GMA Launches Third Hour

Sept. 4, 2007 — -- Thirty-two years after it first launched on ABC, "Good Morning America" expands to a third hour.

Starting Tuesday, the popular morning news program's extended hour will be broadcast exclusively on ABC News NOW, ABC's broadband, mobile and cable network.

The extra hour, called "Good Morning America NOW," will feature a number of familiar faces from the popular broadcast program. The launch coincides with the one-year anniversary of the current "GMA" anchor quad of Diane Sawyer, Robin Roberts, Chris Cuomo and Sam Champion, who will all contribute to "Good Morning America NOW." Cuomo takes the lead for the third hour as he anchors the new program.

Click here to check out the show.

In addition to reports from current "GMA" anchors, several other ABC News contributors will make the jump from "GMA" to "GMA NOW" including correspondents Claire Shipman, Juju Chang, Deborah Roberts, Elizabeth Vargas, Kate Snow, Marysol Castro, Ron Claiborne and Bianna Golodryga.

Learn more about ABC News NOWhere.

Anytime, Anywhere You Want It

Unlike rival morning program "Today" on NBC, which launched a third hour in October 2000 and plans a fourth hour in mid-September, "GMA NOW" will go beyond broadcast television. It will direct viewers to the network's fledgling broadband, mobile and cable channel for a live show immediately after "Good Morning America."

ABC News NOW launched in July 2004 as a 24-hour news and information network and is now available to more than 32 million users across cable, broadband and mobile platforms.

For Cuomo, "GMA NOW's" anchor, ABC News NOW is a familiar stage. Cuomo previously hosted a daily politics show "Politics Live!" and occasionally anchors a Law & Justice webcast for the channel. Cuomo says News NOW programming has a looser feel than the typically stiff boundaries of broadcast television.

"There's a 'keeping it real' vibe to NOW that you don't get anywhere else on ABC or otherwise," said Cuomo. "Our political coverage had a freshness and a 'no bs' feel that is tough to find on more 'polished' broadcast TV."

News You Can Use: More of What You Want

Cuomo is looking forward to an extra hour to dig deeper into topics featured on "Good Morning America" and explore important issues that were unable to fit into the show's two-hour time frame. He says he often finds himself wishing for more time during live segments on the morning broadcast and adds, "Who doesn't?"

"Good Morning America NOW" will give Cuomo and contributors the opportunity to devote more time to the news you can use. From additional cooking, health and fashion segments to extended interviews with today's hottest celebrities and newsmakers, "Good Morning America NOW" gives you more of what you want.

Have you ever wished you could hear more from your favorite celebrity? With "Good Morning America NOW" you can. In addition to extended and additional interviews from "Good Morning America," the new hour of fresh content will feature segments from "Good Morning America's" XM Satellite Radio show that launched in 2005, something Cuomo says will add more spontaneity to the program.

"There is a freedom that can come with not feeling the anxiety of being on camera," said Cuomo. "Radio has often fostered a level of candor that TV cannot. … The feel of radio still can create a uniquely frank environment."

Viewers 'Talk Back'

In addition to providing viewers with more of what they want, "GMA NOW" asks viewers to become a part of the program. ABC News NOW invites viewers to "Talk Back" to Cuomo and other "GMA" anchors, in addition to voicing their opinions to political candidates as the 2008 election approaches.

Cuomo says "Talk Back" segments will be an integral part of "GMA NOW."

"We plan to have viewers send in videos commenting on the most talked [and] e-mailed about stories on the live broadcast," said Cuomo. "We will then run those videos in 'Good Morning America NOW' and invite viewers to send their own questions for big guests we have on the live broadcast, which we will ask them to answer [and] respond to on 'Good Morning America NOW.'"

The opportunity for viewers to interact with ABC News talent and newsmakers via video, e-mail and phone is a unique feature of "GMA NOW."

The Future of 'GMA' and ABC News

ABC isn't the only network to launch a new morning program. Fox Broadcasting joined the race in the winter with "The Morning Show With Mike and Juliet" in addition to "Today's" fourth hour, premiering this fall. But ABC hopes "Good Morning America NOW" will offer something new and different to its audience.

"Hopefully it can do two things — live up to the level of programming of the mother ship, capturing the urgency and the dedication we prize every day, and also offer something different to online viewers, something better than they are used to," said Cuomo.

ABC is also hoping to mimic some of the success "Today's" third hour has brought to that program. Seven years after the launch, "Today" retains about 81 percent of its first- and second-hour audience.

"GMA NOW" will join other popular ABC News NOW programming with "Talk Back" features: "Money Matters," "Healthy Life," "Ahead of the Curve," "Exclusiva" and Cuomo's former show, "Politics Live!" ABC News NOW has something for everyone, 24/7.

Jessica Stedman Guff is the executive producer of ABC News NOW and teams up with "GMA NOW" senior executive producer Jim Murphy and executive producer Tom Cibrowski to launch "GMA NOW."

Tuesday at 9 a.m. EDT, you can catch "Good Morning America NOW" every weekday on ABC News Now. Click on the "Good Morning America NOW" Web page at ABCNEWS.com to find out how you can access ABC News NOW.