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— CH. 1 · FOUNDING AND EDITORIAL VISION —

Vox (website)

~3 min read · Ch. 1 of 6
6 sections

  • Ezra Klein left The Washington Post in January 2014 to launch a new digital news venture. He brought along colleagues from his previous role at Wonkblog, including Matt Yglesias and Melissa Bell. Their team of twenty journalists began work on the 6th of April 2014, with the goal of explaining complex political issues clearly. Klein published an opening essay titled How politics makes us stupid that same month. This piece drew upon theories by Yale Law School professor Dan Kahan about how people reject information conflicting with their core beliefs. The site aimed to improve the technology of news delivery while building trust through transparency. Conservative media commentators criticized the project before it even launched. Erick Erickson attacked a video released in March 2014 arguing U.S. public debt was not currently problematic.

  • Vox introduced card stacks in bright canary yellow to provide context within articles. These reusable graphics functioned like wiki pages written by one person with attitude. An example included cards defining terms such as insurance exchange for stories about the Affordable Care Act. Journalists used Vox Media's Chorus content management system to create articles with complex visual effects. Photos changed dynamically as readers scrolled down the page. The platform targeted educated households earning six-figure incomes with heads under thirty-five years old. Future Perfect launched in 2018 as a reporting project examining philanthropy and effective altruism. Rockefeller Foundation initially funded this initiative exploring radical improvements to global systems.

  • The website maintained a YouTube channel posting videos on news subjects since 2014. By 2023, the channel held over twelve point five million subscribers and accumulated more than three point six billion views. In May 2018, Vox partnered with Netflix to release Explained, a weekly television show. The network also distributed numerous podcasts through its own podcast division. The Weeds aired twice weekly focusing on U.S. national news details. Sean Illing hosted Gray Area interviewing guests across politics and culture. Emily St. James led I Think You're Interesting discussing arts and entertainment. Worldly ran from 2017 to 2021 covering foreign policy and international affairs. Land of the Giants examined tech giants like Google and Amazon Prime Video each season.

  • Klein served as editor-in-chief until September 2017 when he took a new role as editor-at-large. Lauren Williams became the new editor-in-chief after joining the site months after its founding. Elizabeth Plank launched Divided States of Women in 2017 as a political correspondent series. In late 2020, Klein, Williams, and Yglesias departed the organization. CEO Jim Bankoff stated their brands had mature audiences no longer relying on personalities. Swati Sharma was named editor-in-chief in February 2021 assuming the position that March. She previously managed editors at The Atlantic before taking the helm. Sam Bankman-Fried issued major grants to Vox in November 2022 according to Reason magazine reports.

  • Conservative media commentators criticized the website for perceived liberal bias shortly after launch. Pascal-Emmanuel Gobry argued the site produced partisan commentary disguised as question-and-answer formats. Damon Linker called it a parody of liberal faux-neutrality during an Obama interview. Christopher J. Harper wrote in The Washington Times criticizing numerous reporting mistakes. Matthew Yglesias later told The Atlantic that mainstream media made sense only to young college graduates in big cities. He noted older people and working-class individuals did not share that worldview. The Economist praised the premise as profoundly honorable while noting bright promising elements. Vox suspended contributor Emmett Rensin in June 2016 following tweets calling for anti-Trump riots.

  • Julia Belluz received the Robert B. Balles Prize for Critical Thinking from the Committee for Skeptical Inquiry in 2015. Original programming earned nominations from News & Documentary Emmy Awards presented by the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences. The documentary 2016 Olympics: What Rio Doesn't Want the World to See won recognition in 2017. Borders received an Outstanding Video Journalism nomination while Earworm gained attention for graphic design. Between 2017 and 2021, journalists David Roberts, Umair Irfan, and Rebecca Leber won five SEAL Awards for environmental journalism. Readership grew significantly over time reaching eight point two million unique visitors in July 2014. By October 2021 estimates placed monthly visitors at nineteen point seven million.

Common questions

When did Ezra Klein leave The Washington Post to launch Vox?

Ezra Klein left The Washington Post in January 2014. He launched the new digital news venture with colleagues from his previous role at Wonkblog including Matt Yglesias and Melissa Bell.

What date did the Vox team begin work on their first articles?

The team of twenty journalists began work on the 6th of April 2014. Their goal was to explain complex political issues clearly while improving the technology of news delivery.

Who became editor-in-chief after Ezra Klein stepped down in September 2017?

Lauren Williams became the new editor-in-chief after joining the site months after its founding. She took over the position following Klein's departure when he assumed a new role as editor-at-large.

How many subscribers did the Vox YouTube channel have by 2023?

By 2023 the channel held over twelve point five million subscribers. It also accumulated more than three point six billion views since posting videos on news subjects since 2014.

Which organization initially funded the Future Perfect reporting project launched in 2018?

The Rockefeller Foundation initially funded this initiative exploring radical improvements to global systems. The project examined philanthropy and effective altruism under the direction of Vox Media.

