Digital video in search of younger viewers

Media companies are trying to connect with younger audiences online. Their efforts provide us with some examples of emerging digital video narrative styles.

CNN is one media company taking to YouTube with stories they hope will compete with companies like Vice. One of their stand-alone efforts is called Great Big Story. The videos are short and compelling and not identified with the CNN brand.

Here's a simple profile of an NBA "super-fan"

I especially enjoyed this story about pizza makers in Cuba:

Tegna, the media company formerly known as Gannett (which owns USA Today and many other newspapers and television stations), is also branching out into this narrative style, as you see in this web series, "The Triangle," produced by WXIA, its television station in Atlanta.

The company's goal with these types of videos is to get viewers to binge watch, as they might with Netflix material. The television station also produced this gritty series, "Charlie Foxtrot" (graphic material and profanity—viewer discretion advised).