Looking to "deepen its reach with younger audiences on social platforms," Fox Sports has "partnered with YouTube Space LA to produce a daily web-video series explicitly focused on fast-breaking stories that will be shared online," according to Todd Spangler of VARIETY. After a soft launch "earlier this summer," the series will officially launch as @TheBuzzer prior to the start of the NFL season and will feature one minute videos that are "posted to Fox Sports’ YouTube channel as well as FoxSports.com." The goal is to "produce four to 10 videos per day, centered on quick, snarky commentary to harness social buzz immediately as it hits the sports world." Fox Sports Exec VP/Digital Pete Vlastelica said, "Until now, we haven’t had a video-based program designed to be quick and active on social media to promote stories." Former "ET" and "The Insider" correspondent Nicole Dabeau, who is repped by Houston-based Creative Management Entertainment Group, will be a "full-time host for the show." Currently, @TheBuzzer videos "collectively average about 500,000 views per week -- relatively modest, by YouTube standards." But Fox Sports said that "more than 40% of the traffic for the series comes from social-media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr and Google+." Vlastelica said the program is "designed to anticipate what will trend socially." The series is sponsored by Ford (
VARIETY.com, 8/18).
