“We’re trying to reach everyone across the U.S.,” Josh Noval, senior vice president of Olympic sales at NBCUniversal, told Mashable.
The network’s latest attempt to draw viewers to the Paris 2024 Olympics is “Spotlight on Paris,” an hour-long live TikTok show that will premiere at 4:45 p.m. ET every day during the Olympics.
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The show, presented in partnership with Toyota, will be hosted by NBC News Morning News NOW co-anchor Savannah Sellers and TikTokker and radio host Josh “Blue” Brubaker and will air live on Saturdays.
“Whether it’s linear streaming or social media, our distribution strategy is to reach every American we can and provide them with content on platforms in voices they’re accustomed to hearing,” Noval said. Spotlight on Paris is part of that. The company is also leaving no stone unturned, partnering with Meta, Overtime, Snapchat, TikTok and YouTube to bring content to the region with 27 creators known as the “Paris Creators Collective.”
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“In recent years, in various games [NBCUniversal] Our focus is on taking content to young people where they are already. [Spotlight on Paris]We want to bring the Olympics to them. [TikTok]” Sellers told Mashable.
Sellers said he will create the episodes with the idea that this may be the only way viewers will engage with the Olympics: “We want them to understand what’s going on with the Olympics and the event, but also to feel like they’re getting a glimpse of Paris.” The episodes will be filmed at the U.S. team house in front of an audience of American fans and players’ families.
Past social partnerships, like the show that aired on X, were filmed not on-site but at NBC’s studios in Stamford, Conn. Spotlight on Paris will focus on local experiences in Paris, with an emphasis on culture, nightlife, food and fashion.
Brubaker said he was hired to bridge the gap between traditional broadcasting and people who use their mobile phones as their primary screen. Both Brubaker and Sellers say this is their first time covering the Olympics and they are excited about the opportunity.
“It’s the Olympics, so it’s going to be gold medal standard,” Brubaker said.
