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Wikipedia

Fusion TV

January 13, 2023

For the website originally part of the channel at Fusion.net, see Splinter News.

Fusion TV was an American pay television news and satire channel owned by Fusion Media Group, a multi-platform media company subsidiary of Univision Communications, which relied in part on the resources of its parent company's news division, Noticias Univision.[2][3] In addition to conventional television distribution, Fusion was streamed online and on mobile platforms to subscribers of participating cable and satellite providers.[4]

Final Fusion TV logo, used from 2018 to 2022
CountryUnited States
Broadcast areaUnited States
HeadquartersDoral, Florida
Programming
Language(s)English
Picture format1080i (HDTV)[a]
Ownership
OwnerFusion Media Group[b]
History
LaunchedOctober 28, 2013; 9 years ago (October 28, 2013)[1]
ReplacedABC News Now
ClosedDecember 31, 2021; 12 months ago (2021-12-31)

Launched on October 28, 2013, the network's content featured news, lifestyle, pop culture, satire and entertainment aimed at English-speaking millennials, including those of a Hispanic background; the channel was Univision's first major push into English-language programming.[5] Fusion was based in "NewsPort", an expansion of the Univision campus (formerly a freight warehouse) at 8551 NW 30th Terrace in the Miami suburb of Doral, Florida, which was shared with Noticias Univision and Univision flagship station WLTV-DT; it maintained additional studios in Los Angeles and bureaus in Mexico City, New York City, and Washington, D.C.[3][6] The channel ceased operations on December 31, 2021.[7]

Background

Apart from being Univision Communications' first attempt in the world of English-language cable networks before El Rey Network, Fusion was ABC News' third attempt in the world of 24-hour cable news. In 1982, ABC News and Group W (then a division of Westinghouse) first launched a 24-hour news channel called Satellite News Channel. But due to low clearance from cable systems, both of them sold the channel after just over a year on the air to CNN (a subsidiary of Turner Broadcasting System, which has been under Time Warner's control since 1996), which used it to augement coverage of CNN's companion network, CNN Headline News. In the mid-1990s, consistent rumors of the launch of an ABC cable news channel were persistent with the launch of MSNBC and Fox News Channel, but never came to confirmed fruition, and wound down with the network's purchase by The Walt Disney Company, which instead put their efforts into building ESPN's sports news division.

Twenty-two years later, in 2004, ABC News launched ABC News Now as an early digital multicast network, which was also available through video portals such as Yahoo's. It was a lower-profile effort established for ABC News's digital side, and never expected to go beyond that platform and onto regular cable as a 24-hour news channel.

History

 
Fusion's logo from 2013 to 2018

In December 2010, the newly appointed president of Noticias Univision, Isaac Lee, announced plans to start a 24-hour English language cable news channel aimed at Latino Americans.[8] Univision Communications would later on, in late 2011, enter into discussions with Walt Disney Company-owned ABC News about entering into a joint venture to develop the channel.[9] The discussions bore fruit with the companies' formal announcement of the channel on May 8, 2012, initially projecting a debut during the first half of 2013[10] (the channel would be given its name, Fusion, in February 2013).[2] On October 4, 2013, the company announced it had named Isaac Lee as Chief Executive Officer to replace interim CEO Beau Ferrari.[11]

Fusion's formal launch date and its initial programming schedule was announced on August 1, 2013.[3] The channel formally launched on October 28, 2013, buoyed earlier in the day by a simulcast of ABC's Good Morning America and Univision's ¡Despierta América! designed to promote Fusion's launch and programming.[12] After leading off with a three-minute musical number at 6:57 p.m. Eastern Time on October 28, 2013,[13] Fusion began regular programming with the debut of America with Jorge Ramos.[14]

Fusion's target audience consisted mainly of millennials (roughly the age bracket of adults 18–34), a group generally regarded as digitally fluent and normally favors social media and internet sources to add news and base opinions, usually eschewing traditional broadcast and print sources. To that end, Fusion geared its programming less towards the constant coverage of breaking news, instead emphasizing context and analysis on news and issues, along with interviews, documentaries, and long-form reports on current events, lifestyle, and pop culture.[5] Fusion also employed an on-air blending of serious topics and discussions that is, more often than not, laced with irreverence and humor (a "common language" among millennials according to former host Alicia Menendez) that aims to reduce the air of pretense and seriousness with which other news outlets treat current topics and issues.[12] The "fusion" of seriousness and lightheartedness has been evident in Fusion's primetime lineup: America with Jorge Ramos, in its first week, took a more conventional approach, featuring interviews with President Barack Obama and U.S. Senator Ted Cruz,[15] while other early Fusion shows Alicia Menendez Tonight featured more personal and less serious topics, and programs including No, You Shut Up ventured towards irreverence and even satire.[14]

Fusion was originally conceived to primarily attract a younger audience of an English-speaking Hispanic and Latino American background; about one-fifth of millennials are classified as being of Latino descent[12] and have generally been well-acclimated with English language society in the United States, either as emigrants or as U.S. nationals by birth. After receiving some backlash during development over concerns that too much of a focus was placed on ethnicity, Fusion would broaden its scope during its development, aiming to "engage and champion a young, diverse and inclusive America," regardless of cultural or language background.[6] Isaac Lee, who served as Fusion's CEO in addition to President of News for Univision, explained that Hispanic millennials see themselves as part of the broad American culture and that "they want to be part of the same room and part of the same conversation" as non-Hispanics.[5][16]

