Current TV Debuts Live Today

Current TV Debuts Live Today

SAN FRANCISCO, Aug. 1 /PRNewswire/ -- Chairman Al Gore and CEO Joel Hyatt announced today's debut of their new cable network Current TV. The channel launches into an initial 20 million U.S. households on DIRECTV, Time Warner Cable and Comcast. Current TV president of programming David Neuman has also announced the network's complete programming slate.

Rather than a traditional network with primetime shows and "appointment television," Current offers short-form programming, the TV equivalent of an iPod shuffle. Its "pods" primarily consist of 15-second to five-minute segments that run throughout the day, exploring the people, places, happenings and hot-button issues of interest to young adults. The programming will be about subjects rarely found on TV-and almost never in a voice young adults recognize. Moreover, the network's participatory model enables viewers to contribute their own video content, the best of which will be aired. Viewers will also be able to help program the network by selecting their favorite videos from among those submitted to Current's online studio (www.current.tv).

The topics of pods debuting today run the gamut from extreme sports to teens' sex lives across the globe. Current International: Iran Underground, for example, is a piece of viewer contributed content (VC2) made by New Yorker Yasmin Vossoughian, which provides an underground look at the lives of young adults in Iran, and the role sex and drugs play. Both are still present in the culture beneath the surface, and Vossoughian takes viewers on a trip to an underground ecstasy party.

Vossoughian commented on her experience with the channel. "Current's allowing me to tell my story, and allowing other people my age to tell their stories. These are pieces from your next door neighbor, or your best friend from high school, telling it from their perspective. I wouldn't have had this chance without a network that encourages the participation of its audience."

Another piece of VC2 premiering on the television network today is Current Video: Jumper, which takes viewers on a literal ride with base jumpers; people who parachute off cliffs and bridges for fun. The spectacular footage offers amazing visuals of these thrill-seeking individuals. The piece was created by Mark Rinehart of San Francisco.

A strategic partnership with Google anchors the youth network's free-flowing pods each half-hour with "GoogleCurrent," a bold, new interpretation of the news. The segments vary from 30 seconds to three minutes, and buck conventional news practices by reporting not on what media editors decide should be the "news," but on the topics people are searching for right now.

Current's other programming includes:

The Social Current (20% of content)

* CURRENT SOUL -- The latest trends in spiritual awakening * CURRENT CARING -- Young people giving back to their community * CURRENT CORE -- Fascinating and influential subcultures and micro-cultures of a generation * CURRENT INTERNATIONAL -- Your world is global; we'll keep you connected to it * CURRENT COURAGE -- Examples of admirable and brave twenty-somethings * CURRENT ISSUE -- Drugs, relationships, political hot topics * THE CURRENT EDGE -- The first and last word on the hot cultural trends in society * CURRENT MAVERICK -- The most important, dynamic, and fearless trend-buckers on Earth * CURRENT STYLE -- Fashion stories, from haute couture to skater chic * CURRENT NEWLYWEDS -- New married couples, including behind closed doors * CURRENT RELATIONSHIP -- Dating and mating for 18-34 year-olds * CURRENT VERNACULAR -- New words that are catching on, and what they mean * THE CURRENT TREND -- The latest trends entering and exiting our lives * CURRENT VOLUNTEER -- Notable people and organizations doing extraordinary work * CURRENT ART -- The art world and the people who create it * CURRENT BLOGGER -- The most entertaining blogs on the web

Current: Information (30% of content)

