WEBVTT - National Geographic Leader Sees Growth Ahead Under Disney Ownership 0:00:06.040 --> 0:00:10.000 Welcome to Strictly Business, Variety's weekly podcast featuring conversations with 0:00:10.039 --> 0:00:13.960 industry leaders about the business of entertainment. I'm Cynthia Littleton, 0:00:14.160 --> 0:00:17.479 Business editor of Variety Today. My guest in New York 0:00:17.640 --> 0:00:22.400 is Gary Nell, chairman of National Geographic Partners. National Geographic 0:00:22.480 --> 0:00:24.720 is in for a big transition this month, as Disney 0:00:24.720 --> 0:00:28.440 completes its historic acquisition of twenty first century Fox. The 0:00:28.520 --> 0:00:32.280 deal includes Fox's majority interest in the National Geographic Partner's 0:00:32.360 --> 0:00:37.160 joint venture with the nonprofit National Geographic Society. Nell, who 0:00:37.200 --> 0:00:40.680 has headed nat Geo since late two thousand thirteen, offers 0:00:40.680 --> 0:00:43.520 his insight into how nat Geo fits into Disney's larger 0:00:43.560 --> 0:00:47.000 plan to launch a global streaming platform. He also reflects 0:00:47.000 --> 0:00:50.640 on Fox's stewardship of the nat Geo brand. The partnership 0:00:50.720 --> 0:00:54.080 the two struck back in race. Some eyebrows at the start, 0:00:54.560 --> 0:00:58.320 but Nell, who ran Sesame, Workshop and NPR before he 0:00:58.360 --> 0:01:01.240 came to nat Geo, the is flatly that the storied 0:01:01.280 --> 0:01:04.360 magazine and society might not exist today if it hadn't 0:01:04.400 --> 0:01:11.840 expanded into cable television back in Gary Nell, chairman of 0:01:11.959 --> 0:01:15.440 National Geographic Partners, thank you so much for coming in 0:01:16.080 --> 0:01:18.560 during what what must be a very busy time for you. 0:01:18.880 --> 0:01:20.440 It's great to be here. I don't know what you're 0:01:20.440 --> 0:01:25.760 talking about. Well, National Geographic, like most of the rest 0:01:25.800 --> 0:01:28.880 of twenty century Fox, is just about to be formally 0:01:28.920 --> 0:01:32.240 absorbed by the Walt Disney Company, and the Disney Company 0:01:32.240 --> 0:01:34.360 has no shortage of ambition for what it's going to 0:01:34.440 --> 0:01:36.840 do with these new assets. As everybody in the media 0:01:36.880 --> 0:01:38.800 world knows they are launching their you know, the goal 0:01:38.840 --> 0:01:42.399 is to launch a major streaming platform that will eventually 0:01:42.480 --> 0:01:45.600 be global. As you sit at the helm of National 0:01:45.640 --> 0:01:49.840 Geographic Partners, the partnership between what is now what will 0:01:49.880 --> 0:01:53.440 be Disney and the National Geographic Society, what do you 0:01:53.480 --> 0:01:56.400 see on the horizon for the brand with this you know, 0:01:56.720 --> 0:02:01.280 incredible merger and this ambitious energy behind behind launching these 0:02:01.280 --> 0:02:05.760 brands in the streaming we are super excited, I mean, 0:02:05.760 --> 0:02:07.960 to be joining up with the Walt Disney Company. Nobody 0:02:08.000 --> 0:02:11.880 manages brands better than they do um and you know, 0:02:11.919 --> 0:02:15.600 we've been now put out forward already as one of 0:02:15.680 --> 0:02:18.960 five core brands along with Star, Wars and Picks are 0:02:19.000 --> 0:02:24.200 in Marvel and Disney and National Geographic. So we're really 0:02:24.200 --> 0:02:28.360 excited about that. And as Bob Iger and all of 0:02:28.400 --> 0:02:31.799 his colleagues repositioned Disney towards more of a direct to 0:02:31.840 --> 0:02:37.359 consumer business, I think, UM, we're perfectly positioned to UM 0:02:37.400 --> 0:02:39.960 to be part of that portfolio and connect with this 0:02:40.160 --> 0:02:43.200 tribe of curious people around the world, which is what 0:02:43.680 --> 0:02:46.160 National Geographic has been about for over a hundred and 0:02:46.200 --> 0:02:50.920 thirty years. How do you think, UM, how do you 0:02:50.960 --> 0:02:52.560 think do you have a sense of what it will 0:02:52.639 --> 0:02:57.000 look like on day one? For the service? Will will 0:02:57.040 --> 0:03:00.840 not Will