Media entrepreneur Steven Brill thinks there’s something missing from all the efforts to separate fake news from the real kind: Some smart and discerning humans. Faced with the waves of mis- and disinformation lapping up on social media, Brill is proposing to apply some reader-beware labels to Internet news sources. His idea: ratings, as determined by teams of independent journalists, that would enable readers to understand where their news — or “news” — is coming from.
Steven Brill, the journalist and media entrepreneur, shared more details about the long-form journalism startup he’s building with former New York Times executive Jill Abramson. The crux of the previously reported project is that the two will oversee an operation that will churn out one lengthy story per month. Contributing writers will be paid on average about $100,000 for a piece that is longer than a magazine story but shorter than a book. Brill says the project will operate on a subscription basis and that contributing writers can also get a percentage of the subscription revenue generated by their pieces.
