Current TV // Current

Revealed... the 515 chemicals women put on their bodies every day

Excerpt: "Many of those are also used in products such as household cleaners, and... more

lookatmypix
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5 hours ago
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12 comments

Wall Street: Angry Art!

This just says it all...

frank_runyeon
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13 hours ago
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Monsanto steps back on two GMOs. Why?

I don't think it has anything to do with commercial reasons and everything to do with... more

JanforGore
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22 hours ago
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21 comments

Do not adjust your mind. (Great video)

"This will be a 1 minute 10 seconds investment and it's so very worth it. Watch it... more

lookatmypix
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1 day ago
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12 comments

Current TV lays off 80

In a major restructuring, cable channel Current TV -- co-founded by former Vice... more

Ihatethemall
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7 days ago
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9 comments

11/14/2009 Libertarian Mike Shanklin Attends Neocon Rally Raleigh, NC

11/14/2009 Mike Shanklin Reports From The Anti-Healthcare, Freedomworks Rally in... more

shanklinmike
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3 days ago
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5 comments

Troubling figures on U.S. hunger

What a disgrace. Yet, our military defense budget is obscene. So please Obama, don't... more

JanforGore
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3 days ago
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14 comments

Pesticide attack in Paraguay

This is what GM soy farming is doing to Paraguay. It is now getting violent.

JanforGore
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4 days ago
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2 comments

Wow looks a lot like Embedded

Diary is an American documentary television series that premiered February 16, 2000,... more

yepyep
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4 days ago
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Current TV Calls Sarah Palin a TWILF and Gun-Ho | Snark Food

We've learned several new unflattering terms this morning and it's all because of... more

GossipandGab
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4 days ago
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9 comments

Current Regresses to Status Quo Programming

Current's new (old) strategy is to regress to standard 30 and 60 minute TV programming... more

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5 days ago
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78 comments

Christopher Columbus points finger at US for obstructing climate deal in Barcelona

The last meeting before Copenhagen next month, and as with Bush we see the same... more

JanforGore
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6 days ago
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5 comments

Everything you want to know about the scary, secret copyright treaty

"Here's a 20-minute, must-see lecture on the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement --... more

lookatmypix
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7 days ago
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1 comment

Is Current Following MTV's Lead?

I really enjoy the short-form videos that current has to offer, and it upsets me that... more

luthreads
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8 days ago
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1 comment

Current TV Staff Suffer A “Major Bloodbath” As 80 Employees Lose Their Jobs

Today is another sobering day for the tech and media world. Current TV has confirmed that 80 people are being let go, leaving the company with 300 employees worldwide. We heard multiple reports of significant layoffs at Current TV earlier in the day. One source, whose spouse works at Current TV, warns of a “major bloodbath today at CurrentTV, across all departments,” with cuts hitting “most of the people in the LA production office, as stuff is being outsourced.”

Current Media’s COO, Joanna Drake Earl told me over the phone that the layoffs are due to a shifting of programming strategy and are not a cost-cutting measure. Current is shifting away from in-house production and towards out sourcing segments, which will be done via acquisitions, co-productions, and the use of outside studios. Layoffs took place in Current’s San Francisco, Los Angeles, London and New York offices, but the cuts were mostly made in the production and programming areas. Earl added that this year is set to be Current’s most profitable year since its launch. See the entire statement issued by Current below.

A year ago to date, the media company, which was co-founded by Al Gore and Joel Hyatt, eliminated 60 positions. The media company also recently canceled its $100 million IPO that was originally announced in January 2008. Current said in a statement that market conditions and the recession forced the company to abandon the IPO. And this summer, Current Media got a new CEO, Mark Rosenthal, who replaced Hyatt. Rosenthal was the former president and COO of MTV networks and was also vice chairman and president of media platforms at SpotRunner.

Current made headlines this year after two of its reporters were detained by North Korea in a relatively high-profile incident (the reporters were eventually released after former President Bill Clinton intervened).

Cable channel Current TV is broadcast internationally to 59 million homes with markets in regions including the United States, Italy, and the UK. Current also has a strong web presence, tapping into popular social media services like Digg and Twitter for special events like the 2008 presidential election.

The Guardian Media Group announced news of layoffs this morning and yesterday brought news of other tech layoffs, with Adobe cutting 9 percent of its staff. This week also brought announcements of from Electronic Arts and Sprint. We’ve added Current’s layoff to the TechCrunch Layoff Tracker.

Here’s the entirety of the email that was sent to us by a representative for Current:

Current Media has made changes to its organization, most notably in the area of television programming. Current will be shifting away from short-form programming and daily in-house production and towards proven 30-60 minute formats from a multitude of sources, including acquisitions, co-productions, outside studios, as well as Current developed and produced content.

With this change, Current made the difficult yet necessary decision to eliminate certain daily, weekly, and non-regularly scheduled programs, including “Current Tonight,” “Current Takeover” and “Current Exposed.”

As a result of these cancelations, and the shift away from a reliance on daily in-house production, Current Media eliminated 80 positions worldwide associated with the affected programs and related support personnel in the company.

This re-organization was not the result of a need to cut costs. Current Media will have its most profitable year. This financial stability will allow the company to re-allocate resources in order to put further emphasis on areas of the business believed to best position Current Media for continued long-term growth. Part of this investment will be the immediate creation of new executive positions, and teams in program development, licensing and acquisitions, talent management, research, marketing, affiliate relations and advertising sales.

As part of the re-organization, Current Media will be consolidatinToday is another sobering day for the tech and media world. Current TV has confirmed... more