Upworthy

Last updated
Upworthy
Logo Upworthy.webp
Screenshot Upworthy 29 November 2022.png
Type of business Private
Type of site
News and entertainment
Available inEnglish
FoundedMarch 14, 2012;12 years ago (2012-03-14) [1]
Headquarters Los Angeles, California,
United States
Owner Good Worldwide
Founder(s) Eli Pariser and Peter Koechley
EditorEric Pfeiffer (Editor-in-chief)
CEOMax Schorr
URL upworthy.com
Current statusActive

Upworthy is a media brand that focuses on positive storytelling. [2]

Contents

It was started in March 2012 by Eli Pariser, the former executive director of MoveOn, and Peter Koechley, the former managing editor of The Onion . One of Facebook's co-founders, Chris Hughes, was an early investor. In 2017, the company was acquired by Good Worldwide. Between the two platforms, they reached 100MM people a month. [3] [4] [5] [6]

History

In October 2012 it raised $4 million from New Enterprise Associates and other angel investors, including BuzzFeed co-founder John Johnson, Facebook co-founder and New Republic owner Chris Hughes, and Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian. [7] It has worked with Unilever, Skype, CoverGirl, and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. [8] [9] [10]

Originally, Upworthy curators searched the internet for existing content to feature on the site. [11] Once selected as an option, curators brainstormed different headlines and shareable images for the content, and tested it with a small sample of Upworthy’s visitors before sharing it on the site. [11]

In June 2013, an article in Fast Company called Upworthy "the fastest growing media site of all time". [12] It had 8.7 million unique monthly visitors in the first six months. [13]

The site popularized a style of two-phrase headlines. [14] It has been criticized for its use of overly sensationalized, emotionally manipulative, "clickbait" style, headlines as well as having a liberal bias, and simplifying issues that are controversial by nature. [15] [16] [17] [18] Upworthy was accused of laying off one round of writers in 2015, and another in 2016, after an unionization effort by some of the staff. The union involved, the Writers Guild of America, East, has organized several online "viral" news publishers. [19]

In January 2017, Upworthy was acquired by GOOD Worldwide, a company that similarly focused on spreading progressive messages through their websites such as good.is. The newsrooms of the two organizations would merge as part of the acquisition. About 20 staffers were laid off as part of the merger. [20]

Upworthy was ranked as one of the Top 100 Social Brands of 2021 (#38), and one of the Top 50 Brands by Cross-Platform Video Actions (#34) with 180.6 million and 49.7 million interactions, respectively. [21]

In January 2023, National Geographic Books bought GOOD PEOPLE: Stories From the Best of Humanity from Upworthy, with a publication date set for September 3, 2024. [22] It was created by two senior Upworthy team members, Gabriel Reilich and Lucia Knell, and features 101 stories from Upworthy’s audience. [23] [22]

See also

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References

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  19. "Report: Upworthy's Lefty Owners Scared Employees Out of Unionization". 10 August 2015. Archived from the original on 21 May 2017. Retrieved 18 July 2017.
  20. Sutton, Kelsey (January 27, 2017). "Upworthy to merge with Good Worldwide, newsrooms to consolidate. About 20 staffers were laid off as part of the merger". Politico. Archived from the original on November 14, 2023. Retrieved January 20, 2019.
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