I came across a banner ad for Knews while reading a typically titillating story on the NY Post. Because my nonprofit Giving Forward is launching Herald Times, I’ve been paying attention to new news sites. This 300 x 240 banner fit the bill.
The banner was mildly engaging.
Clicked and got to a user experience similar to Drudge. Aggregated news links. No ad units, no immediately visible source of revenue. But an opportunity to register for an email AND both an Apple/iOS and android app.
A lookup on SEMRush showed a recent launch but LOTS of inbound links.
Similarweb also showed a recent but aggressive launch.
The privacy policy & footer mentioned a parent company NCNS. A bit os sleuthing finds an SEC document listing it as a NewsCorp subsidiary.
Elevator pitch on the site is “Knewz.com works by combining cutting-edge artificial intelligence with experienced editors. The technology scans hundreds of news sources, and our editors highlight a selection of headlines that provide a broad perspective on stories of the day.”
Is the objective truly to be balanced with their AI algorithms and editors, or as “balanced” as Fox News?
The question remains, what are they thinking at NewsCorp? Is this a data aggregation play? Will there be monetization via banners soon? Are the apps going to be used to push curated stories that break out of each tribe’s echo chamber or will the editors and AI try to unite the country and the world?
