Former NBC Information and MSNBC anchor Brian Williams is in talks to return to the anchor desk… at a stunning new residence.
Amazon Prime Video is in talks with Williams to steer an election night time particular, The Hollywood Reporter has confirmed. The particular, if it comes collectively (a supply cautions that talks are nonetheless ongoing and a deal could or could not materialize), would see Williams and a bunch of different contributors discussing the election outcomes. The particular can be non-partisan.
Williams spent practically three a long time with NBC, the place he was an anchor for NBC Information and MSNBC. He led the flagship NBC Nightly Information broadcast from 2004-2015, earlier than stepping down after exaggerations and falsehoods have been present in a few of his reporting, together with stories from Iraq and New Orleans after it had been ravaged by Hurricane Katrina.
He would go on to steer the 11 p.m. hour on MSNBC, earlier than leaving the corporate totally in 2021.
It’s a stunning foray into information from Prime Video, which has till now been centered on leisure programming like Fallout and sports activities just like the NFL and NBA. After all, a one-off particular shouldn’t be the identical as a completely fledged foray into information, however it’s an intriguing step into the area. One supply cautioned that the particular is seen as a one-time factor and never essentially a harbinger of future plans.
Information doesn’t have a protracted shelf life, like leisure programming, and it doesn’t attract a mass viewers like sports activities (election nights however).
Nonetheless, streaming providers owned by media corporations that produce information have added programming lately. Each Paramount+ and Peacock have information programming from CBS and NBC, respectively, whereas Disney+ added ABC Information programming earlier this month (Hulu has had it for years). Warner Bros. Discovery’s Max additionally added CNN programming final yr, although it has pulled again on exhibiting most CNN U.S. exhibits.
Selection first reported the talks.