id: pressgazette--2020-05-05--Buzzfeed News appoints ex-investigations editor as second editor-in-chief

source: pressgazette

content:
Buzzfeed News has appointed its former investigations editor Mark Schoofs as only its second editor-in-chief in the US .
Schoofs left the news website in 2018 to train the next generation of investigative journalists at the USC Annenberg School of Journalism in Los Angeles .
He will continue his role with the journalism school after rejoining Buzzfeed , creating a partnership between the two that will see the launch of an internship and Buzzfeed founder Jonah Peretti teaching a course on internet culture and digital media .
Schoofs said he was “ thrilled ” to return to Buzzfeed News as @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ” journalists are “ the best in the world , hands down ” .
Peretti said : “ I ’ m so excited to welcome Mark back to Buzzfeed , because I know how deeply committed he is to ensuring that Buzzfeed News remains the best place on the internet for free , high quality news , and reaches even greater heights .
“ I ’ m also confident , even during these tough times , that Buzzfeed News will be in the best possible hands under Mark ’ s leadership.
” Schoofs @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , who left the website in January , eight years after helping to launch its US newsroom , to join the New York Times as a media columnist .
Before joining Buzzfeed , Schoofs led a team of investigative journalists at non-profit newsroom Pro Publica and started his career editing LGBTQ newspaper The Windy City Times in Chicago .
He has won a Pulitzer Prize for his reporting on the Aids epidemic for the now-defunct The Village Voice newspaper , and shared in another while at the Wall Street Journal for reporting on @ @ @ @ @ @ @ has been shortlisted twice for the prize , including for their investigation into mysterious deaths linked to Russia on British and American soil .

new_content:
Buzzfeed News has appointed its former investigations editor Mark Schoofs as only its second editor-in-chief in the US.
Schoofs left the news website in 2018 to train the next generation of investigative journalists at the USC Annenberg School of Journalism in Los Angeles.
He will continue his role with the journalism school after rejoining Buzzfeed, creating a partnership between the two that will see the launch of an internship and Buzzfeed founder Jonah Peretti teaching a course on internet culture and digital media.
Schoofs said he was “thrilled” to return to Buzzfeed News as its “tough, rigorous and fearless” journalists are “the best in the world, hands down”.
Related
Peretti said: “I’m so excited to welcome Mark back to Buzzfeed, because I know how deeply committed he is to ensuring that Buzzfeed News remains the best place on the internet for free, high quality news, and reaches even greater heights.
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“I’m also confident, even during these tough times, that Buzzfeed News will be in the best possible hands under Mark’s leadership.”
Schoofs replaces Buzzfeed News founding editor Ben Smith, who left the website in January, eight years after helping to launch its US newsroom, to join the New York Times as a media columnist.
Before joining Buzzfeed, Schoofs led a team of investigative journalists at non-profit newsroom Pro Publica and started his career editing LGBTQ newspaper The Windy City Times in Chicago.
He has won a Pulitzer Prize for his reporting on the Aids epidemic for the now-defunct The Village Voice newspaper, and shared in another while at the Wall Street Journal for reporting on 9/11.
The Buzzfeed News investigations team has been shortlisted twice for the prize, including for their investigation into mysterious deaths linked to Russia on British and American soil.
Picture: Buzzfeed
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id: pressgazette--2020-03-04--Buzzfeed UK appoints first political editor in two years and Telegraph poaches from City AM

content:
Buzzfeed UK has appointed its first political editor in almost two years while the Telegraph has poached City AM ’ s political editor .
Former Guido Fawkes news editor Alex Wickham takes up the role at Buzzfeed , which has been without a political editor since Jim Waterson moved to the Guardian in 2018 after five years in the role .
Wickham ( pictured , right ) , senior political correspondent at Buzzfeed since September 2018 , will be joined by Joey D ’ Urso ( pictured , left ) as media and politics reporter , replacing Mark Di Stefano @ @ @ @ @ @ @ D ’ Urso has been at the BBC as a digital journalist since 2016 covering issues around politics and the internet .
