The Site
Encyclopedia
The Site, hosted by Soledad O'Brien
, was an hour-long TV program devoted to the Internet revolution. It debuted in July 1996 with MSNBC
's launch and aired Monday through Saturday, reaching 35 million homes. The Site was a forerunner to an entire technology channel called ZDTV, later renamed TechTV
, which merged to become G4
.
Dev Null
, Soledad's animated barista co-host was voiced by Leo Laporte
, who later became an anchor personality on TechTV
, hosting multiple shows.
The Site covered technology in all forms, from technical aspects to news and culture. Musical artists Duncan Sheik
and Poe
were among many musicians interviewed over how technology influenced their music.
The Site was preempted for two weeks in favor of news programs during the death of Diana, Princess of Wales
during September 1997. It was never brought back, and the show was pulled without a send-off. Many fans of the show petitioned MSNBC to bring it back to no avail. The Site was reincarnated as The Screen Savers
less than one year later, hosted by Leo Laporte beginning with the launch in May 1998 of the new cable network ZDTV (Ziff-Davis Television), until its cancellation after the takeover by Comcast
.
A nightly five-minute segment in which O'Brien engaged in spontaneous tech talk with a virtual reality cartoon character, Dev Null, was animated in real time on Silicon Graphics computers. The character was in fact ZDTV journalist Leo Laporte, who did the voice and actions while wearing a motion capture suit. When O'Brien sat at an espresso bar to read email from viewers, Dev Null flirted with her while answering her computer questions. She recalled, "One of the reasons that segment of the show worked is that I could not see him as I was talking to him, and the segment was unscripted. He was funny, and his jokes were not gags."
Author Clifford Stoll
and columnist John C. Dvorak
were both regular contributors. Sometimes billed as "the Net's evening news," the show also brought Soledad O'Brien Internet fame and the nickname "Goddess of the Geeks." while Lloyd Grove
in The Washington Post
dubbed her "television's first cyberbabe."
The Site won many awards and was named the best broadcast on internet and high
technology by its industry peers. It also was the first television show to have a
web site which also was award-winning. The web site was designed to accompany and advance the content and reporting of The Site as well as to stand alone. One reviewer hailed The Site as the best program on the fledgling MSNBC.
The NBC News executive in charge of creating The Site was David Bohrman
, who was also the network's Executive Producer of Special Events and Breaking News. Bohrman was sent out to San Francisco to create and launch the program. His hiring of Soledad is described in her book, "The Next Big Story: My Journey Through the Land of Possibilities." The Idea of Dev Null was also Bohrman's (after experimenting with virtual set technology at NBC the year before). Leo Laporte wore a motion suit, had an IFB earpiece so he could hear Soledad, and his animated image was rendered in real-time by an Onyx SGI computer. The artwork for Dev was designed by Protozoa.
After "The Site" was cancelled by MSNBC, which went to a 24-hour news format after the death of Princess Diana, the show's staff were rehired by the parent company, Ziff-Davis, to launch ZDTV. The new channel was devoted to digital technology, and it was substantially an extension of the themes presented by "The Site." The channel gained in popularity and was rebranded to TechTV
in 2001.
, Leo Laporte
, Matthew Hawn, John Gilles, Ali Hossaini
, Shauna Sampson David Bohrman
and animated character Dev Null. Broadcast designers Victoria Webb, Susan Roderick and Executive Producer Nancy Juliber were integral to the on-air team, winning several BDA awards for work. Richard Stutting was Art Director for the award-winning website. Victoria Webb enlisted 3RingCircus to provide the network package for ZDTV. She is currently at QVC.
Producers on The Site, many of whom got their start in television there, eventually became executives at other innovative channels, including LinkTV, Oxygen Media, G4
and LAB HD
.
, Kevin Poulsen
; Joel Deane
, John Gilles, Ali Hossaini
, Matthew Hawn and Shauna Sampson
Soledad O'Brien
María de la Soledad Teresa O'Brien is an American Broadcast journalist. She is currently the host of the "In America" documentary unit on CNN, and is best known for anchoring the CNN marquee morning newscast American Morning from July 2003 to April 2007, with Miles O'Brien...
, was an hour-long TV program devoted to the Internet revolution. It debuted in July 1996 with MSNBC
MSNBC
MSNBC is a cable news channel based in the United States available in the US, Germany , South Africa, the Middle East and Canada...
