Truthdig is an American alternative news website that provides a mix of long-form articles, blog items, curated links, interviews, arts criticism, and commentary on current events that is delivered from a politically progressive, left-leaning point of view.[1] The site offers independent journalism and focuses on major "digs" that purport to look beneath headlines to reveal facts overlooked or not reported by mainstream media. Truthdig was co-founded in 2005 by Zuade Kaufman and Robert Scheer, who served as editor-in-chief.[1] As of 2014, the Truthdig site drew more than 400,000 visitors per month.[1]
Kaufman's first job in journalism was at KCET in Los Angeles. She worked in documentaries before moving to print journalism. She worked with Scheer at hyperlocal editions of the Los Angeles Times identified as Westside, Weekly, and Our Times, as a researcher and then as a reporter. When the newspaper changed owners and the local editions were cut, Kaufman went for her masters in journalism at the University of Southern California Annenberg School for Communications.[2][3] She began developing an online news site while still a student. She and Scheer launched Truthdig the year she was graduated, which was immediately after Scheer was pushed out of the Los Angeles Times.
In October 2006, Truthdig published a 660-word essay entitled, "After Pat's Birthday", about the death of the NFL player and American soldier Pat Tillman that was written by his brother Kevin.[4] The essay was widely distributed and was cited in The New York Times[5] and the Associated Press.[1]
On the tenth anniversary of the Iraq War, Truthdig published "The Last Letter" by Tomas Young, a veteran paralyzed in Iraq, that addresses George W. Bush and Dick Cheney and condemns them as war criminals. Written as Young awaited his death under hospice care, the letter was translated into several languages and printed worldwide.[6]
Truthdig has been used as a data source in communication studies research on systematic differences in coverage of political events by alternative media (such as Truthdig) versus mainstream media.[7] It also has been included in a set of news sources subjected to statistical analysis intended to identify credible sources.[8]
As of October 2017[update], Truthdig has won six Webby Awards, including four regular Webbys [9][10][11][12][13] and two Webby People's Voice Awards.[9][10][14] In 2007, it won both a regular Webby and a Webby People's Voice Award.[9][10] At the 2010 ceremony for the Webby Awards, which traditionally limit acceptance speeches to five words, Robert Scheer accepted on behalf of Truthdig, saying: "Wall Street—what fucking thieves."[1]
Truthdig and its individual journalists have won numerous awards from the Los Angeles Press Club, including five Southern California (SoCal) Journalism Awards in 2010, three in 2013,[15] and [16], and eleven in 2017.[17] The five SoCal awards from 2010 included four first-place awards, in the categories "Online Journalist", "Online Column/Commentary/Criticism", "Online Sports News/Feature/Commentary", and "Website, Exclusive to the Internet—Budget over 10K".[16] The three SoCal awards from 2013 included one first-place award, in the category "Website, News Organization, Exclusive to the Internet".[15] The eleven SoCal awards from 2017 included three first-place awards, in the categories "Editorial Cartoon", "Investigative", and "Political Column/Commentary—Election".[17]
As of October 2017, Truthdig journalists have won three Sigma Delta Chi Awards from the Society of Professional Journalists: two to cartoonist Mr. Fish (Dwayne Booth) in 2009 and 2010,[18][19] and one to Robert Scheer for "Online Column Writing (Independent)" in 2011.[20]
On March 11, 2020, nine employees of Truthdig signed a statement announcing a work stoppage to protest what they described as "unfair labor conditions and the effort by the publisher, Zuade Kaufman, to remove the site's founding Editor-in-Chief and co-owner Robert Scheer".[21][22] On March 27, 2020 Kaufman responded in an open letter that attributed the matter to "negotiations to end the business partnership" between her and Scheer.[23] On March 25, 2020 Truthdig employees received emails they characterized as "Truthdig LLC was being dissolved and that our positions at the publication had been terminated". According to the full statement, 15 employees would be affected.[21] The "Truthdig" website concomitantly posted an announcement that "Truthdig" was "going on a hiatus".[24]
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Roderick, Kevin (December 12, 2005). "The woman behind Truthdig". LA Observed. Archived from the original on October 12, 2017. Retrieved October 11, 2017.
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Kaufman, Zuade (May 2013). "Zuade Kaufman, publisher of Truthdig". Live Encounters (Interview). Interviewed by Mark Ulyseas. Archived(PDF) from the original on June 24, 2022. Retrieved October 5, 2017.
^Tillman, Kevin (November 6, 2009). "After Pat's Birthday"(Reprint of October 19, 2006 article). Truthdig. Retrieved November 6, 2020.
