| Date | Event |
| January 1 |
The television rating system, a system similar to the one used for motion pictures, goes into effect. |
| WWOR-TV's WOR EMI Service is officially discontinued, re-uplinked into a local version a month later. |
| Cartoon Network gets its very first official launch for the first time in New Zealand. |
| January 3 |
Bryant Gumbel anchors his last Today show on NBC. The following Monday, Matt Lauer takes over alongside Katie Couric. |
| January 6 |
Sunset Beach premieres on NBC. |
| January 12 |
King of the Hill premieres on Fox. |
| January 22 |
New World Communications is acquired by Fox. The deal makes 10 New World-owned stations that affiliated with Fox as a result of the 1994 United States broadcast TV realignment network O&O's. |
| January 26 |
Fox broadcasts its first Super Bowl, making it the last of the big four networks to air a Super Bowl. The Green Bay Packers defeat the New England Patriots 35-21 in a game that gives Fox its highest ratings to date. |
| February 1 |
The final affiliation switch resulting from the 1994 United States broadcast TV realignment takes place when Allbritton Communications (owners of WJLA-TV in Washington, D.C., one of the strongest ABC affiliates in the country) converts WB affiliate WBSG in Brunswick, Georgia into a semi-satellite of new sign-on WJXX in Orange Park, Florida, which assumes the ABC affiliation for the Jacksonville market. Former ABC affiliate WJKS promptly discontinues its news operation and assumes the WB affiliation from WBSG. |
| February 9 |
On Fox, The Simpsons airs the episode "The Itchy & Scratchy & Poochie Show". With this episode, The Simpsons surpasses The Flintstones as the longest-running primetime animated series in terms of episodes aired. |
| February 21 |
The old trilon-style puzzle board is used for the last time on Wheel of Fortune after 22 years. Next Monday, February 24, a new digital puzzle board debuts, which allows Vanna White to reveal letters with just a simple touch of a button. |
| March 17 |
Toonami debuts on Cartoon Network. |
| April 1 |
The cable channel CBS Eye on People (later known as Discovery People) debuted. Also, Jeopardy! host Alex Trebek hosts Wheel of Fortune while Pat Sajak & Vanna White play for charity and Sajak's wife Lesly in charge of the puzzleboard. In turn, Sajak hosts Jeopardy! on this date as well. |
| April 7 |
Disney Channel is revamped with the premiere of Pocahontas. |
| April 30 |
The Ellen episode, "The Puppy Episode" is broadcast on ABC, showing for the first time the revelation of a main character as a homosexual. |
| May 7 |
Disney Channel begins Playhouse Disney for preschoolers. |
| CBS begins airing the two-part Knots Landing reunion miniseries Knots Landing: Back to the Cul-de-Sac, airing on two non-consecutive nights, on May 7 and May 9. |
| May 9 |
Bob Saget hosts his final regular episode of America's Funniest Home Videos on ABC, with the other cast members of Full House, minus The Olsen Twins. |
| June 2 |
The Simpsons begins airing in the Republic of Ireland for the very first time on Network 2 after not airing in the country for a long time since it first started as a series of animated shorts on The Tracey Ullman Show. |
| June 6 |
Farrah Fawcett makes a bizarre appearance on CBS's Late Show with David Letterman. Fawcett tells long, rambling stories without a purpose, fails to understand simple questions, and gets easily distracted by things like blinking lights on the set. |
| June 21 |
The Professional Bowlers Tour ends after 36 years on ABC. CBS assumes the rights to the tour and will televise several events over the next two years. |
| June 30 |
In Seattle, KIRO-TV (CBS) and KSTW (UPN) reverse their 1995 swap. |
| July 9 |
NewSport ends after four years. |
| July 15 |
A tribute episode of Another World is broadcast on NBC in honor of Victoria Wyndham's 25 years with the program. |
| July 16 |
The Powerhouse era begins on Cartoon Network replacing the Checkerboard era. |
| August 25 |
Rugrats returns to Nickelodeon with new regular episodes. It had been cancelled during 1994 but received a reprieve for a fourth season in 1995. (Four special episodes were broadcast during this time, but are not counted as part of the series's normal run.) |
| August 31 |
WFFF-TV in Burlington, Vermont signs-on the air, giving the Burlington/Plattsburgh market its first full-time Fox affiliate (prior to this, Fox programming was seen on a secondary basis on CBS affiliate WCAX-TV).[1] |
| September 1 |
Disney Channel converts from subscription television to a regular channel after 14 years. |
| September 6 |
Various networks broadcast the Princess Diana funeral; 2.7 million viewers at home watched this special. |
| September 13 |
ABC revamps its Saturday morning cartoon schedule, and adds more new series from parent company Disney to become Disney's One Saturday Morning. This, along with many other programming, was delayed one week from its originally planned debut as a result of the aforementioned Princess Diana funeral. |
| September 14 |
The 49th Primetime Emmy Awards presentation was broadcast on CBS. |
| September 19 |
After several years of being a part of ABC's successful "TGIF" sitcom programming block, Family Matters and Step by Step switch to CBS to form the basis of the "CBS Block Party", a direct competitor to TGIF. Both series, as well as the Block Party, will be cancelled after one season. |
| September 26 |
Jeopardy!'s 3,000th syndicated episode airs. The categories in the Jeopardy! and Final Jeopardy! rounds from its debut episode in 1984 are used on this episode. |
| October 1 |
PRISM and SportsChannel Philadelphia, cease broadcasting to make way for Comcast SportsNet Philadelphia. |
| October 31 |
Detroit regional sports network PASS Sports goes off the air. |
| November 2 |
A third production of Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II's version of Cinderella was aired on ABC. This version, featuring Brandy Norwood and Whitney Houston, was produced by ABC's parent company The Walt Disney Company (which made its own version of the story as an animated movie during 1950). |
| November 6 |
The NBC discussion show Meet the Press celebrates its 50th anniversary. |
| November 9 |
During a pay-per-view broadcast of the World Wrestling Federation's Survivor Series, then-WWF Champion Bret Hart loses his title to Shawn Michaels. The finish is mired in controversy when WWF chairman Vince McMahon, who had been sitting at ringside, orders Earl Hebner, the assigned referee, to end the match as Michaels is holding Hart in Hart's own finishing maneuver, the Sharpshooter, even though Hart had not submitted. The incident becomes known as the Montreal Screwjob and will mark the final appearance of Hart on WWE television until 2010.[2] |
| November 23 |
King of the Hill starts being screened in Australia for the first time on Seven Network. |
| November 29 |
The Emergency Broadcast System is replaced by the Emergency Alert System and it continues to this day. |
| December 23 |
Trio, a channel devoted to CBC programs, debuts for United States viewers. |