"Durham County", ION Television's Critically Acclaimed Crime Series, to Launch Second Season as Two-Hour Premiere on Sunday, January 3, 2010

Network to Marathon Season One on Saturday, January 2; New Season Moves to Sunday Nights

"True Blood" and "In Treatment" Actress Michelle Forbes Joins "Durham County" Cast

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. -- The lesson that "love hurts" is well learned by the characters who inhabit the eerie suburb of "Durham County," when the second season of ION Television's critically acclaimed original primetime series launches with a two-hour premiere on Sunday, January 3 from 9:00 � 11:00 PM, ET. A marathon of the series' first season will precede the season two launch, airing from 5:00 � 11:00 PM, ET on Saturday, January 2. "Durham County," which debuted this past fall, returns to the bleak and disturbing landscape of an alienated suburbia with a new star villain � Michelle Forbes, known for her intense portrayals on the hit HBO series "True Blood" and "In Treatment" this year. The show will be broadcast in its new regular timeslot at 10:00 PM, ET on Sundays beginning Sunday, January 10.

Produced by Muse Entertainment and Back Alley Films, "Durham County" unfolds season two in the aftermath of the devastating impact of serial killer Ray Prager (Romano Orzari) on the lives of its characters, anchored by Homicide Detective Mike Sweeney (Hugh Dillon, CBS' "Flashpoint"), his now estranged wife Audrey (H�l�ne Joy) and their traumatized teenage daughter Sadie (Laurence Leboeuf). While the true villain of the first season turned out to be Sweeney's former high school classmate and new neighbor, the evil threat in the second season comes from a woman who develops a close bond with Mike, the brilliant, but deeply troubled forensic psychiatrist Pen Verrity (Michelle Forbes). Rejected by her husband and grieving for a daughter we can't be certain she didn't kill, she sets her sights on having Mike Sweeney � at any cost.

"The successful debut of �Durham County' fulfilled our expectations as our first original series, particularly among our key 25�54 demographic," said Leslie Chesloff, Executive Vice President, Programming, ION Media Networks. "In season two, our protagonist is trying to keep his broken family together in the aftermath of a serial killer, while he is lured into an incredibly dangerous place by a seductive woman. Viewers will be on their seats wondering what Pen will do next, who she might target and whether Mike will realize the terrible threat she poses before it's too late. Season two will be a real nail-biter!"

"Durham County" is written by Laurie Finstad-Knizhnik ("Bliss") and helmed by directors Adrienne Mitchell, Alain DesRochers (Nitro) and Rachel Talalay (Terminal City). Michael Prupas ("Human Trafficking") of Muse Entertainment and Janis Lundman and Adrienne Mitchell ("Bliss") of Back Alley Films serve as executive producers. The series has received 13 Gemini Award nominations, including five wins: Best Actor for Justin Louis, Best Actress for H�l�ne Joy, Best Direction for Holly Dale, Best Writing for Laurie Finstad Knizhnik and Best Sound. In addition, the show was nominated for four Director's Guild of Canada Awards, winning two and taking home the CFTPA's Indie Award for "Best Dramatic Series."

The program was also recognized with nominations from the Writer's Guild of Canada and ACTRA Montreal. In a deal signed last January with ITV Global Entertainment, ION Television acquired the exclusive U.S. rights to the critically acclaimed and award-winning original TV series, "Durham County." In addition, the network secured all U.S. television, digital media rights, internet streaming and video-on-demand rights for the program.

About ION Television

ION Television (www.iontelevision.com) is a general entertainment network which reaches over 96 million U.S. television households via its nationwide broadcast television, cable and satellite distribution systems. Launched in 2006, ION Television features popular TV series and movies from the award-winning libraries of CBS Television, NBC Universal, Twentieth Television and Warner Bros. Parent company, ION Media Networks, Inc., owns and operates the nation's largest broadcast television station group. Using its digital multicasting capability, ION Media Networks has launched the digital TV brands qubo, a channel for children focusing on literacy and values, and ION Life, a channel dedicated to active living and personal growth. It also has launched Open Mobile Ventures Corporation (OMVION), a business unit focused on the research and development of portable, mobile and out-of-home transmission technology using over-the-air digital television spectrum. For more information, visit www.ionmedia.com.