VBS.TV Deal: CNN Tries on Its Edgier Side

There’s a sort of May-December romance going on between two news outlets, and it’s kind of adorable if you’re into that sort of thing. Even the cool kids have to grow up some time, and with the recent news of the pairing between CNN and Vice, it becomes none more apparent. It happens to everyone, we get older, we all become our parents, yadda yadda yadda. But this pairing (pairing? what is this, Starbucks?) between the two makes a ton of sense for both parties. Vice is looking to branch out from just being the (self-proclaimed) hipster bible and looking to be come something a little more—how can we say— legitimate. And CNN is looking to appeal to a younger audience. I mean, Larry King, anyone? Insert dinosaur joke. That guy is old.

What’s happening is that VBS.TV, the Spike Jonze helmed internet video arm of the Vice empire, is going to be showing some of

their more newsy videos on CNN.com. This is suprisingly good thinking on both of their parts: CNN has been known to be a little too self-congratulatory and Vice has been known to be a little too self-referential. Together, though, they bring the social legitimacy that both parties seem to have been aiming for the last couple of years.

VBS has had a hit-or-miss vibe in the past, with shows like The Cute Show running next to video news stories about the Texas sized trash pile in the Pacific. CNN has been struggling with its lackluster iReport news video site. Much like the coming of a new Spoon album (note: it’s really good!), the pairing between CNN and Vice Magazine seems like a perfect fit. They kind of need eachother. It’s sort of cute. I look forward to seeing what comes from it.