From Black Lives Matter and the highly debated 2016 U.S. presidential election to the recent ban of Terry Richardson within the fashion industry, activism and social awareness has catapulted into the forefront of cultural discussion, particularly among younger generations. The act of protest has quickly worked its way into our collective consciousness; whereas activism used to be associated with a fringe of adamant movers and shakers, now, slogans like the Human Rights Campaign’s “Make America Gay Again” and Public School‘s “Make America New York“ showcase the birth of a woke generation. Decidedly marking the shifting times is the launch of Conde Nast’s new LGBTQ media brand, them.
The platform—first of its kind at Condé Nast—operates as an independent entity under the leadership of chief content officer, Phillip Picardi. At only 26, Picardi also serves as digital editorial director of Allure and Teen Vogue, where alongside Marie Suter and Elaine Welteroth, he has developed an astute penchant for publishing content in tune with modern youth rhetoric. Together, the trio has confronted topics ranging from anal sex to systemic sexism and rape, placing importance on conversations that conventional society once deemed taboo.
Running with the same mentality, them now promises to create content covering pop culture, politics and current events through the eyes of the LGBTQ community. “For me, it’s always been important to have a staff and content that’s representative of an audience that hasn’t felt traditionally served by the media,” Picardi tells HYPEBEAST. For their debut this week, the community platform is focusing on adversity and coming together, building on those themes through digital and analog spaces and curating a mix of opinion pieces and personal essays. “them is just a representation of the people I’m surrounded with in my age group, and of the young people I see who are proudly representing this community and grew up with a totally different perspective on queerness,” he adds.
“I’m proud that at this point in time, them isn’t just a possibility for our company, but a given.”
them marks a turning point for Condé Nast who, like the traditional media landscape at large, has faced turbulent times at the hand of declining ad revenue and the black swan that re-wrote the codes of journalism: digital. To cut through the chaos of over saturation, Condé Nast has developed an in-house incubator for outlying ideas called Next Gen Council. The project takes its name from a marketing campaign launched earlier this year by chief revenue officer Pamela Drucker Mann, who has also played a vital role in getting the new platform on its feet.
them.
“When I first started at the company, I wouldn’t have envisioned a brand exactly like them anywhere. And that’s not to say that many amazing LGBTQ brands haven’t come before us, but I’m proud that at this point in time, them isn’t just a possibility for our company, but a given,” says Drucker Mann, who has been at Condé Nast for 12 years. Indeed, the media landscape has shifted drastically over the past decade—even so in the past few years. As Drucker Mann echoes, taking on well-intentioned, diverse and inclusive content is a sign of the times and a necessary reaction to a shifting zeitgeist.
Young consumers are more concerned with issues surrounding social activism, diversity and inclusion than ever before. According to The Millennial Impact Report, which since 2009 has researched the behavior and preferences of more than 100,000 millennials, the cause-engagement actions of millennials in the first quarter of 2017 have increased and intensified as compared to their actions in 2016. Meanwhile, Deloitte’s 2017 survey of 8,000 millennials reveals that the younger generation feels accountable for the world’s largest challenges, but believe their influence has limitations.
“If you look at all the data that we’ve released or others that have released too, you do see this shift happening. We have a consumer that’s becoming more conscious about how they’re consuming products and what those products stand for,” says Derrick Feldmann, President of Achieve, the research and marketing agency that produces The Millennial Impact Report.
“I feel like media is missing the boat. The marketplace for social impact related content is vastly underserved.”
Overwhelmingly, the topic of our discussions is changing, with political and social issues entering every conversation. In the past two years, the fashion industry has seen necessary changes, opening dialogue around the mistreatment of models to challenging diversity on the catwalk. “The relevance of social justice as a topic in pop culture and youth culture is only increasing. And the more entrenched each side of any given debate gets, the more integral [these] issues will become to decision-making in terms who we hang out with, what brands we engage with, what things we pay attention to and what we consume,” adds Drew Train, president and co-founder at Oberland, an agency dedicated to building brands with a higher purpose.