's launch and aired Monday through Saturday, reaching 35 million homes. The Site was a forerunner to an entire technology channel called ZDTV, later renamed TechTV
TechTV
TechTV was a 24-hour cable and satellite channel based in San Francisco featuring news and shows about computers, technology, and the Internet. In 2004, it merged with the G4 gaming channel which ultimately dissolved TechTV programming...
, which merged to become G4
G4 (TV channel)
G4, also known as G4 TV, is an American cable- and satellite-television channel originally geared primarily toward young adult viewers, originally based on the world of video games...
.
Dev Null
Dev Null
Dev Null was an animated virtual reality character created in 1996 by Leo Laporte for MSNBC's computer and technology TV series, The Site. Espresso barista Dev talked with host Soledad O'Brien each weeknight in a five-minute segment...
, Soledad's animated barista co-host was voiced by Leo Laporte
Leo Laporte
Léo Gordon Laporte is an Emmy Award winning, American technology broadcaster, author, and entrepreneur. A former resident of Providence, Rhode Island, he now lives in Petaluma, California with his wife Jennifer and two children, Abby and Henry....
, who later became an anchor personality on TechTV
TechTV
TechTV was a 24-hour cable and satellite channel based in San Francisco featuring news and shows about computers, technology, and the Internet. In 2004, it merged with the G4 gaming channel which ultimately dissolved TechTV programming...
, hosting multiple shows.
The Site covered technology in all forms, from technical aspects to news and culture. Musical artists Duncan Sheik
Duncan Sheik
Duncan Scott Sheik is an American singer-songwriter and composer. Sheik initially found success as a singer, most notably for his 1996 debut single "Barely Breathing". He later expanded his work to include compositions for motion pictures and the Broadway stage, leading him to involvement in the...
and Poe
Ann Danielewski
Anne "Annie" Decatur Danielewski , professionally known as Poe, is an American singer and songwriter. She first hit the modern rock charts in the mid-1990s. Poe is the daughter of Polish film director Tad Danielewski and his second wife, Priscilla Machold. She is the sister of author Mark Z....
were among many musicians interviewed over how technology influenced their music.
The Site was preempted for two weeks in favor of news programs during the death of Diana, Princess of Wales
Diana, Princess of Wales
Diana, Princess of Wales was the first wife of Charles, Prince of Wales, whom she married on 29 July 1981, and an international charity and fundraising figure, as well as a preeminent celebrity of the late 20th century...
during September 1997. It was never brought back, and the show was pulled without a send-off. Many fans of the show petitioned MSNBC to bring it back to no avail. The Site was reincarnated as The Screen Savers
The Screen Savers
The Screen Savers was a live American TV show on TechTV. The show launched concurrently with the channel ZDTV on May 11, 1998. The Screen Savers originally centered around computers, new technologies, and their adaptations in the world...
less than one year later, hosted by Leo Laporte beginning with the launch in May 1998 of the new cable network ZDTV (Ziff-Davis Television), until its cancellation after the takeover by Comcast
Comcast
Comcast Corporation is the largest cable operator, home Internet service provider, and fourth largest home telephone service provider in the United States, providing cable television, broadband Internet, and telephone service to both residential and commercial customers in 39 states and the...
.
Author Clifford Stoll
Clifford Stoll
*High-Tech Heretic: Reflections of a Computer Contrarian, Clifford Stoll, 2000, ISBN 0-385-48976-5.-External links:* at Berkeley's Open Computing Facility**, December 3, 1989* copy at Electronic Frontier Foundation, May 1988...
and columnist John C. Dvorak
John C. Dvorak
John C. Dvorak is an American columnist and broadcaster in the areas of technology and computing. His writing extends back to the 1980s, when he was a mainstay of a variety of magazines. Dvorak is also the Vice-President of Mevio and well known for his work for Tech TV...
were both regular contributors. Sometimes billed as "the Net's evening news," the show also brought Soledad O'Brien Internet fame and the nickname "Goddess of the Geeks." while Lloyd Grove
Lloyd Grove
Lloyd Grove is editor at large for The Daily Beast, the Web site run by Tina Brown and backed by Barry Diller. He is also a frequent contributor to New York Magazine...
in The Washington Post
The Washington Post
The Washington Post is Washington, D.C.'s largest newspaper and its oldest still-existing paper, founded in 1877. Located in the capital of the United States, The Post has a particular emphasis on national politics. D.C., Maryland, and Virginia editions are printed for daily circulation...
dubbed her "television's first cyberbabe."
