot to draw some shadows. But hey, why care while you're drawing, right? And let's just "Starship Enterprise" this thing while we're at it.

No panning is possible anymore, just "camera angles" of zooming in and out, and the white back barrier of the "set" flashes with black spots as part of the overall new fake virtual feel.

Meanwhile The Oscar Pistorius Trial TV channel dumped The Editors with Katy Katopodis - one of the best regular strands of the channel - as well as things like Social Media Analysis of the Day.

In its place is the hour long The Trial Overview with David at 18:00 (co-incidentally not even with David O'Sullivan but with John Webb actually anchoring), Court Today with Katy at 19:00 for an hour, and Legal Round Table with David at 20:00 for an hour, until 21:00.

That is when the Oscar Pistorius Trial TV channel repeats the day's court proceedings and shows highlights of the day, ending an hour earlier than before.

The recordable and indicted timeslots on the DStv EPG do not correspond with what is actually being shown on the Oscar Pistorius Trial TV channel.

DStv subscribers recording or tuning in for The Editors will see something entirely different.

At 18:00 the DStv EPG still lists Social Media Analysis of the Day, although its The Trial Overview with David which is actually being shown.

"News of Court Today" says DStv at 19:00 on its EPG, although the real name is Court Today with Katy as Katy Katopodis now suddenly appears here, doing a different show.

(Court Today with Katy incorporates some of what The Editors was previously, with media representatives in the fake virtual studio to talk to Katy Katopodis.)

Sadly neither the channel run by Combined Artistic Productions nor MultiChoice could be bothered to communicate the changes in line-up beforehand on the dedicated DStv channel to the press and TV critics.

Nor was there any warning or basic programming publicity note that the TV channel which resumed again on Monday is now starting an hour later with the day's new programming, at 08:00 in the mornings, as opposed to 07:00 before.

The Oscar Pistorius Trial TV channel apparently also gave up on spelling with the on-screen text that appear. (unless there's really a Thee Times reporting on an Offscar for instance.)

TV with Thinus asked whether The Editors with Katy Katopodis was cancelled.

The surprising answer from the channel is: "The Editors are still on but with Katy during the 19:00 show. The duration of the live elements have been reduced for this final phase of the trial broadcast. The start time in the morning is now 8:00 and not 7:00".

The Oscar Pistorius Trial TV channel on DStv shutting down; will resume again on Monday 30 June at 09:30.

The successful Oscar Pistorius Trial TV channel (DStv 199) on MultiChoice's DStv satellite pay-TV platform will shut down again tonight and will resume again on 30 June.

The former paralympic athlete on trial for the premeditated murder of his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp has been sent by court for mental observation, leading to the postponement of the court case.

With a new date of Monday 30 June for the murder trial of Oscar Pistorius to commence, The Oscar Pistorius Trial TV channel plans to go live again from that morning at 08:00.

BREAKING. Oscar Pistorius Trial TV channel on DStv will shut down on Thursday night, 14 May at midnight until 20 May.

The Oscar Pistorius Trial TV channel (DStv 199) will shut down again at midnight tomorrow night (Thursday night) until Tuesday 20 May when it will broadcast again for that day, after which it will again go dark until the court trial resumes again later in the year.

The Oscar Pistorius Trial TV channel will be live again on Tuesday morning 20 May from 08:30 for thatday.

Tomorrow, Thursday 14 May, the Oscar Pistorius Trial TV channel will be showing highlights from the trial from week 1 right through to week 8, from 07:00 until 00:00, when the channel will shut down.

BREAKING. The Oscar Pistorius Trial TV channel on DStv to shut down for a 3rd time as Oscar Pistorius is sent for mental evaluation.

The Oscar Pistorius Trial TV channel (DStv 199) on MultiChoice's DStv satellite pay-TV platform will very likely shut down for a 3rd time - and an extended time period this time - after the murder accused, Oscar Pistorius on trial for the alleged premeditated murder of his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp, has been referred by the court for mental observation.

With no new court proceedings to follow, analyse and broadcast, the Oscar Pistorius Trial TV channel could possibly shut down tomorrow, or keep running with repeats until this coming Tuesday, 20 May, when judge Masipa will hand down the official order for Oscar Pistorius to undergo a mental evaluation.

After next Tuesday - the only day of new court coverage - the TV channel face an extended period of nothing to broadcast from the North Gauteng High Court.

