An important part of a16z’s origin story, which you may already know, is that we were founded by Marc & Ben to be “CAA for the tech industry.” When Michael Ovitz founded CAA (The Creative Artists Agency) in 1975, Hollywood was completely controlled by a few dozen big entities, who served as gatekeepers to the entertainment industry.
You do realize that this is PR, not media. You are talking your own book and pushing your own agenda. Don’t disparage the work of real journalists by placing yourselves in that bucket. Until you actually approach such things in an unbiased and fact-centered way, you are just creating a very sophisticated PR operation.
Going to have to disagree. PR hasn't been able to adapt to the rapidly changing social media landscape, hence you see PR and social media/community teams being completely separate in most in-house companies. I'd compare PR to CAA, and New Media to social/comms team.
While I’m not crazy about the neologism ‘new media,’ this is indeed media. Any form of content distribution — earned, paid, or owned — is media: YouTube, podcasting, LinkedIn, blogging, TikTok, digital signage, you name it. But you’re right that it’s not journalism, and a16z doesn’t seem to be claiming to do journalism. What they propose is both a sophisticated PR operation and media, which aren’t mutually exclusive. The distinction worth making is between media (the distribution channels and content) and journalism (a specific practice within media focused on independent, fact-based reporting).
Grateful for the opportunity to apply and potentially be a part of and learn from legends…appreciate a16z taking the lead to help us win the online narrative! ✊🏼
I began writing about politics in 1971 in my native Poland. A year later, I got an extensive internship in the best Polish political publication. I learned there that the media are not about the audience but about assisting people in understanding the world around us. We were good at it and gained popularity. Apparatchiks did like it, and in 1973, they fired the leading team. But they could not put the genie back into the bottle. They could not tame the yeast we put in the Polish society. The rest is history.
My later political writing resulted in me being squeezed out of Poland in 1985. Since then, I have resided in the Chicago area. After putting my roots in America, about twenty years ago, I returned to political writing. You have unlikely read any of it, for the same reason that most Americans do not trust the mainstream media. They are not about assisting people in understanding the world around us. They are about promoting their political agendas.
I have to be bluntly honest, you missed a boat big time. The media is not about how to get the audience. It is about convincing me, a media consumer, that your message is worth my time. So far, most media outfits survive by offering gibberish. It means that if you throw enough money, you can survive as well. If you want to be relevant, you must focus on what media consumers need the most today and what they do not get from existing players.
You do realize that this is PR, not media. You are talking your own book and pushing your own agenda. Don’t disparage the work of real journalists by placing yourselves in that bucket. Until you actually approach such things in an unbiased and fact-centered way, you are just creating a very sophisticated PR operation.
Going to have to disagree. PR hasn't been able to adapt to the rapidly changing social media landscape, hence you see PR and social media/community teams being completely separate in most in-house companies. I'd compare PR to CAA, and New Media to social/comms team.
While I’m not crazy about the neologism ‘new media,’ this is indeed media. Any form of content distribution — earned, paid, or owned — is media: YouTube, podcasting, LinkedIn, blogging, TikTok, digital signage, you name it. But you’re right that it’s not journalism, and a16z doesn’t seem to be claiming to do journalism. What they propose is both a sophisticated PR operation and media, which aren’t mutually exclusive. The distinction worth making is between media (the distribution channels and content) and journalism (a specific practice within media focused on independent, fact-based reporting).
Wow. Brilliant. a16z’s best initiative.
Grateful for the opportunity to apply and potentially be a part of and learn from legends…appreciate a16z taking the lead to help us win the online narrative! ✊🏼
very cool
Did not expect that disclaimer to keep going
I began writing about politics in 1971 in my native Poland. A year later, I got an extensive internship in the best Polish political publication. I learned there that the media are not about the audience but about assisting people in understanding the world around us. We were good at it and gained popularity. Apparatchiks did like it, and in 1973, they fired the leading team. But they could not put the genie back into the bottle. They could not tame the yeast we put in the Polish society. The rest is history.
My later political writing resulted in me being squeezed out of Poland in 1985. Since then, I have resided in the Chicago area. After putting my roots in America, about twenty years ago, I returned to political writing. You have unlikely read any of it, for the same reason that most Americans do not trust the mainstream media. They are not about assisting people in understanding the world around us. They are about promoting their political agendas.
I have to be bluntly honest, you missed a boat big time. The media is not about how to get the audience. It is about convincing me, a media consumer, that your message is worth my time. So far, most media outfits survive by offering gibberish. It means that if you throw enough money, you can survive as well. If you want to be relevant, you must focus on what media consumers need the most today and what they do not get from existing players.