The Washington Post, one of the nation’s most storied newspapers, has launched a new YouTube brand dubbed Anna’s Science Magic Show Hooray! –which is dedicated to family-friendly educational content about science, health, and tech.
Animated videos will be produced in the vein of a variety show, the paper said, and science reporter Anna Rothschild will appear on-camera weekly to field viewer questions. The series will also feature interviews, songs, and appearances from celebrities and noted figures in science. In the first episode (below), for instance, Rothschild and former pro wrestler John Cena explore why human beings have butts. Other episodes will tackle slime and outer space, Rothschild says.
“This is an important and exciting step in audience-building to speak to many generations with the values that are core to our mission – truth, storytelling, and asking great questions,” said the paper’s executive producer of creative video, Michelle Jaconi.
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Anna’s Science marks the paper’s second YouTube channel to date, following the launch of its flagship channel — which counts 350,000 subscribers and 200 million lifetime views — in 2006. That said, the Post does operate other standalone video brands, including the long-form storytelling series Post Docs, a comedic series called Department of Satire, and Short Takes — which sees young people sharing their takes on politics and pop culture.
Priot to Anna’s Science Magic Show Hooray!, Rothschild hosted a YouTube series called Gross Science, which was produced by PBS. That series, which concluded roughly nine months ago, has amassed a total of 22 million lifetime views.