Oscar Pistorius referral for mental evaluation follows the revelation from a psychiatrist for Oscar Pistorius' defence team that he has been suffering from "general anxiety disorder" or GAD, since he was just 11 months old.

Since it takes seven to eight months generally to find a place in a state-run mental institution in South Africa, and the mental evaluation can take up to 30 days, it is clear that the Oscar Pistorius Trial TV channel will be shutting down again for an extended period of time soon while this evaluation is taking place.

The Oscar Pistorius Trial TV channel will remain live until the end of Wednesday night.

The Oscar Pistorius Trial TV channel will be live this coming Tuesday.

TV with Thinus asked, but the channel has so far been unable to say what is happening from Thursday to Sunday - whether repeats will be shown or whether its shutting down.

There's also no announcement yet on the shut down after Tuesday.

MultiChoice's Oscar Pistorius Trial TV channel a massive viewership success story for DStv.

MultiChoice's Oscar Pistorius Trial TV channel (DStv 199) is a massive viewership success story for DStv, lifting ratings on the South African satellite pay-TV platform to unprecedented levels, making the channel the 4th most watched TV channel on pay-TV in South Africa since the channel launched on 2 March.

The phenomenal viewership feat makes the Oscar Pistorius Trial TV channel, which has already earned millions, the most successful pay-TV channel launched in South African television history.

That's due to the short amount of time in which the Oscar Pistorius Trial TV channel has been able to amass thousands of riveted viewers, get them to watch television for longer - and during timeslots usually suffering from anemic ratings.

The channel has successfully also managed to grow a brand-new social media community and following around a specific topic of interest  - people who then also watch the channel and interact with the various TV presenters.

The sensational court trial in the North Gauteng High Court of the paralympic athlete who shot and killed his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp on Valentines Day last year, managed to push news coverage of Nkandlagate and South Africa's general election during March and April off of the front pages of newspapers and lifted viewership of the Oscar Pistorius Trial TV channel to unprecedented numbers.

The court trial since 2 March received major coverage from global media with print and electronic media who have dedicated journalists covering the proceedings.

It's now likely that the upcoming murder trial of Shrien Dewani, now in South Africa, will likewise be televised in a similar fashion, fueling South African TV viewers' obsession for dramatic, televised court room drama.

A staggering 90% of viewers of the Oscar Pistorius Trial TV channel said they would want to watch the Shrien Dewani murder trial of his wife Anni.

During mid-March the Oscar Pistorius Trial TV channel, produced by Combined Artistic Productions for MultiChoice's DStv platform, lured more viewers than any other pay-TV channel, taking fourth place on the most-watched channels list, only behind the free-to-air channels SABC1, SABC2 and e.tv which remain the perennial front-runners.

The Oscar Pistorius Trial TV channel proved more popular than premium pay-TV channels like M-Net, Mzansi Magic and kykNET which are supplied to MultiChoice by M-Net, and instantly shot up to the coveted top 5 list of most watched TV channels on DStv.

In a phenomenal performance and ratings boost for DStv, the Oscar Pistorius Trial TV channel managed to pull at certain periods, the same viewership and even slightly surpass it, of a show like for instance Carte Blanche on M-Net - the premium pay-TV broadcaster's number one rated show and which is broadcast during prime time when a bigger possible audience is available.

Even more astounding is that the channel managed this during morning and afternoon timeslots when overall daytime TV viewership in South Africa is usually extremely low.

The channel has pulled one of its biggest audiences on Monday morning between 09:00 and 11:00 for instance - thousands of viewers tuning in during a timeslot where there's usually few people watching, or available to watch TV in South Africa.

It means that the Oscar Pistorius Trial TV channel not only brought thousands of viewers more to DStv and during times like mornings and afternoons when they wouldn't have been watching before, but also helped to lift the overall available TV audience in South Africa available to advertisers during those timeslots.

The Oscar Pistorius Trial TV channel has also been a spontaneous upsell driver to prompt DStv subscribers to upgrade to higher and more expensive DStv bouquets in order to follow the televised court trial.

DStv subscribers like Cherise de Wet, a practising attorney from George, who decided to upgrade their TV household to a higher DStv bouquet for just a month in April in order to follow to murder trial, has remained on a more expensive package solely to get the TV channel and follow the proceedings.

"The Oscar Pistorius Trial: A Carte Blanche Channel has exceeded our best expectations having gained a large and dedicated audience in South Africa and around the world," Aletta Alberts, MultiChoice's head of content tells TV with Thinus.

