Daily Times

Buzzfeed shutting down its news division after taking the internet by storm roughly a decade ago is no ordinary news. After beginning as a digital upstart, Buzzfeed quickly ushered in a new era of digital journalism that threatened its older competitors who were slower to adapt to the internet at the time. Unfortunately, the operation ultimately succumbed to the punishing economics of digital publishing that has killed many of its peers.

When Buzzfeed was founded in 2011, it explored stories both slight and serious through flashy fonts and click-bait style headlines designed to go viral on social media. The news operation quickly drew attention for its distinctive reporting style, even seeking to disrupt the readership of giants such as the New York Times and Bloomberg News, many of whom embraced its strategies in the hopes of attracting younger audiences. Buzzfeed was one of many companies capitalising on the growing dominance of tech platforms to deliver audiences to their stories, littering its website with headlines and phrases that would stop thumbs midscroll. The site even won a Pulitzer Prize in 2021 for international reporting that used satellite imaging to report on the Chinese government’s detention of Muslims.

Despite all these accomplishments, the news division failed to make money, unable to balance its reliance on digital advertising and the fickle whims of social media with employing journalists all across the globe. Many have called the organisation a high-prestige, money-losing operation and this isn’t too far from the truth. No company can survive off of fame forever, even Pulitzer-winning ones. Buzzfeed’s demise is a reminder that news outlets risk becoming obsolete if they don’t focus on developing multiple ways to make money-the financial pressures on the organisation have been apparent for years. Content has gradually gotten worse and its readership isn’t nearly as engaged as it was just a decade ago. As we close this chapter in internet history, we learn that social media and news simply don’t mix anymore. In the age of disposable media, internet audiences move on pretty quickly. Can the rest of us keep them around? *