Adult Swim, (usually stylized swim with its signature square brackets), is an adult-oriented television network sharing channel space with Cartoon Network in the United States.Adult Swim/CN Split Cements Strategy. ICv2. March 3, 2005. The programming features animated shows, including original programming, syndicated shows, and Japanese anime, generally with minimal or no editing for content. The shows are geared toward a 17+ audience, in contrast to the child and pre-teen daytime programming on Cartoon Network. The shows and commercial breaks are usually interrupted by "bumps", or moments where short jokes or Internet fan feedback (which they sometimes respond to in a sarcastic manner when it is negative) are broadcast in simple white letters over a black screen.

History

Adult Swim began as a "spin-off" of Cartoon Network, premiering on September 2, 2001 with the airing of Home Movies. The name is derived from public swimming pools often having designated times when children are restricted from using the facilities in favor of adults. These times are often referred to as "adult swim". The first anime broadcast on Adult Swim was Cowboy Bebop. On March 28, 2005, Atlanta-based Turner Broadcasting, split Adult Swim from Cartoon Network so Nielsen Media Research could treat it as a separate channel for ratings purposes. Some Adult Swim programming is available on demand on the Internet via Adult Swim Video, a free, ad-supported streaming video service.

Originally a Sunday-only block with reruns on Thursdays, Adult Swim now airs Monday through Saturday from 11pm-6am Eastern Standard Time, and Sundays from 10pm to 6am.

The network is programmed by Williams Street Studios, who have created Toonami and Miguzi; they play American animated series and shorts geared towards adults, and in the past have played a wide variety of Japanese anime series, OVAs, and movies.

Promotions for Adult Swim are targeted towards the college age and those in their twenties and thirties, constituting the majority of their viewers. According to a September 1, 2004 article in Promo magazine, representatives travel to 30 universities across the U.S. to promote the Adult Swim lineup, including handing out posters for students' dorm rooms.

In the beginning of every hour, Adult Swim would show a Parental Advisory label following a statement such as "Adult Swim programming may be inappropriate to some viewers". Since 2007, the PA label was taken off. However, it was brought back by sister network Cartoon Network as its nightly sign off.

On August 1st, 2008, Adult Swim aired a special "old school lineup" night that went back to the original swimming pool motif and aired episodes of original hits such as Home Movies, The Brak Show, Sealab, Space Ghost, and Cowboy Bebop.