* CURRENT CLICK -- What everyone is looking at when they should be working (e.g. Southpark Christmas e-card, ebaum's world, etc.) * CURRENT MENTOR -- Virtual mentors provide advice and inspiration to young adults * CURRENT INTERVIEW -- Authentic and penetrating interviews with everyone our audience is interested in ... from pop culture to great thinkers * CURRENT PARENT -- Entertaining information for young parents * CURRENT HOLIDAY -- Recognizing traditional and non-traditional holidays around the world * CURRENT FLICKS -- New movie releases, reviews, casting, and what's in the works * CURRENT DVD -- The latest things to hit the DVD shelves * CURRENT GIGS -- Career guidance, profiles, advice, and contacts * CURRENT TRAVEL -- Road trips foreign and domestic * CURRENT PLAYLIST -- Music for the digital generation-artists, songs, news, and culture * CURRENT CONCERTS -- Who's on tour, ways to get free ticks, added dates, and cancellations * CURRENCY -- How young adults can invest in everything from stocks to their first home * CURRENT SCORE -- Notes about different sports from around the globe * CURRENT TUBE -- What's hot on the box * CURRENT ON-AIR -- What's hot on the radio dial * CURRENT CONFERENCE -- Info on gatherings around the world * CURRENT TECH -- Hardware, software, reviews and deals * CURRENT PLAYER -- Rumors, inside news and gossip from the global community of video gamers * CURRENT RATINGS -- "Consumer Reports," with positive and negative reviews * THE CURRENT QUESTION -- A challenging "pop-quiz" for the viewers, could happen anywhere and be about anything * CURRENT CASA -- Real estate tips with profiles on new homes, designs and the housing market * CURRENT RIDE -- What cars, motorcycles, or 18-wheelers people are going crazy for * CURRENT BESTSELLER -- Books everyone is talking about and why * CURRENT CUISINE -- New recipes to try tonight

Current: Escape (20% of content)

* CLUB CURRENT -- A survey of the happening hotspots around the globe * COMEDY CURRENT -- A showcase of favorite stand-up acts and crack-up videos * CURRENT DISCOVERIES -- Profiles of those are about to explode * THE CURRENT VIDEO -- Incubating the next generation of Spielbergs, Spike Lees and Sofia Coppolas with an ongoing, "American Idol"-type competition for the best viewer-produced video * CURRENT PET -- Animals that become best friends * THE CURRENT COMIC -- The funny people gaining notoriety in the comedy world * CURRENT RANT -- Viewers let off steam * CURRENT PARTY -- State-of-the-art soirée * RETRO CURRENT -- A fun piece of the pop-culture past * CURRENT HOTTIE -- Off-the-radar and onto the screen, from librarians to lifeguards, a look at those that are making heads turn and jaws drop

Current: News (25% of content)

* GOOGLECURRENT -- What our audience is searching for on the Web * NEWS CURRENT -- Substantive and original news reports, produced to make important subjects engaging and informative * CURRENT CONTRABAND -- Stories on controversial or illegal activities * UNDERCURRENT -- Stories traditional news media won't touch or choose to ignore * CURRENT LIES -- What the media is telling you that isn't true * THE CURRENT EVENT -- Today's big news event in focus by and for our demo * CURRENT PROTESTS -- Where protests are taking place around the world * CURRENTLY -- A recurrent and unpredictable "switch to live" anywhere on the globe using our network of Current Journalists ("CJs")

Current: Originals (5% of content)

* THE CURRENT QUOTE -- A clever quote of the day from luminaries and lunatics * CURRENT: NATIONAL ANTHEM -- A viewer-contributed music video that opens and closes each day ... waving the flag your way * CURRENT: AWARDS -- Special recognition to those who have done great, questionable, or infamous things

Current will be available nationwide on DIRECTV on Channel 366. On Comcast in Los Angeles it is on Channel 255 on the Digital Premiere Package. On Time Warner Cable, Current is available in the New York area on Channel 103 and in the Los Angeles area on Channel 116. To find out where Current is airing in your market, log on to www.current.tv .

About Current

Current is the first national network created by, for and with an 18-34 year-old audience. The channel shows young adults what's going on in their world, in their voice. With a substantial portion of the network's content provided by the audience, it is also the first network in history whose programming is supplied in part by the very audience who watches it. Current's short-form programming ranges from the hottest trends in technology, fashion, music and videogames, to pressing issues such as the environment, relationships, parenting, finance, politics and spirituality. Through a partnership with Google, programming is anchored each half-hour by "GoogleCurrent," which offers news without a traditional news desk by reporting on topics that people are searching for on the web. On August 1, 2005, Current launched into an initial 20 million U.S. homes on DirecTV, Time Warner Cable and Comcast. For more information, please visit the website: www.current.tv.

Source: Current TV

CONTACT: Amanda Gruder Rothman, +1-310-550-7776, agruder@bwr-la.com, for Current TV

Web site: http://www.current.tv/

------- Profile: Ent