Jessica Chobot (born Jessica Lynn Horn; July 7, 1977) is an American on-camera host and writer. She has hosted the
IGN shows ''IGN Strategize'' and ''Weekly Wood'', which also runs on
Xbox Live
The Xbox network, formerly and still sometimes branded as Xbox Live, is an online multiplayer gaming and digital media delivery service created and operated by Microsoft. It was first made available to the Xbox system on November 15, 2002. A ...
; she previously worked as presenter of the ''IGN Daily Fix''. Since 2013, she was the primary host of ''
Nerdist News
Nerdist News is a Nerdist-branded pop culture newsletter launched in February 2012. It was founded and operated by Nerdist Industries' CEO, Peter Levin, and its CCO, Chris Hardwick. It was hosted by Jessica Chobot.
Publication
The cross-plat ...
'' and ''Nerdist News Talks Back'' for
Nerdist Industries
Nerdist Industries, LLC is part of the digital division of Legendary Entertainment. Nerdist Industries was founded as a sole podcast ( The Nerdist Podcast) created by Chris Hardwick but later spread to include a network of podcasts, a premium con ...
. In 2014, she launched her own podcast titled ''Bizarre States''. She left
Nerdist
Nerdist Industries, LLC is part of the digital division of Legendary Entertainment. Nerdist Industries was founded as a sole podcast (The Nerdist Podcast) created by Chris Hardwick but later spread to include a network of podcasts, a premium conte ...
on August 5, 2019. She currently stars in a show called ''Expedition X''.
Early life
Jessica Lynn Horn was born in
Buffalo, New York
Buffalo is the second-largest city in the U.S. state of New York (behind only New York City) and the seat of Erie County. It is at the eastern end of Lake Erie, at the head of the Niagara River, and is across the Canadian border from Sou ...
, and grew up in
Novi, Michigan
Novi ( ) is a city in Oakland County in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2020 census, the population was 66,243, an increase of 20% from the 2010 census.
A northern suburb of Metro Detroit, Novi is located about northwest of the city of ...
.
Her family moved from town to town frequently during her youth. Before entering high school, she lived in several places on the East Coast and the Midwest.
Career
Chobot gained exposure when
Kotaku
''Kotaku'' is a video game website and blog that was originally launched in 2004 as part of the Gawker Media network. Notable former contributors to the site include Luke Smith, Cecilia D'Anastasio, Tim Rogers, and Jason Schreier.
Histor ...
published a photo of her licking a
Sony PSP
The PlayStation Portable (PSP) is a handheld game console developed and marketed by Sony Computer Entertainment. It was first released in Japan on December 12, 2004, in North America on March 24, 2005, and in PAL regions on September 1, 2005, ...
online in 2005.
The photo has been widely parodied since, even appearing on Sony-branded advertising.
In 2006, Chobot was hired full-time by IGN.com to take over hosting responsibilities for the network's IGN Weekly show which is still running. Her segments included stand-up introductions as well as "woman-on-the-street" pieces. Starting in 2009 and ending in 2011, Chobot hosted a daily show titled ''IGN Daily Fix''; the first episode aired March 23, 2009. In addition, she contributes columns, features and reviews and runs a blog on IGN. Chobot is also a former contributor to ''
FHM
''FHM'' (For Him Magazine) is a British multinational men's lifestyle magazine that was published in several countries. Its master edition contained features such as the ''FHM'' 100 Sexiest Women in the World, which has featured models, actres ...
'' UK, Mania.com, and has made multiple appearances on
G4's ''Filter'' and ''
Attack of the Show!
''Attack of the Show!'' (''AOTS'') is an American live television program and that aired on G4. AOTS features segments on pop culture, video games, and movies. After an initial run from 2005 to 2013 (which originally aired from 2005 until 2013 ...
''. She has also hosted a videogame preview segment for
Fuel TV
Fox Sports 2 (FS2) is an American sports-oriented pay television channel owned by the Fox Sports Media Group, a unit of Fox Corporation. The channel is based at the Fox Sports division's headquarters on the Fox Studio Lot in the Century C ...
