Who Owns the Media: Snap

Snap 🐔🐔

Capitulation Ranks: Compromising
Category: Online Platform & Services
Market Cap: $17.02 billion

In 2020,  Snap, Inc. CEO Evan Spiegel announced that Snap would no longer promote then-President Trump’s content. “We simply cannot promote accounts in America that are linked to people who incite racial violence, whether they do so on or off our platform,” Spiegel said in a memo. 

Fast forward to 2024 and the executive has softened his tone. After Trump won the election, Spiegel told CNBC that Americans were hungry for “a new vision.” Indeed, the company was already backsliding on its democratic commitments.

A 2024 Free Press report found that Snapchat, Snap’s social-media arm, was silent about whether it reduces the distribution of election content that had been flagged as potential misinformation. It also failed to go into detail about its transparency efforts and access for researchers and journalists to its content-moderating technology.

DEI Doublespeak:

Snap states that it has released annual diversity reports since 2020. However, the links to its “Diversity at Snap” page — from which you could, at one time, download the reports — now take you to a “Belonging at Snap” webpage where neither the reports nor any mention of data are accessible. Elsewhere on its site, Snap stated: “Whether it’s Snapchatters demanding products to meet their diverse needs, or the desire to reach new and different markets, we know DEI is critical for long-term growth. This year, we are focused on continuing to improve workforce representation — particularly within leadership — and will work to cultivate diverse leaders who bring dynamic perspectives, ideas, and talent to Snap.” It remains to be seen whether there will be a 2025 diversity report.

What It Owns:

Snap owns the online sites and services Snapchat, Bitmoji, Flite, Gfycat, Looksery and Spectacles. As of Dec. 31, 2024, Snap reported 453 million global daily active users, with 100 million of these located in North America.

Money & Influence Game:

Snap paid lobbyists $950,000 in 2024 and made $228,883 in contributions to political candidates (2024 cycle). (SOURCE: Center for Responsive Politics)