Craigslist Founder Craig Newmark Is Putting His Money Where His Mouth Is
*By Carlo Versano*
Craig Newmark, the founder of the ubiquitous listing site Craigslist, has a new role as patron of investigative journalism and has donated $40 million of his personal fortune to the cause. Now, he's making a plea to news outlets.
"Make me give more," he said Friday in an interview on Cheddar.
Newmark's latest [donation](https://www.motherjones.com/media/2018/08/craigslist-founder-craig-newmark-makes-1-million-gift-to-mother-jones/) of $1 million to the magazine Mother Jones came from the founder's desire to "stand up and do what I can to help protect the country," he said.
The spread of misinformation and conspiracy theories and a pressing need for better cybersecurity led Newmark to embark on a philanthropic tour, giving money to schools (CUNY's School of Journalism, Harvard's Kennedy School), publications (Columbia Journalism Review, Mother Jones) and platforms (Firefox, DonorsChoose.org) that he said work to promote responsible journalism, fact-checking, and STEM education.
"We're in a long-term war against some really, really bad people," he said.
Newmark said the U.S. is under attack from enemies both foreign and domestic that are using "hybrid warfare" to sow division in the population.
Safeguarding Americans against these forces should be the job of the government, he said.
"Where the government isn't going to do the job, other people can."
Ironically, Craigslist, which Newmark founded in 1995, is widely thought to be among the reasons the news industry is facing such dire financial straits. The free listing site lifted the concept of a newspaper classified and made it seem anachronistic in the digital age. The news media, for its part, was wholly unprepared for the shift.
But his philanthropic efforts have nothing to do with that, Newmark said.
"This is a matter of defending the country."
For full interview [click here](https://cheddar.com/videos/craigslist-founder-on-protecting-the-press-this-is-my-war).
Sinead O’Sullivan breaks down Taylor Swift’s genius marketing for The Life of a Showgirl, which just set the record for most albums sold in a single week.
Markets are emerging from a turbulent Q3. Horizon’s Mike Dickson shares insights on interest rates, small caps, and where investors should look in Q4 and beyond
Bambu Ventures's Kyle Pretsch dives into Lemonaid’s $10M buyout, down from 23andMe’s $400M price tag, and what’s next after Chrome Co.’s dramatic pivot.
Former Cisco Systems CEO John Chambers learned all about technology’s volatile highs and lows as a veteran of the internet’s early boom days during the late 1990s and the ensuing meltdown that followed the mania. And now he is seeing potential signs of the cycle repeating with another transformative technology in artificial intelligence. Chambers is trying take some of the lessons he learned while riding a wave that turned Cisco into the world's most valuable company in 2000 before a crash hammered its stock price and apply them as an investor in AI startups. He recently discussed AI's promise and perils during an interview with The Associated Press.
Grove Collaborative’s CEO shares how the company is reinventing everyday goods with sustainability at the core and working toward a plastic-free future.
Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens shares plans for affordable housing, community-led growth, and why private and public grocery stores could be key to food equity.
Tesla reported a surprise increase in sales in the third quarter as the electric car maker likely benefited from a rush by consumers to take advantage of a $7,500 credit before it expired on Sept. 30. The company reported Thursday that sales in the three months through September rose 7% compared to the same period a year ago. The gain follows two quarters of steep declines as people turned off by CEO Elon Musk’s foray into right-wing politics avoided buying his company’s cars and even protested at some dealerships. Sales rose to 497,099 vehicles, compared with 462,890 in the same period last year.