"The channel features consistently as one of the top 5 most viewed TV channels on the DStv platform since its inception in March 2014, unusual for a pop-up channel".

"We are very excited about the groundbreaking broadcast and social media integration and positive educational feedback we've received," says Aletta Alberts.

"The Oscar Pistorius Trial TV channel has been performing incredibly well. It has attracted massive audiences," Chris Botha, the group managing director for leading media agency The MediaShop tells TV with Thinus.

"Most importantly for DStv, it has grown their audience share in non-traditional time channels. DStv's daytime audiences are generally quite small, but the Oscar Trial TV channel has changed it all around. Some of the daytime programmes have performed better than some primetime programmes".

"That is one of the reasons DStv introduced the channel - not to make millions of ad revenue, but to grow daytime audiences that will hopefully stay on the bouquet".

"The channel has done well because the trial is so much bigger than any one media type," says Chris Botha.

"The trial has received massive exposure not only on television, but also on social media like Facebook and Twitter. The interest in the trial then drives TV viewership".

"A lot of clients are still sceptical about advertising on the channel. They don't want to be associated with it, as it polarising to some audiences, and also as it is seen as distateful".

"I don't believe it is a missed opportunity for advertisers," says Chris Botha. "I rather believe it is a grasped opportunity for MultiChoice".

"This live trial has changed the way the world is exposed to real life, and real life tragedies, via the media," says media agency Carat SA which compiled marketing and media insights about the Oscar Pistorius televised trial and TV channel.

Regular TV viewing behaviour in South Africa has been impacted, with viewers shunning their usual schedule as they seek a blow-by-blow account of the highly sensational trial, according to Carat SA.

"This story has gripped the interest of millions, and has taken 'reality TV' to a whole different level, with consumers having access to virtually every comment and development," says Carat SA.

"There is a great opportunity for advertisers to tap into audiences. However it was to be expected that brands would not immediately jump to reach these audiences, because of the sensitivities around this new landscape".

"Yet it is worth considering now what the future strategy will be, should this altered media playing field become a regular feature in our lives. There is already talk about the potential for a dedicated court TV channel, and it is expected that media houses will once again apply to live broadcast proceedings during the trial of Shrien Dewani," says Carat SA.

BREAKING. Oscar Pretorius TV trial: The surreal, real-life TV court drama that keeps on giving - Bladerunner now claims anxiety disorder.

You cannot script this: Oscar Pistorius who shot and killed his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp on Valentines Day last year and who has been on trial for premeditated murder, now suddenly claims a "generalised anxiety disorder" with court proceedings which adjourned today until tomorrow for the court to study the new report.

If Oscar Pistorius is referred for mental observation, he will spend 30 days in a state mental institution being psychologically evaluated.

This means that tomorrow (Tuesday 13 May) will be another important, must-watch day in the Oscar Pistorius murder trial to see if the judge agrees that Oscar Pistorius should go to a state mental institution for observation - or not.

It's the next massive and unexpected twist and big surprise in this much talked-about murder trial which continues to deliver surreal and real-life television soap opera drama.

The court adjourned - now with the possibility of the Oscar Pistorius murder trial stretching even longer as the former paralympic athlete known as the Bladerunner could be cloistered in a mental institution.

Being taken up in a state mental institution for 30 days in South Africa will also only happen - should the court refer Oscar Pistorius there - once there is space: in South Africa the waiting list for admission for psychological evaluation is months.

A former state psychatrist for Oscar Pistorius' defence, today claimed that Oscar Pistorius has a so-called "anxiety disorder" brought on by "an unstable childhood" and the "traumatic assault" of having his legs amputated as a baby.

It's not clear why this testimony surfaced only today, more than two months into the sensational trial which has riveted viewers worldwide and which is shown on television on TV channels like the Oscar Pistorius Trial TV channel on channel 199 on MultiChoice's DStv platform.

Keep in mind #1: It has never been Oscar Pistorius' defence that he can't distinguish between right and wrong - which is exactly now what a so-called "anxiety disorder" would suggest if Oscar Pistorius really suffers from one: that longtime anxiety issues made his unable to make sound judgments and decisions.

Keep in mind #2: The defence psychiatrist has been brought in and conducted interviews, and came to the conclusion of Oscar Pistorius' "sudden" anxiety disorder after May and during this month - two months after the murder trial started and Oscar Pistorius had been in court for several days, and more than a year after he had shot and killed Reeva Steenkamp.

KUDOS TO KATY: Katy Katopodis scores by successfully making media talk clique-ey on The Editors.

