''Matter'' is the online magazine published by Matter Studios, a
multi-platform content studio owned by
Twitter
Twitter, officially known as X since 2023, is an American microblogging and social networking service. It is one of the world's largest social media platforms and one of the most-visited websites. Users can share short text messages, image ...
founder
Evan Williams (Internet entrepreneur)
History and profile
''Matter'' began life as an online publication specializing in
long-form articles about science, technology, medicine, and the environment. The founders, journalists Bobbie Johnson and
Jim Giles, funded the project by raising $140,000 on
Kickstarter
Kickstarter, PBC is an American Benefit corporation, public benefit corporation based in Brooklyn, New York City, that maintains a global crowdfunding platform focused on creativity. The company's stated mission is to "help bring creative project ...
in March 2012. Following the successful campaign, an initial release of the online magazine was designed by Paul Lloyd and
Jeremy Keith of
Clearleft, and developed by Phil Gyford. The success of the campaign generated discussion about new business models in journalism.
In April 2013, Johnson and Giles announced that ''Matter'' had been acquired by Medium, a new publishing platform established by Twitter founder Ev Williams. In June 2014, ''Matter'' was relaunched as a general interest publication under editor-in-chief Mark Lotto.
In February 2016, ''Matter'' became the first digital publication to win a
National Magazine Award in the prestigious category of reporting, for Joshua Hammer's story on the
Ebola epidemic, "My Nurses Are Dead, and I Don't Know If I'm Already Infected."
In March 2016, ''Medium'' spun off ''Matter'' into an independent company, Matter Studios, owned by Medium founder
Ev Williams. As part of its expansion into Matter Studios, under co-chief creative officers Mark Lotto and Hillary Frey, it produces digital journalism, podcasts, books, live events, documentaries, and web series.
References
External links
Official website
Online magazines published in the United States
English-language magazines
Kickstarter-funded publications
Magazines established in 2012
Popular science magazines
Science and technology magazines published in the United States
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