For generations the phrase “as American as apple pie” has come to describe and represent the best of American culture. Now a new generation, the rising mainstream, is putting their fingerprints on this quintessential expression of Americana.
The Onion Looks Back on the Nightmare That Was Election 2016 with New Election Special on FUSION
‘The Onion Presents: The Iconic Images of Election 2016’ Premieres Friday, October 21 During a Special Night of Election-Themed Programming
FUSION today announced its first television collaboration with The Onion in the form of a very special election retrospective. ‘The Onion Presents: The Iconic Images Of Election 2016’ will look back on the crucial moments that shaped one of the wildest presidential campaigns in America’s history, through the satirical lens only America’s Finest News Source can provide. The Onion’s esteemed panel of political experts, journalists, and historians will look back at the bumpy road that led to this grisly electoral pileup, offering insight into how we made a laughing stock of our democratic process. ‘The Onion Presents: The Iconic Images Of Election 2016’ will premiere Friday, October 21 @ 9PM on FUSION (channel listings).
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“As America’s Finest News Source, we felt an obligation to memorialize an election that other media outlets have conspicuously ignored,” says Mike McAvoy, CEO of Onion Inc. ‘The Onion Presents: The Iconic Images Of Election 2016’ is produced by Onion Studios and marks the first TV collaboration between FUSION Network and Onion Inc’s stable of iconic digital brands. “We are thrilled to be bringing The Onion’s distinct voice to FUSION’s audience during the final weeks of an election season that has made it increasingly difficult to tell where the real campaign ends and the satire begins,” said George Lansbury, SVP Programming and Production for FUSION.
On Friday, October 21, FUSION will air a special night of election-themed programming starting @ 8PM with ‘Chris Gets Money,’ a comedy doc about income inequality featuring comedian Chris Cubas. ‘The Onion Presents: The Iconic Images Of Election 2016’ will air @ 9PM followed by ‘Muslim Invasion’ @ 9:30PM, a half-hour special from Bassem Youssef. With all of the hate-mongering, fear-inducing rhetoric coming out of the mainstream media today – we can’t forgot that Arabs and Muslims have been depicted as savage terrorists in Hollywood films as long as they’ve been making them! Luckily, Bassem knows just the right formula to combat Islamophobia – and the bigots will never know what hit them. FUSION will also take you deep inside the Trump campaign’s crowning moment at the RNC with ‘Trumped Up at the RNC’ @ 10PM.
FUSION Recognized by Shorty Social Good Awards as Finalist in 8 Categories
This week the Shorty Awards announced this year’s finalists for the Social Good Awards – and FUSION is recognized as a finalist in eight categories!
- In the industry section our coverage of the Orlando Shooting is recognized in the News & Media category and Prison Kids in the Television category
- In the cause section, Lost In is a finalist in the Hunger & Poverty category and Michelle Nash’s series In the World in the Environment & Sustainability category. Both the video series Lemonade and #CallingAllVoices are finalists in the Social Justice category.
- Prison Kids was also recognized in the campaign section under the Integrated Campaign category.
- The video series EIGHTEEN is a finalist in the Civic Engagement category.
The Shorty Awards honor the best people and organizations on social media, culminating in a ceremony in New York City.
UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon Salutes Univision’s ‘RiseUp AS ONE’ Event
Today the UN Secretary General saluted Univision and FUSION for organizing the RiseUp AS ONE event to celebrate diversity and unity. See below:
FUSION Sets Comedy Doc on Income Inequality with Comedian Chris Cubas
‘Chris Gets Money’ to Premiere Friday, October 21 @ 8PM on FUSION Network
Comedian Chris Cubas has always been poor, until now. FUSION today announced a new comedy documentary featuring Cubas providing his unique and personal take on one of the central issues of this year’s presidential campaign: income inequality.
Chris Cubas is a comic and one of the working poor in Austin, TX – one of the most wealth-segregated cities in the country. As the divide between rich and poor continues to grow, Chris sets out to learn more about the income gap by becoming a part of the 1% he knows nothing about for a month. He has $30,000 and 30 days to infiltrate the elusive super-wealthy and explore why the poor stay poor and the rich keep getting richer. ‘Chris Gets Money’ premieres Friday, October 21 @ 8PM on FUSION Network (channel listings).
“The point I wanted to make with this film is that income inequality isn’t an abstract idea – it is a real, tangible problem with real world implications for regular Americans,” Cubas said. “I’ve never had money in any real way. My father worked for the post office, my mother was a stay at home mom and we got by, but it was never easy. And now people might think ‘Oh he’s broke because he decided to try and being a comedian,’ but the fact is I work more than 40 hours a week and still barely make ends meet. I think it’s important for people to realize that it’s not just homeless people or jobless people that this is a problem for.”