National Geographic be offered as a I feed 0:03:01.000 --> 0:03:03.080 as it exists now? Will it be all V O 0:03:03.200 --> 0:03:05.000 D Do you have a sense of that? Well? And 0:03:05.080 --> 0:03:07.160 you know, first of all, National Geographic Partners is a 0:03:07.240 --> 0:03:12.320 joint venture between Fox Today, Disney you know soon next 0:03:12.400 --> 0:03:17.440 week and UH and the National Geographic Society, which is 0:03:17.480 --> 0:03:22.720 a nonprofit UM. And we will be positioned to be 0:03:22.919 --> 0:03:26.200 able to have of course, our linear service continuing, which 0:03:26.280 --> 0:03:28.360 is in a hundred and seventy countries around the world 0:03:28.720 --> 0:03:32.000 and is very successful, one of the most widely distributed 0:03:32.560 --> 0:03:36.920 quote unquote cable channels in the world. UM. And and 0:03:36.960 --> 0:03:39.800 then we'll be on the streaming services about Disney Plus 0:03:39.840 --> 0:03:44.400 and Hulu most likely to be on demand type programming 0:03:44.560 --> 0:03:47.880 that um, you can pull up rather than streaming. And 0:03:47.920 --> 0:03:49.720 I think at the beginning, and I think part of 0:03:49.720 --> 0:03:52.560 the plan is to have a lot of amazing library 0:03:52.600 --> 0:03:55.520 and original content that will be exclusive to Disney Plus. 0:03:55.520 --> 0:03:58.160 And we're just beginning to get our arms around that. 0:03:58.240 --> 0:03:59.840 You know, we haven't been able to really do that 0:04:00.000 --> 0:04:04.400 before the closing for legal reasons. UM. And now that 0:04:04.480 --> 0:04:06.800 the closing is about to happen, we'll we'll be on 0:04:06.840 --> 0:04:09.640 our way. Can you remember, let's go back just about 0:04:09.680 --> 0:04:13.000 eighteen months when the word first surfaced about Disney and 0:04:13.560 --> 0:04:16.000 Century Fox coming together. Do you remember what you thought 0:04:16.040 --> 0:04:18.240 at the time. A lot of us, including me, it 0:04:18.320 --> 0:04:20.160 took a bit to wrap our heads around it. Can 0:04:20.200 --> 0:04:22.520 you tell me what the reaction was internally? Well, I 0:04:22.560 --> 0:04:26.080 remember sort of hearing from our colleagues at one CF 0:04:26.120 --> 0:04:30.960 like these rumors you've been hearing about are true, and 0:04:30.960 --> 0:04:35.880 and it was like, oh, and I think everyone was surprised. Um. 0:04:35.920 --> 0:04:39.440 You know, this was really I think um invented in 0:04:39.480 --> 0:04:44.400 many ways by Bob and and Rupert Murdoch. UM and UM. 0:04:44.440 --> 0:04:48.080 They they came to a meeting of the minds, UM. 0:04:48.160 --> 0:04:51.000 And once you wrapped your head around it, Cynthia, I 0:04:51.040 --> 0:04:54.360 think UM it made a lot of sense for both parties. 0:04:54.400 --> 0:04:58.039 I think Fox in some ways decided that this arms 0:04:58.160 --> 0:05:02.960 race in Hollywood, even being a sixty plus billion dollar company, 0:05:03.120 --> 0:05:06.120 UM was going to be hard to compete against Netflix 0:05:06.160 --> 0:05:10.279 and Amazon and everyone else. UM and Disney was able 0:05:10.320 --> 0:05:14.160 to bulk up with their amazing firepower they had already 0:05:14.200 --> 0:05:17.680 and now adding the Fox assets to to what they 0:05:17.680 --> 0:05:22.719 had already becomes a real UM, you know, competitor and 0:05:22.720 --> 0:05:26.680 and perhaps the winner in that in that race going forward. 0:05:26.960 --> 0:05:28.400 So I think it made a lot of sense for 0:05:28.440 --> 0:05:31.560 both parties. And then UH and then Fox I think 0:05:31.600 --> 0:05:35.440 can work on its core brands that it has traditionally 0:05:35.440 --> 0:05:39.480 been in, including news and sports and and the network 0:05:39.520 --> 0:05:40.840 and the O N O S and everything else. So 0:05:40.880 --> 0:05:42.640 I think it made sense for a lot a lot 0:05:42.680 --> 0:05:45.960 of people. I would also say that Fox has been 0:05:46.000 --> 0:05:50.000 a fantastic partner for National Geographic. There's an incredibly creative 0:05:50.040 --> 0:05:55.040 culture UM and our UH you know, our partners and 0:05:55.160 --> 0:05:58.520 Peter Rice and and Lachlan and James Murdoch and everyone 0:05:58.520 --> 0:06:02.279 had been super supportive of National Geographic UM and have 0:06:02.440 --> 0:06:06.039 given us capital to invest in programming and and really 0:06:06.040 --> 0:06:09.520 turn loose our creative assets, and um, so I think 0:06:09.560 --> 0:06:11.600 part of it is is a little bit bitter sweet 0:06:11.640 --> 0:06:15.440 in the sense that the the creative freedom that Fox 0:06:15.520 --> 0:06:17.680 has given us is you know, we're going to now 0:06:18.000 --> 0:06:20.640 turn to a new partner and I'm sure we will 0:06:20.720 --> 0:06:24.320 have um that creative freedom as well, but you know, 0:06:24.360 --> 0:06:27.640 it's always a change, and um we're looking forward to it, 0:06:27.680 --> 0:06:29.640 but I think we'll miss we'll miss some of that 0:06:29.760 --> 0:06:32.880 freedom that that Fox gave us. It's interesting that you 0:06:32.920 --> 0:06:35.920 say that because going on twenty years ago, when Fox 0:06:35.960 --> 0:06:39.360 and National Geographic came together, there was a lot of 0:06:39.880 --> 0:06:43.000 wow Rupert Murdoch, who had a reputation for a different 0:06:43.080 --> 0:06:44.920 kind of journalism and a more you know, and more 0:06:44.960 --> 0:06:49.640 sensationally sensationalistic take on the world. And there were definitely 0:06:49.680 --> 0:06:53.200 some eyebrows raised, but in your experience that you know 0:06:53.520 --> 0:06:56.280 that they were, they were in fact supportive. They did 0:06:56.320 --> 0:06:58.600 not try to tell you to sex up the magazine 0:06:58.680 --> 0:07:03.280 or put you know, put supermodels on National Geographic television. Yeah, 0:07:03.279 --> 0:07:06.240 somebody had sent me a picture of um, a mock 0:07:06.360 --> 0:07:08.120 up of what they thought it could be common. It 0:07:08.200 --> 0:07:10.280 was a picture of a dolphin and it said dolphins 0:07:10.320 --> 0:07:14.440 who needs them, you know, so I think that that 0:07:14.880 --> 0:07:18.680 I never came to fruition. I would There wasn't one 0:07:18.840 --> 0:07:23.280 instance that I know of quote unquote editorial interference. I think, 0:07:23.600 --> 0:07:26.440 you know, the one thing about Foxes, they as we've 0:07:26.440 --> 0:07:29.320 seen from their television network and f X and the 0:07:29.360 --> 0:07:32.840 other the movie studio. There's a reason why they've won 0:07:32.880 --> 0:07:36.200 all these awards. And there's a reason why. Um, these 0:07:36.240 --> 0:07:40.960 these creative enterprises have spawned some amazing shows over the years, 0:07:41.000 --> 0:07:44.200 like Modern Family and The Simpsons and This is Us 0:07:44.240 --> 0:07:46.520 and all kinds of things coming out of there. That 0:07:46.680 --> 0:07:49.680 it's about creative freedom. And I think they they they 0:07:49.720 --> 0:07:52.480 stand for that. And I think they decided to double 0:07:52.520 --> 0:07:55.200 down on National Geographic, and I would have I would 0:07:55.200 --> 0:07:59.840 say this, um that you know, without the cable invest 0:08:00.040 --> 0:08:02.280 minute that was made twenty years ago was long before 0:08:02.320 --> 0:08:05.440 my time. Uh, there's a good chance National Geographic wouldn't 0:08:05.440 --> 0:08:07.440 be around today. I mean I think we were, you know, 0:08:07.480 --> 0:08:10.960 we were a print magazine with a legacy, um and 0:08:11.000 --> 0:08:14.320 we all know where print magazines are today. We're in 0:08:14.360 --> 0:08:17.440 a better place than many others, but it's tough and 0:08:17.520 --> 0:08:21.160 without that investment of resources, who knows where we would 0:08:21.160 --> 0:08:24.200 have been the television revenue and cash flow. Is that 0:08:24.360 --> 0:08:26.760 significant to the society. I mean it's not a surprise, 0:08:26.800 --> 0:08:29.400 but interesting to hear you say that. Is there any 0:08:29.440 --> 0:08:32.600 part of you that is happy to be You're gonna 0:08:32.679 --> 0:08:36.040 be distanced from Fox News? Had it ever been tense 0:08:36.160 --> 0:08:39.360 to have Fox beingder the same corporate umbrella as Fox News, 0:08:39.360 --> 0:08:41.280 given that there is a lot of often a lot 0:08:41.320 --> 0:08:44.600 of criticism of the of the of that channel's programming. Yeah, 0:08:44.600 --> 0:08:47.600 I mean we were able to I think access Fox News, 0:08:47.640 --> 0:08:49.280 and I was able to get a number of our 0:08:49.320 --> 0:08:52.959 explorers and journalists who are covering issues like wildlife trafficking 0:08:52.960 --> 0:08:56.720 and other things onto those platforms that reach an audience 0:08:56.800 --> 0:09:01.120 that perhaps the you know, the traditional media hasn't reached. 