NEW YORK – (June 19, 2013) – Al Jazeera America, the new American news channel that will launch later this year, today announced that an American version of the award-winning program, The Stream, will be part of its daily programming lineup.
The Al Jazeera America version of The Stream will be broadcast from Washington, D.C., and be hosted by veteran journalist Lisa Fletcher.
The Stream will be uniquely formatted to allow viewers to interact with Fletcher and her guests during the program via Twitter, Facebook, Google+ Hangouts and Skype. The show’s social media team and second screen technology will enable viewers to engage 24-hours-a-day with new content, comments, user-generated videos and a variety of posts.
“The Stream will generate diverse and robust discussion that challenges both the viewers and guests,” said Ehab Al Shihabi, executive director for international operations for Al Jazeera and the senior executive developing Al Jazeera America. “Its unique format will set the show apart with issues, guests and discussion that won’t be found anywhere else.”
Fletcher, a former ABC News correspondent and investigative reporter, has won the prestigious George Foster Peabody Award, multiple Edward R. Murrow Awards and numerous Emmy Awards. She has hosted the Al Jazeera English version of “The Stream” since 2012.
The Stream will rely heavily on a variety of online resources and social media tools to connect with people across the United States and around the world. This includes “Storify,” which allows the aggregation of additional information, links and photos about show topics on the website; “Video Genie,” which enables viewers to leave video questions for the show 24-7; and Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest and Reddit. It will also host Google+ Hangouts and use Skype rather than satellite feeds for nearly all guest interviews.
Recently named Outstanding Talk Show in the news category by the Gracie Awards, the Al Jazeera English version of The Stream has also received the 2012 Royal Television Society’s award for Most Innovative Programme of the Year and the 2012 Webby’s People’s Choice Award for News and Politics. The Stream also received a 2012 Emmy nomination for New Approach to News and Documentary Programming.
A completely different version of The Stream will continue to be seen on Al Jazeera English.