"Kalief Browder": One Packed Minute Exposes Three Years of Injustice

To bring the message of Time to the masses beyond its exposure on Spike Viacom39s inhouse branded content division Viacom Velocity teamed with Indigenous Media a Los Angelesbased multiplatform content studio amp160The challenge was how to still hit on the important issues explored in a nuanced hourlong format but strip the project down to a mere minute amp160The result is a compelling new episode of 60 Second Docs a social mediafriendly video series created and produced by IndigenousquotThis was a very sensitive and important project as we had many stakeholders and a very emotional story to tellquot says Red Fabbri Vice Presidentamp160of Fan Engagement and Editorial at Spike amp160quotBoth teams brought professionalism and expertise in their own arenas as well as an excitement and duty to tell Kalief39s story with reverence to as many people as we could across onair and social mediaquotamp160amp160The goal was to craft the 60second documentary for Time based on the sixpart series that was telecast on Spikeamp160in March and still convey the gravity of Browder39s story amp160Considering the series was made specifically for platforms where a wide range of emotions are expressed in one second or less through GIFs and emojis the task wasn39t so farfetched amp160The 60second video can be viewed aboveamp160quotTelling a compelling story in 60 seconds requires instantly grabbing the viewer39samp160attentionquot says Jake Avnet COO of Indigenous Media amp160quotSo our 60 Second Docs are very personality driven have a strong point of view and typically focus on alternative voices to explore rich uncharted narrativesquotThe 60 Second Docs audience already had an affinity for documentary content amp160Episodes in the series such as quotDaddyDaughter Hair Schoolquot and quotRecycling Kidquot are highly shareable garnering tens of millions of views amp160And the majority of its core viewership of 18 to 24yearolds also watches an hour of television per day hitting a sweet spot for Spike amp160Strategically an episode to promote Time was a nobrainerquotUnlike the typical 60 Second Docs which areamp160created from original footage shot by Indigenous we assigned them to review Time and craft their piece from existing footagequot says Tom De Napoli Senior Director of Content and Platform Strategy at Viacom Velocity amp160quotWe also requested that the crux of the narrative be about the theme of Kalief39s wrongful imprisonment which is a highprofile example of a pressing social issue and his experience on Rikers Island without revealing the tragic endingquotVelocity distributed the video natively across 60 Second Docs and Spike profile pages on Facebook Instagram and Twitter to reach as many viewers as possible amp160The partnership was amplified on Facebook where the video was originally posted by 60 Second Docs and later crosspromoted by Spike and celebrity influencers from Indigenous39 network including Ludacris Marlon Wayansamp160and Omar Epps amp160This tactic allowed the video to reach an even wider audience with an interest in the subject matter with all of the views being aggregated on the original videoTo continue the momentum throughout Time39s sixweek run Velocity also promoted 60 Second Docs through paid advertising on Facebook to drive tunein to linear airings each week amp160quotBefore Indigenous and Spike launched a single piece of social content we AB tested variations of thumbnails poster frames video aspect ratios titlesamp160and description copy to improve the content39s performance among fans once it went livequot explains De NapoliThe results amp160Over 42 million video views 85500 engagementsamp160and a total of 214 million overall impressions exceeding all expectationsquotJake and I began our conversation about how Indigenous could collaborate with Velocity back in August but that was just the startquot De Napoli says amp160quotWhile we had a strong assumption that 60 Second Docs would be a great fit for Viacom it took many more months of navigating them through the process and keeping this alive until we found the right opportunity to test out a partnership amp160Without the collaborative spirit and the openness Velocity Creative and Spike demonstrated in their willingness to work with an outside partner a program like this never could have succeededquotUltimately Velocity was able to push the parameters of great storytelling by working with a partner that honored the premise while offering a radical new scope amp160But most importantly 60 Second Docs made more than 4 million people aware of social injustice in America39s prison system and helped Time reach an audience which otherwise may not have been exposed to Browder39s storyThe Kalief Browder Story is the first execution of the Velocityamp8211Indigenous partnership amp160Future 60 Second Docs episodes will feature the SpikeParamount Network shows Waco and American WomanClick the social buttons above or below to share this story with your friends and colleaguesThe opinions and points of view expressed in this content are exclusively the views of the author andor subjects and do not necessarily represent the views of MediaVillagecomMyersBizNet Inc management or associated writers

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"Kalief Browder": One Packed Minute Exposes Three Years of Injustice

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Charlise Ferguson

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"Kalief Browder": One Packed Minute Exposes Three Years of Injustice

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