Sound Destruction: CURRENT TV

Sunday, July 31, 2005

CURRENT TV

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so with all the buzz about al gore's new station will 'current' be a hit or a flop? the website and cable station launches monday.


"Current will offer short-form programming in the TV equivalent of an iPod shuffle. It's 'pods' will be 15-second to five-minute segments that range from the hottest trends in technology, fashion, television, music and video games, to pressing issues such as the environment, relationships, spirituality, finance, politics and parenting, subjects that young adults can rarely find on television."


I think this is one of those things that I hope would do well because the basic idea is good but without a great ad campaign and lots of celebs seems to be destined to flop.

are the kids of today too jaded to give a shit?

The TV network has established an alliance with Google to broadcast "Google Current," short news segments based upon current Internet searches, including the latest searches based on Google Zeitgeist. The Google Current segments will be 30 seconds to three minutes and "buck conventional news practices by reporting not on what media editors decide is 'news,' but on the topics people are actually searching for right now. So news isn't what the network thinks you should know, but what the world is searching to learn," Current's press release says.

what do you think?

the cool thing seems to be that the viewers can also be collaborators which could be kind of cool seeing some viewer submissions. maybe I should do a segment about how much I rule.

now that would be good television.

12 Comments:

Blogger tlm said...

It's not that the kids are too jaded, I just think they're too smart to buy into this Current crap. Why is it that so many stuffy network executives are trying to be "edgy!!" and "in touch with today's youth!!"?

I'd have to disagree with you, strider... the basic idea is a terrible one. (Though your viewer submissions idea is quite good... A national "public-access programming" type channel would probably work!)

11:04 PM  
Blogger Chris Woods said...

I like the idea behind Current. It'll be interesting to play with a medium that's now 50 years old, yet invigorate it with technology that is less than 10 years old. Besides, its targeting a demographic that could lead them to interesting places (and then again, it could lead them nowhere, but I'm counting on the opposite).

What disappointed me the most was this quote: "There is "close to a zero-percent chance," he [Gore] insists, that he would ever run for office again."
So much for running in 2008.

Maybe the blogosphere can change his mind...

11:31 PM  
Blogger M. Martin said...

why is it a terrible idea to tap into what the youth care about?

and isn't it the truth that behind any big product you end up with stuffy executives somewhere?

what would be deemed a 'good' idea? be ultra conservative? the kids are the ones dictating where technology goes these days and this channel is trying to tap into that. let them give the feedback and create a station that will deal with what they want...not what fox, cnn or msnbc deems important.

granted it may not be a mind blowing investigative news station (like there are really any out there now) but at least there will be a place where they can go and have a say about what is on the air and maybe even show us what is important to them...rather than 'stuffy executives' ALWAYS deciding what is important.

11:38 PM  
Blogger tlm said...

Oh yeah... I can't wait to see those innovative 15-minute news features (where the subject is determined by -- I kid you not -- the most popular Google searches of the day). I suppose there will be lots of riveting stories about online dating, and Jenna Jameson's tits.

Seriously though, what a bunch of crap! Current will crash and burn -- once the money and initial media-buzz run dry.

(Perhaps Al should shift some of that funding to Air America Radio, to keep them off life-support. At least they serve a purpose!)

12:29 AM  
Blogger tlm said...

araider, I'm also saddened to see Gore not running in '08. I don't like the guy all that much, but politics is what he does best. The guy lost his direction, for some odd reason.

12:34 AM  
Blogger Chris Woods said...

Al Gore, since 2000, has definitely gained a personality, and his politics have become a lot better (even though there were pretty damn good prior to the stole...2000 election).

Anyway, I've launched my weblog, Political Forecast, at a new location hosted on its own server and domain name. I hope you'll stop by and enjoy the new Political Forecast! If you could also change your link accordingly, that'd be awesome!

1:24 AM  
Blogger M. Martin said...

i like gore a lot more now than i did in 2000. he grew balls.

as for current i guess we will have to wait and see...wouldnt you tune in for jennas boobs?

i personally like bill bradley but it's not looking like he is going to run anytime soon.

looks like we may have a clinton vs. mccain in 2008.

lord i hope pitaki doesnt run...i can't stand that guy.

1:44 AM  
Blogger tlm said...

I love Bill Bradley. He's one of the very few Dems I'd even consider voting for in a general election.

Thank God our party would never allow McCain to be our nominee. Pataki doesn't have a prayer either. I'd say we're probably stuck with Frist, at this point.

12:06 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

But wasn't the staff all going to be young and non-professional, and then they changed it?

And I rule; I do. As soon as Google came out I realized its inherent possiblities in bothering everyone I ever knew and ended up with a reporter job for my ex-husband. Even taught him to google himself. Almost as hard as teaching my dad to use an ATM! Not really but..

1:28 PM  
Blogger tlm said...

pia- I think that was originally the plan.

(And I don't exactly agree with araider's comments, but I did notice if you substitute the phrase "Liberal Democrats" in every place he wrote "women", you get a pretty solid argument.)

4:45 PM  
Blogger tlm said...

This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.

4:45 PM  
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