0:09:01.559 --> 0:09:04.120 So I viewed it as an opportunity. Look, I think 0:09:04.200 --> 0:09:09.439 National Geographic is one of these UM nonpartisan UM enterprises, 0:09:09.480 --> 0:09:12.440 and we've been able to to actually be popular among 0:09:12.480 --> 0:09:14.600 the left and the right. UM. If you look at 0:09:14.600 --> 0:09:17.360 our subscriber base, we have a lot of a lot 0:09:17.480 --> 0:09:20.199 a lot of subscribers in red states as well as 0:09:20.200 --> 0:09:22.760 blue states, and I think there's a reason for that, 0:09:23.120 --> 0:09:27.920 UM that we're trying to appeal towards UM people's better instincts, 0:09:28.120 --> 0:09:30.880 and I think being able to access Fox News was 0:09:31.000 --> 0:09:35.280 part of that strategy. Um. We you know, we're looking 0:09:35.320 --> 0:09:38.760 forward to a new relationship with ABC News, UM with Disney, 0:09:38.960 --> 0:09:42.640 and we've we've got some great ideas about how we 0:09:42.679 --> 0:09:45.560 can work together on some on some issues going forward. 0:09:46.720 --> 0:09:49.480 How um, So it sounds like in terms of in 0:09:49.559 --> 0:09:51.600 terms of you know, we're hearing that there is a 0:09:51.679 --> 0:09:55.560 just a general a big acceleration of production activity across 0:09:55.640 --> 0:09:58.240 Disney and the Fox folks are preparing. It sounds like 0:09:58.640 --> 0:10:01.360 you all are also, you know, know know that you're going 0:10:01.400 --> 0:10:04.080 in with some marching orders to develop some really high 0:10:04.240 --> 0:10:08.680 end exclusive content for these streaming platforms. Yes, so we'll 0:10:08.720 --> 0:10:11.680 you know, we're super excited. I think, you know, Kevin 0:10:11.679 --> 0:10:15.360 Mayer and Bob and everyone at Disney are you know, 0:10:16.080 --> 0:10:19.760 doubling down on direct to consumer. And I think that 0:10:19.840 --> 0:10:23.840 the Street is understands this, UM and they want National 0:10:23.840 --> 0:10:26.360 Geographic to be a very important part of that. So, 0:10:26.440 --> 0:10:29.840 whether we can unleash the creative energy that Courtney Monroe 0:10:29.840 --> 0:10:32.560 and her colleagues on the channel of have been doing 0:10:32.559 --> 0:10:35.400 and winning a bunch of Emmy nominations and now Academy 0:10:35.440 --> 0:10:40.440 Awards are Free Solo and an incredible documentary that really 0:10:40.520 --> 0:10:44.360 literally climbed the height of the film documentary world, which 0:10:44.400 --> 0:10:46.959 we're you know, so proud of and just being able 0:10:47.000 --> 0:10:51.360 to be at the Bathtas and the Academy Awards and winning. Um, 0:10:51.400 --> 0:10:53.600 you know, you feel like a little kid sort of. 0:10:53.840 --> 0:10:56.560 But it's um, you know, I think we can bring 0:10:56.640 --> 0:10:59.560 that kind of quality now to the Disney Plus and 0:10:59.679 --> 0:11:04.000 plat Form and we're being you know, very encouraged to 0:11:04.040 --> 0:11:06.520 do that. How are you? You know, one of the 0:11:06.520 --> 0:11:08.600 big one of the one of those sort of groundbreaking 0:11:08.679 --> 0:11:12.000 things about about these streaming platforms is their ability to 0:11:12.000 --> 0:11:14.800 be global. Can you talk about how not Geo is 0:11:14.840 --> 0:11:19.199 set up internationally? Is there much differentiation in your many 0:11:19.280 --> 0:11:23.720 international channels? Yeah, so we I'm a big believer having 0:11:23.760 --> 0:11:27.280 worked in the media space and international brands like Sesame Street, 0:11:27.280 --> 0:11:30.880 which I oversaw for a long time. Localization is critically 0:11:30.920 --> 0:11:34.040 important and you've got to make these channels locally relevant. 