Forbes

Company History and Ownership Changes - Forbes magazine was founded by B.C. Forbes and Walter Drey in 1917. - The original name of the magazine was 'Forbes: Devoted to Doers and Doings.' - B.C. Forbes served as the editor-in-chief until his death in 1954. - Bruce Forbes took over after his father's death and focused on streamlining operations and marketing. - Malcolm Forbes became president and CEO of Forbes magazine after Bruce's death. - Forbes sold its headquarters building on Fifth Avenue in Manhattan to New York University in January 2010. - The company continued to occupy the space under a five-year sale-leaseback arrangement. - Forbes relocated its headquarters to Jersey City, New Jersey in 2014. - Forbes Media was put up for sale in November 2013. - Hong Kong-based investment group Integrated Whale Media Investments purchased a 51% majority stake in the company in July 2014. - There have been instances of editorial meddling on stories involving China since the sale. - Forbes announced plans to go public via a merger with Magnum Opus Acquisition in August 2021. - Cryptocurrency exchange Binance acquired a $200 million stake in Forbes as a result of the SPAC flotation. - The SPAC merger was terminated in June 2022 due to unfavorable market conditions. - Forbes announced in August 2022 that it was exploring a sale of its business. - A deal for billionaire Austin Russell to acquire an 82% stake in Forbes collapsed in November 2023. Forbes.com and Digital Presence - Forbes.com is part of Forbes Digital, a division of Forbes Media LLC. - Forbes.com reaches more than 27 million unique visitors each month. - Forbes.com is known as the 'Home Page for the World's Business Leaders.' - Forbes.com is one of the world's most widely visited business websites. - Forbes.com is affiliated with RealClearPolitics and offers a social networking app called Stream. Forbes' Business Model and Reputation - Forbes is one of the top five financial sites by traffic. - The company generates an estimated $70-80 million in annual revenue. - Forbes publishes 100 articles per day produced by 3,000 outside contributors. - The contributor model has been criticized for enabling pay-to-play journalism. - Forbes has been accused of being a platform for scams and bad journalism. Forbes' Revenue Streams - Forbes.com uses a contributor model where contributors are paid based on traffic. - The site has received contributions from over 2,500 individuals. - Some contributors have earned over $100,000. - Forbes.com also allows advertisers to publish blog posts through BrandVoice. - BrandVoice accounts for more than 10% of Forbes' digital revenue. Forbes' Content and Editorial Practices - Forbes publishes subscription investment newsletters. - The website features an online guide called 'Best of the Web.' - Forbes has been known for exposing journalistic fraud and hoaxes. - The site publishes many lists focusing on billionaires and their possessions. - In 2018, Forbes deleted an article advocating for the closure of libraries. - Forbes blocks internet users with ad blocking software from accessing articles. - The website requires users to whitelist Forbes before granting access. - Forbes argues that ad blocking users do not contribute to the site's revenue. - Malware attacks have been reported on the Forbes site.