Perched atop her seat behind a mainsail shaped desk, Katy Katopidis loftily breezes through a daily, clique-ey coffee klatch with some of the who's who in South Africa's media maelstrom.

It's from this gleaming vantage point that Katy Katopodis, presenting The Editors on weekdays at 21:00 on The Oscar Pistorius Trial TV channel (DStv 199) has turned this talk show over the past two months not just into appointment television, but herself into the country's newest must-watch TV talk show star.

Holding sway over The Editors with inside jokes and off-topic references (Gareth Cliff once scared her with a snake), and filling guest seats night after night with Gauteng's mediarati for the scintillating hourly kletchfest, Katy Katopodis is equal parts reign-in kindergarten teacher and ultimate insider disher.

Katy Katopodis was clearly either head girl long ago and simply managed to maintain her imprimatur as ultimate insider, always in the know - or decided that she will grow up and become one of the presiding media mavens not just managing the news but steering the conversation.

Having logged as many hours as the first season of a successful American prime time show already, Katy Katopodis has managed to successfully turn The Editors and herself into a veritable multimedia extravaganza: creating daily appointment television taking place on a white dais with excited talkers who can't wait to share - and who are often only outdone by Katy's kindred enthusiasm.

The biggest positive yield for South African television in terms of on-screen talent upscaling from the endeavour of MultiChoice and Combined Artistic Productions' Oscar Pistorius Trial TV channel, is unquestionably the incredibly professional Devi Sankaree Govender - fully, and brilliantly holding her own; anchoring hours of studio-based coverage with alacrity and a meticulous sense of purpose.

The other big TV star made by the Oscar Pistorius Trial TV channel is unquestionably Katy Katopodis. 

If M-Net is clever (and in a perfect world) the pay-TV broadcaster and Combined Artistic Productions would develop a TV talk show around our Katy once the Oscar Pistorius trial is over - or at least add her to Carte Blanche, fronting one story a month.

You don't buy informed presence without being haughty about it and TV charisma at the corner shop. And Katy Katopodis is one of those rare TV telegentsia. 

Doing a once a week or even a half hour weekday talker with Katy Katopodis a la The Talk and a troupe of guest talkers, would definitely work as a South African TV talk show.

The Editors - supposed to be about coverage of the Oscar Pistorius trial - has been lacking in actual real and different editors and journalists from outside of the enclaved Johannesburg-centric media hub, complete with some dubious media dilletantes in the mix (also no TV critics yet on The Editors; ironic since its about a televised court trial.

The talk show has also been short on estrogen (is there a lack of clever women in South African media or is tabloid weeklies People, heat and Destiny mostly what they do?).

The over representation of XY chromosomes has however been responsible for the pushing of the envelope in many instances into deliciously risque, almost locker room-esque talk as rambunctious male guests egg and fuel each other on while big sister Katy sighs and makes as if she cannot really control the boys. 

Yet Katy Katopodis is able to lull the viewer into a sense that those who come to talk are the available spectrum of the media, with several guests who've made numerous repeat appearances. 

The Editors feel as if it is the media coming in for show-and-tell; as if you are watching the South Africa's entirety of who and what the media in South Africa is.

She knows them, they know her, and Katy Katopodis deftly demonstrates in every edition another one of television's great, mostly unteachable skills: shepherding the madness.

When it comes to guests in the oh-so-tricky live TV environment, this mediating kingfisher superbly demonstrates that she know just when and for how long to let them go (on), when to reel them in, and when to drop the next enticing info nugget - whether superfluous self-revelation or a new topic - into the multimedia mix to spice things up again.

Another interesting aspect is that Katy Katopodis knows - and isn't scared to share. There's a somewhat paradoxical quality in journalists and reporters as they climb the ranks to managing editors, editors and editors-in-chief. 

They don't deliberately do it, but like a sponge there's somewhat of a change over time in most journalists as they mature and move from information gathering and news dissemination, to soaking up news, channeling and managing it - instead of "giving it back again" quickly and constantly to the reader, listener and viewer.

Barney says sharing is caring, and Katy Katopodis is one of those people who've remained a sharer. 

In that sense, too, she is highly successful in the art of  being a TV talk show host. 

She doesn't just ask, she contributes her own thoughts to mold conversations. She doesn't just poll, she also gives her opinion (and just enough of it). She doesn't expect others to just show up and play - she's willing to play along.

