More Perfect Union (media organization)

Last updated
More Perfect Union
FormationFebruary 2021
Founder Faiz Shakir
Type Nonprofit
EIN: 85-3189807
FocusLabor, economy, working-class issues
MethodVideo journalism, advocacy reporting
Award(s) Sidney Award (2021), Hillman Prize (2023), Emmy Award (2025)
YouTube information
Channel
Subscribers1.73 million [1]
Views263 million [1]
YouTube Silver Play Button 2.svg100,000 subscribers
YouTube Gold Play Button 2.svg1,000,000 subscribers
TikTok information
Page
Followers1 million
Likes32 million
Instagram information
Page
Followers847,000
X information
Handle @moreperfectus
Followers290,000

More Perfect Union is a progressive non-profit news media organization founded in February 2021 by Faiz Shakir. The outlet, named after a phrase in the U.S. Constitution, specializes in video reporting and opinion coverage about the American labor movement, economic policy, and corporate accountability. [2] [3]

Contents

It received the Sidney Award in 2021 for coverage of the Frito-Lay strike, and its explainer series The Class Room won a Hillman Prize in 2023 for opinion journalism. [4] [5] In June 2025, More Perfect Union won an Emmy Award for Outstanding News Discussion & Analysis. [6]

Activities

Snack company strikes

In August 2021, More Perfect Union won the Sidney Award for its coverage of the Frito-Lay strike. "MPU was the first national outlet to cover the strike," the Sidney Hillman Foundation wrote in awarding the prize. "They published dispatches from the ground over a three-week period which collectively generated over 4 million views and spurred follow-on coverage by outlets such as the New York Times, the Washington Post, CNN, and NPR... After a three-week strike, Frito's Topeka plant struck an agreement to end the forced 7-day workweeks and so-called 'suicide shifts', which gave workers only 8 hours of break between shifts." [4] [7]

Also in August 2021, More Perfect Union confirmed with actor Danny DeVito that he had been stripped of his verified status on Twitter after he tweeted a message of solidarity to striking Nabisco workers: "NO CONTRACT NO SNACKS." [8] The news spread widely and contributed to DeVito and his rallying cry becoming popular labor memes. [9]

The Class Room

In November 2021, More Perfect Union launched an explainer series called "The Class Room". It is "aimed at providing a left-wing answer to PragerU, a YouTube titan of right-wing ideology," the New York Times reported. [2]

In 2023, "The Class Room" was awarded the Hillman Prize for Opinion and Analysis. [5]

Political coverage

In 2023, the outlet released footage of President Joe Biden meeting union organizers and reported on his appearance at a United Auto Workers picket line, noting that the organization played a coordinating role. [10]

Organization and leadership

More Perfect Union is led by Faiz Shakir. As of 2023, the organization had approximately 28 full-time employees. [11]

Funding

More Perfect Union is funded by philanthropic donors and does not accept contributions from corporations or labor unions. [2] [11] Reported donors include the Open Society Foundations, the Ford Foundation, and entities linked to Pierre Omidyar. [2] [11]

Reception

More Perfect Union is recognized as part of the progressive digital media landscape. [11]

References

  1. 1 2 "About More Perfect Union". YouTube.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Smith, Ben (8 November 2021). "Why the Media Loves Labor Now". The New York Times. Retrieved 28 June 2025.
  3. ↑ Conley, Julia (9 December 2021). ""History made!" Buffalo Starbucks workers vote to form chain's first union in U.S." Salon. Retrieved 28 June 2025.
  4. 1 2 "More Perfect Union wins August Sidney for Agenda-Setting Coverage of Topeka Frito-Lay Strike". Hillman Foundation. 11 August 2021. Retrieved 28 June 2025.
  5. 1 2 "The Class Room". Hillman Foundation. 17 April 2023. Retrieved 28 June 2025.
  6. ↑ "2025 News & Documentary Emmy Winners" (PDF). The National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences. Retrieved 28 June 2025.
  7. ↑ Romo, Vanessa (21 July 2021). "Striking To End 'Suicide Shifts,' Frito-Lay Workers Ask People To Drop The Doritos". NPR. Retrieved 28 June 2025.
  8. ↑ Smith, Ryan (20 August 2021). "Danny DeVito gets Twitter verification back after abrupt loss of status sparks outrage". Newsweek. Retrieved 28 June 2025.
  9. ↑ Stevens, Ashlie D. (31 August 2021). "No contracts, no snacks: Everything you need to know about the Nabisco strike". Salon. Retrieved 28 June 2025.
  10. ↑ Wagner, Laura (28 September 2023). "The small pro-labor news site that has the Biden White House's ear". The Washington Post. Retrieved 28 June 2025.
  11. 1 2 3 4 Crowell, Maddy (10 June 2024). "A Little to the Left". Columbia Journalism Review. Retrieved 28 June 2025.
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