NEW YORK, Jan 5: Bloomberg Media CEO Justin Smith has left the financial behemoth
to launch his own global news organisation. New York Times media columnist Ben
Smith also has left his Times job to lead Justin's future newsroom.
Justin Smith says, "The news industry is facing a crisis in consumer trust
and confidence due to the distorting influence of social media and rising levels
of polarization and parochialism." And that is going to define his start-up.
“My plan is to launch a premium news business that serves unbiased journalism
to a global audience and provides a high-quality platform for the best journalists
in the world,” he added in an email now quoted by media. He has decided to pursue
a "personal dream", and a "market opportunity." Earlier Justin was president
of Atlantic Media, which owns The Atlantic, in New York.
Ben Smith wants to reach 200 million 'college educated' audience. "There are
200 million people who are college educated, who read in English, but who no
one is really treating like an audience, but who talk to each other and talk
to us," Ben Smith told the Times on Tuesday. "That’s who we see as our audience."
Smith had joined the Times in 2020 after leading BuzzFeed News for eight years.
He plans with Justin a global newsroom experimenting with new formats of story-telling.
David G Bradley, partner in The Atlantic and Atlantic Media, is likely financing
the new venture, according to reports.