His work includes revealing how Conservative MPs were advised on how to be “ real people ” on Instagram and analysing activity within pro- and anti-Brexit Facebook groups .
Buzzfeed UK editor Stuart Millar said : “ Joey has been at the forefront of reporting on tech and politics over the last couple of years and will bring his vast energy , drive and story-getting ability to the media beat for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ will break big , important stories at that crucial intersection of media and politics.
” Meanwhile the Telegraph has poached City AM political editor Cat Neilan who will take charge of its daily political live blog ahead of a “ major reboot ” set to come later in the year .
Neilan , who has worked at City AM since 2014 and has been the title ’ s political editor since June 2017 , will make the move next month .
Referencing the current coronavirus outbreak , Neilan said last night : “ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ stuck in – just hope we won ’ t all be working from home for my first three months.
” City AM editor Christian May tweeted : “ Cat ’ s been brilliant here during a fascinating and frantic time in British politics , and we wish her all the very best .
Our loss is the Telegraph ’ s gain .
”

new_content:
Buzzfeed UK has appointed its first political editor in almost two years while the Telegraph has poached City AM’s political editor.
Former Guido Fawkes news editor Alex Wickham takes up the role at Buzzfeed, which has been without a political editor since Jim Waterson moved to the Guardian in 2018 after five years in the role.
Wickham (pictured, right), senior political correspondent at Buzzfeed since September 2018, will be joined by Joey D’Urso (pictured, left) as media and politics reporter, replacing Mark Di Stefano who joined the FT this year.
D’Urso has been at the BBC as a digital journalist since 2016 covering issues around politics and the internet. His work includes revealing how Conservative MPs were advised on how to be “real people” on Instagram and analysing activity within pro- and anti-Brexit Facebook groups.
Related
Buzzfeed UK editor Stuart Millar said: “Joey has been at the forefront of reporting on tech and politics over the last couple of years and will bring his vast energy, drive and story-getting ability to the media beat for Buzzfeed.
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“Alongside Alex, he will break big, important stories at that crucial intersection of media and politics.”
Meanwhile the Telegraph has poached City AM political editor Cat Neilan who will take charge of its daily political live blog ahead of a “major reboot” set to come later in the year.
Neilan, who has worked at City AM since 2014 and has been the title’s political editor since June 2017, will make the move next month.
Referencing the current coronavirus outbreak, Neilan said last night: “I’m so excited to get stuck in – just hope we won’t all be working from home for my first three months.”
City AM editor Christian May tweeted: “Cat’s been brilliant here during a fascinating and frantic time in British politics, and we wish her all the very best. Our loss is the Telegraph’s gain.”
Picture: Buzzfeed
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id: pressgazette--2020-05-13--Buzzfeed to close dedicated UK and Australian news operations with staff furloughed

content:
Buzzfeed is closing its dedicated UK and Australian news operations , resulting in staff being furloughed and stood down .
The decision to stop covering local news in the two countries has been made “ both for economic and strategic reasons ” , a spokesperson said .
About ten UK staff have been furloughed until the end of June and face redundancy when the scheme ends .
Two of the journalists affected are currently on maternity leave – Elizabeth Pears and Emily Dugan , who won the Private Eye Paul Foot Award last year .
Patrick Strudwick won the British @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Buzzfeed continues to publish news in the US and said it plans to retain some UK staff to cover global news for its American audience .
Eleven UK staff will remain in total : six on the investigations team – including Alberto Nardelli and former BJA New Journalist of the Year Richard Holmes – two on social news and three on celebrity news .
The move comes as the global news industry is facing an advertising downturn caused by the coronavirus crisis , with thousands of staff put on furlough in the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ suspended .
Buzzfeed News , which launched in the US in 2011 and expanded to the UK in 2013 , is dependent on advertising as its main source of income .
The digital-only news outfit made a loss of £9.4m in the UK in 2018 , with turnover down nearly £12m .