“The first time I met Chris he told me two things – that he came from abject poverty and that he believes rich people have lost their ability to empathize with everybody else,” said Bryan Carmel, Head of Comedy at FUSION. “Beyond being super smart and funny, he’s got a perspective you never see on TV.”
Dodai Stewart Named Editor-in-Chief at FUSION
Today FUSION named Dodai Stewart its new Editor-in-Chief as Alexis Madrigal returns to writing and producing in his new role as Editor-at-Large. More details below is emails sent by FUSION President and Chief Content Officer Daniel Eilemberg and Alexis.
FUSION Recognized with Barlett & Steele Award for Contributions to Historic Panama Papers Investigation
The 10th annual Barlett & Steele Awards for Investigative Journalism recognized FUSION’s investigative team, along with the ICIJ partner organizations, with a gold award for “The Panama Papers.” The awards are presented by the Donald W. Reynolds National Center for Business Journalism to celebrate the best in investigative business journalism.
“The Panama Papers” marks one of the largest investigations in journalism history with more than 100 media partners collaborating on the reporting. The papers are a trove of leaked documents from inside Mossack Fonseca, a Panama-based law firm that creates offshore companies to hide financial activities of the rich and powerful. A leak to Germany’s Sueddeutsche Zeitung of 11.5 million documents involving 210,000 companies was shared with CPI’s International Consortium of Investigative Journalists, which coordinated investigative work with media partners such as McClatchy, FUSION, The Guardian, Le Monde and the other media partners totaling more than 370 reporters.
FUSION Slates Live Coverage of ‘The VP Debate: Pence vs. Kaine’
FUSION will deliver live coverage of the only Vice Presidential debate of 2016 between Sen. Tim Kaine (D-VA) and Gov. Mike Pence (R-IN).
Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump are two of the least popular presidential candidates in modern times – will their far less known running mates be able to mobilize of young voters? FUSION’s diverse team of correspondents and reporters will find out. Coverage will be anchored by Jorge Ramos and Alicia Menendez. They will be joined FUSION’s Nando Vila, Dan Lieberman and Politcal Editor for TheRoot.com Jason Johnson. FUSION will also talk to surrogates from both the Clinton and Trump campaigns including former Governor Martin O’Malley (D-MD) and former Rep. Jack Kingston (R-GA).
FUSION’s live coverage of ‘The VP Debate: Pence vs. Kaine’ will kick off @ 9:00 PM on FUSION Network @ 9PM (channel listings).
FUSION’s Real Future Team Wins Two Bay Area Journalism Awards
FUSION’s award-winning Real Future team was recognized this weekend with two Bay Area Journalism Awards. The awards are given out annually by the San Francisco Peninsula Press Club.
Real Future Editor Kashmir Hill took home first prize in the ‘Feature Story of a Light Nature’ category for her insightful piece I TURNED CAPS LOCK ON FOR A WEEK AND EVERYONE HATED IT.
FUSION News Director Kevin Roose received the top award in the 'Feature Story of a Serious Nature’ for his report Haunted by Hackers: A suburban family’s digital ghost story.
The Press Club received 241 entries this year. The judging was done by press clubs in other cities – Cleveland, Florida, Houston, Milwaukee, New Orleans, Orange County and San Diego.
FUSION Wins Two CLIO Awards for Use of Instagram
This week FUSION’s Instagram account was recognized with two CLIO Image Awards for its creative use of the platform.
@ThisIsFusion was earned a “Gold" award in the Social Media category and a “Silver” award in the film category for “Stella McCartney Vs Stella.” The video was shot with an iPhone 6 by social creative director Danilo Lauria. This is the second year in a row the team was recognized with a “Gold” award.
The CLIO Award winners were announced on September 28 in NYC. The CLIO Image Awards are the first global awards that honor creative excellence in fashion, beauty, retail and accessories – specifically those who contribute to the creative process of advertising and marketing across a wide range of media.
FUSION Partners with the Audience Awards for Third Annual FUSION Doc Challenge
Winners to be Showcased Across FUSION’s Digital and TV Platforms as well as Featured at 2017 Slamdance Film Festival and 2017 International Audience Awards Film Festival – Filmmakers Also Eligible for Cash Prizes
Filmmakers from around the world are invited to register for the 2016 FUSION Doc Challenge, hosted by the Audience Awards (AudAwards). The challenge will run from November 10-18 and includes $20,000 in cash and other prizes. The top-12 finalists will premiere their films at the at the 2017 Slamdance Film Festival, the 2017 International Audience Awards Film Festival and be showcased on the FUSION Network (channel listings), available in approximately 40 million U.S. households. Filmmakers can gain more information on how to register here.