Fusion operated out of a former warehouse in Doral, Florida (billed by staffers as the "Newsport")[17] that is shared with Noticias Univision, WLTV-DT and WAMI-TV. Additionally some resources were also shared with ABC News and Noticias Univision[18] (The above-mentioned interview of President Obama, conducted by ABC News correspondent Jim Avila, was one such example of that reliance.).[5] However, the network operated separately from ABC's and Univision's news divisions, employing its own on-air talent, correspondents, management, production staff and board of directors.[19] Univision handled programming responsibilities for Fusion, while Disney-ABC Television Group provided advertising sales and handled cable and satellite distribution for the channel.[3] ABC News president Ben Sherwood noted that while the channel would eventually feature all original programming, repurposed content from ABC News and Univision content aired on the channel during late night time slots in its early months, along with paid programming (which has since departed the schedule completely).[20]

In December 2015, it was reported that Disney was in talks to sell its stake in Fusion to Univision.[21] The transaction was complete on April 21, 2016.[22]

The company laid off a large portion of its workforce on November 16, 2016, ahead of the channel's anticipated reorganization in which the assets of Gizmodo Media Group and The Onion would form the new core of the station's programming.[23]

On July 24, 2017, Fusion relaunched its article based online presence under the brand "Splinter" while things relating to the channel itself remained at Fusion.net branded as Fusion TV. The article based half of Fusion's website content switched to the Fusion.kinja.com domain in May prior to the re-branding.[24] Splinter was later sold by Univison to G/O Media and on October 10, 2019, announced they were ceasing publication.[25]

Carriage decline and closure

On January 10, 2020, Dish Network removed the channel from the lineup. On January 23, 2020, AT&T removed the network from the lineups of DirecTV and U-Verse TV, along with their related streaming services.[26]

On September 2, 2020, Charter Communications (Spectrum) and legacy TWC/BHN systems removed the channel, along with El Rey Network from their channel lineup.[27] Other providers began to remove the network throughout the remainder of 2020 and into 2021, as it was excluded from retransmission consent negotiations for the newest three-year carriage cycle for Univision-distributed networks.

Without much public notice, Univision notified their remaining carriage partners that the network would be shut down December 31, 2021, as the company solidifies their focus on Spanish-language audiences and their oncoming merger with Televisa. It was the second consecutive year a Univision-funded English-language channel shut down, as El Rey's wireline network was shut down exactly a year before.[7][28]

Programming

The initial schedule on Fusion included programs intended for a younger audience than most cable news shows attract, many of which featured the lively, irreverent approach the network originally intended to make its hallmark.[1][29] It eventually removed the satirical content and by the end, most of its programming consisted of blocks of Unews.

Former shows

Program Description
Unews A live rolling news block of stories impacting younger and Latinx Americans.
Big Papi Needs a Job Reality TV series following retired baseball player "Big Papi" David Ortiz as he attempts different jobs.
Cheddar on Fusion TV Business, tech, entertainment and media news live from the floor of the New York Stock Exchange.
Rude Tube British television program that covers humorous online clips presented by English comedian Alex Zane.
Strange Medicine A medical news program hosted by Dr. Juan Rivera, Univision's Chief Medical Correspondent who trained at the prestigious Johns Hopkins Hospital.
The A.V. Club Program highlighting topics at The A.V. Club, hosted by John Teti.
The Cannabusiness Report Program looking at the business, facts and culture of legalized marijuana by Gonzo journalist Ryan Nerz.
In Living Color A 1990s Fox sketch show long in syndication.
Drug Wars A look at the elite law enforcement fighting drug trafficking.
Naked Truth Investigative series featuring different topics per episode featuring Fusion correspondent Natasha Del Toro.
Nightline on Fusion A Fusion version of the ABC show Nightline.
Outpost Travel show.
Show Me Something Jorge Ramos hits the road with politicians, business leaders and artists in search ways of seeing the world.
The Fusion Feed Weekly program featuring a diverse set of contributors who weigh in passionately on subjects ranging from politics to pop culture.
The Traffickers Show that looks at the black market place and smuggling across the world.
  • America with Jorge Ramos - Reports, analysis, interviews, and discussions on significant news topics hosted by the Noticiero Univision anchor. Originally a daily newscast at Fusion's launch, America moved to once-weekly installments in March 2014, allowing the program and Ramos to do field reports and other long-form features.[30]
  • Back Home - A weekly documentary-style show that follows celebrity guests making voyages to their family's country of origin.
  • Come Here & Say That (Formerly Alicia Menendez Tonight) - Discussions and commentaries on daily issues featuring former HuffPost Live host Alicia Menendez.
  • The Chris Gethard Show – is a phone-in comedy and variety talk show created and hosted by Chris Gethard, It was initially a live show before becoming a taped series.
  • The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz – A simulcast of the ESPN Radio program hosted by Miami Herald sportswriter Dan Le Batard (the TV simulcast moved to ESPNU after Disney sold its ownership in Fusion).
  • D.N.A. – An hour-long interactive show hosted by Derrick Ashong that focused on social issues.
  • Fusion Investigates - The banner name for Fusion's long-form investigative and narrative programming and the team devoted to it, emphasizing "stories that will have an impact," and topics such as the economy, immigration, injustice, and corruption featuring Mariana van Zeller.
  • Fusion Live – a 1-hour daily program hosted by Mariana Atencio, Pedro Andrade, and Yannis Pappas that is what Atencio describes as "NPR meets The Daily Show,"[12] presenting news, discussions, interviews, and live performances in an informative yet edgy manner. Originally a 2-hour breakfast television show at Fusion's launch (when it went by the title The Morning Show), the program moved to a late afternoon/early evening berth in March 2014 as part of a major schedule adjustment by Fusion.[30]
  • Good Morning Today – Executive produced by former Daily Show writer/producer David Javerbaum and created by The Jim Henson Company (through its Henson Alternative banner), this 15-minute show spoofed conventional breakfast television programming, with the setting of a morning news show in an alternate universe populated by live-action personalities and computer-animated anchors. The show was filmed with the use of The Jim Henson Company's Digital Puppet Studio, a proprietary technology that enables performers to physically puppeteer and voice computer-generated characters in real time.
  • Like, Share, Die – An animated sketch series created alongside Mondo Media, featuring episodes of their online web shows.
  • No, You Shut Up! – Another David Javerbaum/Henson Alternative collaboration, this 25-minute combination of topical discussion and comedy starred Paul F. Tompkins and a panel of puppet commentators (played by the Miskreant Puppets from Puppet Up!).[15][31]
  • Open Source – A show hosted by KMEX-DT news anchor León Krauze that covers "a mix of politics, pop-culture and really weird stuff."[32] Just as with America with Jorge Ramos, Open Source began as a nightly program before shifting to weekly installments in March 2014.[30]
  • The Soccer Gods - A weekly program that offers "an irreverent, nuanced, North American perspective" on the sport of soccer and the pomp and passion that surrounds it.
  • Sports Talkers – A half-hour show hosted Rebecca Delgado Smith, Billy Scafuri and Adam Lustick that combined elements of sports talk radio and improvisational comedy.
  • Unreported World - A United Kingdom import from Channel 4.[33]
  • The Young Turks – A current affairs show with progressive commentary with hosts from the online TYT Network (a one-hour show on tour ran during the 2016 presidential election).[34]

