BuzzFeed

BuzzFeed, Inc.
FormerlyBuzzFeed Laboratories (2006–2016)
Company typePublic
Nasdaq: BZFD
ISINUS12430A1025
IndustryOnline media
FoundedNovember 1, 2006; 18 years ago (2006-11-01)
Founders
Headquarters
New York City, New York
,
U.S.
Key people
Products
  • Entertainment
  • News
RevenueDecrease US$253 million (2023)[1]
Negative increase −US$40 million (2023)[1]
Negative increase −US$89 million (2023)[1]
Total assetsDecrease US$411 million (2023)[1]
Total equityDecrease US$109 million (2023)[1]
Number of employees
925 (December 2023)[1]
SubsidiariesHuffPost
Websitebuzzfeed.com

BuzzFeed, Inc. is an American Internet media, news and entertainment company with a focus on digital media. Based in New York City,[2] BuzzFeed was founded in 2006 by Jonah Peretti and John S. Johnson III to focus on tracking viral content. Kenneth Lerer, co-founder and chairman of The Huffington Post, started as a co-founder and investor in BuzzFeed and is now the executive chairman.

Originally known for online quizzes, "listicles", and pop culture articles, the company has grown into a global media and technology company, providing coverage on a variety of topics including politics, DIY, animals, and business.[3][4] BuzzFeed generates revenue through native advertising, a strategy that helps increase the likelihood of viewers reading through the content of advertisements.[5]

In late 2011, BuzzFeed hired Ben Smith of Politico as editor-in-chief, to expand the site into long-form journalism and reportage under the BuzzFeed News banner.[6] After years of investment in investigative journalism, by 2021 BuzzFeed News had won the National Magazine Award,[7] the George Polk Award,[8] and the Pulitzer Prize,[9] and was nominated for the Michael Kelly Award.[7] BuzzFeed News later moved to its own domain rather than existing as a section of the main BuzzFeed website.[10] On April 20, 2023, Peretti announced that BuzzFeed would be shuttering BuzzFeed News and focusing its news efforts into HuffPost, laying off about 180 workers.[11]

A 2014 Pew Research Center survey found that in the United States, BuzzFeed was viewed as an unreliable source by the majority of respondents, regardless of age or political affiliation.[12] The company's audience has been described as left-leaning.[13]

  1. ^ a b c d e f "BuzzFeed, Inc. 2023 Annual Report (Form 10-K)". U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. March 29, 2024. Retrieved June 2, 2024.
  2. ^ "About BuzzFeed". BuzzFeed. Archived from the original on November 26, 2006. Retrieved August 22, 2015.
  3. ^ LaFrance, Adrienne; Meyer, Robinson (April 15, 2015). "The Eternal Return of BuzzFeed". The Atlantic. Archived from the original on April 7, 2020. Retrieved January 1, 2018.
  4. ^ "BuzzFeed gets $50 mn cash infusion, to set up operations in India". The Economic Times. August 12, 2014. Archived from the original on August 16, 2016. Retrieved August 13, 2014.
  5. ^ Rishi, Bikramjit; Mehta, Aditya; Banerjee, Poulomi; Deepak, Akshay (November 5, 2018). "Buzzfeed Inc: native advertising the way forward?". Emerald Emerging Markets Case Studies. 8 (4): 1–18. doi:10.1108/EEMCS-06-2017-0137. ISSN 2045-0621. Archived from the original on October 31, 2021. Retrieved October 31, 2021.
  6. ^ Stelter, Brian (December 12, 2011). "BuzzFeed Adds Politico Writer". Mediadecoder.blogs.nytimes.com. Archived from the original on December 12, 2011. Retrieved January 21, 2012.
  7. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference :1 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  8. ^ Cochrane, Emily (February 20, 2018). "New York Times Leads Polk Winners With Four Awards". The New York Times. Archived from the original on June 17, 2020. Retrieved June 16, 2018.
  9. ^ Robertson, Katie (June 11, 2021). "Pulitzer Prizes Focus on Coverage of Pandemic and Law Enforcement". The New York Times. Archived from the original on December 28, 2021. Retrieved June 11, 2021.
  10. ^ Wang, Shan (July 18, 2018). "The investigations and reporting of BuzzFeed News — *not* BuzzFeed — are now at their own BuzzFeedNews.com". NiemanLab. Archived from the original on November 30, 2018. Retrieved July 20, 2020.
  11. ^ Darcy, Oliver (April 20, 2023). "BuzzFeed News will shut down". CNN. Archived from the original on April 20, 2023. Retrieved April 20, 2023.
  12. ^ Mitchell, Amy (October 21, 2014). "Appendix C: Trust and Distrust of News Sources by Ideological Group". Pew Research Center's Journalism Project. Archived from the original on December 5, 2018. Retrieved December 4, 2018.
  13. ^ Blake, Aaron (October 21, 2014). "Ranking the media from liberal to conservative, based on their audiences". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on June 1, 2016. Retrieved August 5, 2021.