See also:
2001 in television,
other events of 2002,
2003 in television and the
list of 'years in television'.
Events
- February 3 - Super Commercials: A Mental Engineering Special airs on PBS stations reaching 85% of the U.S. after Super Bowl XXXVI; reportedly the best coverage yet achieved by a former public access television program.
- March 2 - BBC Four launches in the UK.
- April 17 - General Hospital airs its milestone 10,000th episode.
- May - One Life to Live airs a full week of episodes broadcast live from the ABC New York studios.
- July 6 - Totally Spies premieres on TV Tokyo.
- September 5 - The flagship couple on soap opera The Young and the Restless, Victor Newman (Eric Braeden) and Nikki Reed (Melody Thomas Scott), marry for the third time.
- October 30 - Warren Zevon is featured on the Late Show with David Letterman as the only guest for the entire hour. Zevon performs several songs and talks in length about being diagnosed with inoperable lung cancer.
- October - Longtime castmember Hunter Tylo's character, Dr. Taylor Hamilton Forrester, is killed off the soap opera The Bold and the Beautiful, which is seen worldwide.
- December - Talk show host David Letterman, Paul Shaffer and a stage hand from the Late Show with David Letterman, Biff Henderson, spend Christmas in Afghanistan with the United States and international military forces stationed in the country.
- Discovery Kids introduces to NBC.
- Fox News Channel overtakes CNN as the #1 cable TV news service in the US.
- Fox Kids leaves Fox and Fox Box, now known as 4Kids TV, comes on Fox.
- Alter and Tempo, the Greek speaking channels switches much of family/children's programming.
- Kirby: Right Back at Ya, Ultimate M.U.S.C.L.E., and Ultraman Tiga debut on Fox Box.
Debuts
Television shows
Ending this year
Changes of network affiliation
Deaths
- January 13 - Ted Demme, 37, film and television director.(Blow, Beautiful Girls).
- February 22 - Chuck Jones, animator.
- February 24 - Mel Stewart, character actor whose TV roles included All in the Family and Scarecrow and Mrs. King.
- February 27 - Spike Milligan, comedian.
- February 28 - Mary Stuart, soap opera actress who starred as Jo in the entire 35-year run of Search for Tomorrow.
- March 15 - Sylvester (Pat) Weaver, longtime president of NBC, credited with creating The Today Show and The Tonight Show.
- March 27 - Milton Berle, comedian, actor.
- March 27 - Dudley Moore, comedian, actor.
- April 2 - Jack Kruschen, character actor who had a recurring role on Webster.
- April 16 - Robert Urich, actor.
- May 24 - Susie Garrett, acress (Betty Johnson) on Punky Brewster, sister of Marla Gibbs.
- June 5 - Dee Dee Ramone, 49, actor/songwriter of the Ramones.
- September 14 - LaWanda Page, comedian, actress (Aunt Esther) on Sanford & Son.
- September 28 - Whitney Blake, actress on Hazel, co-creator of One Day at a Time, and mother of Meredith Baxter.
- October 3 - Bruce Paltrow, producer.
- October 13 - Keene Curtis, actor who had a recurring role on Cheers.
- October 20 - Barbara Berjer, most known for her roles as Claire Cassen Shea on As the World Turns, Barbara Norris Thorpe on Guiding Light, and Bridget Connell on Another World.
- December 5 - Roone Arledge, sports producer.
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