0:11:34.480 --> 0:11:36.760 So we have you know, we have what I would 0:11:36.800 --> 0:11:39.400 call embassies around the world, and you walk into some 0:11:39.440 --> 0:11:43.439 of these offices Cynthia and Istan Bull and in Delhi 0:11:43.480 --> 0:11:46.040 where I was just last week, UM and they're like 0:11:46.679 --> 0:11:50.680 shrines to National Geographic. It's pretty amazing, and with people 0:11:50.720 --> 0:11:53.960 who are religiously connected to this brand, but in a 0:11:54.040 --> 0:11:58.800 localized way. So our Turkish or our Indian or our 0:11:59.120 --> 0:12:03.960 Mexican colleagues are Argentinean colleagues are producing some local content 0:12:04.320 --> 0:12:07.920 to give a contect a context that's relevant to local 0:12:07.960 --> 0:12:12.600 audiences wherever they are. UM just an example, last week, 0:12:12.679 --> 0:12:16.120 we launched a show in India about six incredible women 0:12:16.240 --> 0:12:19.120 from the Indian Navy who have circumnavigated the globe and 0:12:19.200 --> 0:12:22.800 we had the we had the top Navy admiral at 0:12:22.800 --> 0:12:25.000 this event at a girls school. You know, it was 0:12:25.360 --> 0:12:27.880 front page News and the Times of India. And that's 0:12:27.920 --> 0:12:31.439 I think where National Geographic can play. And it's about 0:12:31.440 --> 0:12:35.760 getting these big global productions like Genius and uh Free 0:12:35.800 --> 0:12:38.920 Solo out there, but it's also having some localized content 0:12:38.960 --> 0:12:42.160 that can be relevant to people that I just just 0:12:42.360 --> 0:12:45.600 overseeing all of that activity in spots around the globe 0:12:45.600 --> 0:12:48.400 that must require quite a quite a staff and an infrastructure. 0:12:48.400 --> 0:12:50.360 You have a lot of boots on the ground. We do, 0:12:50.520 --> 0:12:52.400 and you know that's been one of the advantages at 0:12:52.440 --> 0:12:56.040 twenty one CF brought to to our world and being 0:12:56.040 --> 0:12:59.000 able to access their talents. So when we you know, 0:12:59.120 --> 0:13:01.880 when we did this deal, we were able to take 0:13:01.920 --> 0:13:06.280 advantage of the whether it's the Star TV India folks, 0:13:06.440 --> 0:13:09.360 or whether the twenty one CF talent base in Argentino 0:13:09.559 --> 0:13:13.640 or Mexico or wherever. We were able to harness their 0:13:13.800 --> 0:13:16.800 great executive talent and production talent to be able to 0:13:16.840 --> 0:13:19.599 get out there, and we imagine the same under Disney. 0:13:19.640 --> 0:13:22.559 And Disney has got a huge global footprint which we're 0:13:22.600 --> 0:13:26.520 super excited about. And and we've already had some you know, 0:13:26.600 --> 0:13:31.880 preliminary conversations with London and and Latin America and Asia 0:13:32.360 --> 0:13:36.240 to try to figure out how we can reposition national 0:13:36.320 --> 0:13:39.360 geographic and push it forward on an international basis. You know, 0:13:39.400 --> 0:13:42.000 about half of our revenues come from outside the United 0:13:42.040 --> 0:13:45.200 States and that GEO. So it's a very important part 0:13:45.240 --> 0:13:48.120 of our future. Is that the magazine and all the 0:13:48.120 --> 0:13:51.400 television and digital assets too. It's about it's about that 0:13:52.360 --> 0:13:55.280 both exactly. Yeah, I interest saying well, all of that 0:13:55.360 --> 0:13:59.600 international you know, bespoke international programming sounds like gold for 0:13:59.679 --> 0:14:04.000 somebody wanting to launch a high end international streaming service exactly. 0:14:04.040 --> 0:14:05.800 And now I think you know, where we've got to do. 0:14:05.800 --> 0:14:08.680 It pushes on the digital side. Um, if you look 0:14:08.720 --> 0:14:11.640 at our footprint and social media Cynthia Cynthia, we're the 0:14:11.720 --> 0:14:15.000 number one social media brand friendss on Instagram in the world. 