On Monday, Feb. 17, ABC relaunched its multicast network formerly known as Live Well as Localish, taking advantage of reams of digital-first content that its owned stations have been producing at the local level for some 18 months.
The Localish network focuses on feel-good stories like a pair of New York sisters who met for the first time a few years ago but that didnt stop them from going into business together, starting Brooklyn Nail Company.
In terms of the inspiration for Localish, we originally created it for a number of very simple reasons: we wanted to reflect and serve the communities we call home, Wendy McMahon, president, ABC Owned Television Stations, said. While the ABC Television Stations are best in class in terms of breaking news and covering big stories, we thought we weren't capturing as many of the positive stories in our our communities, so we thought about how we could intentionally bring good stories about people, places and things into our brand offerings. That results in stories told from the perspective of locals. For example, a recent story showcased a Los Angeles bar that created custom cockt
ils to reflect some of this year's Oscar-nominated movies, and another revealed how a Port Washington, New York-based cheesemonger teaches people to make cheese. In both stories, the subject narrates the action, whether it's shaking a cocktail or pulling fresh mozzarella.
One of the things we wanted to do with Localish is create a space where we could experiment with next-generation storytelling, McMahon said. It feels different than our traditionally produced content. This new way of producing places subjects at the forefront of stories. It feels different than the traditional anchor voiceover.
Enhancing Local Newscasts
That change in producing style also has trickled up to the stations themselves, allowing them to start injecting digital-first storytelling into local newscasts.
Up to this point, Localish content lived in several places: online at the ABC Television Stations' websites, in the owned stations' apps, and sometimes in the stations' daily newscasts. This new effort takes those stories and repackages them into half-hour programs for the new Localish network.
We have created more than 1,000 short-form videos and those allow us to create strong half-hour shows where we can stack content based on the most viral and engaging pieces, said Localish executive producer Michael Koenigs, who also hosts two shows on the new network. Some of these pieces have been seen more than 20 million times across social media, he said.
The network is debuting with 10 original programs, with titles such as More In Common, featuring inspiring stories of Americans coming together despite their differences; Out of Office, revealing locals' favorite vacation spots; Glam Lab, discovering the latest trends in beauty and self-care; and Secretly Awesome, which doubles as a branded-content play sponsored by Hiscox Insurance.
Many of the ABC-owned TV stations also produce their own local shows, which are branded as Localish LA or Localish Bay Area, for example, said Jennifer Mitchell, senior vice president, content development, ABC Owned Television Stations: We are looking to do that in all eight of our markets.
In general, the network plans to add more shows as it progresses. We'll expand to more as we go forward without a doubt, Koenigs said. The hits will expand and we'll seed new formats each season.
We try to find the universal in the local, Koenigs said. We're about finding the light at the end of the tunnel; we're less about dwelling in the problem. That's one of the reasons this content resonates it's a divisive time and people are eager for that story that gives them a little confidence in their fellow man and their world. People generally feel more positively about their local communities than they do about the world at large.
Friendly to Ad Formats
Due to that positive perspective, Localish appeals to both ABC's local and national advertisers. It also will carry direct-response advertising (ads that include a 1-800 number to call for more information or to place an order), which is a standard type of advertising offered by multicast networks.
As intended, Localish's short-form content does very well across social media, with people grabbing videos and sharing them across platforms such as Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. Localish as an initiative has helped drive ABC Television Stations' social traffic. As a result, the owned TV stations had as many social engagements from October 2019 through January 2020 71 million as The New York Times and The Washington Post combined, with 44 million and 27 million, respectively, according to Shareablee.
While some content is being packaged into shows for the new network, Localish also will continue to exist as it does now, with local content produced for station websites, apps and newscasts.
We are multiplatform brands, McMahon said. It is always through that lens that we consider how we can bring this content to life and use it to connect with audiences and advertisers.
North America Stories
24/12/2025
What is AI good for? Posted by MTI Film on December 24, 2025
What is AI good for?
What is AI good for?
It's been three years since ChatGPT first cap...
24/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
24/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
24/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
24/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
24/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
24/12/2025
Back to All News
Love, Fights, and Everything in Between: Badly in Love' Returns for Season 2
Entertainment
24 December 2025
GlobalJapan
Link copied t...
24/12/2025
Scripps Research study links sleep variability with sleep apnea and hypertension How consumers' digital activity trackers could enable personalized health s...
23/12/2025
How guilas Cibae as Dominican Winter League Games Are Locally Produced for Glob...
