According to a press release, the show will air at 7 p.m. (ET/PT) on June 29 and will feature discussions with leaders of the Black Lives Matter movement, teen activists, and give tools for families to have conversations about race.
Guests featured on the show will be Black Lives Matters co-founders Patrisse Cullors, Alicia Garza and Opal Tometi, the founders of Teens4Equality, singer Keedron Bryant, Antiracist Baby author Ibram X. Kendi, actress and influencer Tabitha Brown, and family therapist Dr. George James.
Keys expressed her excitement to be part of the Nick News special and it’s importance in educating children. “I’ve had a vision of a forum that can engage kids during this time and help to focus our attention on how they might be feeling, and this Nick News special is it! Talking about race can be sensitive and uncomfortable; and sometimes we try to protect our children from racism they are already experiencing. But honestly, there is no way around this topic if we want to move forward in any kind of meaningful way,” she said in a statement.
Keys also said that in order for change to happen, all people need to talk issues, and the special will provide an entry point for families looking for ways to discuss issues of race and racism. “What’s happening in the world is not just a problem for the Black community, it’s all of our problem and we ALL have to care about it in order to change it! This is such an important, vulnerable, honest and beautiful conversation, and I know many families may be searching for the right way to enter it. Let’s really deep dive together,” she said.
As previously reported, Nickelodeon went off the air for eight minutes and 46 seconds, following George Floyd’s death, “in support of justice, equality and human rights,” as the message stated. The network also aired a “Declaration of Kids’ Rights,” which called for equality among children regardless of race and a right to opinions.
The show will air on Nickelodeon, TeenNick, and NickToons channels and will be available on the Nick App, Nick On Demand, the Nick Pluto TV channel, and Nickelodeon’s YouTube channel.
Nickelodeon said the special was the first of other Nick News specials expected to come. The new special is the first episode of the series to air since the show concluded in 2015. The series began airing with host Linda Ellerbee in 1991, according to IMDb. Ellerbee celebrated her retirement with a 2015 episode titled, “Hello, I Must Be Going! 25 Years of Nick News with Linda Ellerbee.”
