Facebook has funded BuzzFeed News‘ “Profile,” a weekly interview show hosted by Audie Cornish of NPR’s “All Things Considered,” as part of the social platform’s push into investing in video news programming.
“Profile” will be recorded in front of a live studio audience and distributed exclusively on Facebook Watch (but not live-streamed). Each week’s show will feature a different newsmaker from politics, tech, business, and entertainment.
No premiere date has been set but it’s scheduled to debut “in the coming weeks,” according to BuzzFeed. “Profile” will be available on Facebook Watch and the show’s page at facebook.com/profilebuzzfeednews.
Facebook is gearing up to launch a dedicated section in Facebook Watch that will feature exclusive shows — paid for by Facebook — from news publishers including ABC News, CNN, and Univision.
“Profile” will be executive produced by Tracey Eyers, who most recently produced NBC’s “Talk Stoop,” BuzzFeed News VP of news and programming Shani Hilton, and BuzzFeed News head of programming Cindy Vanegas-Gesuale.
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“I’m thrilled to be working with BuzzFeed News and Facebook Watch on a show that reflects the current news cycle and is relevant for an audience eager to hear from the biggest names in the world,” Cornish said in a statement. “I’m excited to continue flexing the hosting muscles I’ve grown at NPR by talking to interesting people and breaking some news along the way.”
“BuzzFeed News has a proven track record for engaging their audiences with innovative storytelling and Audie Cornish has consistently driven headlines with her award-winning reporting,” added Campbell Brown, Facebook’s head of global news partnerships.
BuzzFeed has previously struck deals with Facebook for Watch shows, including interactive dating series “RelationShipped.” In addition, it’s producing a new game show for Facebook Watch called “Outside Your Bubble,” set to debut in the next few weeks.
Other BuzzFeed News programming that it’s sold to platforms and networks include “AM to DM,” a live morning show on Twitter that was recently renewed through 2019, a weekly docu-series for Netflix called “Follow This”; and a Hulu documentary in development on R. Kelly based on BuzzFeed News reporting.