0:14:15.200 --> 0:14:18.360 We just passed a hundred and two million followers. We 0:14:18.520 --> 0:14:21.240 just passed Nicki Minaj. We're very you know, and we're 0:14:21.640 --> 0:14:25.240 catching up to Justin Bieber. So we're very excited about 0:14:25.280 --> 0:14:29.000 that right now. Completely counterintuitive in a world where people think, 0:14:29.000 --> 0:14:31.240 oh my god, we are so focused on the most 0:14:31.400 --> 0:14:36.520 inane things and people and and forgive me for slamming folks, 0:14:36.600 --> 0:14:40.200 but you know, that's so counterintuitive to where we think that, 0:14:40.360 --> 0:14:43.400 like the cultures, focus is what drives it, is your 0:14:43.480 --> 0:14:46.520 is it your personalities? Is it your climbers and the 0:14:46.560 --> 0:14:49.880 people that just adventurers and explorers that do these incredible things. 0:14:49.920 --> 0:14:53.320 A lot of that, I think is photography. And people 0:14:53.360 --> 0:14:57.120 are so visual, you know, they're so visual now and 0:14:57.280 --> 0:15:00.720 because of smartphones, I think in man ways have have 0:15:00.880 --> 0:15:05.320 made everyone a photographer. To see the best photographers in 0:15:05.360 --> 0:15:09.400 the world posts their content and national geographics social media 0:15:09.440 --> 0:15:13.000 pages is so inspiring for for people and just you know, 0:15:13.040 --> 0:15:16.920 being in India, there's ten million people on our Instagram 0:15:16.960 --> 0:15:21.440 accounts just in India, right, So it's a big footprint 0:15:21.520 --> 0:15:24.480 around the world for NA Geo and you, I would 0:15:24.520 --> 0:15:27.840 imagine you guys have worked to harness that platform and 0:15:27.880 --> 0:15:31.760 get you know, get the word out about programs and initiatives. Yeah, 0:15:31.800 --> 0:15:34.920 and to the point where Instagram actually sent us balloons 0:15:35.000 --> 0:15:37.760 for our anniversary for hitting a hundred million. And I 0:15:37.840 --> 0:15:41.200 don't think Instagram is known for, you know, saluting all 0:15:41.240 --> 0:15:43.960 their partners for doing stuff. So we're very proud of 0:15:43.960 --> 0:15:48.080 those balloons. Thank you, Instagram. That's gay. I'm glad they're 0:15:48.080 --> 0:15:53.240 paying attention. Are there other um, are there other opportunities 0:15:53.240 --> 0:15:55.760 that you see to monetize your library you have just 0:15:55.880 --> 0:15:58.520 even on the video side, you have a rich, rich, 0:15:59.040 --> 0:16:03.040 rich and deeper. Is there are their efforts? Have there 0:16:03.080 --> 0:16:05.800 been efforts underway in the past that may now change 0:16:05.880 --> 0:16:08.400 under the Disney regime. Yeah, you know, I'm not I 0:16:08.400 --> 0:16:09.840 don't know how much it will change. I think it 0:16:09.840 --> 0:16:12.240 will give us some new opportunities to take advantage of 0:16:12.240 --> 0:16:18.920 the Disney powerful business activities in areas that um Fox 0:16:19.000 --> 0:16:23.840 wasn't really in, like theme parks, you know, consumer products, 0:16:23.960 --> 0:16:29.480 UM travel, uh and other areas that Disney is incredibly 0:16:29.560 --> 0:16:32.800 strong in So we plan to work with our colleagues 0:16:32.800 --> 0:16:34.760 of Disney to take advantage of that. And we think 0:16:34.760 --> 0:16:38.600 a national geographic offering within their framework will be just 0:16:39.360 --> 0:16:43.280 really exciting. So we think that there's big opportunities for 0:16:43.520 --> 0:16:47.280 growth there. Um, we're in those places now, but we 0:16:47.360 --> 0:16:50.720 think we could grow those a lot under Disney. You 0:16:50.800 --> 0:16:54.280 must have, you know, certainly knowing Courtney Monroe, who runs 0:16:54.320 --> 0:16:57.520 your channels, has such a such a solid brand filter. 