Gawker's Rise and Fall: A Decade After Its Demise
A decade after its 2016 shutdown, The Hollywood Reporter examines Gawker's legacy through interviews with former staffers. The site, founded in 2002 by Nick Denton and Elizabeth Spiers, pioneered snarky, irreverent blogging that exposed the powerful. It was ultimately brought down by a $140 million invasion-of-privacy lawsuit funded by Peter Thiel, after posting a Hulk Hogan sex tape. Key figures like Cord Jefferson, Max Read, Emma Carmichael, and Leah Beckmann recount the site's chaotic culture, its scoops (Jeffrey Epstein's black book, iPhone 4 prototype), and its impact on media. Jefferson's Apple TV+ series 'Scraper' about Gawker was killed by Tim Cook. Denton now lives in Budapest running an AI prediction company. Former staffers have scattered to outlets like The New York Times, The Atlantic, and Hollywood, but the Gawker sensibility endures.
Key facts
- Gawker ran from 2002 to 2016.
- Founded by Nick Denton and Elizabeth Spiers.
- Shut down after Hulk Hogan sex-tape lawsuit funded by Peter Thiel.
- Jury awarded $140 million in damages, later settled for $31 million.
- Apple TV+ series 'Scraper' about Gawker was canceled by Tim Cook.
- Cord Jefferson won an Oscar for 'American Fiction'.
- Nick Denton now runs an AI timeline generation company in Budapest.
- Peter Thiel spent roughly $10 million bankrolling Hogan's suit.
Entities
Artists
- Cord Jefferson
- Max Read
- Emma Carmichael
- Leah Beckmann
- Elizabeth Spiers
- Jessica Coen
- Nick Denton
- A.J. Daulerio
- Tommy Craggs
- Lacey Donohue
- Adrian Chen
- Caity Weaver
- Camille Dodero
- John Cook
- Nick Bryant
- Choire Sicha
- Tom Scocca
- Emily Gould
- Jermaine Johnson
- Heather Dietrick
- Meng Ru Kuok
- Aron D'Souza
- Hulk Hogan (Terry Bollea)
- Peter Thiel
- Tim Cook
- Steve Jobs
- Brian Williams
- David Geithner
- Timothy Geithner
- Christine O'Donnell
- Jared Kushner
- Charlie Kirk
- Col Allan
- Larry Flynt
- Ann Coulter
- Percival Everett
- Jonathan Franzen
- Meryl Streep
- Nick Kroll
- Wyatt Cenac
- Bubba the Love Sponge
- Jimmy Fallon
- Elon Musk
- Jeffrey Epstein
- Derrence Washington
Institutions
- Gawker
- Gawker Media
- Apple
- Apple TV+
- The Hollywood Reporter
- The New York Times
- The New Yorker
- Vanity Fair
- New York magazine
- The Atlantic
- GQ
- Business Insider
- The Wall Street Journal
- Wired
- Boston magazine
- Billboard
- The Recount
- CNN
- HBO
- Hulu
- Netflix
- 20th Century Studios
- Peacock
- NBC
- Condé Nast
- Univision
- Bustle Digital Group
- Caldecott Music Group
- AND Media
- 3 Arts Entertainment
- Oakland Review of Books
- The Small Bow
- Objection.ai
- Substack
- Medium
- The Nation
- New York Post
- Page Six
- New York Observer
- Fortune
- Fast Company
- American Museum of Natural History
- TGIF
- Waffle House
- SpaceX
- PayPal
- Turning Point USA
Locations
- New York
- New York City
- Soho
- Nolita
- Crosby Street
- Manhattan
- Huntington Beach
- Florida
- St. Petersburg
- Budapest
- Hungary
- Singapore
- United States