Peter Getty on the tremendous 20-year growth of Vice from a free magazine in Montreal to a media empire with (potentially) a 24-hour news station.

1. 7/25/14
HBO’sVice
Seeks 24-Hour News Channel
By Peter Getty

2. HBO’s embedded journalism program Vice hasn’t become a
cultural phenomenon…yet.

3. Vice sends journalists to some of the most dangerous places
on the planet, from Sudanese rebel camps to escape parties
fleeing North Korea.

4. The reporting stands out in stark contrast to most news
media, cutting through mainstream news tropes. Vice makes
a bee-line directly to the heart of major global issues.

5. Vice began in 1994 as a free magazine in Montreal. Now they
have the HBO show, a film production company, a record
label, and a publishing imprint.

6. Chief Executive Shane Smith is now being courted by 21st
Century Fox, Time Warner, and Disney.

7. Smith is an outspoken critic of mainstream media, but he has
reasons to consider teaming up with the enemy – he has big
plans for Vice. Even though the television show has only 22
episodes under its belt, Smith wants Vice to have its own
television network, as well as a movie deal arrangement.

8. Teaming up with Disney would be a bizarre move for Vice,
which has cultivated a brand of being an outsider. Journalists
lack the sheen of the mainstream press.

9. Remember when Dennis Rodman visited North Korea?!
That was Vice.

10. Time Warner has reportedly offered Vice control of a cable
channel, essentially giving them a 24-hour news channel.!
The issue is that Time Warner value Vice at $1.5 billion.!
Smith thinks it ought to be closer to $2.5 billion.

11. Will Vice be able to maintain their mission of delivering
‘News from the Edge?’ as a part of a major corporation?

12. “It’s not like we’re beggars coming cap in hand saying please
give me a network. We’re bringing Gen Y, we’re bringing
mobile, we’re bringing social, we’re bringing all of these
things that they don’t have.”
–Shane Smith, Vice