Can Twitter co-founder take an 'evolutionary leap' into storytelling?

Collaborative publishing website Medium, which aims to reinvent the blog, secures first external investmentMedium, Twitter co-founder Ev Williams's online publishing venture, has no shortage of ambition – to reinvent the blog as a digital storytelling format and match the impact of the microblogging service, no less.Williams, who launched Medium in August 2012 with Twitter co-founder Biz Stone, has said their aim is "re-imagining publishing in an attempt to make an evolutionary leap" by building a new platform from scratch that would put an emphasis on ideas, stories and collaboration. To achieve this, however, the company will have to get over several hurdles, not least addressing the confusion over Medium's perceived strategy and business model, summed up by Reuters media commentator Jack Shafer, who describes it – while not lacking potential – as up to now being "a mystery wrapped up in a hashtag concealed by a catchy URL".This uncertainty has clearly not put off investors: Medium, which employs 50 full-time staff, announced last week that it had secured its first external investment, a $25m funding round led by Greylock Partners, with participation from Google Ventures and individual investors. Initial funding for the platform came from Williams's investment vehicle The Obvious Corporation.Perhaps this enthusiasm shouldn't be a surprise. As well as co-founding Twitter, Williams launched blog publishing service Blogger in 1999 and Medium is, ostensibly, similar – with... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'

[ The Guardian | 2014-02-02 00:00:00 UTC ]
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ESPN drops false play buttons on Facebook, maintains them on Twitter

The sports publisher is still holding on to a sneaky traffic-boosting tactic. The post ESPN drops false play buttons on Facebook, maintains them on Twitter appeared first on Digiday. Continue reading at Digiday

[ Digiday | 2017-03-02 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #twitter appeared


Lonely Planet co-founder: 'The first book was an accident'

Launched in the 1970s, the travel empire preempted the gap year trend. Today Tony Wheeler is working on five books and is still an avid travellerTony and Maureen Wheeler co-founded Lonely Planet in 1973 after the couple travelled overland from London to Australia. The travel publisher, which has... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2017-02-24 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #travel publisher #bbc worldwide


Preface founder Trevor Dolby to retire

Trevor Dolby, founder and publisher for Cornerstone imprint Preface, is to retire in the autumn.  Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2017-02-22 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #trevor dolby


The Neuroscience Of Music, Behavior, And Staying Sane In The Age Of Twitter

Neuroscientist and author of This Is Your Brain On Music Daniel Levitin talks about information overload. Neuroscientist and author of This Is Your Brain On Music Daniel Levitin talks about information overload.When it comes to music and the human brain, Daniel Levitin's... Continue reading at Fast Company

[ Fast Company | 2017-02-17 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #human brain #information overload


Barefoot Books co-founder Strickland retires

Tessa Strickland, the co-founder and editor-in-chief of Barefoot Books, is retiring at the end of the year. Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2016-12-17 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #barefoot books


Mendeley co-founder Jan Reichelt leaves Elsevier

Jan Reichelt, co-founder and managing director of Mendeley, now part of Elsevier, has left the company "to pursue other interests".  Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2016-12-15 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #jan reichelt


Best of the week: Twitter’s woes and Snapchat Live Stories doubts

To get you ready for the weekend, we've rounded up some of our best stories this week: Twitter is falling out of favor with publishers as a reliable driver of traffic. It doesn’t have the audience scale, visual storytelling tools and ad products that Snapchat, Instagram and Facebook do. On... Continue reading at Digiday

[ Digiday | 2016-12-10 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #ve rounded #audience scale #ad products #paying customers


In the shadow of Facebook, Twitter loses traction with publishers

Social publishing is becoming a zero-sum game. As media companies clamor for readers on Facebook, Instagram and Snapchat, Twitter is losing the attention battle. Publishers are waking up to the fact that Twitter doesn't have the audience scale, visual storytelling tools and ad products that the... Continue reading at Digiday

[ Digiday | 2016-12-08 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #publishers appeared #social publishing #audience scale #ad products #media companies


DFB to release Pullman essays on storytelling

A new collection of essays by Philip Pullman was one of the highlights at a showcase presented earlier today (14th November) by David Fickling Books (DFB). Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2016-11-15 00:00:00 UTC ]
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ALLi founder Orna Ross wins best novel award