Key personnel

Executive leadership

Key hires

Towards its one-year anniversary, a series of high-profile hires of digital-native journalists[35] created high expectations for the young media company. NPR's David Folkenflik called Fusion "One of the most interesting experiments we've seen in television (...) since the Emergence of Fox News Channel".[36] Those hires were later laid off or moved to Splinter as the focus of the channel changed and the website split off.

Carriage and content distribution

By the time that Disney-ABC and Univision announced the channel's name – Fusion – on February 11, 2013, the channel already signed carriage agreements with major pay television providers including Verizon, Cablevision, Charter Communications, Cox Communications, AT&T U-verse and Google Fiber. Fusion replaced ABC News Now on most cable systems; that network ceased operations on October 28, 2013, the day of Fusion's debut.

The channel was primarily carried on the digital basic tiers of participating providers,[2][3] and premiered to a reach of approximately 20 million homes, one-fifth of the total U.S. households with subscription television services.[5] Fusion is currently seeking carriage on additional providers, with deals pending or not yet reached with notable providers including Comcast and Time Warner Cable. The channel was added to the Dish Network lineup after a new carriage deal was reached between Dish and Disney.[31][41] On the week of September 22, 2014, Fusion was placed in test mode on DirecTV channel 342 in preparation for launch on the carrier along with sister channel the Longhorn Network.[42] As of November 13, 2014, Longhorn Network and Fusion were removed from test mode as DirecTV and Disney/ESPN were unable to at that time reach a carriage agreement.[43] On December 23, 2014, DirecTV announced a wide-ranging distribution agreement with Disney to carry Fusion in early 2015, The channel went live on January 21, 2015.[44] Fusion's goal, according to Board of Directors member and ABC News president Ben Sherwood, is to reach 60 million homes within five years of its debut.[15]

In addition to its on-air presence, all Fusion content was mirrored and available through its web and app presences.[31]

Notes

  1. ^ Downgraded to letterboxed 480i for the SDTV feed)
  2. ^ TelevisaUnivision)

