Are Nine Biting Off More New Media Than They Can Chew With ‘Scorched’?

It’s a new media frenzy over at Channel Nine, where – like everyone else including Sonia Kruger – they are breathlessly awaiting the end of the Olympics so they can play their latest ace. No, not Hole In The Wall – their newest bright hope is Scorched, which is so much more than just a 90-minute telemovie. It is also a completely confusing web presence, a number of fake news services, and some not-very-convincing acted-by-actors YouTube tomfoolery! Yes, Nine are stepping into the 21st century:

“What we’ve created is an integrated story that runs across all the platforms,” director and producer Marcus Gillezeau said.

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The webisodes follow 18-year-old Cassie Hoffman and her boyfriend Jade Hall, both from Bourke, who become embroiled in a murder-for-water scandal as water becomes the country’s most sought-after resource. Corruption is rife and a water black market emerges.

The climate disaster is chronicled by faux news bulletins from the fake CPN news network, which is fronted by Nine newsreader Mark Ferguson to add a layer of authenticity

I had a look around the rabbit warren of links that comprises Scorched’s online presence (kick-off point is here) and apart from the fact that “Cassie Cam” YouTuber Cassie Hoffman chooses to sit in a shiny pleather beanbag in the midst of 2012’s heatwave, the content itself is actually pretty impressive (you know, for Nine) and it even features a Daddo! (The layout, on the other hand – which appears to have been inspired by Apple’s dock functionality – is bloody awful.) The question now is whether or not people who actually know about the internet will be at all impressed with the effort. Do you bother to watch “bonus content” online?