Some guests she's clearly know for years and years and Katy Katopodis isn't scared to leverage that professional and personal relational power to draw them out and get them to say more than what they would have said to a stranger.

That also makes The Editors funny. The show is funny and at times extremely witty because the guests feel safe.

To a degree, The Editors on DStv's channel 199 recreates and gives shape to the never-seen, never-heard, newspaper newsrooms at night.

The guests on The Editors often say things and make remarks which are really just heard in newspaper offices during the evenings and late nights where journalists, copy editors and layout artists slave away with somewhat macabre jokes about headlines, photos, stories and some things which will never be printed.

The Editors is unashamedly clique-ey, but that's probably part of its allure. 

Here is an insider group, that the viewers who are watching and who are not working in the media themselves, feel that they want to be a part of. 

Katy and her guests know what's going on - and if you sit still and keep tuning in, the pay-off premise of The Editors is that you will know too.

BREAKING. Oscar Pistorius trial TV channel on DStv drives pay-TV subscriber upgrades; lifts DStv viewership.

You're reading it here first.

Massive fascination in the sensational Oscar Pistorius murder trial with its court proceedings beamed worldwide, and the surging popularity of MultiChoice's special Oscar Pistorius trial TV channel on DStv on channel 199 is now not just lifting DStv viewership but driving DStv subscribers to upgrade their bouquets to follow the live court room drama.

Where DStv subscribers in the past usually made use of their once a month upgrade option in order to see major sport events, TV with Thinus is now hearing from DStv subscribers who decided to upgrade their DStv bouquet specifically to get the Oscar Pistorius trial TV channel, in order to follow the dramatic and confrontational court room  action on channel 199.

Viewers are fascinated and tuning in in droves to follow the melodramatic court proceedings since an emotional - and often times wailing and crying - Oscar Pistorius took the stand on Monday and started testifying under pounding cross-examination from sudden "people's hero", state prosecutor Gerrie Nel.

Oscar Pistorius shot and killed his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp on Valentines Day last year, and is now in the dock, accused of premeditated murder in a court case the world is watching with rapt attention.

Viewers are fascinated and mesmerised for hours per day by the new soap-like court room drama playing out in the North Gauteng High Court - beautifully contained in terms of one room and daily running hours, as well as a plethora of archetypal characters: a grieving mother, a fallen sport star hero, a "pit bull" lawyer, a tough-talking defence lawyer, a strict judge, a weeping sister and a menagerie of witnesses.

MultiChoice, asked whether it can say how many, or if more DStv subscribers have requested upgrades for a month specifically due to the Oscar Pistorius trial TV channel, tells TV with Thinus that MultiChoice cannot share any subscriber figures.

Cherise de Wet, a practising attorney from George is one of the DStv subscribers who've upgraded for a month specifically to watch the Oscar Pistorius trial TV channel.

She tells TV with Thinus that their TV household did so this past Friday in order to watch and hear Oscar Pistorius.

"There was uncertainty about it, but when we heard Oscar Pistorius is definitely going to take the stand this week we upgraded immediately last Friday. We wanted to hear and see Oscar Pistorius explain what he's done".

"Every day when I get home at 18:00 the first thing I do is to switch on and watch the Oscar Pistorius trial TV channel on DStv - all the daily updates until 20:00".

"We used to watch 7de Laan and the news. I'm leaving the news for now which is Oscar anyway, because I watch it directly on the Oscar channel. I want to see and hear exactly his words. I want to see the exact court procedure and how it all happens".

BREAKING. Oscar Pistorius trial TV channel on DStv upset over another Twitter account; tell people not to follow 'fake' @oscartrialtv199.

The Oscar Pistorius trial TV channel (DStv 199) running on MultiChoice's DStv pay-TV platform is upset about the creation and existence of what it calls a "fake" Twitter account, @oscartrial_199, with another one @oscartrialtv199 also doing tweets about the murder trial.

The Twitter account directly related to the TV production of the Oscar Pistorius trial TV channel is @oscartrial199 - without the "tv" or underscore symbol.

The "199" in all the names derive from channel 199 - the channel number on DStv on which the channel is being run which has been providing live court room coverage, insights and analysis om the sensational Oscar Pistorius murder trial.

It's not clear why the Oscar Pistorius trial TV channel would consider their @oscartrial199 Twitter name as the only "official" Oscar Pistorius trial Twitter name - it is possible for anyone to create and use any untaken Twitter name on the social media network.