References

  1. ^ a b James, Meg (August 1, 2013). "ABC-Univision cable network, FUSION, to launch Oct. 28". Los Angeles Times. from the original on August 5, 2013. Retrieved August 2, 2013.
  2. ^ a b c Kim, Susanna (February 11, 2013). "ABC and Univision Announce New Cable Network 'Fusion' Will Launch Later in 2013". ABC News. from the original on June 6, 2013. Retrieved May 14, 2013.
  3. ^ a b c d e Villafane, Veronica (March 5, 2013). "Fusion Gears up for Late Summer Launch". TV News Check. from the original on October 29, 2013. Retrieved May 14, 2013.
  4. ^ . Fusionlive.tumblr.com. October 28, 2013. Archived from the original on December 3, 2013. Retrieved January 28, 2014.
  5. ^ a b c d e . Los Angeles Times. October 28, 2013. Archived from the original on November 13, 2013.
  6. ^ a b . TVNewsCheck. October 29, 2013. Archived from the original on October 30, 2013.
  7. ^ a b "Upcoming Channel Changes | GCI". Gci.com. from the original on December 4, 2021. Retrieved December 4, 2021.
  8. ^ "Univision President Says He'll Start 24-Hr News Channel". Media Moves. December 17, 2010. from the original on October 29, 2013. Retrieved August 3, 2013.
  9. ^ Szalai, Georg (February 7, 2012). "ABC News, Univision Discussing English-Language News Network". The Hollywood Reporter. from the original on November 12, 2013. Retrieved May 14, 2013.
  10. ^ James, Meg; Chmielewski, Dawn (May 7, 2012). "ABC News, Univision to Launch English-Language News Network". Los Angeles Times. from the original on May 17, 2013. Retrieved May 14, 2013.
  11. ^ "Isaac Lee Named CEO of Fusion". Business Wire. October 4, 2013. from the original on November 3, 2013. Retrieved January 28, 2014.
  12. ^ a b c d . NPR. October 26, 2013. Archived from the original on April 20, 2015.
  13. ^ . Fusion.net. Archived from the original on October 31, 2013. Retrieved October 29, 2013.
  14. ^ a b . Miami Herald. October 28, 2013. Archived from the original on October 29, 2013.
  15. ^ a b c . Reuters. October 27, 2013. Archived from the original on August 13, 2021.
  16. ^ . Fusion. October 28, 2013. Archived from the original on October 30, 2013.
  17. ^ . Associated Press. October 19, 2013. Archived from the original on November 1, 2013.
  18. ^ James, Meg (May 19, 2011). "Univision Plans Three New Cable TV Channels". Los Angeles Times. from the original on May 17, 2013. Retrieved May 14, 2013.
  19. ^ Vivian Says (March 8, 2013). "Fusion Names Board of Directors, Reveals More Details". MediaMoves.com. from the original on October 29, 2013. Retrieved January 28, 2014.
  20. ^ Guthrie, Marisa (May 7, 2012). "ABC News, Univision Joint Venture Not Looking to Compete with CNN, MSNBC, Fox News". The Hollywood Reporter. from the original on November 12, 2013. Retrieved May 14, 2013.
  21. ^ Garrahan, Matthew (December 22, 2015). "Disney in Talks to Sell Fusion Stake to Univision". Financial Times. from the original on July 3, 2016. Retrieved March 24, 2016.
  22. ^ James, Meg (April 21, 2016). "Walt Disney Co.'s ABC Sells Its Fusion Stake to Univision, Exits Joint Venture". Los Angeles Times. from the original on 11 June 2019. Retrieved April 21, 2016.
  23. ^ Steinberg, Brian (November 16, 2016). "Fusion Will Lay Off Employees, Use Shows Based on Former Gawker Assets". Variety. from the original on November 17, 2016. Retrieved November 16, 2016.
  24. ^ Tani, Maxwell. "Fusion Is Planning to Rebrand Under a New Name: Splinter". Business Insider. from the original on July 11, 2017. Retrieved July 11, 2017.
  25. ^ Tani, Maxwell (October 10, 2019). "Splinter Shutting Down". from the original on October 11, 2019. Retrieved October 10, 2019.
  26. ^ "AT&T TV NOW Is Dropping the Fusion Channel". 23 December 2019. from the original on December 25, 2019. Retrieved December 25, 2019.
  27. ^ "Orlando, Central FL - BHN/Spectrum". from the original on July 20, 2022. Retrieved July 15, 2021.
  28. ^ Umstead, R. Thomas (3 January 2022). "New Year Ushers End to Several Cable Networks". Multichannel News. from the original on January 4, 2022. Retrieved January 4, 2022.
  29. ^ Stelter, Brian (August 1, 2013). "Fusion Announces Premiere Date and Prime-Time Schedule". The New York Times. from the original on August 13, 2013. Retrieved August 16, 2013.
  30. ^ a b c . TVNewser.com. March 4, 2014. Archived from the original on January 6, 2015.
  31. ^ a b c . BuzzFeed. October 27, 2013. Archived from the original on October 18, 2017.
  32. ^ . Fusion.net. Archived from the original on February 9, 2014. Retrieved January 28, 2014.
  33. ^ "'Unreported World' Reports to Fusion Next Week". November 4, 2015. from the original on October 30, 2020. Retrieved February 18, 2020.
  34. ^ "TYT on Fusion". from the original on August 31, 2016. Retrieved September 11, 2016.
  35. ^ "Fusion Hires Alexis Madrigal of TheAtlantic.com to Bolster Tech Coverage from The New York Times". The New York Times. from the original on November 7, 2017. Retrieved February 27, 2017.
  36. ^ "AUDIO: Fusion Marks One Year In News from NPR's Here and Now radio program". from the original on 2014-11-13. Retrieved 2014-11-14.
  37. ^ Cohen, Noam (July 2014). "Fusion Names Jane Spencer Its Editor for Digital Content – NYTimes.com". The New York Times. from the original on November 7, 2017. Retrieved February 27, 2017.
  38. ^ "Jezebel's Anna Holmes Lands at Fusion, Too – Recode.net". May 20, 2014. from the original on July 7, 2014. Retrieved July 2, 2014.
  39. ^ Somaiya, Ravi (April 23, 2014). "Felix Salmon to Take on Web-Based Role at Fusion". The New York Times. from the original on November 7, 2017. Retrieved February 27, 2017.
  40. ^ Steel, Emily (8 September 2014). "Fusion Expected to Name Tim Pool Its Director of Media Innovation". The New York Times. from the original on September 4, 2017. Retrieved February 27, 2017.
  41. ^ "Disney and Dish Ink Long-Term Deal, Giving Satcaster Internet-Streaming Rights to Live TV – Variety". March 4, 2014. from the original on October 18, 2017. Retrieved December 7, 2017.
  42. ^ "Transponder Maps: Domestic & LatinAm – Dbstalk.com".
  43. ^ "DirecTV Rumor Alert – SatelliteGuys". from the original on November 6, 2014. Retrieved November 13, 2014.
  44. ^ "DirecTV and The Walt Disney Company Sign Expansive Agreement". from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved December 23, 2014.

