Hulu Gets CNN Political Miniseries

1 Jun, 2016 By: Erik Gruenwedel

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With the 2016 presidential election entering its final six months, Hulu June 1 announced it has secured exclusive streaming rights to “Race for the White House,” a six-part CNN Original Series narrated by Kevin Spacey (“House of Cards”).

“Race,” which is produced by Spacey and Dana Brunetti, head of Spacey’s Trigger Street Productions, first aired on CNN in March and was the network’s highest-rated original series.

Using archival footage, interviews and dramatizations, each hour-long episode tells the story of one campaign for President of the United States. From speeches to the dirty tricks and Machiavellian schemes, “Race for the White House” showcases the elections between Abraham Lincoln and Stephen Douglas in 1858; John F. Kennedy and Richard Nixon in 1960; and George H.W. Bush and Michael Dukakis in 1988, among others. 

The deal marks the first CNN series to stream exclusively on Hulu and further expands Hulu’s relationship with Turner Broadcasting, which includes full seasons of programming from Cartoon Network, Adult Swim, TBS and TNT.

Earlier this year, Jeff Bewkes, CEO of Time Warner, corporate parent of Turner Broadcasting (and CNN), said online on-demand access underscored a “vibrant re-birth of the strength of TV networks and TV programming.”

The executive credited OTT video for evolving the home entertainment experience through improved functionality, content guides, and recommendations — showcased by Sling TV, Charter Spectrum TV Plus, Comcast, DirecTV and Sony PlayStation Vue, among others.

“For us, whether it is Turner or HBO, we have said we would like to see most of our networks — whichever exhibition window — first-run or syndication be on-demand,” Bewkes said. “We’re going to try and be available in all packages consumers are interested in.” 

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