What has however been happening is that @oscartrial_199 has been copying, tweeting and using all of the @oscartrial199 content, while @oscartrialtv199 has been tweeting about the Oscar Pistorius court case as well.

The Oscar Pistorius trial TV channel has now been asking people to not follow the "fake Oscar trial Twitter account" and that it is being "reported".

UPDATE Friday 11 April 2014: 15:45: The Oscar Pistorius trial TV channel run by Combined Artistic Productions tells TV with Thinus in response to this morning's media enquiry that @oscartrial_199 has been reported to Twitter, and that "a notification has meanwhile been added to the fake account indicating it is a parody account and not affiliated to the official channel".

[Basically what is means is that @oscartrial_199 has been shut down now, and that @oscartrialtv199 made clear that it is a parody stream of messages.]

BREAKING. eNCA on shocking and gruesome Reeva Steenkamp image: 'eNCA has no control over the live pool feed, this is managed by Carte Blanche'.

In response to shocked South African viewers who yesterday saw - with no prior warning and no blurring - shocking images shown on South African television of the dead Reeva Steenkamp and her gruesome head injuries after being shot and killed by Oscar Pistorius - eNCA (DStv 403) says it didn't repeat broadcast the images and that it is M-Net's Carte Blanche controlling the TV feed, not eNCA.

The Oscar Pistorius trial TV channel on MultiChoice's DStv platform on DStv channel 199 showed the gruesome, extremely graphic and highly disturbing images again later to viewers on Wednesday, unblurred, and with an on-screen restriction of just 13.

Sky News (DStv 402) in a filed and edited story late on Wednesday included the images, but blurred it, warned viewers, and told them the images on the monitor behind the prosecutor and the big image shown full-screen, are going to be blurred.

The shocking on-air broadcast on Wednesday of a dead Reeva Steenkamp's head made cringe-worthy South African television history.

It was the first time in South African television history that an an image/photo of a victim, photographed dead on the scene by the police, was shown on South African television in live TV coverage of a court case and a murder trial.

'"eNCA has no control over the live pool feed, this is managed by Carte Blanche," Patrick Conroy, the group head of news at Sabido's 24-hour TV news channel tells TV with Thinus.

"eNCA did not rebroadcast the image in later bulletins, although DStv channel 199 did. We cannot explain the rationale for doing so."

"Please note the clear direction we have from the prosecution is that broadcasters can show anything on the screens, for instance photos and Whatsapp messages. Where photos to be used are graphic, the prosecutors were alerting Carte Blanche beforehand".

"They informed us that the prosecution did not do so with the image used yesterday".

"Despite the Prosecution's silence on the matter, eNCA feels it would be gratuitous to show the image deliberately".

"We have as a result of this incident, implemented an on-screen graphic warning at all times, should another picture be inadvertently shown," says Patrick Conroy.

"It was a very, very graphic image," said Alex Crawford, the Sky News special correspondent, covering the Oscar Pistorius murder trial on Sky News, "showing both bullet entry and exit wounds, brain matter all in her hair. And it was utter shocking".

"It got uncomfortable for people seeing Reeva's head up there, and it being juxtaposed with the watermelon exploding because of some fired shots. It painted a graphic and disturbing picture," said prof. Tawana Kupe, Wits academic and journalist, interviewed Wednesday night on the Oscar Pistorius trial TV channel.

Besides eNCA, Sky News and the Oscar Pistorius trial TV channel on DStv, viewers are also watching the live court room coverage of the highly sensational trial on SABC News (DStv 404) and ANN7 (DStv 405) which also use and show the live TV feed, as well as the Oscar Trial TV (OVHD 119) TV channel on OpenViewHD.

GRUESOME SHOCKER. South African TV makes history by showing for the first time a dead Reeva Steenkamp and shocking head injuries.

People in South Africa are completely shocked in today's Oscar Pistorius murder trial coverage as it was shown on television.

For the first time in South African history- and for the first time in South African television history - an image/photo of a victim, photographed dead on the scene, was shown on South African television in live TV coverage of a court case and a murder trial.

It happened when a gruesome and shocking image of victim Reeva Steenkamp, killed by Oscar Pistorius, taken by police on the night of the fatal shooting, was shown in full on TV on Wednesday.

(It is the side image visible on the screen at the right in the image above, which was shown, full screen, on broadcast television seconds later). 

While other TV channels had no on-air age restriction indicator, the Carte Blanche Oscar Pistorius trial TV channel on MultiChoice's DStv 199, carried (only) the ongoing "13" age restriction. 