0:16:57.640 --> 0:16:59.880 But to do it must be with the brand like 0:17:00.320 --> 0:17:04.000 GEO that stands for so much of science and incredibility 0:17:04.359 --> 0:17:07.720 more than anything else. That that yellow box. You've got 0:17:07.720 --> 0:17:10.960 to you must have really careful decisions about things you 0:17:11.000 --> 0:17:12.719 go into because the last thing you want to do 0:17:12.840 --> 0:17:16.200 is kind of sully that that gilded yellow box. Yeah. 0:17:16.200 --> 0:17:18.800 I learned a long time ago, Cynthia, that the CEO 0:17:18.960 --> 0:17:22.680 of an organization is really the chief brand officer at 0:17:22.680 --> 0:17:25.480 the end of the day, and you're the one who's 0:17:25.560 --> 0:17:29.320 going to be responsible if if the brand is violated. 0:17:29.359 --> 0:17:32.080 And I you know, my experience has been as sesame 0:17:32.320 --> 0:17:36.600 or NPR here that um, you know, the public knows 0:17:36.760 --> 0:17:39.320 when you violate the brand, when you go outside the 0:17:39.320 --> 0:17:42.680 border and they call you on it. And so there's 0:17:42.720 --> 0:17:47.000 almost a social policing of these brands about where people 0:17:47.119 --> 0:17:53.560 connect to it and when you violate that through some association. Um, 0:17:53.600 --> 0:17:56.919 you know, you know, so I think having kind of 0:17:57.359 --> 0:18:01.080 spiky sense to use our new colleagues at Marvel I 0:18:01.240 --> 0:18:05.240 p spiky sense around where those boundaries are is what 0:18:05.359 --> 0:18:10.080 we would like to make sure we're on top of it. 0:18:10.240 --> 0:18:12.080 With so many I mean, you have the high class 0:18:12.119 --> 0:18:14.920 problem of having so many social media followers. It must 0:18:14.920 --> 0:18:16.920 be it must be a full time job for people 0:18:17.000 --> 0:18:19.520 just to kind of watch what the reaction is and 0:18:19.560 --> 0:18:23.400 what people are saying about your content and your your initiatives. 0:18:23.520 --> 0:18:25.840 Do you you you really get a lot of feedback 0:18:26.080 --> 0:18:29.480 from what people say online? Does that influence decision making? 0:18:29.880 --> 0:18:33.640 We have no shortage of feedback, um, and we love 0:18:33.760 --> 0:18:36.880 each and every comment. So uh. Now we have a 0:18:36.920 --> 0:18:40.040 great team of people who have come from different places 0:18:40.160 --> 0:18:43.600 New York Times, Time Magazine, you know, the Atlantic all 0:18:43.600 --> 0:18:47.080 over who have been part of, um, you know, the 0:18:47.119 --> 0:18:49.760 growth of social media, and they're just so super excited 0:18:49.800 --> 0:18:52.520 about being a national geographic. I mean it's one of 0:18:52.520 --> 0:18:55.760 these places where you have to pinch yourself sometimes and 0:18:55.880 --> 0:18:57.680 feel how lucky you are to be able to work 0:18:57.720 --> 0:19:01.320 for content organization that's literally in the you know, saving 0:19:01.359 --> 0:19:05.600 the planet business, which is which is way cool compared 0:19:05.640 --> 0:19:08.200 to other things that you could be doing. Yeah, it's 0:19:08.280 --> 0:19:10.560 not a bad way to spend your day. Um, we've 0:19:10.560 --> 0:19:12.720 been talking a lot about global streaming, but what about 0:19:12.720 --> 0:19:16.320 the old fashioned US linear cable business. It feels very 0:19:16.440 --> 0:19:19.639 much under strain. Have you guys felt that with the 0:19:19.720 --> 0:19:23.440 nat Gio or any of the Nagio wild are the offshoots? Well, 0:19:23.480 --> 0:19:28.159 I think Courtney, who's doing a terrific job, has um, 0:19:28.200 --> 0:19:33.400 you know, carved out a really good strategy around building 0:19:33.960 --> 0:19:37.000 what you know, what's been called two point oh content. Internally, 0:19:37.560 --> 0:19:40.280 I think nat GEO in some ways a few years 0:19:40.359 --> 0:19:43.560 ago and when I showed up there, uh five and 0:19:43.560 --> 0:19:48.359 a half years ago, was kind of chasing the reality 0:19:48.440 --> 0:19:53.119 TV um bandwagon and that what First of all, I 0:19:53.119 --> 0:19:55.399 think that was off brand for us. That's not what 0:19:55.480 --> 0:19:59.600 our tribe wants. But but more importantly, as we moved 0:19:59.640 --> 0:20:03.720 now towards channels that affiliates are going to be willing 0:20:03.760 --> 0:20:07.320 to pay for in a very stressed environment to keep 0:20:07.320 --> 0:20:10.560 