Originally published on All Digitocracy
With traditional media, nonprofit news sites and journalists in every sector looking for new funding models and wondering how to monetize content, why start a media company as a for profit venture, especially with such a specific niche? What made you see this as a viable business?
Most people live their lives on a day to day bases consuming and creating content. Blavitys goal is to create content that reflects the shared experiences of our community. Ultimately its a viable business opportunity because Black millennials have huge influence in American culture and buying power.
I’ve talked to a lot of journalism entrepreneurs that come from the newsroom, but you’re coming in from business and tech. I’ve seen your quote “I have to be ruthless about the decisions I make to ensure we exist forever. Not just this moment in time.” That sounds like it’s coming from a business person. How does your background influence the way you run the company? In addition, how does your background effect the way you approach editorial and journalism?
I view Blavity as a tech startup. We have sprints, weekly goals, user experience reviews and use lean startup principles to test our hypotheses. Yes, we produce content but its more than that its about how we distribute it and how we use technology to connect with our community.
Regarding journalism I am learning more and more about the industry everyday. We hire writers and editors who have been trained in journalism or writing to make sure that our content is high quality.