See all questions about Vox (website) →

All sources

68 references cited across the entry

  1. 1webWhy Do So Many Journalists Hate Vox?Jeff Bercovici — May 12, 2014
  2. 2bookAmerican Government and Politics Today, BriefSteffen W. Schmidt et al. — Cengage Learning — 2018
  3. 3newsBonfire of the LiberalsThe Editorial Board — 2020-07-08
  4. 4newsEzra Klein launches news site Vox.comRoger Yu — April 7, 2014
  5. 5webEzra Klein Is Joining Vox Media as Web Journalism Asserts ItselfDavid Carr — January 26, 2014
  6. 6inlineVox.com is going to be a great test of Ezra Klein's critique of journalism, Columbia Journalism Review (April 7, 2014).
  7. 7webVox is our nextEzra Klein — January 26, 2014
  8. 8webAbout usVox Staff — April 3, 2017
  9. 9newsUnderstanding Ezra Klein's Newly Launched Vox.comMargaret Hartmann
  10. 10newsEzra Klein's strangled VoxApril 11, 2014
  11. 11newsVox suspends editor for encouraging riots at Donald Trump ralliesDylan Byers — CNN — June 3, 2016
  12. 12newsVox suspends editor who called for anti-Trump riotsEvan Halper — June 3, 2016
  13. 13webAdvice: If Trump comes to your town, start a riotEmmett Rensin emmettrensin — June 2, 2016
  14. 14newsWhat will a suspension do for a Vox editor who urged anti-Trump riots?Eric Wemple — June 3, 2016
  15. 15newsVox Snags Mic's Elizabeth Plank for Election CoverageMarch 1, 2016
  16. 16journalVox Media Launching New Video Series Focused on WomenJeremy Barr — October 5, 2017
  17. 17newsLauren Williams named editor in chief of Vox; Ezra Klein to be editor at largeBrian Stelter
  18. 18newsLauren Williams is the new editor-in-chief of VoxEzra Klein
  19. 19newsEzra Klein Leaves Vox for The New York TimesEdmund Lee — 2020-11-20
  20. 20newsVox Finds Its Next Top Editor at The AtlanticMarc Tracy — 2021-02-16
  21. 21webDid Sam Bankman-Fried's Millions Buy the Media's Loyalty?Robby Soave — November 21, 2022
  22. 22webNine questions about VoxEzra Klein et al. — March 9, 2014
  23. 23webVox Takes Melding of Journalism and Technology to a New LevelLeslie Kaufman — April 6, 2014
  24. 24webJournalism's Gates keepersTim Schwab — 2020-08-21
  25. 25newsWill Vox's new section on effective altruism…well, do any good?Christine Schmidt — 2018-10-15
  26. 26newsHow YouTube latecomer Vox beat the odds and built a big channelSahil Patel — May 15, 2017
  27. 27webVox Channel About Page
  28. 28webVox Channel Home Page
  29. 29newsWhy Vox's Netflix show 'Explained' is different from Vox's YouTube videos, explained (by Ezra Klein)
  30. 30journalVox's new Netflix show is just the start of its video ambitionsCale Guthrie Weissman — May 23, 2018
  31. 31webVox Media Podcasts Network
  32. 32webPodcastsVox Media — June 10, 2016
  33. 33webThe WeedsVox Media
  34. 34webVox's The Weeds
  35. 35webJane Coaston Named New Host of "The Argument"2020-11-06
  36. 36webVox ConversationsVox Media
  37. 37webI Think You're InterestingVox Media
  38. 38webWorldlyVox Media — June 10, 2016
  39. 39webThe ImpactVox Media — June 10, 2016
  40. 40webToday, ExplainedVox Media
  41. 41webThe Ambies: 2021 Winners2021
  42. 42webNoel KingVox Media — 2022
  43. 43webFuture Perfect, explainedDylan Matthews — October 15, 2018
  44. 44webHow to save a stranger's life (Future Perfect Podcast Ep. 1)Dylan Matthews — October 15, 2018
  45. 45webHow to pick a career that countsDylan Matthews — November 28, 2018
  46. 46webPrimetime
  47. 47webStop freaking out about the debtMatthew Yglesias — Vox Media — March 28, 2014
  48. 48newsEzra Klein's Vox Is Already Being Labeled 'Left-Wing Propaganda' by ConservativesBen Cosman
  49. 49newsHow Vox is going to make its way to the topApril 7, 2014
  50. 50newsThe Upshot, Vox and FiveThirtyEight: data journalism's golden age, or TMI?April 22, 2014
  51. 52webVox, derp, and the intellectual stagnation of the leftJune 26, 2014
  52. 53newsThe Gawker meltdown and the Vox-ification of the news mediaRyu Spaeth — July 21, 2015
  53. 54webIs ISIS still losing? Why Vox keeps getting the news wrongMay 29, 2015
  54. 55webHow politics makes us stupidEzra Klein — Vox Media — April 5, 2014
  55. 56webVox news website needs to take serious look at how it 'reinvents' journalismChristopher Harper — January 7, 2015
  56. 57webWhy Matthew Yglesias Left VoxNovember 13, 2020
  57. 58journalCSI's Balles Prize in Critical Thinking Awarded to Julia Belluz of Vox.comPaul Fidalgo — 2016
  58. 59newsVox Entertainment is developing a TV show with Vox.com's Emmy-nominated YouTube producerTim Peterson — August 9, 2018
  59. 60webNominees for the 38th Annual News and Documentary Emmy Awards Announced
  60. 61newsHow Vox expanded its network by crowdsourcing for its latest documentary seriesCaroline Scott — August 23, 2018
  61. 62webNominees for the 39th Annual News and Documentary Emmy Awards AnnouncedNational Academy of Television Arts and Sciences — July 26, 2018
  62. 63web2017 SEAL Environmental Journalism Award Winners2017-09-17
  63. 64web2018 SEAL Environmental Journalism Award Winners Announced2018-11-12
  64. 65web2019 SEAL Environmental Journalism Award Winners Announced2020-02-13
  65. 66webTwelve Journalists Recognized as 2021 SEAL Environmental Journalism Award Winners2022-06-21
  66. 67newsHere's What You Need to Know About Politico's Coverage of Vox, in Two ChartsDavid Weigel — August 23, 2014
  67. 68webvox.com Traffic Statistics
  68. 69newsEzra Klein hopes Vox can change the fact that 'people who are more into the news read the news more'