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Wikipedia

Pitchfork (website)

January 01, 1970

Pitchfork (formerly Pitchfork Media) is an American online music publication founded in 1996 by Ryan Schreiber in Minneapolis. It originally covered alternative and independent music, and expanded to cover genres including pop, hip hop, jazz and metal. Pitchfork is one of the most influential music publications to have emerged in the internet age.

Pitchfork
The Pitchfork homepage in 2016
Type of site
Online music magazine
Available inEnglish
Founded1996; 28 years ago (1996)
Country of originUnited States
OwnerCondé Nast
Created byRyan Schreiber
URLpitchfork.com
CommercialYes
RegistrationNo
Launched1996; 28 years ago (1996)
Current statusActive

In the 2000s, Pitchfork distinguished itself from print media through its unusual reviews, frequent updates and coverage of emerging acts. It was praised as passionate, authentic and unique, but criticized as pretentious, mean-spirited and elitist, playing into stereotypes of the cynical hipster. It is credited with popularizing acts such as Arcade Fire, Broken Social Scene, Bon Iver and Sufjan Stevens.

Pitchfork relocated to Chicago in 1999 and Brooklyn, New York, in 2011. It expanded in the 2000s, launching projects including the annual Pitchfork Music Festival in Chicago in 2006, the video site Pitchfork.tv in 2008, and a print publication, The Pitchfork Review, in 2011. It also began covering more mainstream music and issues of gender, race and identity. As of 2014, Pitchfork was receiving around 6.2 million unique visitors every month.

The influence of Pitchfork declined in the 2010s with the growth of streaming and social media. In 2015, it was acquired by the mass media company Condé Nast and moved to One World Trade Center. After the acquisition, the former co-owner Chris Kaskie left in 2017, followed by Schreiber in 2019. In 2024, Condé Nast announced plans to merge Pitchfork into the men's magazine GQ, resulting in layoffs. The merge drew criticism and triggered concern about the implications for music journalism.

History edit

1996–2003: Early years edit

Pitchfork was created in February 1996 by Ryan Schreiber, a high school graduate living in his parents' home in Minneapolis.[1] Schreiber grew up listening to indie rock acts such as Fugazi, Jawbox and Guided by Voices.[2] He was influenced by fanzine culture and had no previous writing experience.[3]

Schreiber initially named the website Turntable, but changed it after another website claimed the rights.[4] The name Pitchfork was inspired by the tattoo on the assassin Tony Montana in the film Scarface. Schreiber chose it as it was concise and had "evilish overtones".[2] Schreiber wrote the first review, of Pacer (1995) by the Amps.[5] The record store Insound was Pitchfork's first advertiser.[4]

Early Pitchfork reviews focused on indie rock and were often critical. The Washington Post described them as "brutal" and "merciless", writing: "The site's stable of critics often seemed capricious, uninvested, sometimes spiteful, assigning low scores on a signature 10-point scale with punitive zeal."[6] Schreiber said the site's early period "was about really laying into people who really deserved it", and defended the importance of honesty in arts criticism.[7] In 1999, Schreiber relocated Pitchfork to Chicago.[8] He estimated that Pitchfork had published 1,000 reviews by this point.[9]

Around the turn of the millennium, the American music press was dominated by monthly magazines such as Rolling Stone, creating a gap in the market for faster-moving publication that emphasized new acts.[10] Pitchfork could publish several articles a day, greatly outpacing print media.[11] New technologies such as MP3, the iPod and the file-sharing service Napster created greater access to music, and music blogs became an important resource, creating further opportunity for Pitchfork.[11] The contributors Mark Richardson and Eric Harvey said this was an important part of Pitchfork's early popularity, as music fans could share and listen to recordings while reading daily updates.[9]

In 2000, Pitchfork's 10.0/10.0 review of the new Radiohead album, Kid A, written by Brent DiCrescenzo, generated a surge in readership and was one of the first signs of Pitchfork becoming a major publication.[3][4] It attracted attention for its unusual style and the speed of its publication following the album review.[12] Billboard described it as "extremely long-winded and brazenly unhinged from the journalistic form and temperament of the time".[12] While it was widely mocked, it boosted Pitchfork's profile.[12] Schreiber said he understood the review would make Pitchfork subject to ridicule, but "wanted Pitchfork to be daring and to surprise people".[12] In 2001, Pitchfork had 30,000 daily readers.[2]

