Getty/Bennett Raglin
It will be hosted on a new YouTube channel Neistat will launch in March.
Neistat rose to prominence through authentic and unfiltered videos of his adventures in New York City and around the world.
In November, CNN bought Neistat's social-sharing app Beme for around $25 million. But the acquisition wasn't for the app, which CNN shut down, but rather for Neistat and his team, who CNN thought would help the company package news in a way that appeals to younger audiences.
Neistat's new startup within CNN will try to tackle news, particularly through mobile video, but won't be a traditional news network.
"A huge part of my particular audience sees news and
CNN chief Jeff Zucker told THR that he learned about Neistat through his children. He described his first meeting with Neistat two years ago, which Zucker brought his 16-year-old son to. "My son says that you're the only person who matters in media," Zucker told Neistat at the time, he told THR. Zucker offered Neistat a TV on CNN, but Neistat turned it down.
It's still unclear what exactly Neistat's new content for CNN will focus on.
"The new company will be devoted to filling the world with excellent, timely and topical video and empowering content creators to use technology to find their voice," CNN said in a statement in November. "It won't be what most people think of as 'news,' but it will be relevant to the daily conversations that dominate our lives."
The app Beme, which was shuttered, focused on unedited, user-generated short videos. While Neistat's startup will exist inside CNN, he will be given "full creative control" to build something different, according to The Times.
CNN did not get ownership of Neistat's personal YouTube channel in the deal.