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With Facebook’s new Watch Party feature, you can watch tons of videos and shows with members of groups you’re in on Facebook. Watch this video to find out more about this new Facebook feature! Channel 4 News has announced plans for a new weekly news show, created exclusively for Facebook Watch, the broadcaster has announced. Uncovered, which will make its debut in the New Year, will.
Shepard Smith serves as the main talent for a “Fox News Update,' available exclusively on Facebook Watch.
MENLO PARK, Calif. - One year after Facebook Watch debuted as a dedicated section of the social media giant for news, shows such as “Fox News Update” with Shepard Smith are drawing significant audiences and the program will be expanded.
A whopping 720 million people consume Watch on a monthly basis and 140 million people spend at least one minute per day using the service, according to data released by Facebook. The average daily visitor spends more than 26 minutes in Watch on a daily basis.
Facebook Watch, which is essentially the company’s answer to YouTube, allows viewers to access content on desktop, mobile and TV apps. Since it launched in 2017, Facebook Watch also has partnered with a variety of content producers including Major League Baseball, WWE and Conde Nast.
Facebook bills Watch as a success, not only because of viewership but also because its programs use innovative formatting, well-known talent and provide a platform for breaking news coverage. The first batch of programming began last year in the United States but Facebook plans to continue investing in news programming, with projects in international markets as Australia, Canada, Mexico, and Europe already in the works.
Facebook says that Watch also proves that its news audience craves and values breaking news coverage.
“Daily episodes with the highest views and strongest engagement were often driven by coverage of breaking news topics or the major news stories of the day. The weekly episodes’ successes, by contrast, were often driven by topic virility that resonated strongly in News Feed and were often shared widely,” Facebook global video lead Shelley Venus wrote, in a statement.
In addition to Smith’s “Fox News Update,” other cable news hosts such as CNN’s Anderson Cooper and Univision’s Jorge Ramos also host programming on Facebook Watch. “Fox News Update” is live twice per day, five days per week and Facebook says its high audience engagement demonstrates there is an appetite for straight news on the platform.
“We also found that Facebook viewership habits are in line with news consumption off platform, particularly when it comes to breaking news. Live news coverage performs well on Watch when there are big breaking news stories being told,” Venus added. “We are excited about the opportunity to expand this test and learn more with our news partners globally about the kinds of timely, relevant and quality news video audiences are interested in.”
Facebook has come under fire in recent years over a variety of claims, including that conservative news was buried on the site. Smith, the host of “Shepard Smith Reporting,” has been praised for his nonpartisan coverage of the Trump administration.
Facebook plans to enhance Watch by making it easier to join various groups based on a user’s specific tastes and will expand Ad Breaks with additional languages. The company announced a slew of new content that will be released over the coming months, including the animated show “Human Discoveries” with Zac Efron and Anna Kendrick, which premieres on July 16.
- Hi Corey,
We are testing shows with a small group of publishers and creators and plan to bring the experience to more people soon. If you want to submit your request to create a show, please visit:
https://www.facebook.com/help/contact/showpageinquiry
Best,
Blair- What's the latest on offering FB Watch access to people with show/content ideas? This is a useful tool when users can create their own shows and not just watch other creations...when will FB move the dial here so we can get started on this platform?Posted about a year ago by Nicole
- I would like to create a show on facebook watch what should I doPosted about a year ago by Charity
- I tried to do the inquiry but it would not take my facebook page that I am an admin on. I don't even know how that is possible its a facebook group page.Posted about 12 months ago by Terry
- Posted about 12 months ago by David
- This question has been closed.