It's highly debatable whether this is/was remotely sufficient for the gruesome image which was shown on South African television today.

Broadcasters - not eNCA (DStv 403), ANN7 (DStv 405), SABC News (SABC News 404), OpenView HD's Oscar Pistorius Trial channel - had no prior warning that this shocking image of a dead Reeva Steenkamp and her head blown open, was going to be shown in court and with such severe and horrific impact. 

However, why the image was repeatedly being shown on television in repeat broadcasts of the court proceedings, is unclear - although a channel like the Oscar Pistorius trial TV channel on MultiChoice did run an on-screen notification bar warning about "graphic evidence" and that "viewer discretion is advised".

Is the age restriction to show an image of a real-life person on broadcast television who is now dead - and who sustained gory and gruesome injuries and severe bodily trauma - only 13?

As a South African TV critic I do not have the answer to that question.

I'm deliberately not showing the image here - although people who tuned in to the TV channels broadcasting the court case had no prior warning and no choice.

They just unexpectedly saw it - the same way as the people inside the North Gauteng High Court who all let out a collective gasp.

Reeva Steenkamp's mother, June Steenkamp, who have sat in court every day as she did today, did get prior warning from the prosecutor that the image was going to be shown in court today.

"It got uncomfortable for people seeing Reeva's head up there, and it being juxtaposed with the watermelon exploding because of some fired shots. It painted a graphic and disturbing picture," said prof. Tawana Kupe, Wits academic and journalist, later, when he was interviewed on the Oscar Pistorius trial TV channel on Wednesday night.

"A very, very graphic image," said Alex Crawford, the Sky News correspondent, covering the Oscar Pistorius murder trial, "showing both bullet entry and exit wounds, brain matter all in her hair. And it was utter shocking".

I'm hiding the image which was shown on South African television behind a fold below. Do not scroll down further, or do not click on the link below if you do not want to see this image.

In edited news stories, 24-hour TV news channels like Sky News (DStv 402) which used pieces of the footage, it blurred both of the images, and told viewers before showing the specific scenes, that it blurred the images.

That an extremely graphic image like this was shown in a South African court is in itself not unusual. This is a murder case. 

What is highly unusual, and that happened for the first time on South African television, is that it was shown to a broad public - a viewing public which includes and can potentially include anybody. 

That is what makes the broadcast of this image shocking and unprecedented for South Africa and for South African television and for South Africa's legal profession.

It's never happened before, is unknown territory, and potentially exposes people who did not want to see something like this - for instance a 15 year old, or a 55 year old, not tuned into a news programme - to something they can't "unwatch".

If you want to see it, you will have to click on the link below at the end of this article, but I cannot stress enough that it is highly disturbing, makes for disturbing viewer, and shouldn't be watched by sensitive people.

BREAKING. MultiChoice shutters the Oscar Pistorius Trial TV channel on DStv; channel will be dead until coverage resumes on 7 April.

With no new content and fearing viewer fatigue from repeat over-exposure, the Oscar Pistorius Trial TV channel (DStv 199) on MultiChoice's DStv pay-TV platform has gone dark, telling viewers that the TV channel will only broadcast again from 7 April at 07:00.

The Oscar Pistorius Trial TV channel on DStv lost anchor Subniv Babuta this past week who left South Africa (no announcement was made to the press), and also ran into two other somewhat unforeseen challenges which made it difficult to remain on air.

Firstly the sensational Oscar Pistorius murder trial was extended from its original conclusion on 20 March - however TV with Thinus was last week told in response to a media enquiry that the TV channel would continue until the conclusion of the court case, whenever that might be.

The extension of the trial - due to the time it took for witnesses to take the stand - means that the dedicated TV channel supplied to MultiChoice by Combined Artistic Productions would remain operational and in production for a longer period than originally anticipated.

This means that MultiChoice will be utilising bandwidth and infrastructure for the TV channel for longer than originally scheduled. The cost of producing and running the TV channel will also be more.

The Oscar Pistorius murder trial will now continue until at least mid-May.

Secondly, an unexpected postponement due to illness of a court assessor - together with a public holiday, and more coming in April, as well as days where no court sittings took place - didn't help the Carte Blanche supplied channel.

It forced the channel into multiple repetitive broadcasts of recorded, earlier court proceedings which has an adverse effect on viewer interest and impacts ratings.

The decision was therefore taken to shut down the Oscar Pistorius Trial TV channel for just over a week, given costs, lack of new, rolling content, and the risk of viewer fatigue.

