''Up Media'' () is a Taiwanese online news outlet established in 2016 that primarily focuses on in-depth reporting and interviews related to politics. It also covers

esports Esports (), short for electronic sports, is a form of competition using video games. Esports often takes the form of organized, multiplayer video game competitions, particularly between professional players, played individually or as teams. ...

news and hosts the tournament.

History

In early 2016, former politician decided to leave politics and began discussions with his friends, journalists and Shieh Chung-liang, about the possibility of founding a media outlet together. On 15 July, ''Up Media'' was established with an investment ranging from NTD$150 to 200 million, funded by four entrepreneurs. ''

ETtoday Eastern Broadcasting Company (EBC; ), originally called Eastern Television (ETTV), is a nationwide cable television network in Taiwan that is operated by the Eastern Broadcasting Group. ETTV began channel syndications in the United States in 20 ...

'' reported that the investors were primarily from the

Pan-Green Coalition The Pan-Green coalition, Pan-Green force or Pan-Green groups is a nationalist political coalition in Taiwan (Republic of China), consisting of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), Taiwan Statebuilding Party (TSP), Social Democratic Party ...

, while ''

Want China Times The ''China Times'' (, abbr. ) is a daily Chinese-language newspaper published in Taiwan and one of the most widely circulated newspapers in Taiwan. Founded in 1950, the China Times Group was acquired by food and media conglomerate Want Want, whic ...

'' noted that entrepreneur Chang Ya-li was one of the major shareholders, having invested over NTD$20 million in the startup. Wang Chien-chuang served as Up Media's managing director, and Shieh Chung-liang took on the role of chief editor. The outlet did not appoint a president, and Ma held the position of vice president. The founding editorial team consisted of 40 staff members, headquartered on Chang'an East Road in the

Zhongshan District, Taipei Zhongshan District () is an administrative district of Taipei, Taipei City. Economy In the 1970s, the district was recognized as the center of the city's tourist industry, with large hotels and international restaurants. The interest from ...

. Due to his connections with the Pan-Green Coalition, Ma stated in an interview with ''

TVBS TVBS Media Inc. (), formerly Liann Yee Production Co., Ltd. () is a Taiwanese commercial television broadcasting company. It was originally established as a joint venture between Hong Kong television network TVB and Taiwanese network Era Televisio ...

'' that he would not interfere in editorial decisions and would primarily oversee management and marketing affairs. ''Up Media'' focused on in-depth reporting and interviews, avoiding instant news coverage. Shieh explained that this decision was made to steer clear of clickbait and

sensationalism In journalism and mass media, sensationalism is a type of editorial tactic. Events and topics in news stories are selected and worded to excite the greatest number of readers and viewers. This style of news reporting encourages biased or emoti ...

, opting instead for a traditional journalism approach. He also brought some editorial staff from his previous employer ''

The Storm Media The Storm Media is a Chinese-language online news media headquartered in Neihu District, Taipei, Taiwan. Overview Founder Zhang Guojun was the general manager of Goldman Sachs Taipei Branch and served as a consultant to Fubon Financial Holdings ...

'' to join Up Media. In October 2016, ''Up Media'' began collaborating with video game companies and organized

competitions, starting with the Third , a ''

League of Legends ''League of Legends'' (''LoL'', commonly referred to as ''League'', is a multiplayer online battle arena video game developed and published by Riot Games. Inspired by ''Defense of the Ancients'', a Mod (video games), custom map for ''Warcraf ...

'' tournament. A new column for gaming and esports news was launched alongside the political pieces, with Shieh crediting this new area as a significant source of revenue for the media outlet, and ''Up Media'' continued to host the Major Six annually. In August 2017, ''Up Media'' announced their collaboration with ''

Project Syndicate ''Project Syndicate'' is an international nonprofit media organization that publishes and syndicates commentary and analysis on a variety of global topics. All opinion pieces are published on the ''Project Syndicate'' website, and also distribu ...

'', publishing translated articles from it. Before 2018, became ''Up Media'' president. In August 2020, Ma Yung-cheng resigned from ''Up Media''. In October 2018, an ''Up Media'' editorial commenting

2018 Taiwanese local elections Local elections were held on 24 November 2018 in Taiwan, to elect county magistrates (city mayors), county (city) councilors, township mayors, township councilors and chiefs of village (borough) in 6 municipalities and 16 counties (cities). Elec ...

won the News Commentary Award at the . In October 2024, a commentary for William Lai's inauguration was nominated for another News Commentary Award. In addition, Wang Chien-chuang won the Outstanding Contribution Award in Journalism in October 2020.

References

External links

* {{in lang, zh Taiwanese news websites 2016 establishments in Taiwan Internet properties established in 2016 Esports in Taiwan