External links

  • Fusion to Pair Kooky Creatures with Veteran Anchors to Hook Young Viewers on News – Variety
  • Fusion Refreshes Brand as It Approaches Expansion of Carriage on Spectrum – Deadline

January 13, 2023
fusion, website, originally, part, channel, fusion, splinter, news, american, television, news, satire, channel, owned, fusion, media, group, multi, platform, media, company, subsidiary, univision, communications, which, relied, part, resources, parent, compan. For the website originally part of the channel at Fusion net see Splinter News Fusion TV was an American pay television news and satire channel owned by Fusion Media Group a multi platform media company subsidiary of Univision Communications which relied in part on the resources of its parent company s news division Noticias Univision 2 3 In addition to conventional television distribution Fusion was streamed online and on mobile platforms to subscribers of participating cable and satellite providers 4 Final Fusion TV logo used from 2018 to 2022CountryUnited StatesBroadcast areaUnited StatesHeadquartersDoral FloridaProgrammingLanguage s EnglishPicture format1080i HDTV a OwnershipOwnerFusion Media Group b HistoryLaunchedOctober 28 2013 9 years ago October 28 2013 1 ReplacedABC News NowClosedDecember 31 2021 12 months ago 2021 12 31 Launched on October 28 2013 the network s content featured news lifestyle pop culture satire and entertainment aimed at English speaking millennials including those of a Hispanic background the channel was Univision s first major push into English language programming 5 Fusion was based in NewsPort an expansion of the Univision campus formerly a freight warehouse at 8551 NW 30th Terrace in the Miami suburb of Doral Florida which was shared with Noticias Univision and Univision flagship station WLTV DT it maintained additional studios in Los Angeles and bureaus in Mexico City New York City and Washington D C 3 6 The channel ceased operations on December 31 2021 7 Contents 1 Background 2 History 2 1 Carriage decline and closure 3 Programming 3 1 Former shows 4 Key personnel 4 1 Executive leadership 4 2 Key hires 5 Carriage and content distribution 6 Notes 7 References 8 External linksBackground EditApart from being Univision Communications first attempt in the world of English language cable networks before El Rey Network Fusion was ABC News third attempt in the world of 24 hour cable news In 1982 ABC News and Group W then a division of Westinghouse first launched a 24 hour news channel called Satellite News Channel But due to low clearance from cable systems both of them sold the channel after just over a year on the air to CNN a subsidiary of Turner Broadcasting System which has been under Time Warner s control since 1996 which used it to augement coverage of CNN s companion network CNN Headline News In the mid 1990s consistent rumors of the launch of an ABC cable news channel were persistent with the launch of MSNBC and Fox News Channel but never came to confirmed fruition and wound down with the network s purchase by The Walt Disney Company which instead put their efforts into building ESPN s sports news division Twenty two years later in 2004 ABC News launched ABC News Now as an early digital multicast network which was also available through video portals such as Yahoo s It was a lower profile effort established for ABC News s digital side and never expected to go beyond that platform and onto regular cable as a 24 hour news channel History Edit Fusion s logo from 2013 to 2018 In December 2010 the newly appointed president of Noticias Univision Isaac Lee announced plans to start a 24 hour English language cable news channel aimed at Latino Americans 8 Univision Communications would later on in late 2011 enter into discussions with Walt Disney Company owned ABC News about entering into a joint venture to develop the channel 9 The discussions bore fruit with the companies formal announcement of the channel on May 8 2012 initially projecting a debut during the first half of 2013 10 the channel would be given its name Fusion in February 2013 2 On October 4 2013 the company announced it had named Isaac Lee as Chief Executive Officer to replace interim CEO Beau Ferrari 11 Fusion s formal launch date and its initial programming schedule was announced on August 1 2013 3 The channel formally launched on October 28 2013 buoyed earlier in the day by a simulcast of ABC s Good Morning America and Univision s Despierta America designed to promote Fusion s launch and programming 12 After leading off with a three minute musical number at 6 57 p m Eastern Time on October 28 2013 13 Fusion began regular programming with the debut of America with Jorge Ramos 14 Fusion s target audience consisted mainly of millennials roughly the age bracket of adults 18 34 a group generally regarded as digitally fluent and normally favors social media and internet sources to add news and base opinions usually eschewing traditional broadcast and print sources To that end Fusion geared its programming less towards the constant coverage of breaking news instead emphasizing context and analysis on news and issues along with interviews documentaries and long form reports on current events lifestyle and pop culture 5 Fusion also employed an on air blending of serious topics and discussions that is more often than not laced with irreverence and humor a common language among millennials according to former host Alicia Menendez that aims to reduce the air of pretense and seriousness with which other news outlets treat current topics and issues 12 The fusion of seriousness and lightheartedness has been evident in Fusion s primetime lineup America with Jorge Ramos in its first week took a more conventional approach featuring interviews with President Barack Obama and U S Senator Ted Cruz 15 while other early Fusion shows Alicia Menendez Tonight featured more personal and less serious topics and programs including No You Shut Up ventured towards irreverence and even satire 14 Fusion was originally conceived to primarily attract a younger audience of an English speaking Hispanic and Latino American background about one fifth of millennials are