Looks like LGBTQ news platform INTO got too big for it’s father company to handle.
Gay dating app Grindr recently shut down its own online magazine INTO just two months after the news source shot its founding company in the foot.
After only about a 17-month run, freelancers, for both the editorial and video department, and staff members recently received the pink slip.
“After a thoughtful and collaborative process, Grindr’s leadership decided to modify INTO’s content mix to rely more heavily on video,” Grindr shared in a public statement.
“As with any growing business, we have to continually evaluate what is best for Grindr’. It confirmed staff members would be leaving.”
INTO's staff also released an official statement in reaction to the termination.
But what caused this sudden termination? A lack of finances? A lack of viewers? We can only guess from here.
One guess on what may have influenced the decision is the Scott Chen situation.
Back in November 2018, Grindr’s President and CTO Scott Chen shared an article on Facebook about gay marriage. To caption the share, Chen said:
“There are people who believe that marriage is a holy matrimony between a man and a woman. I agree but that’s none of our business. There are also people who believe that the purpose of marriage is to create children that carry their DNA. That’s also none of our business. There are people that are simply different from you, who desperately want to get married. They have their own reasons.”
A writer from INTO saw the message and then ran a story about it. That story then spread all over the internet and created a major controversy for Grindr. One that ultimately led to the quitting of Grindr’s Director of Communications.
In response to all of this, Chen tried to clarify that he thinks everyone should be able to define marriage for themselves and he, a straight man, defines marriage in reflection of his own. That said, he respects gay couples who define it differently.
After that clarification, Chen also expressed his wish that INTO had reached out to him for comment before posting the initial article.
Now, just two months later, INTO is no more. While this may not be the only reason why the LGBTQ publication is gone, it’s a safe bet to say it’s a factor.
With Grindr sharing very little on this process and closure of INTO, there also seems to be some false information spreading. Some are stating that Grindr just closed the editorial department in a “pivot to video."
This misunderstanding may have been caused by the above staff statement. But, Grindr doing a "pivot to video" is ultimately untrue. Both the editorial and video departments of INTO have been terminated.
In addition, many LGBTQ organizations and professionals in the news field have expressed their thoughts on the loss of INTO.
With many already questioning the stagnant existance of Grindr and Grindr potentially facing a court battle that could change the face of tech companies, this closure of INTO doesn’t help the public perception of the company.
Grindr is heading into some dark days. We guess that weak attempted Kindr initiave was just the start of many necessary facelifts for the company.
But will Grindr learn from its mistakes?