's, ''The Daily Habit'', and co-hosts on Lifeskool TV's, ''Gamer's Dojo''. She also contributes as a weekly guest on ''
Maxim Radio
Sirius XM Indie, formerly known as Maxim Radio and Stars Too, was a talk channel heard on the Sirius and XM satellite radio platforms. The channel is a spin-off of its sister station Sirius XM Stars.
History
Maxim Radio (2005–2008)
On Februa ...
'', where she answers caller questions for an hour each Monday. Chobot and
Ryan Dunn
Ryan Matthew Dunn (June 11, 1977 – June 20, 2011) was an American stunt performer, television personality, actor and comedian. He was best known as one of the stars of the MTV reality stunt show ''Jackass (TV series), Jackass'' and its fi ...
starred in ''
Proving Ground
A proving ground (US) is an installation or reservation in which technology such as weapons, military tactics and automobile prototypes are experimented with or tested. Proving grounds can be operated by government bodies or civilian industries. ...
'', a program whose airing cycle was disrupted by Dunn's death in an automotive crash on June 20, 2011, after the end of production; the program was pulled from airing for a month before returning to finish its run beginning on July 19, 2011.
Chobot has appeared on commercials for ADV's Anime Network On Demand cable station, and lent her likeness to Symbiote Studios Toy Company for two limited-edition anime-style sculptures. In addition, she has modeled for the J!NX female gamers clothing line. In 2006-2007, she co-wrote a sci-fi script with writer/director/creator of ''
Tron
''Tron'' (stylized as ''TRON'') is a 1982 American science fiction action- adventure film written and directed by Steven Lisberger from a story by Lisberger and Bonnie MacBird. The film stars Jeff Bridges as Kevin Flynn, a computer programmer ...
'',
Steven Lisberger
Steven M. Lisberger (born April 24, 1951) is an American film director, producer and writer famous for directing ''Tron'' in 1982.
Early life and education
Lisberger was born in 1951 in New York City and grew up in Hazleton, Pennsylvania. Of ...
, for ''Soul Code''.
Current collaborations include an anime-style collectible figurine in development with Symbiote Studios, a representative of JiNX.com women's apparel line.
Chobot is also writing the "Ask Jess, Dammit!" blog for Maxim. She was named the 88th most desirable woman of 2008 by ''
AskMen
AskMen is a free online men's web portal, with international versions in Australia, Canada, the Middle East, the United Kingdom and the United States. It is owned by Ziff Davis and operates through the IGN Entertainment unit.
History
AskMen was ...
'' magazine and 14th hottest woman of business 2009 by Business Pundit. Chobot also hosts a weekly show featured on Inside Xbox called ''IGN Strategize''. In 2011, Chobot placed at #57 in the 2011 Askmen's Top 99 Women poll.
Chobot voiced news reporter
Diana Allers, a non-player character modelled in her likeness who is a potential romance option of
Commander Shepard
Lieutenant Commander Shepard, better known as Commander Shepard, is the player character in the ''Mass Effect'' video game series by BioWare (''Mass Effect'', ''Mass Effect 2'', and ''Mass Effect 3'').
A veteran soldier of the Systems Alliance ...
, the main character of the 2012 video game ''
Mass Effect 3
''Mass Effect 3'' is an action role-playing video game developed by BioWare and published by Electronic Arts. The third major entry in the ''Mass Effect'' series and the final installment of the original trilogy, it was released in March 2012 ...
''. Although Chobot hosted a preview of the game for G4 in January 2012, Chobot and the media organizations she worked for at the time had made it known that she would not review the game in any official capacity. Her involvement in the video game was criticized by many as a
conflict of interest
A conflict of interest (COI) is a situation in which a person or organization is involved in multiple interests, financial or otherwise, and serving one interest could involve working against another. Typically, this relates to situations i ...
; in response, Chobot emphasized that she is an on-screen personality who never considered herself to be a journalist, and that BioWare never asked her for any favors in return. In a retrospective comment about the
controversy
Controversy is a state of prolonged public dispute or debate, usually concerning a matter of conflicting opinion or point of view. The word was coined from the Latin ''controversia'', as a composite of ''controversus'' – "turned in an opposite d ...
, Chobot noted that she was never asked for her side of the story by people who write about her in the media.
