Next New Networks Wins for “Auto-Tune The News” and “The Reel Good Show” at 14th Annual Webby Awards, Internet’s Top Honor

NEW YORK--(EON: Enhanced Online News)--Programming from Next New Networks, the leading next-generation media company providing original Web series to millions of loyal and engaged viewers, took home three awards for “Auto-Tune The News” and “The Reel Good Show” in the 14^th Annual Webby Awards, announced today by the International Academy of Digital Arts and Sciences. The Webby Awards are regarded as the Internet’s highest honor and judges include David Bowie, Arianna Huffington and Martha Stewart.

“We are thrilled for the creators and producers we partner with who were recognized today; thanks to our Next New Creators program, we're proud to have a way for top independent producers like The Gregory Brothers who have partnered with Next New Networks”

“Auto-Tune the News” on the Barely Political network won both the Judge’s Award and the People’s Voice Award in the Video Remixes & Mash-Ups category of the Online Film and Video section of the Awards. While “The Reel Good Show” on the independent filmmakers network Indy Mogul took home the People’s Voice Award in the Variety category.

The “Auto-Tune The News” series, created by The Gregory Brothers (Andrew, Michael, Evan and Sarah Gregory) was a breakout hit this year and one of the most-viewed shows on the web, with more than 40 million views on eleven episodes to date. “Auto-Tune The News” is part of The Barely Political network one of the most popular comedy networks online, to date the network has had more than 334 million views across their programming.

“We are thrilled for the creators and producers we partner with who were recognized today; thanks to our Next New Creators program, we're proud to have a way for top independent producers like The Gregory Brothers who have partnered with Next New Networks,” said Kathleen Grace, VP of Programming, Next New Networks. "We're all incredibly proud of ‘The Reel Good Show's’ well-deserved win. Bobby Miller has had an amazing year, getting his short film 'Tub' accepted into film festivals from Sundance to Cannes, and this second People's Voice win for him in Variety will only make his Webby Awards legend grow."

Bobby Miller, host of “The Reel Good Show” captured the attention of Webby voters last year for his underdog story in the same Variety category for his previous Indy Mogul series, "The Best Short Films in the World," which won the People's Voice Award in a spirited campaign against some of the biggest and best shows on the web, including “Late Night with Jimmy Fallon.” This year, Miller waged what the Webby Awards called ‘a Bolshevik-level revolt’ in another tight race for his new series “The Reel Good Show,” and his fans created dozens of campaign videos to get out the vote, which can be viewed at this website: http://YouShouldProbablyVoteForTheReelGoodShow.com. Indy Mogul’s weekly variety series “The Reel Good Show” features comedy bits about filmmaking and the latest movies, and has a loyal audience of more than 5 million monthly viewers.

Since launching in March 2007, programming from Next New Networks has won a total of eleven Webby Awards, making Next New Networks one of the most recognized independent media companies by the Academy. In 2010, Next New Networks was nominated for a total of six Webby Awards including Indy Mogul’s “Backyard FX” produced by Erik Beck, “ThreadBanger Projects” by Corinne Leigh and Rob Czar, and $99 Music Videos, created by Jack Ferry and produced by Melissa Schneider, Jack Ferry and Rob Czar.

Winners of the 2010 Webby Awards will be celebrated at a gala ceremony in New York City on June 14^th, 2010 hosted by actor / writer B.J. Novak. Past winners include ex-Vice President Al Gore, David Bowie, Prince, will.i.am, Stephen Colbert, Meg Whitman and YouTube co-founders Steve Chen and Chad Hurley. In keeping with the web’s emphasis on brevity, award recipients are required to limit their acceptance speeches to just five words. http://www.youtube.com/TheWebbyAwards

“Auto-Tune the News” is produced by The Gregory Brothers and is a part of Next New Networks’ Next New Creators program, a program to help independent creators create, distribute, promote, package and monetize original Web series. The Next New Creators program launched in 2009 and since then Next New Networks has already seen more than 12.5 million monthly views across its networks from participating Next New Creators alone.

About Next New Networks

Next New Networks is the leading provider of original, episodic series programming for the Internet. With close to one billion views since the company's launch in 2007, over one million subscribers, and some of the biggest hits on the Web, Next New Networks is redefining entertainment by championing the next generation of show creators. Popular, award-winning video networks from the company include Barely Political (home of Obama Girl and "Auto-Tune the News"), Channel Frederator, featuring the cartoons of over 1,000 creators, food network for the people Hungry Nation, car news network Fast Lane Daily, filmmaking network Indy Mogul (home of hit series Backyard FX, Beyond the Trailer, and Moviebuzz), fashion and lifestyle network ThreadBanger, and Barely Digital (home of "The Key of Awesome," one of the top five most-watched shows on the Web since its launch in October 2009).

About The Webby Awards

Hailed as the "Internet's highest honor" by the New York Times, The Webby Awards is the leading international award honoring excellence on the Internet, including Websites, interactive advertising, online film and video, and mobile web sites. Established in 1996, the 13th Annual Webby Awards received nearly 10,000 entries from all 50 states and over 60 countries worldwide. The Webby Awards is presented by The International Academy of Digital Arts and Sciences. Sponsors and Partners of The Webby Awards include: Microsoft Expression; AOL; YouTube; Pepsi; Aquent; Yahoo!; Tribal DDB Worldwide; East Media; IDG; PricewaterhouseCoopers; 2advanced.Net; KobeMail; Museum of the Moving Image; Behance; Business Insider and Time Out New York.