VBS.tv was an online television network owned by Vice Media, and later absorbed into VICE.com. The network produced original, short-form, documentary-style video content under the auspice of VICE Films. Subject matter included humanitarian issues, music, insider travel guides, and news. The creative director of the network was Spike Jonze.[1]

Vice Broadcasting System
Type of businessSubsidiary
Type of site
Video hosting service
FoundedMarch 2007
Headquarters
New York City
,
United States
OwnerVice
Key peopleSpike Jonze (creative director)
Suroosh Alvi (Vice co-founder)
Shane Smith (Vice co-founder)
AdvertisingVice Media
Current statusMerged

History

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Formation

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VBS began as a deal between Viacom-owned MTV Networks and Logo Group. In March 2007, the network was formed; MTV funded the formation of the network, and Vice magazine would supply the content. MTV has the right to distribute VBS content across its worldwide network of channels.[2] According to Vice co-founder Suroosh Alvi, "traditional journalism always aspires to objectivity, and since day one with the magazine we never believed in that...Our ethos is subjectivity with real substantiation. I don't think you see that on CNN."[3]

Circulation

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VBS videos are available via the network's website, as well as being broadcast on MTV Latin America[2] and MTV2.[4] VBS is currently featured as a weekly show on MTV2.[5] VBS.tv content has appeared on CNN as part of their CNN presents line-up, with CNN stating that "... We believe this unique reporting approach is worthy of sharing with our CNN.com readers."[6] Much of it is now available at VICE.com.[citation needed]

Content

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The network's videos feature reporting on popular culture, travel, extreme sports, and music.[7] The site has also produced special-interest and current affairs-based shows such as an interview with Hezbollah's self-proclaimed mayor of Beirut and a show that explored allegations of environmental abuse. It has also approached drug issues, producing a documentary about the criminal use of the drug scopolamine in Colombia,[2] a report on cocaine smuggling submarines[8] and a documentary on hallucinogenic frogs in the Amazon rainforest.[9][10] Other coverage includes a series of short documentaries about Darfur, Hurricane Katrina,[3] Liberia, North Korea and suicide in Japan's Aokigahara Forest.[11] The network also produced Heavy Metal in Baghdad, a feature-length documentary film about Acrassicauda. The director of content of the network was Santiago Stelley.[12]

Filmography

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Title Format Producer Channel Year
Vice Guide to Travel Documentary film series VBS.tv VBS.tv, MTV2 2006
Colombian Devil's Breath Documentary film VBS.tv VBS.tv 2007[13]
Balls Deep: Sewers of Bogota Documentary film VBS.tv VBS.tv 2007
Asses of the Caribbean Documentary film VBS.tv VBS.tv 2007
True Norwegian Black Metal Documentary film series VBS.tv VBS.tv 2007
Heavy Metal in Baghdad Rockumentary VBS.tv VBS.tv, film festivals 2007
Alarma! Documentary feature VBS.tv VBS.tv, film festivals 2008
The Alli Show Documentary television series VBS.tv MTV2 2009[14]
VBS Meets Watermelon Woman Documentary film VBS.tv VBS.tv 2009
White Lightnin' Dramatic feature VICE Films Film festivals 2009
Aokigahara Suicide Forest Documentary film VBS.tv VBS.tv 2009[11]
Hamilton's Pharmacopeia: Sapo Diaries Documentary film VBS.tv VBS.tv 2009
The Vice Guide to Everything Television series VBS.tv MTV2 2010
Interview with a Cannibal Documentary film VBS.tv VBS.tv 2010
Rule Britannia Documentary film series VBS.tv VBS.tv 2010
The Ride Documentary feature VICE Films Film festivals 2010
Heimo's Arctic Refuge Documentary film VBS.tv VBS.tv 2010
The Fourth Dimension Three short films VICE Films Film festivals 2012
Vice Documentary television HBO HBO 2013
Lil Bub & Friendz Documentary feature VICE Films Film festivals 2013
Reincarnated Documentary feature VICE Films Film festivals 2013

References

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  1. ^ Vice Music Chooses The Orchard Archived 1 May 2009 at the Wayback Machine Business Wire. 13 January 2009
  2. ^ a b c A Guerrilla Video Site Meets MTV The New York Times. 19 November 2007
  3. ^ a b The Snarky Vice Squad Is Ready to Be Taken Seriously. Seriously. Wired. 18 October 2007
  4. ^ THE ANTI-CHRIST OF THE INTERNET RETURNS TO MTV2 DigitallyOBSESSED, 15 November 2008
  5. ^ "When Vice is Virtue – Jeff Beer – Feature". Creativity Online. 24 March 2009. Retrieved 14 April 2012.
  6. ^ "CNN.com". CNN. Retrieved 14 April 2012.
  7. ^ Television for trendsetters The Guardian. 22 October 2007
  8. ^ Mackey, Robert. "Advances in Narco-Submarine Technology", The New York Times, 6 July 2010
  9. ^ Simonini, Ross. "A Psychonaut’s Adventures in Videoland", The New York Times, 10 February 2012
  10. ^ Hoby, Hermione. "Hamilton Morris gets high for a living – and invites you to watch", The Guardian, 1 June 2012
  11. ^ a b Oshida, Emily. "The Forest turns Japan's suicide forest into an obstacle course for Americans", The Verge, 8 January 2016
  12. ^ Derrick, Lisa. "Vice TV: Revolutionary, Bold Pop Culture Explorations", The Huffington Post, 12 November 2009
  13. ^ Cotroneo, Christian. "Devil's Breath: Scopolamine, AKA Burundanga, Hailed as 'World's Scariest Drug'", The Huffington Post, 3 September 2013
  14. ^ "The Alli Show Debuts with Josh Grant". 7 October 2009. Retrieved 19 February 2015.
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