Vice and the Importance of Authenticity

Vice is a “global youth media company.” It was not always a global media company. In fact, Vice started as a punk magazine in Canada.

Vice is now valued at $2.5B. Headquartered in Brooklyn, it operates verticals in news, music, film, print, and beyond. Big-name partners are starting to recognize its cultural influence.

Earlier this year, Vice announced a partnership with ESPN, the dominate company in sports. Vice CEO Shane Smith was pretty excited about this partnership:

“To be teaming up with ESPN, creating brand new sports shows for them, and then showing ’30 for 30’s on Viceland is perhaps one of the favorite moments in my professional life,” he said. “I can now die a happy man. No, wait, we have to take over the world first! Here it comes baby, Vice World of Sports!!”

In 2013, Vice started producing a newsmagazine series for HBO. The newsmagazine series was extended for two more seasons, through 2016. Starting in September, Vice will expand its partnership with HBO by launching a nightly 30-minute news program, Vice News Tonight.

As described by Josh Tyrangiel, Executive Vice President Content, News, and Vice News Tonight:

“The nightly news hasn’t changed its format in 60 years, whereas the way most viewers — particularly younger viewers — consume information has changed dramatically,. We understand that people aren’t going to watch Vice News Tonight out of obligation. We’re going to have to earn people’s time and attention with great reporting and original forms of storytelling, something VICE has excelled at for several years now.”

Vice is Brooklyn. It is young and tech-savvy. It is slightly dangerous. It is risky. It is, above all else, authentic. This spirit — unapologetically counter-culture — has animated its journey from obscure Canadian punk magazine to global media powerhouse.