AudAwards provides a stage for short films and engaging stories. Dedicated to celebrating the power of storytelling and building audiences for new talent, it was created by filmmakers for filmmakers to help grow careers and fund dreams. Launched in 2005, AudAwards’ International Documentary Challenge sponsors a variety of themed competitions throughout each year. Doc Challenge films – which all receive prominent film festival exposure, in addition to other prizes – have received Emmy nominations and been eligible for Academy Award consideration. Doc Challenge festival premieres and sponsors have included Silverdocs, Hot Docs, Slamdance, DOCNYC, POV, Documentary Educational Resources and FUSION.
FUSION Slates Live Coverage of ‘Trump vs. Clinton: Round 1′
As the two least popular presidential candidates face off with a third of young voters considering a third-party candidate, FUSION will deliver live coverage of the first Presidential debate of 2016. Will the candidates address the issues that young voters care about including criminal justice, student debt, climate change, gun violence and discrimination? FUSION’s diverse team of correspondents and reporters will find out. FUSION’s Nando Vila will be joined by FUSION correspondent Miriti Murungi, host of “The Traffickers” Nelufar Hedayat, and political blogger Katie Halper to dissect the debate in context of why the two mainstream parties are losing the youth vote. Jorge Ramos will join the team to contribute his insights.
FUSION’s live coverage of ‘Trump vs. Clinton: Round 1’ will kick off @ 8:50 PM on Twitter and Facebook and pick-up on FUSION Network @ 9PM (channel listings).
FUSION Explores How the American Voter is Being Gamed with ‘RIGGED’
‘The Naked Truth: Rigged’ Primetime Doc Premieres Sunday, September 25 @ 8PM – FUSION Launches Mobile Game That Lets Users Steal Elections Through Gerrymandering
FUSION’s award-winning investigative team puts a spotlight on one of the biggest political heists of the century: how the American voter is being gamed. ‘RIGGED’ is a cross-platform report that includes a primetime documentary, in-depth digital reports, and mobile game that all expose how democratic institutions are being hijacked—and what you can do about it.
‘The Naked Truth: Rigged’ | Our politics have become hyper-partisan. Washington is gridlocked and people feel like the political system is broken—and it’s not an accident. FUSION investigative correspondent Natasha del Toro sets out to see if the power still rests with the people or if the political system is RIGGED. She takes viewers on a trip to Florida and North Carolina where she finds that a toxic brew of trickery, gerrymandering, campaign spending, and suppression of “undesirable voters”—from minorities to college students—has made it nearly impossible to have free and fair elections. “We pretend that we have a democracy but we really have a system where our representatives pick their constituents versus the constituents picking their representatives,” Josh Brannon, who is running for Congress in North Carolina, told FUSION. ‘The Naked Truth: Rigged’ premieres Sunday, September 25 @ 8PM on FUSION (channel listings).
RIGGED Mobile Game | In a first-of-its-kind effort, FUSION partnered with game developers HITCENTS to launch a mobile game called RIGGED, an engaging puzzle game that also informs players about gerrymandering. The complementary experience allows players to figure out how to win fictional elections in the palm of their hand. Coders for the game travelled with Natasha del Toro as she reported for the documentary, and learned the concepts behind gerrymandering used to design the challenging puzzle game based on what they learned. Players will experience first-hand how redistricting can disenfranchise voters. RIGGED puts power in the hands of whomever plays it, giving new meaning to gaming the system.
FUSION Gets Intimate with ‘Sex.Right.Now’ Primetime Special From Editors of its Sex+Life Vertical
‘Sex. Right. Now: Burning Questions’ Hosted by FUSION’s Cleo Stiller Premieres Saturday, September 24 @ 10PM
The editors of FUSION’s popular Sex+Life vertical are getting intimate with viewers, digging deeper into the ways our generation is hooking up, having sex, and relating to our bodies with a new primetime special. In “Sex. Right. Now: Burning Questions,” FUSION’s Cleo Stiller answers the deeply personal questions that many are too afraid to ask, providing viewers with the sex ed we wish we’d gotten in gym class. “From how much sex young people are really having to why men and women behave differently immediately after sex; from a new and remarkable pill that’s helping thousands stay safe to what it’s like to be part of the 1% of the population that isn’t interested in sex at all, the episode empowers viewers by providing them with the crucial information they need to forge healthy, happy, satisfying sex lives,” Stiller said. “Sex. Right. Now: Burning Questions” premieres Saturday, September 24 @ 10PM (Watch the trailer here).
The inaugural installment of ‘Sex. Right Now.’ tackled topics ranging from internet-connected sex toys to weed’s power in the bedroom. Watch here.
FUSION Promotes Laura Wides-Muñoz to Vice President Special Projects and Editorial Strategy
FUSION’s President and Chief Content Officer Daniel Eilemberg today announced that Laura Wides-Muñoz is taking on a broader role at FUSION and has been promoted to Vice President for Special Projects and Editorial Strategy. Wides-Muñoz joined FUSION from The Associated Press in January 2015 to serve as Director of News Practices. Eilemberg’s full memo to staff below:
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