Keeping up with cable listings

Cable viewers in many US areas have been having a problem in knowing what's coming up. Some metro newspapers print skeleton listings of cable programming, and many cable systems have their own mailed-out publications. Specialty periodicals -- like Prevue in western Montana -- cover local cable releases. But many of the recently started cable systems simply rely on their own audio spots to inform viewers of future offerings.

Now, TV Guide, the industry's most widely circulated magazine, will test-market four cable areas beginning in September. Separate editions to be offered in St. Louis; Memphis; Nashville; and Evansville, Ind.-Paducah, Ky., will carry a 24-page Cable Guide including schedulings for pay TV and advance listings for flagship stations: WTBS Atlant a, WGN Chicago, and WOR New York.