opinion
Oscar-winning actress and “The View” co-host Whoopi Goldberg announced that she is teaming up with the black streaming service known as Blkfam, which aims to bring free, kid-friendly content to black audiences.
Goldberg's new project
Goldberg is an equity investor in Blkfam, which launched yesterday across multiple platforms.
“I have a 10-year-old granddaughter — and there's not a lot of content created by people who look like her, for her,” Goldberg, 68, told Variety. “I feel like we don't always represent in the best possible way.”
Goldberg went on to say that before investing in Blackfam, “no one had ever invited me to be part of the ground floor. And this isn't even the ground floor, it's the basement!”
“I like the idea of being part of something that is going to grow,” she added. “As I get older, I say, ‘Wow, things will outlast me.’ That’s one of the things I wish would outlast me — I could be the black woman Walt Disney!”
Funny Goldberg should mention Disney…
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Blkfam founder speaks
Founded by digital media veteran Larry Adams, who personally approached Goldberg about investing, Blkfam boasts a content library that “includes more than 20 syndicated series, with over 1,000 hours of animated titles, dozens of colorful animated characters and gender-diverse experiences, and hundreds of hours of… Original music-based content.
Blkfam also has 10 original live-action and animated series in development that are set to debut on the streaming service throughout this year.
Adams explained that he was motivated to create Blkfam after browsing the Black programming section of a popular streaming service, which he declined to name, to find something to watch with his kids, only to discover “a lot of R-rated content.”
“Black culture and content are often stereotyped, silenced, or written off, so I wanted to create a platform where my kids and I could enjoy entertainment without having to face the same everyday biases,” Adams said. “By curating original content — proven through data and AI — primarily from Black storytellers, we've built a service that reflects true inclusion and diversity, where Black parents and children in particular can feel holistically represented.”
Adams is particularly excited to partner with Goldberg, saying, “The magic of working with Whoopi Goldberg is that she has a magic bag of ideas.”
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Blkfam Content Partners and Business Model
Bkfam's content partners include Candle Media's ATTN and PlayWatch Kids.
“We are very excited to partner with Blkfam – we feel this is a historic moment for families around the world,” PlayWatch owner Jamie Jenkins said in a statement. “Ultimately, this platform will impact our children and our children’s children.”
Adams concluded by saying that Blkfam's business model will include financing original series through brand partnerships.
“We're not doing the same thing that other streamers did where they go out and get 10,000 hours of stuff,” he said. “Our coordinated approach means [the catalog] It won't be as deep and endless as Netflix, but it will be interesting faces you've never seen before.
Goldberg regularly enjoys making everything about race and using that to divide our country further every day on “The View,” so it's no surprise that she jumped in to participate in this racially motivated project. However, given the number of streaming services available these days, it remains to be seen if this will actually be as successful as you hope.
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