Yahoo Finance Musk’s X Unveils Video Shows With Don Lemon, Tulsi Gabbard
(Bloomberg) -- X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter, announced a slate of new video shows, including a partnership with former CNN anchor Don Lemon.
Most Read from Bloomberg
Apple to Pull Blood-Oxygen Tool From Watches to Avoid US Ban If Appeal Fails
US Economy Set for Another Cash Boost If Congress Backs Tax Deal
Stocks Slip as Officials Push Back on Easing Bets: Markets Wrap
What Is Disease X? How Scientists Are Preparing for the Next Pandemic
Lemon will host a 30-minute show on X called “The Don Lemon Show,” airing three times a week “exclusively first” on the platform.
X will also distribute new shows from Jim Rome, the sports-radio commentator and former ESPN star, and Tulsi Gabbard, a former US representative and presidential candidate. Rome’s show will “stream exclusively on X, five days a week,” the company posted. Gabbard will distribute “an exclusive series of documentary style videos,” the company wrote.
San Francisco-based X didn’t share financial details. The partnerships are aimed at adding legitimacy to X’s renewed push into video, which has been a focus of owner Elon Musk. High-quality video content could also offer X more lucrative advertising opportunities. As of last month, ad revenue was on track to notch a significant slump in 2023, in part because of brands’ concerns about changes to X’s content-moderation policies.
Musk has spoken several times about his interest in making X more competitive with Google’s YouTube, the global leader in online video. Historically, X has been known as a text-based platform where people go to post their opinions and share news links, so adding exclusive videos from high-profile individuals is a step toward changing that reputation. Tucker Carlson, a former Fox News host, moved some of his video content to X last year — though he has since launched his own separate subscription-based media company.
This isn’t the first time the social network has tried to push into professional video. The company made live video a major priority in 2016 and 2017, and even signed a deal with the NFL to stream Thursday Night Football games. Those efforts eventually fizzled as Twitter struggled to retain rights for must-see video content, which are typically expensive.
(Updates with history about Tucker Carlson, NFL in paragraphs five and six.)
Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek
Trumponomics 2.0: What to Expect If Trump Wins the 2024 Election
Kim Kardashian’s Skims Isn’t the Only Celebrity Brand to Watch
©2024 Bloomberg L.P.