A Buzzfeed spokesperson said : “ Both for economic and strategic reasons , we are going to focus on news that hits big in the United States during this difficult period .
“ Therefore , we will notify staff in the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ planning to cover local news in those countries .
“ We will be consulting with employees on our plans regarding furloughs and stand-downs in these regions .
“ In the UK , we still plan on retaining some employees who are focused on news with a global audience — social news , celebrity , and investigations.
” A number of journalists and high-profile figures took to Twitter to share their sadness at news of Buzzfeed News UK ’ s closure .
Celebrity cook Nigella Lawson said it was “ very depressing – for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Marina Hyde said : “ Such a massive loss .
I ’ ve found out so much from Buzzfeed over the past few years , been informed and made to laugh so many times a day by their brilliant , idiosyncratic and dedicated staff.
” Former Buzzfeed UK investigations reporter Jane Bradley , who moved to the New York Times in December , tweeted : “ …my heart is bursting/breaking with all the tweets about BuzzFeed & what a blow it is to journalism to lose such a talented , scrappy news team… @ @ @ @ @ @ @ staffing cuts in the last two years , with some 23 editorial staff made redundant in 2018 .
Cuts to 15 per cent of Buzzfeed ’ s global workforce at the start of 2019 further reduced the UK newsroom to 20 journalists .
Millar took over from Janine Gibson as UK editor last year .
Ben Smith , the founding editor-in-chief of Buzzfeed News , left the news website to join the New York Times in January this year , eight years after helping to launch its US newsroom .

new_content:
The Buzzfeed newsroom in New York. Picture: Reuters/Brendan McDermid
Buzzfeed is closing its dedicated UK and Australian news operations, resulting in staff being furloughed and stood down.
The decision to stop covering local news in the two countries has been made “both for economic and strategic reasons”, a spokesperson said.
About ten UK staff have been furloughed until the end of June and face redundancy when the scheme ends.
Buzzfeed News UK journalists put on furlough:
Related
Stuart Millar – editor Alan White – news editor Elizabeth Pears – news editor Alex Wickham – politics editor Emily Ashton – senior political correspondent Alex Spence – senior political correspondent Hannah Al-Othman- political correspondent Patrick Strudwick – LGBT editor Emily Dugan – senior reporter Matthew Champion – deputy world news editor Joey D’Urso – media and politics reporter Georgia Chambers – curation editor / reporter
Two of the journalists affected are currently on maternity leave – Elizabeth Pears and Emily Dugan, who won the Private Eye Paul Foot Award last year.
Subscribe to our newsletters View all newsletters Never miss a story Press Gazette Sign up here Select and enter your email address Future of Media Weekly insight into the big strategic issues affecting the future of the news industry. Essential reading for media leaders every Thursday. Press Gazette Daily Your morning brew of news about the world of news from Press Gazette and elsewhere in the media. Sent at around 10am UK time. Future Of Media USA Our weekly does of strategic insight about the future of news media aimed at US readers. Marketing Matters A fortnightly update from the front-line of news and advertising. Aimed at marketers and those involved in the advertising industry. Your email address Job title Job title
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Patrick Strudwick won the British Journalism Award for Specialist Journalism in 2018.
Buzzfeed continues to publish news in the US and said it plans to retain some UK staff to cover global news for its American audience.
Eleven UK staff will remain in total: six on the investigations team – including Alberto Nardelli and former BJA New Journalist of the Year Richard Holmes – two on social news and three on celebrity news.
The move comes as the global news industry is facing an advertising downturn caused by the coronavirus crisis, with thousands of staff put on furlough in the UK alone and some titles having been suspended.
Buzzfeed News, which launched in the US in 2011 and expanded to the UK in 2013, is dependent on advertising as its main source of income.
The digital-only news outfit made a loss of £9.4m in the UK in 2018, with turnover down nearly £12m.
A Buzzfeed spokesperson said: “Both for economic and strategic reasons, we are going to focus on news that hits big in the United States during this difficult period.