This newly-focused consumer consciousness has opened the floodgates for an entirely new form of branding and marketing — one grounded in companies that effect positive results both within their companies and in the products they produce. As the emphasis on social issues, ethical management and production increases, so does the opportunity to benefit from a heightened interest in these practices. While companies and brands have astutely turned their ear to the shifting interest in matters of a higher purpose, media has lagged behind its audiences. “I feel like media is missing the boat. The marketplace for social impact related content is vastly underserved,” continues Train.
But as proven by Teen Vogue and them, Condé Nast is listening to the shifting demands of youth culture. “Culturally, this is what our audience expects from us at this point. It’s more than an expectation, really — our audience demands this next gen level of engagement from us,” says Drucker Mann.
“I think young people have a low-tolerance policy for bullshit and condescension.”
Condé Nast isn’t alone in launching a woke publication—in past years, smaller media outlets dedicated to specific social issues or engaging in conversation with previously underserved groups have sprung up. Founded by Joshua Topolsky, The Outline is a digital medium that focuses on power, culture and the future—driven by a sharp perspective and opinionated storytelling. Meanwhile, The Front, founded by Thalia Mavros, is an all-female “media cult” and creative cultural force built on feminism. Mavros previously held the role of executive creative director at VICE—an early pioneer in its own right that adopted a balls-to-the-wall approach for creating fresh and raw reporting, targeted to a young demographic.
The Front
A common theme among several of these new direction platforms, is creating more carefully-crafted content—or more plainly, filtering bullshit. “I think young people have a low-tolerance policy for bullshit and condescension, and I think they also want to feel like they are being considered when editors are creating content,” says Picardi. A finely tuned bullshit barometer is indeed a by-product of a generation that grew up surrounded by an overwhelming amount of noise. Of course, as millennials, we are largely responsible for building this bed of ourselves — only now we are beginning to come off the high of the great social media rush in a click-bait age.
“It sounds like what Condé Nast and I’m sure others are waking up to is the reality that young audiences are a lot smarter and a lot savvier than we have historically given them credit for. It’s exciting to see something that feels like it’s meant for a smart audience and doesn’t feed them bullshit,” says Joshua Topolsky who also co-founded The Verge and Vox Media.
For many publications that have lost their footing, targeting this new interest could present an appealing business model—and there is undoubtedly a large market opportunity that is both ethically and business driven. From a revenue making perspective, this type of content is attractive to advertisers who are looking to launch campaigns that access high and passionate engagement, versus solely depending on wide reach.
“We think there is absolutely a business opportunity in speaking to a young, savvy audience.”
For its launch, them has secured partnerships with Google, Lyft, Burberry and glaad. The Front, meanwhile, strays away from a traditional advertising model, instead partnering with other companies and media brands to offer creative development and help those companies create well-crafted content. However, as pointed out by pioneers in this space, taking on woke content solely as a revenue making move would prove futile and counterproductive. Passion and on the ground authentic belief in the respective sector must drive the content.
“We think there is absolutely a business opportunity in speaking to a young, savvy audience. But the reason for existing is not to just be like hey, we can make money doing this. My concern is that just like everything else in media, people get an idea in their head, and just start repeating that idea over and over again,” adds Topolsky, whose own publication, The Outline, launched with $5 million in seed funding in 2016 and has secured several ad-based partnerships.
The introduction of new media platforms that take on socially important topics through a pointed lense is promising for the future development of journalism; but like anything, it does not exist in a vacuum. “Separating this piece out is one thing, but ensuring that we retain that larger medium as well is imperative,” adds Feldmann. Indeed, while them’s importance for the LGBTQ community and allies is far-reaching, the even greater promise is how this new content will find its way to the media landscape at large. Feldmann continues, “The greatest thing is that [them.] will probably produce some really great content that can be used across multi platforms. I think that’s the biggest opportunity that exists around these kind of social issues.”
Without the existence of legacy institutions and media platforms that cover a broader spectrum of topics and keep hold of their long standing readership, the impact of more niche outlets will be lessened. By large part, many legacy publications have also stepped up to the plate and taken on more culturally relevant issues, especially since the last presidential election. But as societal conviction in social issues strengthens, there is a stark need for publications like them with the flexibility to adopt an on-the-ground approach and create content for a generation that has evolved from avocado toast fanatics to loudly tuned advocates in a fortnight.