GOLDEN GLOBE- AND EMMY AWARD-WINNING ACTRESS JANE LYNCH TO HOST NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC'S GROUNDBREAKING GLOBAL TELEVISION EVENT "EARTH LIVE"

Two-Hour, Edge-of-Your-Seat View of the Natural World Premieres Sunday, July 9, at 8/7c on National Geographic and Simulcast on Nat Geo WILD

World's Greatest Cinematographers to Capture Stunning Wildlife in Real Time in 30 Locations Around the World

Animal Expert, Zoologist and Naturalist Chris Packham to Join Lynch in Studio; National Geographic Explorer-in-Residence Dr. Bob Ballard Will Report From the Field

(New York, NY - April 19, 2017) National Geographic announced today that Golden Globe- and Emmy award-winning actress Jane Lynch will host the network's greatest natural event, EARTH LIVE, premiering Sunday, July 9, at 8/7c. The two-hour live broadcast is the first of this magnitude - think of it as the Super Bowl or Olympics of the natural world - showcasing the best of the animal kingdom in real time and in spectacular fashion.

EARTH LIVE will be anchored in a New York City studio and guided by host Lynch as it is simulcast globally on National Geographic and Nat Geo WILD in 171 countries and 45 languages. Joining Lynch in studio is animal expert, zoologist and naturalist Chris Packham. Packham, alongside Lynch, will give viewers access to key locations across six continents - from South America to Asia and everywhere in between - as world-renowned cinematographers use cutting-edge technology to showcase a number of wildlife firsts. And, for the first time, viewers will watch live wildlife lit only by the moon, in full color, via new low-light camera technology with a Canon ME20.

"I'm excited and honored to host National Geographic's EARTH LIVE," said Lynch. "It's going to be a groundbreaking, beautiful and action-packed wildlife symposium that will help viewers from all across the world better understand the animals that live around them."

"We could not be more thrilled to have Jane Lynch be the host of our inaugural EARTH LIVE broadcast," said Tim Pastore, president of original programming and production. "With the help of Jane's influence and this global team of natural history and wildlife storytellers, our goal for this live event is to inspire, inform and reveal the wonders of the natural world to a new audience."

Over the course of the two-hour broadcast, viewers will witness the earth's greatest wildlife, shot by the world's greatest wildlife cinematographers: Bob Poole will travel to Ethiopia to capture hyenas in their natural habitat; National Geographic photographer Steve Winter, best known for his work documenting the cats of the Pantanal over the past 20 years, will give viewers an inside look at the ocelot, a rare and elusive cat; the celebrated wildlife cameraman and National Geographic Explorer Sandesh Kadur will focus on langurs, the Old World monkeys found in Jodhpur, India; and Sophie Darlington, who made her name filming big cats, will film the lions of the Masai Mara.

Additionally, National Geographic Explorer-in-Residence Dr. Robert Ballard, best known for his discovery of the RMS Titanic, will join the broadcast as he explores the depths of the oceans off the coast of California during one of his Nautilus expeditions.

Some of the locations EARTH LIVE will broadcast from include:

· Bracken Cave, Texas, where cameras will capture the 20 million Mexican free-tailed bats as they leave their subterranean cave;

· Churchill, Canada's beluga whale breeding grounds;

· Yucatan, Mexico, where cameras will share the busiest and noisiest time of year in a 15,000-strong breeding colony for flamingoes;

· Fiji, where strong tides powered by the moon pull nutrients up from the depths of the sea to fertilize the reef and create a perfect home for bull sharks;

· Masai Mara, Kenya, where cameras will capture prides of lions waiting for migrating herds to pass;

· Jodhpur, India, where troops of Hanuman langurs wake up from their overnight roosts in search of food; and

· Alaska, where cameramen and scientists will travel to the southeast coast in search of humpback whales to capture whale DNA with a specifically designed drone called the "snot-bot."

In the span of two hours, viewers will experience the adventure of a lifetime as they travel the world and witness how species respond to the powerful forces of nature in order to survive.

EARTH LIVE is produced by Bunim-Murray Productions, Berman Productions and Plimsoll Productions for National Geographic. Al Berman, Gil Goldschein, Andrew Jackson and Martha Holmes are Executive Producers.For National Geographic, Michael J. Miller is the executive producer; Kevin Mohs is vice president, production and development; and Tim Pastore is president of original programming and production.

For more information, visit www.channel.nationalgeographic.com.

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About National Geographic Partners LLC:

National Geographic Partners LLC (NGP), a joint venture between National Geographic and 21st Century Fox, is committed to bringing the world premium science, adventure and exploration content across an unrivaled portfolio of media assets. NGP combines the global National Geographic television channels (National Geographic Channel, Nat Geo WILD, Nat Geo MUNDO, Nat Geo PEOPLE) with National Geographic's media and consumer-oriented assets, including National Geographic magazines; National Geographic studios; related digital and social media platforms; books; maps; children's media; and ancillary activities that include travel, global experiences and events, archival sales, licensing and e-commerce businesses. Furthering knowledge and understanding of our world has been the core purpose of National Geographic for 128 years, and now we are committed to going deeper, pushing boundaries, going further for our consumers ... and reaching over 730 million people around the world in 172 countries and 43 languages every month as we do it. NGP returns 27 percent of our proceeds to the nonprofit National Geographic Society to fund work in the areas of science, exploration, conservation and education. For more information visit natgeotv.com or nationalgeographic.com, or find us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Google+, YouTube, LinkedIn and Pinterest.

About Bunim/Murray Productions:

Bunim/Murray Productions is the leading producer of innovative entertainment content. The Emmy award-winning company is widely credited with creating the reality television genre with its hit series "The Real World" (32 seasons on MTV). BMP continued to innovate with the first reality game show, "Road Rules" (MTV), in 1995; the first reality sitcom, "The Simple Life" (E!), in 2003; and the first reality soap opera, "Starting Over," in 2003. BMP's current programming includes "Mariah's World," "Keeping up With the Kardashians," "Rob & Chyna," "Life of Kylie," "Total Divas," "Total Bellas" and "So Cosmo" (E!); "The Real World" and "The Challenge" (MTV); "Project Runway" and "Project Runway All Stars" (Lifetime); "Valerie's Home Cooking" (Food Network); "Born This Way" (A&E); "The Gary Owen Show" (BET), Earth Live (National Geographic); "Bill Nye Saves the World" (Netflix); "The Selection: Special Operations Experiment" (History); "The Healer" (TLC); and "Chachi's World" (go90). BMP has also produced films, including "They Call Us Monsters," "Valentine Road" (HBO), "Pedro" (MTV) and the Emmy award-winning "Autism: The Musical" (HBO). BMP has launched additional entities including BMP Films, BMP Digital and BMP Latin. Based in Glendale, California, the company was founded in 1987 by Jonathan Murray and the late Mary-Ellis Bunim, who were inducted into the Television Academy's Hall of Fame in 2012. The company joined Banijay Group in 2010.