classified as being of Latino descent 12 and have generally been well acclimated with English language society in the United States either as emigrants or as U S nationals by birth After receiving some backlash during development over concerns that too much of a focus was placed on ethnicity Fusion would broaden its scope during its development aiming to engage and champion a young diverse and inclusive America regardless of cultural or language background 6 Isaac Lee who served as Fusion s CEO in addition to President of News for Univision explained that Hispanic millennials see themselves as part of the broad American culture and that they want to be part of the same room and part of the same conversation as non Hispanics 5 16 Fusion operated out of a former warehouse in Doral Florida billed by staffers as the Newsport 17 that is shared with Noticias Univision WLTV DT and WAMI TV Additionally some resources were also shared with ABC News and Noticias Univision 18 The above mentioned interview of President Obama conducted by ABC News correspondent Jim Avila was one such example of that reliance 5 However the network operated separately from ABC s and Univision s news divisions employing its own on air talent correspondents management production staff and board of directors 19 Univision handled programming responsibilities for Fusion while Disney ABC Television Group provided advertising sales and handled cable and satellite distribution for the channel 3 ABC News president Ben Sherwood noted that while the channel would eventually feature all original programming repurposed content from ABC News and Univision content aired on the channel during late night time slots in its early months along with paid programming which has since departed the schedule completely 20 In December 2015 it was reported that Disney was in talks to sell its stake in Fusion to Univision 21 The transaction was complete on April 21 2016 22 The company laid off a large portion of its workforce on November 16 2016 ahead of the channel s anticipated reorganization in which the assets of Gizmodo Media Group and The Onion would form the new core of the station s programming 23 On July 24 2017 Fusion relaunched its article based online presence under the brand Splinter while things relating to the channel itself remained at Fusion net branded as Fusion TV The article based half of Fusion s website content switched to the Fusion kinja com domain in May prior to the re branding 24 Splinter was later sold by Univison to G O Media and on October 10 2019 announced they were ceasing publication 25 Carriage decline and closure Edit On January 10 2020 Dish Network removed the channel from the lineup On January 23 2020 AT amp T removed the network from the lineups of DirecTV and U Verse TV along with their related streaming services 26 On September 2 2020 Charter Communications Spectrum and legacy TWC BHN systems removed the channel along with El Rey Network from their channel lineup 27 Other providers began to remove the network throughout the remainder of 2020 and into 2021 as it was excluded from retransmission consent negotiations for the newest three year carriage cycle for Univision distributed networks Without much public notice Univision notified their remaining carriage partners that the network would be shut down December 31 2021 as the company solidifies their focus on Spanish language audiences and their oncoming merger with Televisa It was the second consecutive year a Univision funded English language channel shut down as El Rey s wireline network was shut down exactly a year before 7 28 Programming EditThe initial schedule on Fusion included programs intended for a younger audience than most cable news shows attract many of which featured the lively irreverent approach the network originally intended to make its hallmark 1 29 It eventually removed the satirical content and by the end most of its programming consisted of blocks of Unews Former shows Edit Program DescriptionUnews A live rolling news block of stories impacting younger and Latinx Americans Big Papi Needs a Job Reality TV series following retired baseball player Big Papi David Ortiz as he attempts different jobs Cheddar on Fusion TV Business tech entertainment and media news live from the floor of the New York Stock Exchange Rude Tube British television program that covers humorous online clips presented by English comedian Alex Zane Strange Medicine A medical news program hosted by Dr Juan Rivera Univision s Chief Medical Correspondent who trained at the prestigious Johns Hopkins Hospital The A V Club Program highlighting topics at The A V Club hosted by John Teti The Cannabusiness Report Program looking at the business facts and culture of legalized marijuana by Gonzo journalist Ryan Nerz In Living Color A 1990s Fox sketch show long in syndication Drug Wars A look at the elite law enforcement fighting drug trafficking Naked Truth Investigative series featuring different topics per episode featuring Fusion correspondent Natasha Del Toro Nightline on Fusion A Fusion version of the ABC show Nightline Outpost Travel show Show Me Something Jorge Ramos hits the road with politicians business leaders and artists in search ways of seeing the world The Fusion Feed Weekly program featuring a diverse set of contributors who weigh in passionately on subjects ranging from politics to pop culture The Traffickers Show that looks at the black market place and smuggling across the world America with Jorge Ramos Reports analysis interviews and discussions on significant news topics hosted by the Noticiero Univision anchor Originally a daily newscast at Fusion s launch America moved to once weekly installments in March 2014 allowing the program and Ramos to do field reports and other long form features 30 Back Home A weekly documentary style show that follows celebrity guests making voyages to their family s country of origin Come Here amp Say That Formerly Alicia Menendez Tonight Discussions and commentaries on daily issues featuring former HuffPost Live host Alicia Menendez The Chris Gethard Show is a phone in comedy and variety talk show created and hosted by Chris Gethard It was