ABC News is taking even a little more time to enjoy “The View.” The long-running daytime chat show is set to expand to the weekends starting Jan. 11. “The Weekend View” is a half-hour that will air on streaming platform ABC News Live and feature the show’s Friday panel, which includes moderator Joy Behar, along with co-hosts Sunny Hostin, Sara Haines, Alyssa Farah Griffin and Ana Navarro.
“The Weekend View” will premiere at 7:30 a.m. Saturdays on ABC News Live, then run throughout the weekend. The show will include an extended “Hot Topics” segment — taped on Friday after the regular “The View” broadcast. It will also include clips from the talker’s companion podcast, “Behind the Table,” which features executive producer Brian Teta and “The View” co-hosts as they talk about the week’s top pop-culture stories.
“It’s an opportunity for us to extend the conversation, give viewers more of what they love from the connection they feel for the show,” said Karin Gilford, senior vice president of Digital Media, ABC News Group and Disney Entertainment Networks. “We really think ‘Weekend View,’ in addition to what we’ve done on podcasting — we’ve always had a great short form and social presence for the show — is kind of the next frontier.”
“The Weekend View” will be produced by “The View” team, including Teta, executive broadcast producer Robin Hommel and director Sarah de la O.
“In addition to having its most-watched linear season in four years, ‘The View’ is finding success meeting viewers wherever they get their content, from podcasts to YouTube, and now with new exclusive streaming content for the weekend on ABC News Live,” Teta said.
As for the mix of content on the new half-hour, Gilford said “The Weekend View” won’t be as politics-heavy as the weekday “View,” taking a page from other ABC News Live weekend programming. That includes “GMA Life,” which is also a more lifestyle-oriented weekend edition of “Good Morning America.”
“We’re following what we’ve seen be successful on ABC News Live on the weekends,” she said. “On Saturdays and Sundays, it’s sort of the more a lighter feel. They’re still covering all the stories of the week, but in a little bit of a different tone. So it’ll be the same show format. We’ll cover the hot topics, but it will lean a little bit more into pop culture on the weekends.
“I think people like to hear what the hosts have to say about a variety of topics,” she added. “The weekends are also when everybody’s generally taking a break. So it’s an opportunity to highlight some of the stuff the show covers throughout the week, that’s maybe not always in some of those politics arenas.”
As part of the launch, RoC Skincare signed on to serve as exclusive sponsor of “The Weekend View.” That marks the first time ABC News Live has sealed an integrated brand sponsorship.
“I think that’s even super innovative, figuring out ways to bring advertisers along with us that are excited about the content,” Gilford said. “Take beloved shows, talent you know, that have interesting points of view, and give audiences more access to that talent in places and formats that they’re excited about.”
Besides ABC News Live — which is available on Disney+, Hulu, YouTube, ABCNews.com, the ABC News and ABC News Live apps and elsewhere — “The Weekend View” will stream on ABC-owned stations streaming channels. There’s a chance for it to also become available on other platforms as well, Gilford said.
“We’re going to start in streaming, but we’re looking at the ecosystem,” she said. “Looking at what’s the right strategy for putting it on VOD, which platforms. And how we take these things and atomize them smartly onto social, based on user demand. You’re going to see a lot more of that from us next year.”
Besides “The Weekend View” and “GMA Life,” other ABC News Live programming includes “Prime with Linsey Davis,” “ABC News Live Reports,” “ABC News Live First” and “ABC News Live Weekend.”
English (US) ·