Al Gore's TV Network to Make Debut Monday

Yahoo News ^ | 7-31-05 | DAVID BAUDER, AP Television Writer

[summer]

NEW YORK - Much of the talk around Al Gore's new Current TV network has been broadly philosophical, like the former vice president's statement that "we want to be the television home page for the Internet generation." With its debut Monday, Current TV will be judged by the same mundane standards as other networks — on whether its programming can hold a viewer's interest.

Gore and his fellow investors envision Current as a sounding board for young people, a step beyond traditional notions of interactivity. They want viewers to contribute much of the network's content now that quality video equipment is widely available.

Based on material previewed on its Web site, Current at first glance seems like a hipper, more irreverent version of traditional television newsmagazines.

Most of its programming will be in "pods," roughly two to seven minutes long, covering topics like jobs, technology, spirituality and current events. An Internet-like on-screen progress bar will show the pod's length.

Its short films include a profile of a hang glider and a piece on working in a fish market. One contributor talked about what it was like to have his phone number on a hacked Internet list of Paris Hilton's cell phone contacts, saying that dealing with curiosity seekers was like "hosting your own radio call-in show."

Every half-hour, Current promises a news update using data from Google on news stories most frequently searched for on the Web....

[summer]

FYI - and it's not arousing much interest on the Dem sites, that's for sure.

[summer]

FYI.

[Petronski]

Finally! Whew.

[Mike Darancette]

Most of its programming will be in "pods,"

Algore and the "Pod People".

[summer]

LOL..

[NonValueAdded]

"Must miss TV"^TM Better check the status of charity grants in AlGore's hometown to see if any money is "on loan." Of course he could always claim "no controlling legal authority."

[summer]

Sounds like: "TV For People Who Have No Attention Span At All"

[FlingWingFlyer]

Most of us have jobs we have to go back to on Monday. Sorry I can't be there. Good luck to Algore and his new DNC-BS "network." I'm sure the welfare crowd is going to love it.

[hsalaw]

"we want to be the television home page for the Internet generation."

For a guy who INVENTED the internet, this is a very 20th century attitude. Television? What's that?

[Extremely Extreme Extremist]

al-Gorejeezra

[Dr.Hilarious]

now that quality video equipment is widely available.

They are also pleased with the development of that new "horseless carriage" thing.

"Now" that quality vid equipment is available? Does Al think this is some recent development?

[ncountylee]

Now it can die a natural death and not bore us with puff articles.

[mikrofon]

The CurRant Network, featuring Algore...

[clintonh8r]

Most of the programming will be in "pods"

Like the one Albert crawled out of?

[summer]

From the St Petersburg Times editorial page in FL:

Al Gore's TV revolution

Published July 27, 2005

It isn't often that a politician who has come within a Supreme Court decision of the White House can thoroughly reinvent himself. But with his new youth-oriented, populist TV news and information channel, dubbed Current TV, former Vice President Al Gore has made an ambitious start.

Scheduled to debut Monday, Current's format seems impossibly simple. Reasoning that its age-18-to-34 target audience already is living in a high-velocity, on-demand media universe, Gore's channel will offer bite-sized video packages no more than seven to 10 minutes long, allow viewers to submit pieces of their own and vote on their favorite amateur video online.

One of the channel's slogans makes the ambitious pledge to turn TV into a two-way conversation. And Gore, facing the public without a tie or any willingness to talk politics, has emerged as the unlikeliest of faces for a channel trying to make the video musings of unknown twentysomethings not only hip, but revolutionary.

Gore has morphed from a political punch line to the man aiming to end TV As We Know It. Not a bad perch for a guy seeking the kind of sweeping change as a media executive he never achieved as a politician.

[summer]

Lots of jobs available for freepers at CURENT - CLICK HERE FOR CURRENT-TV's WEB SITE JOB POSTINGS

[cubreporter]

ohhhh, ohhhh I can't wait. NOT!

[summer]

CURENT = CURRENT

[NautiNurse]

a sounding board bored for young people, a step beyond traditional notions of interactivity

[summer]

From their JOBS Page:

Join the team at Current! Headquartered in San Francisco, Current is a new independent TV network created by former Vice President Al Gore and entrepreneur Joel Hyatt. We are the first national network created by, for and with an 18-34 year-old audience. Our unique programming shows young adults what's going on in their world, in their voice and from their perspective. With a substantial portion of the network's content provided by the audience, we're the first network in history whose programming is supplied and selected in part by the very audience who watches it. Current launches in August 2005 into nearly 20 million homes.