initially a live show before becoming a taped series The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz A simulcast of the ESPN Radio program hosted by Miami Herald sportswriter Dan Le Batard the TV simulcast moved to ESPNU after Disney sold its ownership in Fusion D N A An hour long interactive show hosted by Derrick Ashong that focused on social issues Fusion Investigates The banner name for Fusion s long form investigative and narrative programming and the team devoted to it emphasizing stories that will have an impact and topics such as the economy immigration injustice and corruption featuring Mariana van Zeller Fusion Live a 1 hour daily program hosted by Mariana Atencio Pedro Andrade and Yannis Pappas that is what Atencio describes as NPR meets The Daily Show 12 presenting news discussions interviews and live performances in an informative yet edgy manner Originally a 2 hour breakfast television show at Fusion s launch when it went by the title The Morning Show the program moved to a late afternoon early evening berth in March 2014 as part of a major schedule adjustment by Fusion 30 Good Morning Today Executive produced by former Daily Show writer producer David Javerbaum and created by The Jim Henson Company through its Henson Alternative banner this 15 minute show spoofed conventional breakfast television programming with the setting of a morning news show in an alternate universe populated by live action personalities and computer animated anchors The show was filmed with the use of The Jim Henson Company s Digital Puppet Studio a proprietary technology that enables performers to physically puppeteer and voice computer generated characters in real time Like Share Die An animated sketch series created alongside Mondo Media featuring episodes of their online web shows No You Shut Up Another David Javerbaum Henson Alternative collaboration this 25 minute combination of topical discussion and comedy starred Paul F Tompkins and a panel of puppet commentators played by the Miskreant Puppets from Puppet Up 15 31 Open Source A show hosted by KMEX DT news anchor Leon Krauze that covers a mix of politics pop culture and really weird stuff 32 Just as with America with Jorge Ramos Open Source began as a nightly program before shifting to weekly installments in March 2014 30 The Soccer Gods A weekly program that offers an irreverent nuanced North American perspective on the sport of soccer and the pomp and passion that surrounds it Sports Talkers A half hour show hosted Rebecca Delgado Smith Billy Scafuri and Adam Lustick that combined elements of sports talk radio and improvisational comedy Unreported World A United Kingdom import from Channel 4 33 The Young Turks A current affairs show with progressive commentary with hosts from the online TYT Network a one hour show on tour ran during the 2016 presidential election 34 Key personnel EditExecutive leadership Edit Isaac Lee Chief Executive OfficerKey hires Edit Towards its one year anniversary a series of high profile hires of digital native journalists 35 created high expectations for the young media company NPR s David Folkenflik called Fusion One of the most interesting experiments we ve seen in television since the Emergence of Fox News Channel 36 Those hires were later laid off or moved to Splinter as the focus of the channel changed and the website split off Jane Spencer Former editor in chief Digital Platforms 37 Now at The Guardian Anna Holmes Former editor Digital Voices 38 Now at First Look Media Felix Salmon Former senior editor digital 39 Now at Cause amp Effect Tim Pool Former director of media innovation 40 Dodai Stewart Former executive director Now editor in chief at Splinter News Alexis Madrigal Now with The Atlantic Carriage and content distribution EditBy the time that Disney ABC and Univision announced the channel s name Fusion on February 11 2013 the channel already signed carriage agreements with major pay television providers including Verizon Cablevision Charter Communications Cox Communications AT amp T U verse and Google Fiber Fusion replaced ABC News Now on most cable systems that network ceased operations on October 28 2013 the day of Fusion s debut The channel was primarily carried on the digital basic tiers of participating providers 2 3 and premiered to a reach of approximately 20 million homes one fifth of the total U S households with subscription television services 5 Fusion is currently seeking carriage on additional providers with deals pending or not yet reached with notable providers including Comcast and Time Warner Cable The channel was added to the Dish Network lineup after a new carriage deal was reached between Dish and Disney 31 41 On the week of September 22 2014 Fusion was placed in test mode on DirecTV channel 342 in preparation for launch on the carrier along with sister channel the Longhorn Network 42 As of November 13 2014 Longhorn Network and Fusion were removed from test mode as DirecTV and Disney ESPN were unable to at that time reach a carriage agreement 43 On December 23 2014 DirecTV announced a wide ranging distribution agreement with Disney to carry Fusion in early 2015 The channel went live on January 21 2015 44 Fusion s goal according to Board of Directors member and ABC News president Ben Sherwood is to reach 60 million homes within five years of its debut 15 In addition to its on air presence all Fusion content was mirrored and available through its web and app presences 31 Notes Edit Downgraded to letterboxed 480i for the SDTV feed TelevisaUnivision References Edit a b James Meg August 1 2013 ABC Univision cable network FUSION to launch Oct 28 Los Angeles Times Archived from the original on August 5 2013 Retrieved August 2 2013 a b c Kim Susanna February 11 2013 ABC and Univision Announce New Cable Network Fusion Will Launch Later in 2013 ABC News Archived from the original on June 6 2013 Retrieved May 14 2013 a b c d e Villafane Veronica March 5 2013 Fusion Gears up for Late Summer Launch TV News Check Archived from the original on October 29 2013 Retrieved May 14 2013 About Fusion FusionLive Fusionlive tumblr com October 28 2013 Archived from the original on December 3 2013 Retrieved