De Correspondent

De Correspondent
Available in Dutch, English (partly)
Owner De Correspondent B.V.
Editor Rob Wijnberg
Website decorrespondent.nl
Alexa rank Negative increase 86,989 (April 2016)[1]
Commercial Yes
Registration Required
Users 50,000
Launched 30 September 2013 (2013-09-30)
Current status Online

De Correspondent (in English sometimes referred to as The Correspondent) is a Dutch news website based in Amsterdam, Netherlands. It was launched on 30 September 2013 after raising more than €1 million in a crowd-funding campaign in eight days time.[2] The website distinguishes itself by rejecting the daily news cycle and focussing on in-depth and chronological coverage on a topical basis, led by individual correspondents who each focus on specific topics.

The concept and initial success of De Correspondent has inspired other projects elsewhere, notably the German website Krautreporter which has adopted the same concept.[3]

History

The project was co-founded by Dutch journalist Rob Wijnberg, creative director Harald Dunnink, CTO Sebastian Kersten and publisher Ernst-Jan Pfauth. Wijnberg, former editor-in-chief of Dutch newspaper NRC Next, proposed the crowdfunding idea for an ad-free new media platform on national television in March 2013.[4] Eight days later, he and his team reached their goal of 15,000 subscribers all paying €60 for a one-year membership.[5] Wijnberg worked with digital creative agency Momkai and its owners, Harald Dunnink and Sebastian Kersten, served as creative director and CTO respectively. Ernst-Jan Pfauth, who had been the founding editor of The Next Web and head of digital at Dutch newspaper NRC Handelsblad, joined as a publisher.

The website went live in September 2013. By January 2015 the website had over 45,000 paying subscribers.[6] In January 2016 the number of paying subscribers on the website was reported to be 50,000.[7]

In 2014, De Correspondent concluded a deal with Medium’s magazine Matter, for the magazine to translate stories from De Correspondent that they believe are relevant for an international audience. The first article in the partnership concerned the hazards of using public Wi-Fi.[8]

In 2015, De Correspondent started translating stories from Dutch to English.

Content

The website aims to move away from the daily news cycle by focussing on context, rather than what happened in the past 24 hours. Individual correspondents lead as “guides” — deciding the news agenda, and making their choices explicit. De Correspondent intends its authors to report on under-reported themes including energy, privacy, technology and future economic reends.[9]

Technology

De Correspondent runs on a content management system (CMS) called Respondens. In several blog posts, the founders said that they might make Respondens available for other publishers in the future.[10]

References

  1. ↑ Site Overview decorrespondent.nl, Alexa Internet. Retrieved 19 April 2016.
  2. ↑ "A Dutch crowdfunded news site has raised $1.3 million and hopes for a digital-native journalism". Nieman Lab.
  3. ↑ Hardt, Maria-Xenia (13 May 2014). "15 000 Mal sechzig Euro". Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung (in German). Retrieved 12 August 2015.
  4. ↑ "Journalistiek initiatief 'De Correspondent' van Rob Wijnberg". De Wereld Draait Door. 18 March 2013.
  5. ↑ "A Dutch crowdfunded news site has raised $1.3 million and hopes for a digital-native journalism".
  6. ↑ "Kom je werken bij De Correspondent?". De Correspondent. 5 January 2016. Retrieved 24 January 2016.
  7. ↑ Ernst-Jan Pfauth (January 22, 2017). "De Correspondent now has 50,000 paying members". Medium. Retrieved January 25, 2017.
  8. ↑ Matter. "Here's Why Public Wifi is a Public Health Hazard". Medium.
  9. ↑ "How journalists could be more constructive – and boost audiences". the Guardian.
  10. ↑ "Looking For The Best Content Management Systems (CMS) Out There". Pfauth.com.
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