timesXtwo - One Story. Two Takes.

ByABC News
June 25, 2015, 10:00 AM

— -- ABC News and BBC Current Affairs Announce Unique Partnership, timesXtwoTackling One Topic from Two Very Different Perspectives

Original Stories will Launch on a Dedicated YouTube Channel

In a new and unique storytelling venture, ABC News Nightline and BBC Current Affairs announce the launch of timesXtwo (Times Two), a new YouTube Channel which will host original thought-provoking content. This unique partnership is aimed at reaching new and younger audiences with original journalism exploring key issues around the world.

Every week, ABC News Nightline and BBC Current Affairs will each contribute a video on the same topic, giving twice the insights into some of the biggest stories across the globe. TimesXtwo will engage viewers to take part in a conversation on hot button issues through a social media campaign. The content is digitally native and designed to continue to engage viewers in these ongoing conversations over time. This unique collaboration aims to have a huge reach and impact with younger audiences.

Risking It All: TimesXtwo kicks off with exclusive access on-board the Phoenix aka MOAS (the Migrant Offshore Aid Station), a boat rescuing migrants off the coast of Libya. In the Millionaire and the Migrant, we meet the American millionaire and his wife who swapped their yacht for a new life mission – saving migrants and refugees at sea who are fleeing their countries by the tens of thousands and finding themselves stranded at sea. The Rescue tells the story of Mohammed and his family, and his dreams for his family – what he is prepared to risk for a new start in Europe. ABC and BBC are both there as 2,500 migrants are rescued on a single day – one of the biggest rescue operations since this humanitarian crisis started. We cover the story from two distinct vantage points – the eyes of the millionaire and those of a migrant – both who have risked nearly everything to be here.

Upcoming Programming Includes:

• How Much Do We Really Need? Fast Fashion/Micro Apartments: TimesXtwo asks how much do we really need and peers into the world of living smaller from two different perspectives. Whether it be clothes or space, more people are ridding themselves of unnecessary things to live smarter, smaller and simpler in big cities across the globe. TimesXtwo takes us into a world where less is more.

• The Disruptors: TimesXtwo brings us inside the worlds of those who are not afraid to ruffle feathers, including one woman who is changing the face of the pro-life movement and one man who risks his life to stand up to the Taliban in Pakistan.

In the weeks to come, the timesXtwo films will explore a range of hot topic issues including racism, animal trafficking and rescue, as well as what it is like to step out as a cross-dresser.

“We are excited to experiment with different kinds of storytelling on this new platform,” said Roxanna Sherwood, Nightline Executive Producer. “It will empower our audience to interact directly with us and gives us a way to build on our stories long after those stories are first told.”

Fiona Campbell, BBC’s Head of Current Affairs, said: “We know younger people want to find and share more of their news online and it is essential we keep finding new ways to inform and interest all of our audiences with high quality, original journalism. This trial aims to reach younger people with current affairs films and by partnering with ABC, we can give audiences twice the insights and perspectives on stories being talked about across the globe.”

Notes to Editors/Further Information:

Nightline is one of ABC News’ most popular shows online, with clips generating more than 180 million views on YouTube alone. The show not only resonates with millennials on the platform (over 70% of Nightline’s YouTube viewers are under the age of 34), but also connects with a global audience, as over 60% are watching from outside the U.S. With over one billion views and one million subscribers, ABC News is one of the largest and fastest growing news channels on YouTube. Additionally, Nightline ranks #1 in Total Viewerss to date, based on Live +Same Day Data from Nielsen Media Research.

The BBC films are made by Current Affairs. The same team runs BBC Trending which reports on what is trending and investigates why. This endeavor builds upon the digital transformation of BBC News and Current Affairs –almost 500,000 subscribers to BBC News’ YouTube channel, nearly 16 million followers of @BBCbreaking on Twitter and over 16 million fans on the BBC News’ Facebook page.

You can follow timesXtwo on:

YouTube: http://bit.ly/TimesXTwo

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/timesx2 Twitter: https://twitter.com/timesxtwo Website: www.timesxtwo.com Tumblr: http://timesxtwo.tumblr.com/Pinterest: https://uk.pinterest.com/timesxtwo/ Instagram: www.instagram.com/1story2takes