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NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC ANNOUNCES EMMY AWARD-WINNING TV PERSONALITY PHIL KEOGHAN AS NEW HOST OF NETWORK’S CRITICALLY ACCLAIMED SERIES, EXPLORER
Keoghan Will Lead Viewers on His Own Adventure From the Field in Each Episode
Mon Nov 13 2017 20:23:00 GMT+0000 (UTC)
EXPLORER Returns in Fall 2018 With 20 New Episodes, Featuring Impact-Filled Short-Form Documentaries by a Group of Masterful Storytellers
(WASHINGTON, D.C. / PASADENA, Calif. – Jan. 13, 2018) National Geographic announced today that Phil Keoghan, Emmy award-winning TV personality, will be the new host of the network’s long-running and critically acclaimed series EXPLORER when it returns in fall 2018. The upcoming season of EXPLORER — with 20 all-new episodes — will continue the series’ longstanding mission to deepen viewers’ understanding of the world through complex, compelling and provocative storytelling. The new season, currently in production, will premiere on National Geographic in 172 countries and 43 languages.
“Phil embodies what it means to be a National Geographic Explorer — he’s undoubtedly interested and curious about investigating the relationship between the Earth and human life,” said Tim Pastore, president of original programming and production. “EXPLORER is a show about informing and entertaining, and we’re confident that with Phil as host, he will be the catalyst for viewers to understand the way we fit into the world.”
“I have been sharing stories in front of a camera for the past 30 years, and I am thrilled to partner with National Geographic again on such an iconic series that is rooted in fueling the adventurous spirit found in all of us,” said Keoghan. “I look forward to taking viewers with me on adventures around the globe to learn how we shape the world through adventure, curiosity and understanding.”
A bona fide adventurer who is best known as the host and executive producer of CBS’ “The Amazing Race,” Keoghan has won 10 Primetime Emmy awards and was most recently a correspondent for “60 Minutes Sports” on CBS, won the Director’s Award at the American Documentary Film Festival and hosted National Geographic’s groundbreaking television event, Earth Live. A hardcore scuba diver and avid cyclist, Keoghan is also the director of the award-winning feature documentary “Le Ride,” about the 1928 Tour de France.
The new season of EXPLORER will transport viewers to different parts of the world. The show follows Keoghan as he treks into far-flung regions to meet with National Geographic Explorers on the front lines of groundbreaking scientific, technological and historical discoveries. Trekking deep into the Amazon, high into the Himalayas and sitting barefoot in some of the world’s most sacred spaces, Keoghan plays host to EXPLORER’s signature documentary segments, curated to deepen our understanding of the world by exploring complex shifts, relationships and phenomena.
The all-new 20-episode season of EXPLORER will feature impact-filled documentary stories that will cover a variety of topics, including the following:
• Light Riders – EXPLORER embeds with a group of Silicon Valley-backed Tanzanians who carry solar panels to remote areas and bring electricity to villagers for the first time in their lives.
• The Future of Farming – With the average age of an American farmer hovering around 58, and the world population on track to exceed 9 billion by 2050, how will we feed the world? EXPLORER heads to Europe, where one country may have already discovered a path toward averting global disaster through amazing technological innovation.
• Godfather of Gaza – EXPLORER investigates the illicit and highly dangerous underground system of Hamas-run tunnels in the Gaza Strip. EXPLORER correspondent Mariana van Zeller gains unparalleled access to a tunnel run by a businessman intent to dig his way to a better life for the people of Gaza, all while being surrounded by an army intent on destroying these passageways.
• Sensory Substitution – Using advanced technology, a group of scientific pioneers re-create missing senses and push the limits of human perception. From a welder using her tongue to see to a 2-year-old girl who uses her body to hear to a technology that promises the end of blindness.
• Saltwater Crocs – Once on the brink of extinction, Australia’s saltwater crocodiles are making a comeback with alarming consequences. Nat Geo photographer Trevor Frost opens the door to EXPLORER correspondent Tim Samuels as he witnesses firsthand the exploding croc population, fueled, in part, by demand from fashion brands.
This season’s correspondents include Francesca Fiorentini, journalist, comedy writer and host/producer of AJ+; Ryan Duffy, journalist/producer who has scaled empty highrises in China’s Ghost Towns, gotten shot on the outskirts of Bogota in a bulletproof coat and traveled to North Korea with Dennis Rodman; Mariana van Zeller, award-winning journalist and co-founder of MUCK Media, who is fluent in Portuguese, English, Spanish, Italian and French; Alexandra Roca, a Spanish-American correspondent, documentary filmmaker and director who focuses on stories in developing countries; Jago Cooper, a British archaeologist, National Geographic Explorer and the curator of the Americas at the British Museum;
Cara Santa Maria, an Emmy- and Knight Foundation Award-winning journalist, science communicator, television personality, producer and podcaster; Sal Masekela, a commentator, journalist, musician and producer, and co-founder of Stoked Mentoring, a nonprofit action sports organization for at-risk youth; Gaelareh Darabi, a multiplatform journalist and documentary filmmaker;
Albert Lin, whose innovations have led to dozens of academic publications, two tech startups and requested briefings from the Pentagon, and who serves as an advisor to the Harvard Business School’s Digital Initiative and is a National Geographic Explorer; and Tim Samuels, an award-winning documentary filmmaker, broadcaster, author — and one of the most distinctive and acclaimed journalists in the business.
Launched in 1985, before there even was a National Geographic Channel, EXPLORER has encapsulated more than 2,000 films and has been honored with nearly 60 Emmys and hundreds of other awards. The series has taken viewers to more than 120 countries, opening a window on hidden parts of the world, unlocking mysteries both ancient and modern, and investigating stories of science, nature and culture. Emboldened by the highly respected yellow border, the series’ hallmark is incredible inside access to some of the world’s most exclusive, dangerous or unbelievable people and places.
EXPLORER is produced by National Geographic Studios for National Geographic.
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National Geographic Partners LLC
National Geographic Partners LLC (NGP), a joint venture between National Geographic and 21st Century Fox, is committed to bringing the world premium science, adventure and exploration content across an unrivaled portfolio of media assets. NGP combines the global National Geographic television channels (National Geographic Channel, Nat Geo WILD, Nat Geo MUNDO, Nat Geo PEOPLE) with National Geographic’s media and consumer-oriented assets, including National Geographic magazines; National Geographic studios; related digital and social media platforms; books; maps; children’s media; and ancillary activities that include travel, global experiences and events, archival sales, licensing and e-commerce businesses. Furthering knowledge and understanding of our world has been the core purpose of National Geographic for 130 years, and now we are committed to going deeper, pushing boundaries, going further for our consumers … and reaching millions of people around the world in 172 countries and 43 languages every month as we do it. NGP returns 27 percent of our proceeds to the nonprofit National Geographic Society to fund work in the areas of science, exploration, conservation and education. For more information, visit natgeotv.com or nationalgeographic.com, or find us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Google+, YouTube, LinkedIn and Pinterest..
CONTACT:
Stephanie Silva, 212-656-0736, stephanie.silva@natgeo.com
