Staff Reports
Vivek Ramaswamy, a conservative investor, has advocated for substantial changes at BuzzFeed after acquiring a stake in the company. He has urged the outlet to apologize for its past reporting errors and suggested the inclusion of prominent conservative commentators to provide diverse perspectives and challenge its audience. Ramaswamy even drafted an apology for BuzzFeed, expressing regret for its previous journalistic mistakes.
Ramaswamy recommended that BuzzFeed hire conservative figures such as Tucker Carlson and Candace Owens. He also reached out to personalities like Bill Maher, Aaron Rodgers, and Charles Barkley as potential contributors. While the Washington Examiner sought comments from Ramaswamy’s representative, Jonah Peretti, BuzzFeed's co-founder and CEO, responded with skepticism about transforming BuzzFeed into a platform for inflammatory political pundits.
Will BuzzFeed be the next media platform have a Twitter like change?
Vivek Ramaswamy demands ‘major shift’ at BuzzFeed after buying stake https://t.co/Ra9aJHY190
— 🇺🇸🇺🇸RedPill🇺🇸🇺🇸 (@AvanteSearch) May 29, 2024
Peretti emphasized that it would not be sensible from a business perspective to reshape BuzzFeed in this manner and firmly stated that the outlet would not apologize for its Pulitzer prize-winning journalism. The report also mentioned BuzzFeed's challenges after going public in 2021 and its subsequent closure of its news division the following year. Additionally, it noted that BuzzFeed had published 35 pages of the unverified Steele dossier in 2017.
Ramaswamy's proposals reflect a push for more balanced and diverse viewpoints in the media. His efforts could potentially lead to significant shifts in how news and commentary are presented within the media landscape.
