Entertainment veteran Amanda Farrand has a new gig — where she’s in charge of sparking joy on the internet, and, ideally, making some money from it.
Upworthy, a digital aggregator and producer of viral uplifting stories, has hired Farrand as its new CEO. She officially joined the L.A.-based company on May 26 after holding senior roles at Imagine Entertainment and Reese Witherspoon’s Hello Sunshine.
Upworthy’s mission statement is to share “the best of humanity every day through stories that remind us of what we all have in common.” The site launched in 2012 and was acquired in 2017 by Good Worldwide, which is dedicated to empowering “people and organizations to be a force for good — together.” In addition to Upworthy, it owns media platform Good and snack brand All In. Prior to Farrand’s appointment, Max Schorr, CEO of Good Worldwide, had overseen the Upworthy business and now will focus more fully on Good Worldwide’s next phase of growth.
As CEO, Farrand is leading Upworthy as it positions itself to be increasingly focused on “direct audience relationships, creator ecosystems and content innovation,” the company said. In addition, former Participant Media COO Gabe Brakin will join Upworthy as a strategic adviser.
Farrand said in a statement: “The world has never felt more divided and chaotic, so stories that connect us and remind us of our shared humanity are more important than ever. This is exactly the moment that Upworthy was built to meet. Audiences are craving connection and hope, brands are searching for safe platforms that can authentically bring people together, and storytellers are looking for direct audiences to engage with.”
She added, “We’re building Humanity’s Media Company — a flywheel of content, creators, community and contribution designed with Upworthy’s engaged audience at the center.”
Farrand most recently served as EVP of business and brand development at Imagine Entertainment, the studio led by Brian Grazer and Ron Howard. At Imagine, she focused on building strategic partnerships and audience engagement opportunities around the company’s IP and premium content slate.
Prior to Imagine, Farrand spent four years at Hello Sunshine as SVP of partnerships and the Fair Play franchise. In that role, she developed partnerships with brands including P&G, CVS, PepsiCo, UnitedHealth Group, Nike and General Mills. Farrand led the expansion of Fair Play, based on Eve Rodsky’s bestselling book of the same name, into a multiplatform franchise that included a documentary, podcast, ambassador program, social and email community, and a “train-the-trainer” certification program comprised more than 200 coaches, trainers and therapists.
Earlier in her career, Farrand held leadership roles at Participant Media, Sony, Paramount Pictures and Davie Brown Entertainment.
“We are thrilled to welcome Amanda to lead Upworthy at the intersection of storytelling and humanity,” said Ben Goldhirsh, co-founder and board member of Good Worldwide, in a statement. “Under Max’s leadership over the past seven-plus years, Upworthy has delivered strong profitability and become one of the most recognized brands proving that media can elevate humanity. Amanda is exactly the right leader to build on that foundation, and her experience across entertainment, partnerships and impact storytelling makes her uniquely suited to lead Upworthy forward.”
Upworthy’s senior management team includes Lucia Knell, VP of brand and marketing; Mindy Nguyen, VP of impact and partnerships; Eric Pfeiffer, editor in chief; Gabe Reilich, head of content and innovation; and Naomi Yasuda, head of operations.
According to the company, Upworthy reaches about 17 million people per month across social and email through original editorial reporting, syndication partnerships and social distribution. Upworthy’s content is distributed across owned channels as well as publishing partners including Yahoo and Apple News. The company says its research has found that 99% of audiences “feel better about the world after engaging with Upworthy content” and that 86% report “feeling inspired to do good, give back or contribute to community with kindness after reading an Upworthy story.”