“Therefore, we will notify staff in the UK and Australia that we are not planning to cover local news in those countries.
“We will be consulting with employees on our plans regarding furloughs and stand-downs in these regions.
“In the UK, we still plan on retaining some employees who are focused on news with a global audience — social news, celebrity, and investigations.”
A number of journalists and high-profile figures took to Twitter to share their sadness at news of Buzzfeed News UK’s closure. Celebrity cook Nigella Lawson said it was “very depressing – for them and us”.
Guardian columnist Marina Hyde said: “Such a massive loss. I’ve found out so much from Buzzfeed over the past few years, been informed and made to laugh so many times a day by their brilliant, idiosyncratic and dedicated staff.”
Former Buzzfeed UK investigations reporter Jane Bradley, who moved to the New York Times in December, tweeted: “…my heart is bursting/breaking with all the tweets about BuzzFeed & what a blow it is to journalism to lose such a talented, scrappy news team…”.
Buzzfeed UK has faced repeated staffing cuts in the last two years, with some 23 editorial staff made redundant in 2018.
Cuts to 15 per cent of Buzzfeed’s global workforce at the start of 2019 further reduced the UK newsroom to 20 journalists.
Millar took over from Janine Gibson as UK editor last year.
Ben Smith, the founding editor-in-chief of Buzzfeed News, left the news website to join the New York Times in January this year, eight years after helping to launch its US newsroom.
Picture: Reuters/Brendan McDermid
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id: pressgazette--2020-05-14--From listicles to Pulitzers: Buzzfeed became a UK news powerhouse, but was brought down by Google an

title: From listicles to Pulitzers: Buzzfeed became a UK news powerhouse, but was brought down by Google and Facebook

content:
Within a decade , Buzzfeed News has seen its star rise and fall .
Once thought to be the new model for journalism in the digital age , cutbacks have now wiped out its UK and Australian newsrooms .
Buzzfeed first launched in the US in 2006 as a venture-backed media start-up under founder and chief executive Jonah Peretti , an MIT graduate who also co-founded the Huffington Post ( now Huffpost ) .
Desktop was still king when Buzzfeed started publishing in November that year , the iPhone was still a couple of years off revolutionising mobile and Facebook @ @ @ @ @ @ @ as the Duopoly .
It offered a fresh approach to content , covering quirky pop culture and politics stories with a light and irreverent tone that was a good fit for the internet .
The first few articles reported on a supper club , the Borat movie and a political scandal in the US involving a gay congressman .
Visiting these early articles today reveals only the headline and first paragraph of the story , with a disclaimer that it is a “ super-old post ” that “ doesn ’ t really represent @ @ @ @ @ @ @ developed its own style of content , becoming well-known for odd-numbered “ listicles ” – a portmanteau of articles and lists – memes , quizzes and pictures of cats that entertained its readers .
But in 2012 it got serious about its journalism and launched a news arm in the US , Buzzfeed News , ahead of the presidential election that year which ultimately saw Barack Obama return to the White House .
Ben Smith was brought in as editor-in-chief to oversee the news operation .
A year later , it expanded to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Australia .
Within a couple of years of setting up a news operation in the UK , Buzzfeed News went on a big-money hiring spree , bringing in top talent including the Guardian ’ s Janine Gibson as editor and the Sunday Times ’ Heidi Blake as UK investigations editor .
The UK investigation team ’ s From Russia With Blood investigation , which uncovered mysterious deaths allegedly linked to Russia in the UK , earned them a Pulitzer Prize nod in 2018 .
Blake told Press Gazette shortly afterwards that Buzzfeed was @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and a “ major force in global news ” .
She rose to global investigations editor and is currently on sabbatical .
Gibson is now at the FT .
In the US , Buzzfeed made a name for itself with its political coverage and famously chose to publish in full the so-called “ dirty dossier ” on Donald Trump shortly after he was elected president , despite it being unverified .