these cable bundles going, you've got to produce content that 0:20:10.640 --> 0:20:14.120 people are talking about. And and this is why John 0:20:14.200 --> 0:20:16.960 land Graph at FFX and other people have done such 0:20:17.000 --> 0:20:22.920 a great job in getting award winning content that is 0:20:22.920 --> 0:20:26.640 is a conversation starter. So there was literally a kid 0:20:26.640 --> 0:20:28.720 at the Toronto airport the other day. He was yelling 0:20:28.760 --> 0:20:31.199 at his mom, you know, I want to see free solo. 0:20:31.680 --> 0:20:34.280 I couldn't make this up, right, I wish I had 0:20:34.320 --> 0:20:37.040 my camera? Did I Did I just hear that? Right? 0:20:37.080 --> 0:20:40.960 Did you want my god? You know? I was very exciting. 0:20:41.000 --> 0:20:44.399 The kid was like advertising, you can't, right. So I 0:20:44.480 --> 0:20:47.760 know that there's a buzz, and I know that buzz 0:20:47.840 --> 0:20:49.639 is probably going to get back to a T and 0:20:49.720 --> 0:20:52.920 T or Comcast, you know. And I think that's where 0:20:52.960 --> 0:20:58.080 the affiliate relationships are really important, uh and where we've 0:20:58.080 --> 0:20:59.840 got to drive that. So part of it is a 0:21:00.119 --> 0:21:03.119 ring ratings, but part of it is also delivering I 0:21:03.160 --> 0:21:05.920 think word of mouth. So these things people will be 0:21:05.960 --> 0:21:08.159 willing to pay for your channel versus a lot of 0:21:08.160 --> 0:21:13.159 other channels that are not conversation uh starters out in 0:21:13.200 --> 0:21:16.560 the world. And once again, I mean that that brand 0:21:16.640 --> 0:21:19.520 that just says so much national geographic or even that 0:21:19.680 --> 0:21:22.800 geo in a channelst thing like you know, you know 0:21:22.840 --> 0:21:25.119 what you're getting, and you know it's almost it's it's 0:21:25.160 --> 0:21:27.399 it's part of the daily diet that that kind of 0:21:27.400 --> 0:21:31.879 factual and you know, sort of high end documentary programming. Yeah, exactly. 0:21:32.080 --> 0:21:34.560 And you know, we've got some amazing programming coming up. 0:21:34.600 --> 0:21:39.520 This one Hostile Planet is coming, which is incredible nature documentary. 0:21:39.640 --> 0:21:42.720 We've got The Hot Zone with Julianna Margalie's. I mean, 0:21:42.800 --> 0:21:47.440 we're really doubling down on um high end content that 0:21:47.960 --> 0:21:50.600 people are going to want to really tune in for 0:21:51.160 --> 0:21:55.240 or access in in an on demand platform. And you've 0:21:55.240 --> 0:21:57.560 had you've you've made some waves in the kind of 0:21:57.680 --> 0:21:59.480 in the awards arena the last couple of years with 0:21:59.520 --> 0:22:03.479 your gene Is franchise started with Albert Einstein and and 0:22:03.520 --> 0:22:07.440 then moved on to Picasso with Antonio Banderas and from 0:22:07.480 --> 0:22:10.480 what we understand your your next will be, uh the 0:22:10.640 --> 0:22:13.320 Legend area Aretha Franklin. That's true. So we've had a 0:22:13.400 --> 0:22:16.800 quick coming great. We've had a wonderful relationship with Ron 0:22:16.840 --> 0:22:20.760 Howard and Brian Grazer and Imagine and um Our head 0:22:21.200 --> 0:22:24.119 Carolyn Bernstein who oversees that out on the West Coast. 0:22:24.640 --> 0:22:28.000 UM has really done a terrific job working with show 0:22:28.080 --> 0:22:33.159 runners and and uh, you know, and casting the top 0:22:33.200 --> 0:22:35.000 talent in the world who want to who want to 0:22:35.040 --> 0:22:37.880 work for National Geographic, you know they. I think it's 0:22:37.880 --> 0:22:40.360 a brand that people are viewing now as a as 0:22:40.400 --> 0:22:42.959 a as a place to be, and that's what we 0:22:43.000 --> 0:22:48.439 wanted to create, and that's what this brand deserves to have. Those, 0:22:48.640 --> 0:22:51.359 as I understand, to the narrative, the big swings on 0:22:51.560 --> 0:22:54.520 scripted programming, those have real traction for you in the 0:22:54.720 --> 0:22:58.480 in the video on demand UM arena. You know, obviously 0:22:58.760 --> 0:23:00.679