Not content with destroying the web traffic of publishers and public confidence in, uh, everything, it seems like Facebook is now coming for cable news as well. The company announced today that it’s bringing a News Video section to Facebook Watch, the video service that no one cares about, which will let users view “live coverage, daily news briefings and weekly deep dives that are exclusive to Watch.”
According to reports published yesterday, the content will be produced by partners including Fox News and CNN, but will be financed by Facebook. Although Facebook has dabbled heavily in the news business before, directly financing exclusive news programming is a major increase in the company’s direct participation in the news cycle.
“People tell us they want to stay informed about what is happening around them,” said Alex Hardiman, head of Facebook’s news division. “We are committed to ensuring the news that people see on Facebook is high quality, and we’re investing in ways to better draw attention to breaking news when it matters most.”
