Independent Journal Review
 |
|
| Type of business | Private |
|---|---|
|
Type of site
|
News aggregation, blogging, original reporting |
| Available in | English |
| Founded | 2012 |
| Owner | Media Group of America |
| Founder(s) | Alex Skatell, Phil Musser |
| Key people | Alex Skatell, Phil Musser |
| Industry | News |
| Employees | 52 |
| Website | ijr |
| Advertising | Yes |
| Launched | 2012 |
| Current status | Active |
The Independent Journal Review is an American news and opinion website based in Alexandria, Virginia.[1][2] The publication was founded in 2012 by former Republican party staffers Alex Skatell and Phil Musser.[3] The publication is owned by Media Group of America, with Skatell serving as its CEO. The site covers general interest topics including politics, culture, entertainment, and viral news content.
In 2012, Skatell hired Bert Atkinson, a former waiter, as Chief Editor.[1] Soon afterward, the website hired Kyle Becker, who became the Managing Editor. In 2016, Atkinson left Independent Journal Review to join the start-up Axios. The editorial team is currently led by Becker, the Director of Viral Media, and Benny Johnson, the Chief Content Officer. The site has been described as appealing to a mainstream center-right audience.[4]
History[edit]
In 2012, Alex Skatell, a former digital director of the National Republican Senatorial Committee, launched the Independent Journal Review, using $40,000 that Skatell had earned via a software application that he developed at college and $20,000 borrowed from his parents. He believed that there was a gap in the market for a publication that would appeal to "a more mainstream center-right audience" and began aggregating news stories on a Facebook page called Conservative Daily. Skatell promoted the page and later launched the Independent Journal Review.[1]
Skatell then teamed up with Phil Musser, a former executive director of the Republican Governors Association, who became a co-founder of the journal, as well as Media Group of America. Skatell then hired his friend Bert Atkinson to fill the position of editor and chief writer. Atkinson hired a staff of writers and editors to contribute to and grow the journal.[1]
In January 2015, an angel investment firm invested $1.5M in the parent company of the site and Pete Snyder joined the board.[3]
In June 2015, they hired Benny Johnson as a "content director." Johnson had previously worked at Buzzfeed but was fired after plagiarizing content from other websites.[5][6]
During the 2015 campaign season, Independent Journal Review had a number of political videos acquire national attention, such as Lindsey Graham destroying his cell phone [7] and Ted Cruz making "machine gun bacon."[8]
Then, Independent Journal Review partnered with ABC News to host the Republican Presidential Debate on February 6, 2016.[4][9]
During the 2016 election, Independent Journal Review was the most engaged website per news story on Facebook, topping social media competitors Buzzfeed and The New York Times. [10] In November 2016, Independent Journal Review became one of the first two digital media companies accepted into the News Media Alliance, formerly the Newspaper Association of America. [11][12]
In January 2017, the website was noted for being the first major U.S. news outlet to confirm that Judge Neil Gorsuch would be nominated by President Donald Trump for the Supreme Court.[13]
Operations[edit]
The Independent Journal Review is owned by Media Group of America.[14] The journal employs approximately fifty full-time staff members and several contributing writers.[15] The audience for the Independent Journal Review has been identified as people who live in the beltway and those who live outside Washington D.C. and whose interests are less focused on politics than those of political insiders.[15] Digiday described the Independent Journal Review's publishing model as "hyper-viral," with short articles of only a few hundred words that combine "scandalous, curiosity-inducing headlines ... with a focus on conservative interests."[16]
References[edit]
- ^ a b c d Kaufman, Leslie (2 November 2014). "Independent Journal Review Website Becomes a Draw for Conservatives". Nytimes.com. The New York Times Company. Retrieved 4 November 2014.
- ^ "About - Independent Journal Review". Independent Journal Review. Retrieved 2017-01-27.
- ^ a b Thomas Heath (2015-01-06). "IJReview gets $1.5 M funding, led by GOP politico and investor Pete Snyder". The Washington Post.
- ^ a b Gold, Hadas. "Independent Journal Review's big debate moment". Politico. Retrieved 26 December 2016.
- ^ Ben Terris (2015-06-09). "Benny Johnson got fired at BuzzFeed. You will believe what happened next.". The Washington Post.
- ^ Gold, Hadas; Shutt, Jennifer. "BuzzFeed fires Benny Johnson for plagiarism". Politico. Retrieved 26 December 2016.
- ^ Kelly, Conor (July 22, 2015). "Lindsey Graham Just Destroyed His Cellphone To Spite Donald Trump". ABC News.
- ^ Maddow, Rachel. "Hey Ted Cruz, that's not a machine gun you're cooking with". MSNBC.
- ^ "ABC News Hosts "New Hampshire: The Republicans Debate" in Partnership with WMUR, Independent Journal Review, RNC and Saint Anselm College". ABC News. Retrieved 26 December 2016.
- ^ "These Were the Biggest Election Day Publishers on Facebook". Newswhip. November 2016.
- ^ Stroh, Sean (November 4, 2016). "The Newspaper Association of America Rebrands as the News Media Alliance". Editor & Publisher.
- ^ Wang, Shan (September 6, 2016). "Who are the first digital members of the newspaper industry's club? Billy Penn's owner and IJ Review". NiemanLab.
- ^ Gold, Hadas (February 1, 2017). "Meet the website that scooped the world on Gorsuch". Politico.
- ^ "Introducing Media Group Of America, LLC" (PDF). Politico.com. 2 April 2013. Retrieved 5 November 2014.
- ^ a b Miller, Katherine (27 November 2013). "The Right Wing Has Its Own Upworthy And You Won't Believe How Well It's Doing". Buzzfeed.com. Retrieved 5 November 2014.
- ^ Bilton, Ricardo. "The biggest viral publisher you've never heard of". digiday.com. Retrieved 8 November 2014.