Orna Ross, the director of the Alliance of Independent Authors (ALLi), has won the best novel award at the inaugural Carousel-Aware Prize (CAP) for independent publishing. Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2016-11-02 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #orna ross #independent publishing


Pavilion signs 'ingredients bible' by Planet Organic founder

Pavilion Books has signed the "definitive" guide to healthy eating by the founder of organic supermarket Planet Organic, Renée Elliott. Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2016-10-26 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #pavilion signs #pavilion books #healthy eating


3 Waves of Cyberattacks Brought Down Twitter, Spotify, Pinterest, NYT and Other Sites

UPDATE: There were three waves of cyberattacks today, but as of 7 p.m., they appear to have been resolved.  It all started Friday morning, when a slew of digital publishers and other ecommerce players were hit by a cyberattack, causing their sites in some parts of the U.S. to go out in a... Continue reading at AdWeek

[ AdWeek | 2016-10-22 00:00:00 UTC ]
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ACLU: Police use Twitter, Facebook data to track protesters

According to an ACLU blog post published on Tuesday, law enforcement officials implemented a far-reaching surveillance program to track protesters in both Ferguson, MO and Baltimore, MD during their recent uprisings and relied on special feeds of use... Continue reading at Engadget

[ Engadget | 2016-10-11 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #facebook data #recent uprisings


Donald Trump's video apology goes out over Facebook, Twitter

Hours after the Washington Post published a video of Donald Trump in 2005 stating, among other things, that "And when you're a star, they let you do it...You can do anything. Grab them by the p---y," the candidate issued a video response that went ou... Continue reading at Engadget

[ Engadget | 2016-10-08 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Slack Co-Founder Champions Diversity in Hiring at the White House's Inaugural South by South Lawn Festival

At the inaugural South by South Lawn: A White House Festival of Ideas, Art and Action on Monday, Slack co-founder Stewart Butterfield explained that it's easier to implement diversity in hiring practices when companies are small, and by doing so, companies are more likely to be aware of a... Continue reading at AdWeek

[ AdWeek | 2016-10-04 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #staff writer #messaging app #silicon valley #wealth disparity #racially disparate #diverse teams #business results #bottom line #hire women #systemic racism


Slack Co-Founder Champions Hiring Diversity at White House's First South by South Lawn

At the inaugural South by South Lawn: A White House Festival of Ideas, Art and Action on Monday, Slack co-founder Stewart Butterfield explained that it's easier to implement diversity in hiring practices when companies are small, and by doing so, companies are more likely to be aware of a... Continue reading at AdWeek

[ AdWeek | 2016-10-04 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #staff writer #messaging app #silicon valley #wealth disparity #racially disparate #diverse teams #business results #bottom line #hire women #systemic racism


Twitter Opens 'Moments,' Its Once-Hidden Tweet Collection Feature, to All Users

Once upon a time, Twitter Moments was a closely guarded fortress surrounded by moats of publishers vying to get a spot on the throne. The feature, which aims to be "the best of Twitter in an instant," was only available to Twitter employees and certain publishing partners.  But that changed... Continue reading at AdWeek

[ AdWeek | 2016-09-29 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #michael brown #readers don #quality control


Women's Equality Party co-founder pens 'illuminating' book

HarperCollins imprint HQ is to publish Attack of the Fifty Foot Women, an "exciting and inspiring" book by author and co-founder of the Women’s Equality Party, Catherine Mayer. Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2016-09-09 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #catherine mayer


Oz magazine co-founder Richard Neville dies aged 74

Richard Neville, the Australian author and co-founder of controversial 60s counterculture magazine Oz, has died in Byron Bay aged 74. Continue reading at BBC News

[ BBC News | 2016-09-05 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #australian author


Twitter to Open Pre-Roll Video Ad Program to Influencers

Twitter is on a pre-roll.The service is opening its pre-roll video ad program to popular Twitter users, giving them a way to make money for their efforts.The ads play before the videos that people share on the platform, and they come with a skip button, much like the one on YouTube. Twitter has... Continue reading at Advertising Age

[ Advertising Age | 2016-08-30 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #make money #top publishers #media companies