Three different views on the current crop of journalism and media startups PLUS media tech leaers peer into the future of the industry

January 19, 2022

It's a new(ish) year, and media watchers are looking at the current crop of journalism and media startups. Axios looks at how The Markup is leaning into its strategy of building data tools as its revenue grows. Politico's Jack Shafer takes a snarky look at the pitches of various journalism startups and finds them wanting. (I find the piece a bit defensive with a lot of old-school defensive tropes, but he makes a good point that the startups could improve their branding and communicating their USPs.) Of this trio of pieces, I like Defector's quiz where you get to connect the statement about the future of journalism with a journalism startup leader. It's a fun way to scan the startup landscape.

Oh, and I almost forgot that fact-checking, news-source rating company NewsGuard says that it will soon break even.

The Local Media Association asked seven media technology leaders about where they thought that media was going. The most interesting predictions for me were around revenue with one of the group looking to see whether foundation and philanthropic funding will provide a sustainable business model.

Last but not least, there is a wonderful interview with Reach's first online-safety editor. With all of the issues around online abuse that journalists - especially women - face, this is an important move and great support for the company to provide.

The outlet aims to distinguish itself from the barrage of modern tech coverage by focusing on consumers.

Entrepreneurial spirit is sweeping the industry. Too bad the promotional language is so cliched.

PBS today announced several new long-term initiatives to support diversity in public media.

NewsGuard, a four-year-old startup that scans the web and rates the reliability of news sources, says its own business is reliable enough to turn a profit.

German publishing house Axel Springer has lost its copyright infringement lawsuit against Eyeo GmbH, the company behind Adblock Plus.

There sure are plenty of new media companies out there, many of which are raking in millions of dollars in investments on the unique promises they make of and to their various distinct audiences. “We have entered a frenzied phase of media innovation,” a finance guy recently told the Financial Times, “both from inside established […]

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"What's really struck me is the variety of issues I've seen reported in recent weeks. Not one of them has been the same."