• Variety, Monday, August 10, 2009 10:15 AM

Despite Al Gore's imprint, an Emmy and some 60 million homes worldwide, Current TV has been just one channel among many in the cable universe. North Korea's high-profile detention and release of Current journalists Laura Ling and Euna Lee has changed that.

Lee and Ling have come under criticism for their assignment; a San Diego radio host, for one, asked what they were doing putting themselves in harm's way. The barbs probably wouldn't have been leveled had Current TV had the more famous personalities of say, CNN.

Ironically, while the story surrounding Lee and Ling has brought the channel tons of attention, little of it could be found on Current during the ordeal. That changed once the pair was out of North Korean airspace. By that evening, the Current Web site was plastered with messages welcoming the reporters home, as well as a message from Gore and co-founder Joel Hyatt.

Read the whole story at Variety »