Drew Curtis

Fark began in 1993 when Curtis was in England, sending links back to his friends.{{cite web | year = 2010 | url = https://money.cnn.com/2006/08/21/technology/bloggingdollars0822.biz2/index.htm | title = Blogging for big bucks | format = CNN News | publisher = CNNMoney.com | access-date = February 9, 2010 |author1=Sloan, Paul |author2=Kaihla, Paul }} Curtis registered Fark.com in 1997 but did not begin posting links on the site until 1999.{{cite book | last = Curtis | first = Drew | title = It's Not News, It's Fark: How Mass Media Tries to Pass Off Crap as News | publisher = Penguin Group (USA), Inc. | location = New York City | date = June 2007 | pages = 278 | isbn = 978-1-59240-291-5 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=0Ak9Veq_CTgC | access-date = January 14, 2010}} The first story on Fark was a news article about a fighter pilot who crashed while attempting to expose his buttocks to another fighter pilot.{{cite web | date = February 22, 2007 | url = http://blog.guykawasaki.com/2007/02/panel_of_web_co.html | title = Panel of Web Community Founders: Utter Defiance of the "Venture Capital" Model | format = Online video | publisher = guykawasaki.com | access-date = February 9, 2010 | url-status = dead | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20090525034439/http://blog.guykawasaki.com/2007/02/panel_of_web_co.html | archive-date = May 25, 2009 | df = mdy-all }} Since then, the site has become one of the most popular link dump sites on the internet with nearly 50 million pageviews a month. As of 2006, the site was getting over 2,000 link submissions every day.{{cite web | date = July 14, 2006 | url = http://www.ideagrove.com/blog/2006/07/media-orchard-interviews-drew-curtis-of-farkcom.html | title = Media Orchard Interviews Drew Curtis of Fark.com | publisher = ideagrove.com | access-date = February 9, 2010 }} It was the first indie blog to earn one million dollars a year in profit and its classifieds section alone generates as much as $40,000 per year.

Although Fark is a million-dollar business, Curtis takes a yearly salary of $60,000. The rest of the money goes to the site's legal 'war chest' and to pay other expenses.

Under Curtis, Fark has purposely shied away from the Web 2.0 mantra of total user control.

I don't care what anyone says, the masses are morons. You can't count on them to pick good stuff. Just check out Network TV to see what the masses want for entertainment. It all sucks. Don't even get me started on how they vote for elected officials. There's certainly a place for that kind of thing but it's not on Fark.

According to Curtis, Web 3.0 will be "something called Good Editing." Speaking at a media conference in Washington, DC hosted by the Poynter Institute, Curtis stated, "The 'wisdom of the crowds' is the most ridiculous statement I've heard in my life. Crowds are dumb. It takes people to move crowds in the right direction, crowds by themselves just stand around and mutter."{{cite news | last = Nagesh | first = Gautham | title = Fark creator says wisdom of crowds is overrated | url = https://thehill.com/policy/technology/164988-fark-creator-says-wisdom-of-crowds-is-overrated/ | access-date = July 1, 2010 | newspaper = The Hill | date = June 29, 2010}}

In 2006, Curtis was featured on the cover of Business 2.0 magazine as the feature in a story about successful websites. Lexington Weekly named him one of their businessmen under 40 to watch.{{cite news | last = Silcoff | first = Mireille | title = LYPA Rising Stars | publisher = Lexington Weekly | url = http://www.lexweekly.com/Articles-c-2008-05-29-76799.113117_LYPA_Rising_Stars.html | access-date = 2008-06-06 | url-status = dead | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20101113092622/http://www.lexweekly.com/Articles-c-2008-05-29-76799.113117_LYPA_Rising_Stars.html | archive-date = November 13, 2010 | df = mdy-all }}

On November 28, 2007, Curtis filed an application to trademark the phrase "not safe for work" a common phrase on Fark.{{cite web | date = July 12, 2007 | url = http://www.trademork.com/not-safe-for-work/ | title = Not safe for work | publisher = trademork.com | access-date = February 9, 2010 | url-status = dead | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20071213000322/http://www.trademork.com/not-safe-for-work/ | archive-date = December 13, 2007 | df = mdy-all }} His application was denied.

Curtis published his first book, It's Not News, It's FARK: How Mass Media Tries to Pass off Crap as News in May 2007.{{cite web | year = 2010 | url = https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000V5075M | title = It's Not News, It's Fark (Kindle Edition) | website = Amazon | access-date = February 9, 2010 }} It soon became a bestseller. An in-depth analysis of the state of modern media, It's Not News, It's Fark slams news organizations for running smaller versions of his not-real-news. In his review of the book, Farhad Manjoo of Salon.com said that "[Curtis] even seems to go after the audience – his audience – for indulging in [not-real-news] Curtis seems to want us to be repulsed by them instead."{{cite web | date = June 26, 2007 | url = http://archive.salon.com/life/sex/index.html?story=/books/review/2007/06/26/fark | archive-url = https://archive.today/20130201214039/http://archive.salon.com/life/sex/index.html?story=/books/review/2007/06/26/fark | url-status = dead | archive-date = February 1, 2013 | title = News you can abuse | work = Salon.com | access-date = February 9, 2010 | last = Manjoo, Farhad }}

Curtis's book peaked at #12 on Amazon.com's non-fiction bestseller list. Media critic Jack Shafer noted that despite the book's success, it received "scant attention" from mainstream media outlets.{{cite news | last = Shafer | first = Jack | title = Fark Founder Flattens Fourth Estate | publisher = Slate.com | date = October 4, 2007 | url = http://www.slate.com/id/2175244/ | access-date = 2008-06-06}} "For all its insight, Curtis' book has gotten scant attention from the mainstream press." The book was later released in paperback.{{cite book | year = 2010 | title = It's Not News, It's Fark | isbn = 978-1592403660 | edition = Paperback | last1 = Curtis | first1 = Drew | publisher = National Geographic Books }}

