Sorting the Serious From the Silly, BuzzFeed Develops a Mobile App for Real News
BuzzFeed is known for publishing highly shareable lists and quizzes, but the viral publisher is now developing an app to highlight its more serious reported news stories.
The company already has an app that offers a mishmash of its content. Although it lets users select subjects of particular interest, the app’s general feed on Wednesday afternoon included the headlines “21 Office Printers That Are Going Through a Mid-Life Crisis” and “Life In Your Twenties Vs. Life After The Hostile Alien Takeover.” BuzzFeed’s forthcoming, second app will focus only on serious news, according to Ben Smith, editor in chief of BuzzFeed.
The company is in the “embryonic stage” of building the app and is looking for a journalist to lead the effort, Mr. Smith said. “It’s going to be one of the most fun jobs in journalism,” he said of the position. “It’s creating something from scratch.”
