Investigation Discovery will delve into the lives and careers of Nick Carter and Aaron Carter in a new documentary series set to debut May 27. 

The series Fallen Idols: Nick and Aaron Carter, focuses on the fraught dynamic of the Carter family, from their rise to fame in the late 1990s and early 2000s to their headline-making struggles in recent years, according to the network. 

According to ID, The documentary, produced by ISH Entertainment, explores the 2017 accusations of sexual assault against Backstreet Boys member Nick Carter by three women while also diving into the mental health and substance abuse struggles of Nick's brother and singer Aaron, leading to Aaron's tragic death in 2022.

“Fallen Idols explores the dark side of fame and fraught family dynamics but also the intense challenges faced by accusers who come forward against celebrities and pop culture icons in today’s modern world,” the network said.

Investigation Discovery has teamed with producer Will Packer for a new special, The Atlanta Child Murders, premiering March 23.

The special follows the murders of 29 children in Atlanta in the early 1980s and the investigation that surrounded the case, said network officials. The special looks at the case and whether sinister elements were at play in the heart of the South.

“This case remains one of our countries’ most perplexing mysteries, and at ID we are proud to shine a light on every angle of this largely forgotten story,” says Henry Schleiff, Group President of Investigation Discovery, Travel Channel, American Heroes Channel, and Destination America in a statement. “Will Packer’s vision to revisit this national tragedy through the never-before heard perspective of the victims’ families brings home the true devastation of these cases.”

In other Discovery Networks news, Travel Channel will bring back series America Unearthed featuring forensic geologist Scott Wolter. Travel Channel has acquired the previous three seasons comprising 39 episodes, and will premiere a fourth season of the series -- which formerly aired on H2 -- with 10 new one-hour episodes this summer, according to the network. The network has also greenlit paranormal series Portals To Hell, in which television personality Jack Osbourne and paranormal researcher and investigator Katrina Weidman investigate haunted houses in search of irrefutable evidence that a spirit world exists, said the network. 

--TLC will bring back Kate Gosslin (Kate Plus 8) for a new series dubbed Kate Plus Date, debuting June 2019. The well-known mother of multiple children will hit the dating scene in the new series, according to network officials.

“Kate has been such a big part of the TLC family, and we are ecstatic that she is letting us follow along as she starts this new journey,” said TLC President and General Manager Howard Lee. “Viewers know Kate as the multi-tasking mother of multiples. Now, in Kate Plus Date they will see a whole new side of her, as she looks to find that special someone to share in her next chapter.”

ESPN scored cable's first monthly primetime ratings win in January on the strength of its college football playoffs coverage.

The sports network averaged 2.5 million viewers for the period of Dec. 31, 2018 to Jan. 27, 2019 to top all cable networks, according to Nielsen. The network was paced by its Jan. 7 Alabama-Clemson College Football Playoff National Championship telecast, which drew more than 25 million viewers, according to Nielsen.

Fox News finished second with 2.2 million viewers, followed by MSNBC’s 1.9 million viewers, and Hallmark Channel and HGTV’s 1.3 million watchers each, said Nielsen.

CNN (1.2 million viewers), USA Network, History, Investigation Discovery (all tied with 1.1 million) and Discovery Channel, TNT, A&E Network and TLC (all tied with 1.0 million) rounded out the top 10 most watched cable networks in primetime for the month.

Fox News continued to dominate the total day race, notching its 31 consecutive monthly ratings win by avering 1.3 million total viewers, according to Nielsen. January also marked Fox News' 17th consecutive year as the most watched cable news network in both primetime and on a 24-hour basis, according to Nielsen. 

Fox News is heating up cable's weekly summer ratings wars, finishing as the most watched cable network in primetime and total day for the second straight week in the period, according to Nielsen.

Fox News averaged 2.4 million viewers to finish first among all cable networks for the week of June 4 to June 10, according to Nielsen. MSNBC finished second with 1.6 million viewers, followed by HGTV’s 1.4 million viewers; USA’s 1.3 million watchers and TBS’s 1.1 million viewers.

CNN, ID and History (1 million); A&E Network (952,000) and Discovery Channel (949,000), rounded out the top 10.

Fox News extended its total day winning streak to 22 weeks averaging 1.3 million viewers for the week. Nickelodeon, MSNBC, HGTV and Investigation Discovery followed closely behind, according to Nielsen. 

Investigation Discovery seeks to bring a new perspective to the two decades-old O.J. Simpson murder trial when it launches a six-hour documentary series, Is OJ Innocent? The Missing Evidence, over three consecutive nights beginning Jan. 15.

The series, which purports to have uncovered new evidence that could shed new light on the infamous 1995 “Trial of the Century,” comes in the shadow of two critically acclaimed Simpson-themed projects that aired in 2016: FX’s Emmy Award-winning limited series The People v. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story and ESPN’s five-part docu series O.J.: Made in America.

 I recently spoke to Investigative Discovery group president Henry Schleiff about the origins of IsOJ Innocent? The Missing Evidence and how it differs from the other Simpson projects.

The series isn’t piggybacking on the FX and ESPN Simpson shows: “From our perspective this is obviously a story that was really well covered last year, certainly by FX and even by ESPN, and was explored well before then. I think most people who were aware of the case and the trial feel that at this point we know everything there is to know. It's against that background that we actually went against the winds of familiarity. We went in and said even though we think we know everything there is to know about this and have seen everything, maybe we're missing something. There are certain facts and evidence that we've never seen before that may cause us to at least consider alternative theories.”

The series reveals fresh, new findings: “There are three aspects of the show that makes this different than what’s been seen. One is the new evidence. There's a questionable presentation of the actual weapon involved. Without getting to specifics, there's a look at a knit cap; then there is quote, unquote, Nicole's watch, so some of the actual specific pieces of evidence are completely new. There’s also a closer look at old evidence that has been previously submitted both at the trial and around it. With the benefit of enhanced technology that every year increases in its sophistication, we can take another look at some of the old evidence. Two, we have new witnesses that for a variety of reasons are coming forward for the first time that did not come forward at the time of the trial or even after all of these years. We also have witnesses that have previously testified, but now with the benefit of time they have a slightly different perspective. Three, and most importantly, we present for the viewer's consideration a new theory. Part of that new theory is the possible involvement of O.J.'s son Jason. We'll let the six hours speak for themselves, but what I think will come out is, for the first time after all these years, you will really question whether O.J. did this alone.”

ID is not looking to retry the case: “This is not meant to convince you, but like many things we do, it's better to raise the level of dialogue with intelligent, evidence-based arguments and truly fact-based material. I think our viewers are anxious to hear us weigh in. We're very careful about our responsibility to not abuse our position as the number one network for true crime investigation. So for us to come forward with another O.J. story means that it has to be credible and worth the viewers' time. So the challenge is to see whether the juice has been squeezed too much out of this story — no pun intended — and I think we take a look at that very scenario in a very different and compelling way.”