Truth or Consequences was an American quiz show, originally hosted on NBC radio by Ralph Edwards from 1940 to 1957, and later on television by Edwards himself from 1950 to 1954, Jack Bailey from 1954 to 1955, Bob Barker from 1956 to 1975, Bob Hilton from 1975 to 1978 and Larry Anderson from 1987 to 1988. The show ran on CBS, NBC and also in syndication.

The syndicated ToC became the first successful 1first-run daily game show (as opposed to reruns) to not air on a network, having ended its NBC run in 1965. Fueled further by the emergence of the Prime Time Access Rule in 1971, ToC achieved such a place in the hearts of viewers that, despite the program ceasing production in 1975, tapes of shows from the last two seasons or so continued to be circulated to local stations throughout the U.S. as late as 1977. This likely prompted Edwards to revive the game during the next season, which, unfortunately, did not maintain the popularity of the Barker-hosted version.

Originally a radio show, beginning in 1940. For the show's tenth anniversary in 1950 (the same year it began on TV), Ralph Edwards (I) dared any town in the country to change its name to "Truth or Consequences". Hot Springs, New Mexico, took on the challenge, and is now and forever known as Truth or Consequences, New Mexico. The rural New Mexico town hosts a Fiesta every May to commemorate the event, Ralph Edwards still attends the town's annual festival.

The Federal Communications Commission approved commercial broadcasts beginning on 1 July 1941, after a few years of experimental broadcasts, and NBC's New York station was the first to make the changeover. A special episode was broadcast on 1 July 1941 on WNBT (now WNBC) in New York City. It was the first commercial show for NBC. A 10-second commercial was $9.