MTV News launched a new YouTube channel this week in conjunction with MTV (Other)’s newest show Decoded, which features comedian Franchesca Ramsey (aka Chelsea Leigh). Leigh is the star of the viral video “Shit White Girls Say to Black Girls” that made its way around the web last year.
MTV (Other)’s Braless, another web series, has been viewed over 4.3M times. The show focuses on gender issues and sexuality. That, and Decoded, are part of the network’s Look Different campaign, which seeks to empower younger audiences and target racial, gender, and LGBT bias. In an official statement, MTV says that they know ” their audience is hungry for content that discusses social issues in a very candid, digestible way.”
Decoded will feature an interactive component to engage that socially aware and active audience by launching a special comments area every Wednesday after a new episode airs. Viewers can participate in a discussion, and then Ramsey will respond to the best comments at the end of the subsequent episode. The first episode “Are Fried Chicken and Watermelon Racist?” launched this week.