History.com Developing Digital Originals With Groundbreaking Military Blog and Short-Form Broadband Series

History.com Developing Digital Originals With Groundbreaking Military Blog and Short-Form Broadband Series

Band of Bloggers; Hero Ships; History Uncut; The Naked Underground and Greatest Stories Never Told to Change the Face of The History Channel(R) Website

ACQUIRES A COLLECTION OF HISTORICAL DOCUMENTARIES BASED ON GEORGE LUCAS' THE ADVENTURES OF YOUNG INDIANA JONES TO PREMIERE ONLINE

NEW YORK, April 30 /PRNewswire/ -- History.com, the definitive online historical resource, is bringing history into the digital age with the launch of five original digital brands. They include exclusive short-form original series, featuring rarely seen historical footage and a military blog that will enable users to experience soldiers' stories directly from the front-lines.

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The History Channel has acquired the rights to a collection of 94 never- before-seen documentaries that are a companion to the critically lauded The Adventures of Young Indiana Jones television movies. Created and executive produced by George Lucas, the documentaries will premiere on History.com in late 2007. The television movies will air on The History Channel and History International.

The announcement was made today by Nancy Dubuc, Executive Vice President and General Manager of The History Channel.

"There is no question that the industry has reached a new level in terms of what digital multi-media can provide," said Dubuc. "Just as The History Channel is where television audiences go when they want the best in insightful and thought provoking programming, History.com is the number one online destination for the history enthusiast. Technology is enabling us to bridge the gap in how we interact with our audiences and is changing where content is born. No matter what the platform, it is about enabling history fans to experience great content any way they want it."

History.com will continue to extend further into the digital realm with new features, ancillary sites and a great deal of user generated content. In addition, historical perspectives on contemporary news will have a major presence on History.com, separating it from the innumerable other sites that display breaking news stories.

"These series are just the tip of the iceberg for History.com," said Paul Jelinek, Senior Vice President, Digital Media, A&E Television Networks. "News and information is being delivered faster and in more formats than ever. It is our goal to make the website a must-visit for consumers looking not only for history but also a place where they can find historical context behind the news."

-- BAND OF BLOGGERS - The well-documented use of handheld video cameras by soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan has given us a perspective on war never before seen in history. This destination will collect raw and riveting "soldier generated content" from an ever-expanding band of military bloggers who use the internet, digital cameras and cell phones to deliver honest, powerful and uncensored news from the battlefield. Anchoring the site will be daily video posts from dedicated bloggers offering exclusive updates for History.com. In addition, BAND OF BLOGGERS will solicit soldiers to post their own videos about their war experience. (3rd Quarter 2007)

-- YOUNG INDIANA JONES DOCUMENTARY COLLECTION - To complement the fictional television movies, George Lucas oversaw the creation of 94 historically accurate half-hour documentaries. Years in the making, these superbly-crafted, in-depth premieres cover a vast array of topics that will help significantly diversify our broadband library. Each is based on events that took place during the early part of the 20th century and provide context to the fictional adventures of the Young Indiana Jones. Topics range from The History of Slavery, What is Archaeology and The History of the Ballet to biographies of Al Capone, Ernest Hemingway and Vlad the Impaler. History.com will develop a rich media broadband site that will feature the documentaries, along with other relevant content. They will also air on History International and History Classroom. (4th Quarter 2007)

-- HERO SHIPS - Short form broadband series that brings to life fascinating moments in a legendary ships' history. Veteran crew members provide firsthand accounts of the dramatic episodes that have come to define the legend of a particular vessel, from the USS Missouri to the USS Omaha. (4th Quarter 2007)

-- HISTORY UNCUT - Moments of history are featured unedited and unfiltered, just as the cameramen recorded them. This series will put the spotlight on memorable events through time such as; the Wright Brothers' first flight attempt; Einstein's first trip to the United States in 1931; the scene after President Reagan was shot in 1981 by John Hinckley. (2nd Quarter 2007)

-- THE NAKED UNDERGROUND - This exclusive broadband series is an off-shoot of Cities of the Underworld, the new weekly series, which premiered Monday, April 23 at 9:00 pm ET/PT on The History Channel. The four to five minute short form pieces explore an urban myth linked to a particular city. Some of the stories to be featured are a Roman myth that links the word "testify" to a man's private parts, and in Edinburgh, it is in dispute whether or not Braveheart was a real person. (2nd Quarter 2007)

-- GREATEST STORIES NEVER TOLD - The original short form series is based on the Greatest Stories Never Told books by Rick Beyer. Every episode tells a fascinating, little known story from history with a surprise twist. From the world conqueror that died of a nosebleed to the development of the pigeon guided missile to Annie Oakley's shot at stopping World War I, host Timothy John Smith relates stories of the absurd. (4th Quarter 2007)

History.com is the definitive historical online resource that delivers entertaining and informative content through interactive timelines; video; maps; games; podcasts and RSS feeds. History.com delivers thousands of video streams, from presidential speeches, to UFO sightings, to D-Day, the award- winning site showcases newly created video clips daily. Web exclusive broadband video content has been developed from popular series and specials on The History Channel including Modern Marvels, Digging for the Truth, and Lost Worlds. Searching through History.com provides access to an extraordinary amount of historical information with unprecedented speed. In addition, an online classroom supplies educational resources including study guides and lesson plans for teachers. The website is located at http://www.history.com/.

The History Channel(R) is one of the leading cable television networks featuring compelling original, non-fiction specials and series that bring history to life in a powerful and entertaining manner across multiple platforms. The network provides an inviting place where people experience history in new and exciting ways enabling them to connect their lives today to the great lives and events of the past that provide a blueprint for the future. The History Channel has earned four Peabody Awards, three Primetime Emmy(R) Awards, ten News & Documentary Emmy(R) Awards and received the prestigious Governor's Award from the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences for the network's Save Our History(R) campaign dedicated to historic preservation and history education. The History Channel reaches more than 91 million Nielsen subscribers. The website is located at www.History.com.

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Source: The History Channel

CONTACT: Lynn Gardner, +1-212-850-9322, Lynn.gardner@aetn.com, or Joshua
Gross, +1-212-210-9184, Joshua.gross@aetn.com, both for The History Channel

Web site:

http://www.history.com/

NOTE TO EDITORS: For more information and photography please visit us on the web at www.historychannelpress.com.

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