Geoff Keighley: Behind the Scenes of the Videogame Industry

B Y G E O F F K E I G H L E Y

▪ Geoff's Biography
▪ Contact Information

"Edward R. Murrow. Mike Wallace. Kurt Loder. Geoff Keighley? It may sound farfetched, but when it comes to videogames, the 28-year-old Keighley is the most respected journalist on television, bar none. That's because he's one of the only media figures who combines strong credibility with gamers and developers with unquestioned mainstream credentials thanks to his extensive work for such respected print publications as Business 2.0, Entertainment Weekly, Time and Rolling Stone."

- Newsweek, January 2007

Newsweek dubs him Mike Wallace meets Kurt Loder for the videogame generation. The Wall Street Journal calls him “an example of gaming journalism growing up.” Across print, online and television, Geoff Keighley has spent half his 28-years building himself into the most respected name in videogame journalism. As a contributing writer to Entertainment Weekly and Business 2.0, as well as the host of SpikeTV’s Game Head and frequent guest contributor to Extra and G4, the number of outlets that trust Keighley as the go-to-guy for games is only trumped by his ability to deftly move between mediums and speak to different audiences. Whether he’s interviewing the CEO of Sony for cover story, hanging out with Clint Eastwood for television, or throwing down with a bunch of nerd rappers from Ohio, Keighley has earned the respect of both hard-to-impress gamers and game companies that know he controls the information flow to millions of consumers. In 2004 he was named one of the top 30 journalists in world under 30 by NewsBios.com

In addition to his written work that started when he was a 14-year-old teenager writing out of his bedroom in Toronto, Keighley’s hard-core gamer roots give him unique insight into what gamers want to see on television. In 2005 he began hosting Game Head for SpikeTV, a weekly newsmagazine that has become #1 rated videogame show on television, now in its fourth season. Serving as host, co-producer and head writer of ths how, Keighley’s hard-hitting interviews and insider access have helped Game Head emerge as a blockbuster hit on digital platforms. Episodes of the show have reached the #1 paid download status on Microsoft’s Xbox Live TV Marketplace, eclipsing hits like South Park.

Besides Game Head, Keighley has had a hand in almost every other videogame-related project on television. On Comcast’s G4 network he appears every year as the network’s lead anchor for its E3 press conference coverage and interviews the CEOs from companies like Sony and Electronic Arts. For MTV he created the concept and produced (with LivePlanet) “Gears of War: Race to E3” and “Gears of War: Race to Launch,” two high rated specials that took viewers inside the development of the hit Xbox 360 game from Microsoft. This November the Discovery Channel will air a landmark five-hour documentary about videogames from World of Wonder Productions, based on a treatment by Keighley, who also serves as consulting producer. He has also hosted and co-produced a number of videogame launch specials for SpikeTV, including “Madden NFL 08 Kickoff” featuring a performance by Ozzy Osbourne and “Halo 3: Launched!” featuring a performance by Linkin Park.

In 2001, Keighley was one of only two journalists -- the other being 60 Minutes correspondent Mike Wallace -- profiled in the Harvard Business School Press book Geeks & Geezers: How Era, Values and Defining Moments Shape Leaders by leadership expert Warren Bennis. He is a magna cum laude graduate in philosophy and business from the University of Southern California.