Defending the decision at the time , Smith said : “ Once it emerges , as it did last night in the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ secret document full of dark allegations that we won ’ t reveal to you .
Then , in this era , you really have to show to your readers what that is in an appropriate context.
” Buzzfeed has seen off some notable legal challenges .
In the US it successfully defended a lawsuit brought by a Russian businessman named in the dossier on Trump .
Buzzfeed News UK won a $ 11m libel challenge from news agency boss Michael Leidig , whom it had dubbed the “ king of bullshit news ” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ court that the claim was false .
Leidig plans to appeal .
Buzzfeed ’ s core business model revolved around advertising , namely native ads ( sponsored content ) , looking to lend its understanding of the internet and social media to brands hoping to “ go viral ” .
But it was unable to compete with the likes of Facebook and Google , who take the lion ’ s share of advertising money in the US and UK , even as ad spend in digital has continued to grow .
It has @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of algorithm changes brought about by the two tech giants , impacting its reach online .
Peretti has previously hit out at Facebook for not paying publishers for content on its News Feed , and warned the two tech giants face regulation if they don ’ t do more to support news .
He said in an interview last year that Buzzfeed is still not “ making enough from the platforms to sustain our investment in content ” .
Buzzfeed UK made a loss of £9.4m in 2018 , with turnover down by @ @ @ @ @ @ @ In 2017 it lost £2.3m on turnover of £33.4m .
The UK team has faced two deep tranches of cuts in recent years .
In 2018 some 23 journalists were axed , prompting an exodus of talent and a battle for union recognition .
It also began asking for reader donations .
Despite the upheaval , Buzzfeed UK continued to win awards for its work , including British Journalism Awards that same year for LGBT editor Patrick Strudwick and New Journalist of the Year for Richard Holmes .
In January last year the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the UK newsroom to about 20 journalists as Buzzfeed culled 15 per cent of its global workforce .
Peretti said at the time the move would allow the group to “ reduce our costs and improve our operating model so we can thrive and control our own destiny ” .
Buzzfeed News continues to publish in the US , but the media company closed its UK and Australian news operations this week , accelerated by the downturn caused by the coronavirus .
It has put about ten journalists on furlough in the UK @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , while eleven UK staff will stay on to cover investigations , social and celebrity news for a US audience .
Buzzfeed ’ s failures are a sharp reminder of the challenging economic climate facing news publishers at the moment , with the Duopoly dominating the digital ad market as audiences shift online .
Press Gazette continues to call for Facebook and Google to pay more back to news publishers and stop destroying journalism .

new_content:
||
Within a decade, Buzzfeed News has seen its star rise and fall. Once thought to be the new model for journalism in the digital age, cutbacks have now wiped out its UK and Australian newsrooms.
Buzzfeed first launched in the US in 2006 as a venture-backed media start-up under founder and chief executive Jonah Peretti, an MIT graduate who also co-founded the Huffington Post (now Huffpost).
Desktop was still king when Buzzfeed started publishing in November that year, the iPhone was still a couple of years off revolutionising mobile and Facebook and Google had yet to fully dominate as the Duopoly.
It offered a fresh approach to content, covering quirky pop culture and politics stories with a light and irreverent tone that was a good fit for the internet. The first few articles reported on a supper club, the Borat movie and a political scandal in the US involving a gay congressman.
Related
Visiting these early articles today reveals only the headline and first paragraph of the story, with a disclaimer that it is a “super-old post” that “doesn’t really represent where we are anymore”.
Subscribe to our newsletters View all newsletters Never miss a story Press Gazette Sign up here Select and enter your email address Future of Media Weekly insight into the big strategic issues affecting the future of the news industry. Essential reading for media leaders every Thursday. Press Gazette Daily Your morning brew of news about the world of news from Press Gazette and elsewhere in the media. Sent at around 10am UK time. Future Of Media USA Our weekly does of strategic insight about the future of news media aimed at US readers. Marketing Matters A fortnightly update from the front-line of news and advertising. Aimed at marketers and those involved in the advertising industry. Your email address Job title Job title
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Buzzfeed developed its own style of content, becoming well-known for odd-numbered “listicles” – a portmanteau of articles and lists – memes, quizzes and pictures of cats that entertained its readers.
