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Decoder · August 17, 2026 · 1h 11m

It's about ethics in journalism, with Ben Smith

Nilay Patel talks to Semafor editor-in-chief Ben Smith about the media company's profitable, events-driven business model — which generates about half of its revenue from live gatherings — and the ethical conflicts that pervade journalism today. Smith contrasts his experience at BuzzFeed during the social-media traffic boom with Semafor's diversified approach, now four years old and growing fast.

This summary was generated from show notes and public descriptions, not from a full transcript review. Details may contain inaccuracies.

Preview

Semafor makes half its revenue from events
Semafor is profitable and earns roughly 50% of its revenue through events, not just advertising or subscriptions.
Navigating ethical conflicts in modern media
Ben Smith discusses how Semafor handles the ethical dilemmas that are increasingly common in journalism, from conflicts of interest to maintaining editorial independence.

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