Making it to an Audience of 12 Million with the Founders of TheSkimm, Carly Zakin and Danielle Weisberg
About this episode
Jess Ekstrom interviews Carly Zakin and Danielle Weisberg about their entrepreneurial journey and the challenges of running The Skimm.
Jess sits down with Carly Zakin and Danielle Weisberg, the brilliant co-founders of The Skimm. Proving that cold DMs can actually work , Jess dives deep into their 14-year entrepreneurial journey — from meeting during a study abroad program in Rome and quitting their dream jobs at NBC News to building a massive news media empire and raising multiple rounds of venture capital. Carly and Danielle share the raw realities of navigating burnout , maintaining a strictly objective newsroom during highly polarized elections , and drafting a business "prenup" to protect their relationship. They also pull back the curtain on what it actually looks like when a massive acquisition deal closes — bathrobes included. Episode Highlights: The Art of the Cold DM: Jess shares how she booked the co-founders of The Skimm simply by taking a chance and shooting her shot in their inbox. The "Hated by Both Sides" Metric: Carly and Danielle reflect on the early challenges of writing unbiased news, revealing how getting angry mail from both sides of the political aisle proved they were doing their jobs right. Ditching the Coastal Bubble: How The Skimm took on the responsibility of representing millennial…
People in this episode
Host: Jess Ekstrom
Guests: Carly Zakin, Danielle Weisberg
Mentioned in this episode
Organizations: The Skimm, NBC News
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