On November 4, 2013, Chobot began work as the main host of ''Nerdist News'', a news show focusing on nerdy pop culture updates airing 5 days a week on Nerdist.com. Chobot served as the writer for ''
Daylight
Daylight is the combination of all direct and indirect sunlight during the daytime. This includes direct sunlight, diffuse sky radiation, and (often) both of these reflected by Earth and terrestrial objects, like landforms and buildings. Sunligh ...
'', a
survival horror
Survival horror is a subgenre of survival of the players as the game tries to frighten them with either horror graphics or scary ambience. Although combat can be part of the gameplay, the player is made to feel less in control than in typical ac ...
video game by
Zombie Studios
Zombie Studios was an American independent video game developer. It was formed in 1994 as Zombie, LLC by Joanna Alexander and Mark Long, formerly of the Sarnoff Research Center. Alexander and Long founded Zombie after they completed the design of ...
.
The game launched on April 29, 2014. On June 26, 2014, Chobot launched her own podcast dedicated to the weird and supernatural titled ''Bizarre States''. The show is co-hosted by fellow
Nerdist Industries
Nerdist Industries, LLC is part of the digital division of Legendary Entertainment. Nerdist Industries was founded as a sole podcast ( The Nerdist Podcast) created by Chris Hardwick but later spread to include a network of podcasts, a premium con ...
's employee
Andrew Bowser and features occasional guests.
In 2015, Chobot was the contestant interviewer on the revived sixth series of
robotic combat game show ''
Battlebots
''BattleBots'' (logo: Bꓭ)In season 10, the 2020-2021 TV season, the show introduced the "Bꓭ" logo is an American robot combat television series. The show was an adaptation of the British show '' Robot Wars'', in which competitors design and ...
'', and she acted as
Samus Aran
is a fictional character and the playable protagonist of the video game series ''Metroid'' by Nintendo. She was created by Japanese video game designer Makoto Kano. She was introduced as a player character in the original 1986 video game ''Me ...
for the movie ''Metroid: The Sky Calls'', which was produced by a studio named Rainfall. She played the role along with another actress named
America Young
America Young (born December 6, 1984) is an American actress, director, writer, stunt performer and producer from Santa Fe, New Mexico. She has been the voice of Barbie since 2018, having previously voiced her in the ''Barbie Vlogger'' web series. ...
.
On August 5, 2019, Chobot announced on Twitter that she was leaving
Nerdist
Nerdist Industries, LLC is part of the digital division of Legendary Entertainment. Nerdist Industries was founded as a sole podcast (The Nerdist Podcast) created by Chris Hardwick but later spread to include a network of podcasts, a premium conte ...
after six years.
Chobot now stars in ''
Expedition X'' which premiered on February 12, 2020 on the
Discovery Channel
Discovery Channel (known as The Discovery Channel from 1985 to 1995, and often referred to as simply Discovery) is an American cable channel owned by Warner Bros. Discovery, a publicly traded company run by CEO David Zaslav. , Discovery Chan ...
.
Personal life
She was divorced from a previous marriage in 2006 but kept the surname Chobot.
On August 21, 2011, Chobot became engaged to
Blair Herter and they married on February 18, 2012. They had their first child on March 6, 2013.
The family currently lives in the
Netherlands
)
, anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau")
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, subdivision_type = Sovereign state
, subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands
, established_title = Before independence
, established_date = Spanish Netherl ...
, where they moved in 2022 after Herter left G4 and joined
Team Liquid
Team Liquid is a multi-regional professional esports organization based in the Netherlands that was founded in 2000. With the release of '' StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty'', Team Liquid signed their first professional players.
In 2012, Team L ...
.
References
External links
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Chobot, Jessica
1977 births
Living people
Television personalities from Buffalo, New York
People from Novi, Michigan
People from Los Angeles County, California
American expatriates in Japan
American expatriates in the Netherlands
American critics
American television hosts
American women television writers
American women television presenters
Female models from New York (state)
American television writers
IGN
Screenwriters from California
Screenwriters from Michigan
Screenwriters from New York (state)
American people in the video game industry
Video game critics
Women video game critics
Women in the video game industry
21st-century American women