Current, the world's peer-to-peer news and information network, today announced the launch of a new affiliate program that will further expand the company's content reach and offerings globally. The first two companies to join this venture are The Guardian, and award-winning US online news and entertainment website, Salon.
Current's content affiliate program is intended to give top media brands more exposure to Current's core audience of 18-34-year-olds via a new vlogging format on both Current TV and current.com, while also providing media brands with high-quality Current-produced vlogs for their own websites.
Journalists from The Guardian who will be producing vlogs for Current include Dave Hill, John Harris, Seth Freedman and Anna Pickard. Salon correspondents who will be contributing include Alex Koppelman, Tracy Clark-Flory, Rebecca Traister and Farhad Manjoo.
Current will package a single vlog each day for television supplied by correspondents from The Guardian and Salon as well as create a web-friendly version that will live on Current.com, Salon.com and Guardian.co.uk. Vlogs on Current.com that generate dialogue with its online community have the potential to be repackaged for Current TV enabling them to contribute to topics initiated by The Guardian and Salon journalists.
"Current is committed to meeting the ever-evolving needs of our young adult audience, so it is important for us to align with brands that are well respected media leaders," said Joanna Drake Earl, president of new media for Current. "This program gives journalists and bloggers from other established content providers, such as The Guardian and Salon, an opportunity to be seen and heard within Current's community, while we engage them in conversation with our online and TV audiences about subjects that they are covering everyday."
Emily Bell, Director of Digital Content, Guardian News & Media, added: "When we were approached by Current TV we knew that their profile and outlook was highly compatible with the Guardian. We are very excited about the partnership and think it will bring our journalism to a wider audience and help us showcase our best blogging talent in a video format."
Salon's partnership with Current is a cornerstone of its new initiatives, according to Salon Editor-in-Chief, Joan Walsh. "We love Current's commitment to two things: to reach a younger audience, and to put the tools of content creation in the hands of that audience," said Walsh. "Clearly, Salon shares those values. This partnership offers us a way to introduce video, and Current TV, to Salon's audience, and to introduce Salon to Current's audience."
Notes to Editors:
About Current:
The station was founded by Al Gore, the former Vice President of the United States, and entrepreneur Joel Hyatt. Academy Award Winner Gore describes the channel as the world's peer-to-peer news and information network, with programming that ranges from the hottest trends in technology, fashion, music and celebrity, to pressing issues concerning politics, finance and the environment.
The schedule - which is made up of short form, non-fiction, programme "pods" (averaging three to eight minutes) - is dictated by the viewers (via the Current website) who have the power to vote or "green light" programmes onto the network.
Current's innovative VC2 (Viewer Created Content) concept promotes viewer contributions and the network pays these VC2 producers when their films are shown on the channel. Everything on the network is open to viewer participation. Current invented Viewer Created Ad Messages (VCAM) and regularly features promotional spots created by its viewers.
One of the keys to Current's success is in the variety of its programming. In addition to VC2, viewers of the network will see short form Vanguard Journalism pods that are reinventing TV journalism for a new generation of viewers. Current has been a huge success story in the U.S.A, where it is broadcast in 40 million homes, more than doubling the number of subscribers in its first year, and reaches 11 million homes in the UK.
The channel has picked up numerous programming awards, and recent pods such as Current's 'PC Versus Mac' spoof have topped the global viral charts. The channel broadcasts on Sky (channel 193) and Virgin Media (155) in the UK. Visit the Current website at www.current.com
About The Guardian
The Guardian launched its network of websites, Guardian Unlimited, in 1999 and is recognised as the UK's most popular newspaper website. For the past three years it has been voted the best newspaper on the web at the 2007 Webby Awards. Guardian Unlimited recorded record traffic of 18,407,758 unique users in October 2007 (ABCe). The highest-ever monthly user figure for a UK newspaper site.
About Salon
Salon, an award-winning online news and entertainment Web site, combines original investigative stories, breaking news, provocative personal essays and highly respected criticism along with popular staff-written blogs about politics, technology and culture, as well as video and audio podcasts. The winner of multiple Webby and Online News Association awards, Salon is an Internet pioneer that made the transition to Web 2.0, with vibrant audience participation through its automated letters to the editor, along with its long-time Table Talk and Well communities. Thanks to those new additions to its traditional offerings, Salon has doubled its traffic in the last two years and plans to roll out many new features in the crucial 2008 election year.
Source: Business Wire
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