The Site won many awards and was named the best broadcast on internet and high
technology by its industry peers. It also was the first television show to have a
web site which also was award-winning. The web site was designed to accompany and advance the content and reporting of The Site as well as to stand alone. One reviewer hailed The Site as the best program on the fledgling MSNBC.
The NBC News executive in charge of creating The Site was David Bohrman
David Bohrman
David Bohrman is a television and new media executive, working in network television news, cable news, new media, internet, convergence and consulting. Bohrman created almost a dozen new TV news programs at ABC News, NBC News , CNN, and TechTV....
, who was also the network's Executive Producer of Special Events and Breaking News. Bohrman was sent out to San Francisco to create and launch the program. His hiring of Soledad is described in her book, "The Next Big Story: My Journey Through the Land of Possibilities." The Idea of Dev Null was also Bohrman's (after experimenting with virtual set technology at NBC the year before). Leo Laporte wore a motion suit, had an IFB earpiece so he could hear Soledad, and his animated image was rendered in real-time by an Onyx SGI computer. The artwork for Dev was designed by Protozoa.
After "The Site" was cancelled by MSNBC, which went to a 24-hour news format after the death of Princess Diana, the show's staff were rehired by the parent company, Ziff-Davis, to launch ZDTV. The new channel was devoted to digital technology, and it was substantially an extension of the themes presented by "The Site." The channel gained in popularity and was rebranded to TechTV
TechTV
TechTV was a 24-hour cable and satellite channel based in San Francisco featuring news and shows about computers, technology, and the Internet. In 2004, it merged with the G4 gaming channel which ultimately dissolved TechTV programming...
in 2001.
Key contributors and on-air regulars
Cliff Stoll, Denise CarusoDenise Caruso
Denise Caruso is an American journalist and analyst specializing in the industries of digital technology and biotechnology. She was dubbed “the Walter Winchell of Silicon Valley” by WIRED magazine...
, Leo Laporte
Leo Laporte
Léo Gordon Laporte is an Emmy Award winning, American technology broadcaster, author, and entrepreneur. A former resident of Providence, Rhode Island, he now lives in Petaluma, California with his wife Jennifer and two children, Abby and Henry....
, Matthew Hawn, John Gilles, Ali Hossaini
Ali Hossaini
Ali Hossaini is an American artist, philosopher and media executive. His work includes contributions in creative writing, political commentary, avant-garde film, photography and television, including the launch of several channels...
, Shauna Sampson David Bohrman
David Bohrman
David Bohrman is a television and new media executive, working in network television news, cable news, new media, internet, convergence and consulting. Bohrman created almost a dozen new TV news programs at ABC News, NBC News , CNN, and TechTV....
and animated character Dev Null. Broadcast designers Victoria Webb, Susan Roderick and Executive Producer Nancy Juliber were integral to the on-air team, winning several BDA awards for work. Richard Stutting was Art Director for the award-winning website. Victoria Webb enlisted 3RingCircus to provide the network package for ZDTV. She is currently at QVC.
Producers on The Site, many of whom got their start in television there, eventually became executives at other innovative channels, including LinkTV, Oxygen Media, G4
G4 (TV channel)
G4, also known as G4 TV, is an American cable- and satellite-television channel originally geared primarily toward young adult viewers, originally based on the world of video games...
and LAB HD
LAB HD
LAB HD was a three-year experiment by Voom HD Networks. It is the only channel in history devoted to video art and experimental film as a continuous flow of ambient television...
.
Regular writers and columnists
Richard KadreyRichard Kadrey
Richard Kadrey is a novelist, freelance writer, and photographer based in San Francisco.Kadrey's novels are Sandman Slim, Kill the Dead, Aloha From Hell, Metrophage, Kamikaze L'Amour, and Butcher Bird: A Novel Of The Dominion...
, Kevin Poulsen
Kevin Poulsen
Kevin Lee Poulsen is a former black hat hacker. He is currently News Editor at Wired.com.-Biography:...
; Joel Deane
Joel Deane
Joel Deane is an Australian poet, novelist, and speechwriter.-Biography:Deane, born in Melbourne, Australia, lived in the San Francisco Bay Area in the 1990s, working as a technology journalist...
, John Gilles, Ali Hossaini
Ali Hossaini
Ali Hossaini is an American artist, philosopher and media executive. His work includes contributions in creative writing, political commentary, avant-garde film, photography and television, including the launch of several channels...
, Matthew Hawn and Shauna Sampson