BET News and CENTRIC to Broadcast Live Coverage of Whitney Houston's Funeral Services This Saturday, February 18 Beginning at 11:30AM ET, Followed by a One Hour Original Special "BET REMEMBERS WHITNEY" at 7:00PM*

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Feb 16, 2012, 06:31 ET

NEW YORK, Feb. 16, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- The woman, the wonder, the legend....BET and CENTRIC honor the memory of Whitney Houston with a BET News special LIVE: THE HOMEGOING OF WHITNEY HOUSTON premiering this Saturday, February 18, followed by BET REMEMBERS WHITNEY, a one-hour special commemorating the woman best known as The Voice.

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Beginning at 11:30AM ET/8:30AM PT, BET News and CENTRIC, along with on-air correspondents April Woodard and Lola Oguinake will bring viewers complete live, in-depth coverage of the legendary pop singer's funeral from her childhood church, New Hope Baptist Church, in Newark, New Jersey. Later that evening at 7:00 PM*, BET News correspondent Bevy Smith sits down with confidants and colleagues of the Queen of Pop including Kim Burrell, Kelley Price, Faith Evans, Ledisi, India.Arie, Tisha Martin Campbell and Tichina Arnold to share tender memories of the superstar's greatest qualities as a vocalist, mentor, mother and friend. BET REMEMBERS WHITNEY takes a deeply personal and heartfelt look at one of music's most beloved and renowned artists and recalls the amazing force behind her meteoric rise to superstardom and her uncanny ability to inspire others in a powerful way –whether in the spotlight or far away from the cameras.

Additionally, LIVE: THE HOMEGOING OF WHITNEY HOUSTON will air internationally on Saturday, February 18 at 4:30PM GMT / 6:30PM CAT and BET REMEMBERS WHITNEY will air internationally on Sunday, February 19 at 7:00 PM GMT / 9:00 PM CAT.

Over the years, BET has celebrated Houston's incredible talent with a Lifetime Achievement Award at the inaugural BET AWARDS in 2001; a BET HONORS Entertainer award in 2010 during which she was paid tribute by Kim Burrell and Jennifer Hudson and most recently, Houston performed "I Look To You," alongside Kim Burrell at BET's 2011 CELEBRATION OF GOSPEL.

For up-to-the-minute details on Whitney Houston, please visit www.bet.com/news. Viewers can also keep up with this developing story on Twitter by following @BET.

Additionally, past tributes and performances of Whitney Houston can be viewed on BET.com:

*All times are ET/PT.

About BET Networks

BET Networks, a subsidiary of Viacom Inc. (NASDAQ: VIA, VIAB), is the nation's leading provider of quality entertainment, music, news and public affairs television programming for the African-American audience. The primary BET channel reaches more than 90 million households and can be seen in the United States, Canada, the Caribbean, the United Kingdom and sub-Saharan Africa. BET is the dominant African-American consumer brand with a diverse group of business extensions: BET.com, a leading Internet destination for Black entertainment, music, culture, and news; CENTRIC, a 24-hour entertainment network targeting the 25- to 54-year-old African-American audience; BET Digital Networks - BET Gospel and BET Hip Hop, attractive alternatives for cutting-edge entertainment tastes; BET Home Entertainment, a collection of BET-branded offerings for the home environment including DVDs and video-on-demand; BET Event Productions, a full-scale event management and production company with festivals and live events spanning the globe; BET Mobile, which provides ringtones, games and video content for wireless devices; and BET International, which operates BET in the United Kingdom and oversees the extension of BET network programming for global distribution.

About CENTRIC

Centric is a 24-hour music and entertainment channel that reflects the lifestyle and sophistication of today's African-American and multicultural adult viewer. With a finger on the pulse of an ever-changing beat, its compelling music content fuses Soul, R&B, Neo-Soul, Hip Hop, Reggae, Gospel, Jazz, Old School, New School and everything in between with today's hottest artists. It is a unique mix of music, culture and lifestyle programming that embodies the lives, tastes and aspirations of the CENTRIC viewer: All you. All day. All night.

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