But in 2012 it got serious about its journalism and launched a news arm in the US, Buzzfeed News, ahead of the presidential election that year which ultimately saw Barack Obama return to the White House.
Ben Smith was brought in as editor-in-chief to oversee the news operation. A year later, it expanded to the UK and the year after that Australia.
Within a couple of years of setting up a news operation in the UK, Buzzfeed News went on a big-money hiring spree, bringing in top talent including the Guardian’s Janine Gibson as editor and the Sunday Times’ Heidi Blake as UK investigations editor.
The UK investigation team’s From Russia With Blood investigation, which uncovered mysterious deaths allegedly linked to Russia in the UK, earned them a Pulitzer Prize nod in 2018.
Blake told Press Gazette shortly afterwards that Buzzfeed was in a “really strong position” and a “major force in global news”. She rose to global investigations editor and is currently on sabbatical. Gibson is now at the FT.
In the US, Buzzfeed made a name for itself with its political coverage and famously chose to publish in full the so-called “dirty dossier” on Donald Trump shortly after he was elected president, despite it being unverified.
Defending the decision at the time, Smith said: “Once it emerges, as it did last night in the public conversation, that there is this secret document full of dark allegations that we won’t reveal to you. Then, in this era, you really have to show to your readers what that is in an appropriate context.”
Buzzfeed has seen off some notable legal challenges. In the US it successfully defended a lawsuit brought by a Russian businessman named in the dossier on Trump.
Buzzfeed News UK won a $11m libel challenge from news agency boss Michael Leidig, whom it had dubbed the “king of bullshit news”, after he failed to prove in court that the claim was false. Leidig plans to appeal.
Buzzfeed’s core business model revolved around advertising, namely native ads (sponsored content), looking to lend its understanding of the internet and social media to brands hoping to “go viral”.
But it was unable to compete with the likes of Facebook and Google, who take the lion’s share of advertising money in the US and UK, even as ad spend in digital has continued to grow.
It has also been blown about in the wind of algorithm changes brought about by the two tech giants, impacting its reach online.
Peretti has previously hit out at Facebook for not paying publishers for content on its News Feed, and warned the two tech giants face regulation if they don’t do more to support news.
He said in an interview last year that Buzzfeed is still not “making enough from the platforms to sustain our investment in content”.
Buzzfeed UK made a loss of £9.4m in 2018, with turnover down by nearly £12m on the year before. In 2017 it lost £2.3m on turnover of £33.4m.
The UK team has faced two deep tranches of cuts in recent years. In 2018 some 23 journalists were axed, prompting an exodus of talent and a battle for union recognition. It also began asking for reader donations.
Despite the upheaval, Buzzfeed UK continued to win awards for its work, including British Journalism Awards that same year for LGBT editor Patrick Strudwick and New Journalist of the Year for Richard Holmes.
In January last year the axe fell a second time, halving the UK newsroom to about 20 journalists as Buzzfeed culled 15 per cent of its global workforce.
Peretti said at the time the move would allow the group to “reduce our costs and improve our operating model so we can thrive and control our own destiny”.
Buzzfeed News continues to publish in the US, but the media company closed its UK and Australian news operations this week, accelerated by the downturn caused by the coronavirus.
It has put about ten journalists on furlough in the UK who face redundancy when the scheme ends, while eleven UK staff will stay on to cover investigations, social and celebrity news for a US audience.
Buzzfeed’s failures are a sharp reminder of the challenging economic climate facing news publishers at the moment, with the Duopoly dominating the digital ad market as audiences shift online.
Press Gazette continues to call for Facebook and Google to pay more back to news publishers and stop destroying journalism.
Email pged@pressgazette.co.uk to point out mistakes, provide story tips or send in a letter for publication on our "Letters Page" blog