23/12/2025
BitFire's Jim Akimchuk on Supplying Scalability and Customization in the Clo...
23/12/2025
CAMB.AI Enables European Athletics to Offer Multi-Language SupportPlan is to eventually offer translation into all languages spoken in EuropeBy Ken Kerschbaumer...
23/12/2025
Analysis: As sports media values trend negative, scarcity and quality are king By Callum McCarthy, Editor-at-Large
Monday, December 22, 2025 - 14:08
Print ...
23/12/2025
ESPN, Disney, and NBA Return to the Animated Altcast Fray With Second Edition of...
23/12/2025
End the Year on a High Note and Donate to the Sports Broadcasting Fund Today! By Ken Kerschbaumer, Editorial Director
Tuesday, December 23, 2025 - 12:25 pm
...
23/12/2025
A Zeus motor is hot fire tested at L3Harris' Camden, Arkansas, solid rocket ...
23/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
23/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
23/12/2025
Lightware will exhibit several major product innovations at ISE 2026, including the new USB-C BOOSTER-V1, Google Meet. integration for various Taurus UCX models...
23/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
23/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
23/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
23/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
23/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
23/12/2025
Taking the Stage at Carnegie Hall-On a Global Scale Boston Conservatory Orchestra students reflect on their epic concert marking the 80th session of the UN Gene...
23/12/2025
Back to All News
Netflix's The Great Flood and Culinary Class Wars 2 Top Gl...
23/12/2025
Back to All News
Stranger Things By the Numbers: How the Global Phenomenon Shap...
23/12/2025
Experience the power of WO Automation for Radio's newest service, the System Effectiveness Review. Designed to help you achieve more, a System Effectiveness...
23/12/2025
Back to All News
How Steamy Can It Get? Single's Inferno' Season 5 Pre...
23/12/2025
Back to All News
33 Million Global Viewers on Netflix Watched Jake Paul vs. Ant...
23/12/2025
New technique lights up where drugs go in the body, cell by cell Scripps Research scientists developed a technique that maps drug binding in individual cells th...
22/12/2025
SVG New Sponsor Spotlight: Presidio's Neerav Shah on the Role of Its Captiva...
22/12/2025
Hitting the bullseye: Sky Sports readies itself for the biggest PDC World Darts ...
22/12/2025
Unique skillset: Bringing new directors to the world of darts at The Worlds with...
22/12/2025
Gravity Media prepares for a flight of fancy with the PDC World Darts Championsh...
22/12/2025
One hundred and eighty: Gravity Media on hitting the production bullseye at the ...
22/12/2025
The Famous Group's Jon Slusser on Fascinating Fans Through Immersive Content...
22/12/2025
ESPN's Meg Aronowitz on Continuing High-Quality Broadcasts of Collegiate Spo...
22/12/2025
ESPN Takes Data-Driven Storytelling to New Heights with MNF Playbook with Next ...
22/12/2025
Paramount Scores Largest Share Increase Among Distributors as Paramount and CBS...
22/12/2025
New multi-year deal integrates Roku's data to fuel Nielsen's measurement suite
Roku gains access to Nielsen's streaming ratings, showing The Roku C...
22/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
22/12/2025
Berklee Wrapped 2025: Our Top News and Stories A look back at a year highlighted by faculty milestones, major film and television projects, Bob Dylan's ho...
22/12/2025
The works of Plato state that when humans have an experience, some level of change occurs in their brain, which is powered by memory - specifically long-term me...
22/12/2025
Workflows allow you to create a sequence of planned events which may be added to your template(s) or inserted directly into your sequential or background playli...
22/12/2025
Back to All News
Global Anime Hits and New Releases Take Center Stage at Jump Festa 2026
Entertainment
22 December 2025
GlobalJapan
Link copied to clipboar...
21/12/2025
Back to All News
Legoshi and Haru's Story Reaches Its Finale: BEASTARS Fin...
20/12/2025
Atomos announced the immediate availability of a new firmware update for its Ninja TX GO and Ninja TX monitor-recorders, unlocking ProRes RAW recording from the...
20/12/2025
CJP Broadcast has completed the digitisation of the European Gymnastics tape archive, converting 328 tapes containing more than forty years of recorded material...
On Monday, Feb. 17, ABC relaunched its multicast network formerly known as Live Well as Localish, taking advantage of reams of digital-first content that its owned stations have been producing at the local level for some 18 months.
