Recount Media Raises $18M to Offer a ‘Fresh Approach’ to Journalism

by Ellen Glover
May 5, 2021
NYC-based Recount Media raised a $18M Series B
Image: Recount Media

This week, journalism startup Recount Media raised $18 million in a Series B round led by Foundry Group, as reported by Axios. The 2-year-old company, best known for its short, social media-friendly videos, plans to use the funding to expand its editorial coverage and content.

Recount Media was founded by veteran journalists John Battelle and John Heilemann. For the most part, its flagship brand, The Recount, has been focused on providing political news bolstered by “sharp insights and analysis,” as the company puts it. It has since shifted its focus to what it calls the “key corridors of power” — technology, business and culture, as well as politics — to provide coverage that “illuminate[s] the truth, provide[s] shared context, and move[s] the conversation forward.”

The company came up during a particularly divisive time in the United States thanks to the 2020 presidential election and global pandemic. Its videos are meant to feel like analytical explainers as opposed to opinion content, relying heavily on charts and graphics instead of talking heads. 

Now, The Recount would like to replicate that energy in other forms of media, and will use this fresh funding to roll out products like newsletters and events, as well as produce more videos and podcasts. The company also plans to invest in marketing.

“We want to be more focused on figuring out ways to let people know we exist,” Batelle told Axios, adding that the company is hoping to be on at least a half a dozen “well-known streaming services” by the end of the year.

To accomplish all of this, Recount Media will need to grow its team. The company is based out of NYC, and has more than a dozen open positions across its business, design, marketing, content and sales departments.

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