| Date | Event |
| January 1 |
The television rating system, a system similar to the one used for motion pictures, goes into effect. |
| WWOR-TV's EMI Service is officially discontinued, re-uplinked into a local version a month later. |
| January 3 |
Bryant Gumbel anchored his last Today show. Matt Lauer takes over three days later. |
| January 6 |
Sunset Beach premieres. |
| January 12 |
King of the Hill premieres. |
| January 22 |
New World Communications is acquired by Fox. |
| January 26 |
Fox broadcasts its first Super Bowl, making it the last of the big four networks to air a Super Bowl. |
| February 9 |
The Simpsons, with the airing of the episode "The Itchy & Scratchy & Poochie Show", surpassed 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. |
| April 7 |
Disney Channel is revamped with the premiere of Pocahontas. |
| April 30 |
The Ellen episode, The Puppy Episode is broadcast, showing for the first time the revelation of a main character as a homosexual. |
| May 7 |
Disney Channel begins Playhouse Disney for pre-schoolers. |
| 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 with the other cast members of Full House, minus The Olsen Twins. |
| June 6 |
Farrah Fawcett makes a bizarre appearance on the 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. |
| 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 is broadcast for Another World 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 in 1994 but received a reprieve for a fourth season in 1995. Note: four special episodes were broadcast during the hiatus between cancellation and revival, but are not counted as part of the series's normal run. |
| 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 revamped the Saturday morning time period, and adds more new series from 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. (Both series were canceled the following Spring). |
| October 1 |
PRISM and SportsChannel Philadelphia, cease broadcasting to make way for Comcast SportsNet Philadelphia. |
| October 31 |
Detroit regional sports network PASS Sports went 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 The Walt Disney Company (which made its own version of the story as an animated movie during 1950). |
| November 6 |
Meet the Press celebrates its 50th anniversary. |
| November 9 |
Wrestler Bret Hart loses his last match in the WWF (now WWE) via submission to Shawn Michaels. |
| 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. |