‘Over the coming days and weeks, we’re going to explore our options, including re-establishing reported.ly at another news outlet or creating our own independent entity’ founder Andy Carvin told readers
The social media news experiment Reported.ly has had the rug pulled out from under them by its owner First Look Media. As a result, the effort will suspend operations at the end of the month.
Reported.ly was launched at the end of 2014, and has been led by Andy Carvin, and consists of a small team of journalists who post not only to the media brand’s website, but to social media such as Twitter.
“It is with great regret that I must announce that reported.ly will suspend its operations on August 31, 2016. Our funder and employer, First Look Media, has chosen to part ways with us, so we will no longer receive financial support from the company,” wrote Carvin on Medium.
“Our future beyond August 31 is unknown.”
As one can see from the site’s banner, above, the site was still considered in beta, but for those who have followed Reported.ly on Twitter, it has already become a trusted source of news. The problem, of course, was monetizing the effort, and of the six people who have worked on Reported.ly, none come from that side of the business.
No mention of the decision to pull the plug on Reported.ly was made on the news source’s website, though it was retweeted by team members.
I learned of Reported.ly immediately because I follow Asteris Masouras, the online journalist and human rights activist from Thessaloniki, Greece. His work on Twitter (@asteris) was invaluable in the lead up to Greek elections and in covering both the Greek financial crisis but other news from the region.
Other members of the team include Wendy Carrillo, West Coast anchor, P. Kim Bui, deputy managing editor, Malachy Browne, Managing Editor and Europe Anchor, and Marina Petrillo, East Coast producer.