Curtis graduated from Luther College in Decorah, Iowa in 1995.{{cite web | title = Drew Curtis '95, Fark.com creator, to speak on campus Oct. 7. | url = https://reason.luther.edu/headlines/?story_id=299251 | archive-url = https://archive.today/20121210114053/https://reason.luther.edu/headlines/?story_id=299251 | url-status = dead | archive-date = December 10, 2012 | publisher = Luther College | access-date = May 9, 2012 }} From 1996 to 2002, he owned and operated DCR.NET, an ISP based in Frankfort, Kentucky.{{cite web | year = 2010 | url = http://www.rightwingnews.com/interviews/fark.php | title = An Interview With Fark's Drew Curtis | publisher = rightwingnews.com | access-date = February 9, 2010 | last = Hawkins, John }} He is a graduate of the Berkeley-Columbia Executive MBA program, a joint venture of New York's Columbia University and the University of California at Berkeley.{{cite news | last = Eblen | first = Tom | title = Fark.com founder planning his next steps. | url = http://tomeblen.bloginky.com/tag/drew-curtis/ | access-date = May 9, 2012 | newspaper = The Bluegrass and Beyond (Lexington Herald Leader) | date = February 13, 2012}} Curtis lives in the suburbs of Lexington, Kentucky with his wife, Heather, and children, Chance, Storm, and Sierra.{{cite news | title = Fark.com: Making Money Off of Goofy News | publisher = NPR | date = May 7, 2007 | url = https://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=10009173 | access-date = June 6, 2008}}{{cite news | last = Curtis | first = Drew | title = Personal communication from Drew Curtis via Fark.com discussion boards. | date = May 11, 2012 | url = http://www.fark.com/comments/7101394/76816551#c76816551 | access-date = May 11, 2012}}

Curtis announced his candidacy on January 23, 2015, for the 2015 election for the Governor of the Commonwealth of Kentucky.{{cite news | url = http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2015/01/26/farkcom-founder-drew-curtis-announces-bid-for-kentucky-governor/ | archive-url = https://archive.today/20150203045827/http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2015/01/26/farkcom-founder-drew-curtis-announces-bid-for-kentucky-governor/ | url-status = dead | archive-date = February 3, 2015 | title = Fark.com founder Drew Curtis announces bid for Kentucky governor | date = January 26, 2015 | publisher = FoxNews.com}} The platform revolved around a "Citizen Candidate" philosophy of common sense and data-driven decisions, no experiments, leaving people alone, having no party alignment, and taking special-interest money out of the political process. The stated hope was to build a blueprint for regular, real people in all 50 states/commonwealths to be able to create constructive disruptions in a broken system, in order to run competitively in elections.{{cite web | title = Drew & Heather Curtis: Citizen Candidates | url = http://www.drewcurtis.com | access-date = January 23, 2015 | url-status = dead | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20100721220653/http://www.drewcurtis.com/ | archive-date = July 21, 2010 | df = mdy-all }} With his wife Heather as his running mate, Curtis faced the Republican Party nominee, businessman Matt Bevin, and the Democratic Party nominee, Kentucky Attorney General Jack Conway, in the November 3 general election. In the election held on November 3, 2015, Curtis lost the election to Bevin, receiving 35,629 total votes, or 3.7%.{{cite news|title=Interactive: Ky. Governor election results by county|url=http://www.kentucky.com/news/politics-government/election/article42687654.html|access-date=March 22, 2017|publisher=Lexington Herald-Leader|date=November 3, 2015}}

In January 2019, Curtis filed to run as a Democrat for the post of State Auditor for Kentucky.{{cite web | url=https://apnews.com/article/5f141ad11ed64135b402212648f40329 | title=31 file for statewide office in Kentucky ahead of deadline | website=Associated Press | date=January 29, 2019 }} Faced with a primary against three other Democrats,{{Cite web|url=https://www.lanereport.com/110073/2019/01/a-full-list-of-candidates-for-statewide-offices-in-2019/|title=A full list of candidates for statewide offices in 2019|date=January 29, 2019 }} he withdrew on April 11, 2019, citing "other commitments". Due to his late withdrawal, Curtis' name remained on the primary ballot, but votes in his favor were not counted.{{cite web| url = https://www.kentucky.com/latest-news/article229366524.html| url-status = dead| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20190611065814/https://www.kentucky.com/latest-news/article229366524.html| archive-date = 2019-06-11| title = Kentucky race for auditor draws 3 Democrats against GOP incumbent {{!}} Lexington Herald Leader}} The primary was subsequently won by Democratic candidate Sheri Donahue,{{Cite web|url=https://www.wkyt.com/content/news/Sheri-Donahue-wins-Democratic-nomination-for-Kentucky-auditor-510246381.html|title=Sheri Donahue wins Democratic nomination for Kentucky auditor|website=www.wkyt.com|date=May 22, 2019 }} who lost by a 14.62% margin in the general election to incumbent Republican Mike Harmon.{{Cite web|url=https://ballotpedia.org/Kentucky_Auditor_election,_2019|title=Kentucky Auditor election, 2019|website=Ballotpedia}}

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Category:Living people

Category:Writers from Lexington, Kentucky

Category:American Internet celebrities

Category:American online publication editors

Category:American social sciences writers

Category:Luther College (Iowa) alumni

Category:Kentucky independents

Category:Columbia Business School alumni

Category:Haas School of Business alumni

Category:1973 births