OWN CORRESPONDENT, Washington | Saturday
WHILE some Internet companies are losing their shirts, NakedNews.com says its formula of newscasters who shed their clothes while reading the news is helping fuel an expansion.
The 14-month-old website draws nearly six million Internet viewers per month, from the United States to New Zealand, and from every continent, says NakedNews spokeswoman Kathy Pinckert.
The site produces one 15-minute streaming video Internet news program daily, and has four female webcasters who, while reading the news, remove all their clothes.
“It’s not racy,” Pinckert said. “It is regular straightforward news, just like CNN and ABC. The only difference is that the anchors are naked when they deliver the news.”
The site was the idea of two Canadian Web developers, Fernando Pereira and Kirby Stasyna. While it provides no data on finances, Pinckert says it is profitable, making money from advertising and a new premium subscription service.
Pinckert says those who watch appreciate the no-holds-barred news reporting.
“We have an ability to be candid in our news,” she said. “People e-mail us and say they were originally attracted to NakedNews because of the obvious, but they keep coming back because the news is so well reported.”
Pinckert says the large audience is encouraging, and “our goal is to grow this into a full news portal.”
More female webcasters are expected to be hired, along with males, who will also strip and read news.
The naked webcasters do not have necessarily have journalism backgrounds, but they must be “fit, attractive and articulate,” she says. – AFP