American Hot Button
"Hot-button issue. Two sides collide. You participate."
Logline
A revolutionary interactive series that tackles America's most divisive issues, lets viewers act as judge and jury, and empowers them to drive real change.
Synopsis
American Hot Button reimagines investigative journalism by blending the in-depth reporting of programs like 60 Minutes with a dynamic, participatory format. Each episode thrusts a single incendiary issue into the spotlight: a well-known host frames the topic, experts and advocates from every side present their arguments, and a panel of notable personalities and celebrities challenges them in front of a live audience. Then the power shifts to the viewers, who become judge and jury through real-time voting via text, call-in, and online donations. Audiences don't just express an opinion, they put 'skin in the game,' financially backing the side they believe in while an ongoing 'swaying vote' tracks how minds change in real time. A companion online platform delivers transparent expenditure reports, updates, and testimonies, turning heated national debate into tangible, trackable impact.
The World
A live television arena, a charged debate stage before a studio audience, extended by a powerful second-screen experience. Phones, apps, and a companion online platform turn living rooms across America into voting booths and donation desks, complete with expenditure reports, testimonies, diaries, FAQs, and progress updates that keep the conversation alive long after the episode ends.
Why It Sells
- Revolutionary interactivity, the viewing audience acts as judge and jury in real time.
- 'Skin in the game', viewers don't just vote, they can donate to the side they believe in.
- The 'Swaying Vote' tracker, a live barometer of public opinion shifting as the debate unfolds.
- A multi-sided approach, most issues have more than two sides, and the show explores them.
- Investigative depth meets public participation, the rigor of 60 Minutes with the immediacy of a live vote.
- A companion platform built for transparency, expenditure reports and follow-ups that track real-world change.
- Built-in viral potential, designed to ignite national conversation and social engagement.
Characters
The Host
The Moderator
A well-known host who frames the hot-button issue, introduces the experts and advocates, and guides the flow of the live program.
The Expert Panel
The Tough Questions
A panel of well-known voices and celebrities who challenge the advocates, pose critical questions, and pressure-test every side of the argument.
The Advocates & Experts
The Sides
Specialists and support groups who present and defend opposing positions through interviews, clips, and live testimony.
The Audience
Judge & Jury
The live and at-home viewers who decide the outcome by voting via text, call-in, and online, and by backing causes with real donations.
Story Beats
The Issue Drops
The host introduces America's hot-button topic of the night and sets the stakes for the arena.
The Sides Present
Experts and support groups present opposing (and multi-sided) arguments through interviews, clips, and live statements.
The Panel Strikes
The celebrity expert panel challenges the advocates with the tough questions the audience is thinking.
The Vote Opens
Viewers become judge and jury, casting votes via text, call-in, and online in a live-TV format.
Skin in the Game
Audiences, and even sponsors, back the side they believe in with transparent donations, 'popular choice' votes that carry real weight.
The Swaying Vote
A live tracker reveals how minds are changing in real time, exposing which revelations moved the country.
The Follow-Up
Months later, the show revisits the initiatives, tracking the impact of the donations and the progress of real change on the companion platform.
Producers
Created by Greg Demirjian