The newest edition of “60 Minutes” will have decidedly less time to make its point.
The venerable CBS newsmagazine plans to launch an original weekly program – just six minutes in length – for Quibi, the upstart streaming-video outlet that plans to devise short-form entertainment for mobile audiences. The new “60 in 6” is expected to launch on Quibi in April, and expands the “60 Minutes” brand to a new platform. The program had produced a sports series for Showtime.
“This is a perfect opportunity to bring ’60 Minutes’ style of storytelling, in-depth reporting and investigative journalism to a new audience,” said Bill Owens, the executive producer of the series, in a statement. “We are excited to launch ’60 In 6′, as our digital footprint is more important than ever.” The show will dedicate a team correspondents and producers to the effort.
Quibi has enlisted other traditional sources of timely programming to its platform. On Monday, the company, founded by Hollywood veteran Jeffrey Katzenberg, said it had struck a licensing agreement with ESPN that would result in a daily sports highlights program. NBC News in July announced it would produce morning and evening newscasts for Quibi – direct from its headquarters at NBCUniversal’s 30 Rockefeller Plaza.
The CBS News producers may find themselves working with a familiar face as part of the alliance. Ryan Kadro, a former executive producer at “CBS This Morning,” joined Quibi in February of this year to oversee news programming.
“’60 Minutes’ has been, is, and will continue to be the gold standard of storytelling news journalism,” said Jeffrey Katzenberg, in a statement. “Bringing their talent and resources to a new form of storytelling could not be more exciting for us at Quibi.”