DECEMBER 6, 2012

2012 Sportsman Choice Award Finalists Announced

New Berlin, Wis. (December 6, 2012) - Sportsman Channel, the leader in outdoor TV for the American Sportsman, is pleased to announce the finalists in the 2012 Sportsman Choice Awards, the network's viewer-decided awards program. Winners will be crowned at the Sportsman Choice Awards party, held annually in Las Vegas during the S.H.O.T. (Shooting, Hunting, Outdoor Trade) Show on January 17. The process began with Sportsman Channel producers narrowing the field to five finalists in eleven categories, but the final say goes to the network's viewers, who had their opportunity to cast their votes beginning on November 5th. All shows and show hosts airing on the network in 2012 are eligible.

Tens of thousands of viewers voted daily online for their favorite shows and hosts. Plus, one lucky voter won a trip to Las Vegas to see the awards happen up close and personal.

The 2012 Sportsman Choice Award categories are: Best Hunting Show, Best Shooting Show, Best Fishing Show, Best Combination (hunting and fishing) Show, Best Educational/Instructional Show, Best New Series, Best Host(s), Best Show Open, Best Overall Production and Full Draw Award (bowhunting). Viewers also voted on the Moment of the Year clip award. This "moment" or sequence should celebrate or honor the one moment that most exemplifies everything we cherish about being a sportsman.

"Sportsman Channel offers the only viewer-decided awards in our industry, and with the best-in-class programs available, the process is one of the most extensive," said Todd Hansen, Sportsman Channel COO. "We are extremely proud of these finalists and look forward to seeing who the viewers decide should accept these prestigious awards in January."

Finalists are listed below for each category in alphabetical order:

Best Combination (hunting and fishing) Show: Wyoming's Call of the Wild, Outdoor Junkies, Skull Bound TV, G3 Sportsman, Brotherhood Outdoors

Best Educational/Instructional Show: MeatEater, Personal Defense, FlatsClass, A Rifleman's Journal, Muddy's Midwest Whitetail with Bill Winke

Best Fishing Show: Wild Fish Wild Places, One More Cast with Shaw Grigsby, Addictive Fishing, In-Fisherman, Strike King's Fish Hard

Best Host: Steven Rinella, Randy Newberg, Mike Hanback, Brian "Pigman" Quaca, Bill Winke

Best Hunting Show: Whitetail Properties, Hardcore Pursuit, North American Whitetail, Muddy's Midwest Whitetail with Bill Winke, Pigman: The Series

Best New Series: Destination Whitetail, Realtree's Monster Bucks, Elite Archery's Respect the Game, MeatEater, Dropped: Project Alaska

Best Overall Production: Territories Wild, Hallowed Ground Outdoors, TAC TV, Dropped: Project Alaska, MeatEater

Best Shooting Show: NRA's Guns & Gold, Ruger's Adventures, Davidson's Gallery of Guns, Guns and Ammo, World of Beretta

Best Show Open: Dropped: Project Alaska, TAC TV, NRA's Guns & Gold, Hallowed Ground Outdoors, BackCountry Quest TV

Full Draw Award (Bowhunting Show): Bowhunter, Major League Bowhunter, Relentless Pursuit, Easton Bowhunting TV, Heartland Bowhunter

Moment of the Year: Heartland Bowhunter, Relentless Pursuit, Big Deer TV, Territories Wild, Pigman: The Series

The 2012 Awards will be announced on January 17 at the Shooting, Hunting, and Outdoor Trade Show in Las Vegas, NV.

About Sportsman Channel: Launched in 2003, Sportsman Channel, and Sportsman HD, is the only television and digital media company fully devoted to sportsmen and women, delivering entertaining and educational programming focused exclusively on hunting, shooting and fishing activities. Sportsman Channel reaches more than 31 million U.S. television households and is available in HD, visit http://sportsmanhd.com for more information. Visit www.thesportsmanchannel.com, follow on Twitter, @SPORTSMANchnl