The Oscar Pistorius Trial TV channel which went live on 2 March, will start again on Monday 7 April at 07:00. No viewership figures were announced but the channel pulled around 190 000 viewers per day during the first week on air.

MultiChoice says the Oscar Pistorius Trial TV channel will from now on "adjust its live broadcast schedule according to the court proceedings".

BREAKING. M-Net adds special daily Oscar Pistorius murder trial court coverage as Carte Blanche blocks on weekdays at 21:30 from Monday.

You're reading it here first. 

Not a word about it from anyone, and you won't find it on any TV schedule or even MultiChoice's electronic programme guide (EPG) on DStv, but M-Net is adding daily Oscar Pistorius murder trial court coverage on weekdays from Monday 3 March at 21:30 to the M-Net (DStv 101) schedule.

Carte Blanche and M-Net will bring viewers a daily summary, insight, news and a court case wrap-up of the day's proceedings.

I'm told the content on the M-Net channel will be provided by MultiChoice's 24-hour Oscar Pistorius trial TV channel which is supplied to DStv by Combined Artistic Productions and which is also the production company behind M-Net's Sunday evening magazine show, Carte Blanche.

I'm told the daily weekday Carte Blanche Special Report on the Oscar Pistorius murder trial will be a short summary of 5 to 10 minutes of the day's events.

M-Net and the Oscar Pistorius trial TV channel have started running on-air promos about the daily Oscar Pistorius special reports which will be broadcast on the M-Net channel.

BREAKING. MultiChoice's Oscar Pistorius trial TV channel launches on DStv on Sunday night without a hitch; brimming with content.

MultiChoice's brand-new Oscar Pistorius trial TV channel launched on Sunday night at 20:00 on DStv on channel 199.

The DStv channel launched successfully and beautifully, without any evident on-air problems or unprofessional snafus, providing viewers with a slick, well-produced channel from a specially built set.

The Oscar Pistorius trial TV channel opened with a rousing intro, utilising the theme music from Carte Blanche on M-Net. The longtime Carte Blanche anchor Derek Watts appeared first.

Lter the new TV channel brought South African TV viewers another first: the Carte Blanche presenter Devi Sankaree Govender behind an anchor desk.

The lighting, makeup, presenting - the whole framing - was perfect.

The social media blocks on-screen - feeding in information from social media networks just as the TV executives running this new DStv channel said it would be doing in a new revolutionary way - are however too small and difficult to read, even on a very big flat screen television.

Notice in the background the motorised, aerial drone with mounted camera in the publicity shot on the roof of the various reporters who will be covering the Oscar Pistorius court case.

BREAKING. Oscar Pistorius trial TV content to be pushed to MultiChoice's DStv Explora Catch Up; some content made available BEFORE its aired.

You're reading it here first. 

You will need a DStv Explora for this: MultiChoice plans a TV content smorgasbord download of special Oscar Pistorius documentaries, interviews and inserts  - and not only that: MultiChoice will be making some of this Carte Blanche produced content accessible to DStv subscribers before it is actually broadcast on television.

MultiChoice and Carte Blanche will do a repeat of what it did at the end of 2013 after the death of Nelson Mandela when hours of dedicated, special content covering a wide aspect of the life and times of Nelson Mandela were pushed to DStv Explora decoders. DStv subscribers were able to access and watch it instantly and on their own time.

Now MultiChoice and Carte Blanche will do the same with the content that will be broadcast on the linear Oscar Pistorius trial TV channel which will run on channel 199 on DStv, making large chunks of that content also available to DStv subscribers on an on-demand basis on the DStv Explora.

No list of programming or schedule of the documentaries which will be broadcast on the DStv channel has been released or made available yet, but TV with Thinus can reveal that there will for instance be a documentary entitled (or in the style of) "The Real Reeva". It will be shown on Thursday 7 March at 19:00 on channel 199.

Other documentaries and inserts which will be shown on the channel and which will be pushed to the DStv Explora's Catch Up functionality include things like multiple Crime Scene: Pretoria inserts, Robert Shapiro: For the Defence and Burden of Truth.

What even more startling is that some of this content will also be made available to DStv subscribers on the DStv Explora even before it is broadcast on the linear channel 199.

With DStv Catch Up on the DStv Explora DStv subscribers will be able to watch documentaries, inserts and interviews from the DStv Oscar Pistorius trial TV channel hours before its shown in some cases.