January 28 2014 a b c d e Univision ABC Channel Fusion Launching in a Bid for Young Latinos Los Angeles Times October 28 2013 Archived from the original on November 13 2013 a b Fusion s Debut Shows Serious Fun Sides TVNewsCheck October 29 2013 Archived from the original on October 30 2013 a b Upcoming Channel Changes GCI Gci com Archived from the original on December 4 2021 Retrieved December 4 2021 Univision President Says He ll Start 24 Hr News Channel Media Moves December 17 2010 Archived from the original on October 29 2013 Retrieved August 3 2013 Szalai Georg February 7 2012 ABC News Univision Discussing English Language News Network The Hollywood Reporter Archived from the original on November 12 2013 Retrieved May 14 2013 James Meg Chmielewski Dawn May 7 2012 ABC News Univision to Launch English Language News Network Los Angeles Times Archived from the original on May 17 2013 Retrieved May 14 2013 Isaac Lee Named CEO of Fusion Business Wire October 4 2013 Archived from the original on November 3 2013 Retrieved January 28 2014 a b c d Fusion Wants Young Latinos to Turn on Their TVs NPR October 26 2013 Archived from the original on April 20 2015 Sign On Video Premiering Fusion Fusion net Archived from the original on October 31 2013 Retrieved October 29 2013 a b With Fusion s Debut a Bid for Laughs and Then a Serious Turn Miami Herald October 28 2013 Archived from the original on October 29 2013 a b c New U S TV Network Fuses News Satire for Young Hispanics Reuters October 27 2013 Archived from the original on August 13 2021 Univision and ABC News Launch New TV Channel Fusion October 28 2013 Archived from the original on October 30 2013 ABC and Univision s Love Child Bursts to Life Associated Press October 19 2013 Archived from the original on November 1 2013 James Meg May 19 2011 Univision Plans Three New Cable TV Channels Los Angeles Times Archived from the original on May 17 2013 Retrieved May 14 2013 Vivian Says March 8 2013 Fusion Names Board of Directors Reveals More Details MediaMoves com Archived from the original on October 29 2013 Retrieved January 28 2014 Guthrie Marisa May 7 2012 ABC News Univision Joint Venture Not Looking to Compete with CNN MSNBC Fox News The Hollywood Reporter Archived from the original on November 12 2013 Retrieved May 14 2013 Garrahan Matthew December 22 2015 Disney in Talks to Sell Fusion Stake to Univision Financial Times Archived from the original on July 3 2016 Retrieved March 24 2016 James Meg April 21 2016 Walt Disney Co s ABC Sells Its Fusion Stake to Univision Exits Joint Venture Los Angeles Times Archived from the original on 11 June 2019 Retrieved April 21 2016 Steinberg Brian November 16 2016 Fusion Will Lay Off Employees Use Shows Based on Former Gawker Assets Variety Archived from the original on November 17 2016 Retrieved November 16 2016 Tani Maxwell Fusion Is Planning to Rebrand Under a New Name Splinter Business Insider Archived from the original on July 11 2017 Retrieved July 11 2017 Tani Maxwell October 10 2019 Splinter Shutting Down Archived from the original on October 11 2019 Retrieved October 10 2019 AT amp T TV NOW Is Dropping the Fusion Channel 23 December 2019 Archived from the original on December 25 2019 Retrieved December 25 2019 Orlando Central FL BHN Spectrum Archived from the original on July 20 2022 Retrieved July 15 2021 Umstead R Thomas 3 January 2022 New Year Ushers End to Several Cable Networks Multichannel News Archived from the original on January 4 2022 Retrieved January 4 2022 Stelter Brian August 1 2013 Fusion Announces Premiere Date and Prime Time Schedule The New York Times Archived from the original on August 13 2013 Retrieved August 16 2013 a b c Fusion Added to Dish Network Shifts Programming TVNewser com March 4 2014 Archived from the original on January 6 2015 a b c Meet Fusion the ABC Univision Frankenbaby That Wants Millennials to Laugh and Get Their News On BuzzFeed October 27 2013 Archived from the original on October 18 2017 Open Source with Leon Krauze Page On Fusion net Archived from the original on February 9 2014 Retrieved January 28 2014 Unreported World Reports to Fusion Next Week November 4 2015 Archived from the original on October 30 2020 Retrieved February 18 2020 TYT on Fusion Archived from the original on August 31 2016 Retrieved September 11 2016 Fusion Hires Alexis Madrigal of TheAtlantic com to Bolster Tech Coverage from The New York Times The New York Times Archived from the original on November 7 2017 Retrieved February 27 2017 AUDIO Fusion Marks One Year In News from NPR s Here and Now radio program Archived from the original on 2014 11 13 Retrieved 2014 11 14 Cohen Noam July 2014 Fusion Names Jane Spencer Its Editor for Digital Content NYTimes com The New York Times Archived from the original on November 7 2017 Retrieved February 27 2017 Jezebel s Anna Holmes Lands at Fusion Too Recode net May 20 2014 Archived from the original on July 7 2014 Retrieved July 2 2014 Somaiya Ravi April 23 2014 Felix Salmon to Take on Web Based Role at Fusion The New York Times Archived from the original on November 7 2017 Retrieved February 27 2017 Steel Emily 8 September 2014 Fusion Expected to Name Tim Pool Its Director of Media Innovation The New York Times Archived from the original on September 4 2017 Retrieved February 27 2017 Disney and Dish Ink Long Term Deal Giving Satcaster Internet Streaming Rights to Live TV Variety March 4 2014 Archived from the original on October 18 2017 Retrieved December 7 2017 Transponder Maps Domestic amp LatinAm Dbstalk com DirecTV Rumor Alert SatelliteGuys Archived from the original on November 6 2014 Retrieved November 13 2014 DirecTV and The Walt Disney Company Sign Expansive Agreement Archived from the original on March 4 2016 Retrieved December 23 2014 External links EditFusion to Pair Kooky Creatures with Veteran Anchors to Hook Young Viewers on News Variety Fusion Refreshes Brand as It Approaches Expansion of Carriage on Spectrum Deadline Portals Economics Journalism Politics Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Fusion TV amp oldid 1119539556, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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