How the West Was Wonked

Some television analysts have questioned whether the company will be able to find enough amateur content to fill the airtime and to hold the interest of the notoriously fickle Generations X and Y. There's also some skepticism that the channel's lack of a schedule will confuse viewers.

But Hyatt says the channel's unpredictability is what will make it appealing. The programming aims to be different from documentary TV, video blogging or reality shows, something more than a combination of CNN and MTV.

Hyatt said the Web site, http://www.current.tv/ , will list upcoming features up to an hour ahead of time but that the programming will be dynamic, changing based on viewers' feedback about what they like and don't like.

"We are going to be responding in real time to what we're learning," he said.

The viewer-contributed videos include features about everything from fish market sellers to underground youth culture in Iran. In one feature, contributor Mike Rinehart profiles "jumpers" who parachute off buildings, antennas and other high places. The footage -- taken in midair -- takes you down a stomach-turning drop as one of the daredevils says in a calm, Zen-like monotone: "I'm free of everything forever, however long it is, wiping my hands clean of it all until I have to regain it by landing."

In another, a woman speaks in first person about "hooking up" and how she regrets sleeping with "Doug" because he now wants to dump her.

Bias and opinions in these "citizen" reports will not only be tolerated but desirable.

"We think that people are opinionated and want to share their opinions. . . . I think it's great that we can be a place to have a dialogue about different issues," Ling said.

In a bow to "American Idol," users of the Web site will be able to vote for their favorite citizen-generated video segments. The most popular will be aired on the cable channel.

There will also be more practical content, including advice for first-time parents and about careers. A regular technology segment will look into subjects such as how to hack the computer systems that operate the Toyota Prius hybrid car.

Meanwhile, Ling's news division is tackling some harder-hitting issues, sending teams around the world to report on topics important to youth. Some segments in the works, Ling said, include a feature about young people in Japan forming Internet suicide pacts, methamphetamine use in the United States, and secret missionary groups operating in China.

While he was attending a promotional event for television critics earlier this month, Gore -- whose official title is chairman -- was onstage speaking about the venture while a gaggle of Current employees stood behind him half-smiling, half-slouching and looking like a Gap ad. He emphasized how everything about Current was Different with a capital D. The programs are not programs but "pods" and the commercials are not commercials but "ICBMs," Isolated Creative Brand Messages, a play on the intercontinental ballistic missiles that the world feared before WMDs.

When asked about politics, Gore deflected the questions, answering that he's really a "recovering politician," emphasizing that the channel is nonpartisan, and turning the conversation back to technology and entertainment. At one point, he was asked how he had enjoyed working at a startup for the past few years. A 21-year-old hipster couldn't have said it better: "It has been a blast," Gore exclaimed without hesitation.

Staff writer Lisa de Moraes in Beverly Hills and researcher Richard Drezen in New York contributed to this report.