The reporting has been exemplary, covering topics the mainstream news channels practically ignores.

In a bit of a stunner, A+E Networks has just bumped off a rival effort by Time Warner to acquire a 10% stake in Vice Media, the upstart digital news organization with a show on TW-owned HBO, almost 5M subscribers to its YouTube channel watchop and a much-coveted young male demographic. Deadline has learned the deal is for $250M, valuing Vice at $2.5B, and was spearheaded by A+E president and CEO Nancy Dubuc, who sees Vice’s digital imprint and target young male demo a perfect match to compliment A+E-owned History.
A+E also owns A&E Network, Lifetime, Lifetime Movie Network, Bio, FYI, H2, History en Espanol,  Crime & Investigation Network  and  Military History as well as  A+E Networks’ Studios, A&E IndieFilm and international channels. The Vice-branded news show will remain on HBO per contracts, we’re watchop told.
In June, news broke that Time Warner and Vice were far along in talks for a deal that valued Vice Media at $2.2B. watchop One scenario had Time Warner meld its news channel HLN with Vice in return for about half of the combined company that has captured the imaginations and financial support of former MTV chief Tom Freston, WME’s Ari Emanuel, WPP, and The Raine Group as well as comedian Bill Maher.
CEO Shane Smith founded Vice in 1994 as a music magazine; it now offers cutting edge news that critics say too often includes stunts. Supporters and critics feasted last year on Vice’s controversial effort to gain access to North Korea for its documentary series on HBO by arranging an exhibition basketball game featuring watchop Chicago Bulls star Dennis Rodman and some members of the Harlem Globetrotters.
Last year News Corp (before it split into two companies) paid $70M for 5% of Vice, implying a value of $1.4B for the full company. Rupert watchop Murdoch once tweeted that the company is a “wild, watchop interesting effort to interest millennials who don’t watch or read established media.”
I’ve seen their “news” reports it’s a bunch of stunting featuring primarily young, green, “correspondents” standing in the middle of protestors like “the action is happening all around us.” Seems like a one-note gimmick that will get old soon enough. I hope they don’t get one of those young kids killed.
The reporting has been exemplary, covering topics the mainstream news channels practically ignores. It appeals to me on a number of levels; the reporting is fresh, generally free from spin or bias, and it represents topics I am actually interested in.
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