Glenn Greenwald, the outspoken journalist who became something of a household name thanks to a series of Edward Snowden-fueled scoops about the NSA, is leaving the Guardian for a new, TBA media outlet. BuzzFeed’s Ben Smith with the scoop:
Glenn Greenwald … is departing the London-based news organization, for a brand new, large-scale, broadly-focused media outlet, he told BuzzFeed Tuesday. …
“My partnership with the Guardian has been extremely fruitful and fulfilling: I have high regard for the editors and journalists with whom I worked and am incredibly proud of what we achieved,” Greenwald said in an emailed statement. “The decision to leave was not an easy one, but I was presented with a once-in-a-career dream journalistic opportunity that no journalist could possibly decline.”
Greenwald had hoped to keep his plans under wraps for a bit longer but, perhaps fittingly, his secret was leaked before he was ready to announce it. “I’m not yet able to provide any details of this momentous new venture,” he said in a statement, adding that it will “be unveiled very shortly.” He offered slightly more hype in his conversation with BuzzFeed, telling Smith that his new home will be “a very well-funded… very substantial new media outlet.” He promised that the source of the funding will be made public when the venture is officially announced.
The Guardian confirmed that Greenwald is leaving, and likewise stressed that their most famous journalist was departing on good terms. “Glenn Greenwald is a remarkable journalist and it has been fantastic working with him,” the Guardian’s Jennifer Lindauer said in a statement. “Our work together over the last year has demonstrated the crucial role that responsible investigative journalism can play in holding those in power to account.”
