Cuarto milenio is a Spanish television program directed and presented by journalist Iker Jiménez and Carmen Porter. The program has been broadcast weekly on television channel Cuatro since November 2005, being the channel's longest running program.
The program explores a wide variety of topics, usually related to mystery and enigmas, though frequently reaching afield. They include conspiracy, archaeology, history, criminology, astronomy, medicine, physics, zoology, psychology, parapsychology and ufology. It regularly feature experts in various disciplines, like psychiatrists, physicists, physicians, historians, anthropologists, criminologists, astronomers, naturalists, writers or journalists.
Cuarto Milenio has been acknowledged to have an established place on Spanish television, not only due to its longevity, but also to its following and recognizability, having been considered a television phenomenon. Alternatively, it has been criticized as pseudoscientific, pointing to its treatment of esoteric and conspiratorial fields, and praised as a program of investigation and divulgation, standing out by its consistent presence of scientific authorities and specialists as guests.
The program has spawned two spin-offs; La mesa del coronel, a geopolitical program presented in 2019 by Col. Pedro Baños, and Horizonte, produced by the same team and ongoing since 2020.
Team Iker Jiménez (direction and presentation) Carmen Porter (narration and co-presentation) Pablo Villarrubia (editorial) Francisco Pérez Caballero (editorial) Gerardo Peláez (editorial coordinator) Carlos Largo (editorial, also in Millennium 3) Javier Pérez Campos (editorial) Pablo Fuente (editorial) Guillermo León (crew and webmaster) Juan Villa (artistics)
Old team Luis Álvarez (editorial) Nacho Ares (editorial) Santiago Camacho (editorial, also in Millennium 3) Alberto Granados (editorial) Óscar Dorian (artistics) Juan Jesús Vallejo (editorial) Francisco Contreras Gil (editorial) Martín Cappelletti (Sub Address and Address of Conduct)
Specials On May 16, 2006, Cracking the Code aired, marking the theatrical release of The Da Vinci Code. The director and presenter of Cuarto Milenio conducted a special program that addressed the secrets and controversies raised by the book. On December 25, 2006, The Exodus Decoded special aired. This program discussed the documentary and research done by Felix Golubev and Simcha Jacobovici, about a proposed Jewish exodus from Egypt.
In 2007 the program aired a special about Jesus. A special emphasis was given to the apocryphal gospels.
In July 2008 a special on Chernobyl aired.
In April 2012 they presented a special about the sinking of the RMS Titanic.
Collections Colección Cuarto milenio was a book-DVD collection that included best programs of the first few seasons, which were available weekly in kiosks. There was another set released in 2011.
Seasons Cuarto Milenio is the oldest program of Cuatro, having been broadcast continuously since the channel began service in November 2005. The best ratings for the show were in the third season (2007–2008), with an average audience share of 13.2% (897,208 viewers). During the following seasons, the show has maintained an average audience of 600,000 viewers per night, representing around 10% of the audience share, the only program on Cuatro to reach such a high percentage.
Season Date Programs nº1November 2005 – June 2006361–362September 2006 – June 20074537–803September 2007 – June 20084681–1244September 2008 – June 200945125–166 5September 2009 – June 201036167–2026September 2010 – June 201140203–2427September 2011 – July 201242243–2848September 2012 – July 201346285–3309September 2013 – July 201444331–37410September 2014 – July 201544375–41811 September 2015 – July 201644419–46212September 2016 – July 201744463–50913September 2017 – July 201844507–55014September 2018 – July 201944551–59415September 2019 – January 202144595–63816January 2021 – July 202127639–66517September 2021 – July 202246666–71118September 2022 – July 202344712–75519September 2023 – July 202443756–79820September 2024 – presentTBA799–
Awards Best divulgation program in 2006, voted in the portal ¡Vaya Tele!. Silver Medal for Mejor Cabecera Gráfica internacional at the «Festival Internacional de Televisión y Cine de Nueva York» 2010. Best investigation program at the Telemagazine Awards 2019.
Criticism Cuarto Milenio has been criticized for endorsing pseudoscience, spreading misinformation, and trivializing real world atrocities.
In a 2008 episode of the show, an image of a fake newspaper article from the satirical news website The Onion parodying the Stock Market, was depicted as a legitimate article from 1929.
References
External links #ExpoCuartoMilenio, TV show exposition Official Webpage