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The Rebooting: Ben Smith & His Times

Ben Smith
Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty
Brian Morrissey
January 12, 2022

If the past two years have taught us anything, it’s to be wary of optimism. Time and again, taking the hopeful view has proven a bad bet, from the belief we could “flatten the curve” to the faith in vaccines ending the pandemic. By the same token, the same is true of digital publishing, which has consistently extinguished flickers of hope. 

That’s why I’m unsurprised that the news of an ambitious global news startup—yes, aimed at English-speaking college educated people—was met with skepticism. Few doubted the capabilities of the founding team: Justin Smith, formerly global C.E.O. of Bloomberg Media, has proven himself one of the most adept operators of digital media businesses. Ben Smith, formerly New York Times media columnist and founding editor-in-chief of BuzzFeed News, has proven to both have a nose for news and the ability to build a formidable news operation. Then the nitpicks started: Two white middle-aged white guys with the same last name, a vague description of what exactly this unnamed entity is, and the idea that 200 million college-educated English speakers are an underserved audience.