2004–2005: Growing influence and professional growth edit

In 2004, Pitchfork hired its first full-time employee, Chris Kaskie, formerly of the satirical website The Onion, to run business operations.[8] Kaskie later became the company’s president and co-owner.[13][14] Pitchfork's first professional editor, Scott Plagenhoef, was hired shortly afterwards.[9][8] Kaskie and Plagenhoef are credited for turning Pitchfork into a professional operation. It began to scale quickly; the more money it made, the more resources it had for reviews and articles.[13][9]

As of 2004, Pitchfork had eight full-time employees and about 50 freelance staff members, most of whom worked remotely and co-ordinated through phone and internet.[15] Pitchfork writers were unpaid for their first six months, after which they could earn $10 or $20 for a review or $40 for a feature. In 2004, following staff tensions about Schreiber's advertising income, Pitchfork started paying writers from their first articles at a slightly improved rate.[15]

That year, Pitchfork published a positive review of the debut album by Arcade Fire, Funeral. It became a bestseller and is cited as the first major example of Pitchfork's influence on independent music, attracting coverage of Pitchfork from outlets such as the Los Angeles Times.[9] The contributor Jess Weiss said the review "changed everything".[9] By 2005, Pitchfork was attracting around one million readers a month, with an annual revenue of around $5 million.[4][16] That year, Schreiber said he would refuse any offer to buy Pitchfork: "It would change into the antithesis of the reason I started it. This is something I am so in love with — this is my entire adult life's work."[15]

2006–2010: Expanding operations edit

 
Slint at Pitchfork Music Festival 2007

By 2006, traditional music media, such as print magazines, music video channels and radio stations, had declined or changed focus, but music listeners still sought a reliable source of recommendations.[2] Without the limitations of print media, Pitchfork was able to champion emerging independent acts that major print magazines, which had to sell millions of copies every year, could not.[2] Schreiber said he felt magazines were "not even trying to discover new music ... Publications used to take more chances on artists, putting bands on the cover that they thought deserved to be there."[1] He said Pitchfork was able to take risks as it was not interested in appeasing bands, record labels or advertisers.[1]

In 2006, Pitchfork had 170,000 daily readers and was publishing five album reviews a day, with six full-time employees.[1][2] Schreiber said that Pitchfork was able to sustain paid freelancers and eight employees, though they were "always cutting it close".[7] He said he had attracted interest from investors, but wanted to retain control and that journalistic integrity was his priority.[2][7] In August 2006, an internal Pitchfork server containing promotional copies of hundreds of albums was hacked, including the upcoming Joanna Newsom album Ys.[17]

In the mid-2000s, Pitchfork expanded its operations. In 2006, it launched the annual Pitchfork Music Festival in Chicago.[6] The first Paris Pitchfork Music Festival was held in 2011.[18] Kaskie said it was exciting to see acts Pitchfork had championed playing to large crowds: "We start to see these bands playing in front of audiences 10 times the size of their biggest show ever. That's the goal, man. To put fucking Titus Andronicus in front of 10,000 people."[9] In April 2008, after acquiring the live music show Juan's Basement, Pitchfork launched Pitchfork.tv, a website displaying interviews, music videos and feature-length films.[19] In November, it published a book, The Pitchfork 500, covering the preceding 30 years of music.[20]

By the end of the 2000s, Pitchfork had become influential in the music industry, credited for launching acts such as Arcade Fire and Bon Iver.[6] Employees at record labels and record stores would use it to anticipate interest in acts.[7] It was also attracting large sponsors such as American Express and Apple.[4]

2010–2014: Diversification, declining influence and sister publications edit

The influence of Pitchfork on music careers declined around the turn of the decade, as streaming and social media fractured audiences and reduced the need for gatekeepers.[21][22] Streaming services began to fulfil Pitchfork's function of helping new artists find audiences, and independent music criticism moved to podcasts and YouTube.[21] Declining music industry revenues reduced advertising spending, and Pitchfork faced competition from advertisers such as Facebook.[11] According to the Los Angeles Times, "The internet era that birthed Pitchfork's blend of saucy writing, outre tastes and massive popularity [was] by and large over."[21]

Over the following decade, Pitchfork shifted its editorial range and style.[23] It began running features and news alongside reviews, coming to resemble a more conventional music publication.[23] It also diversified from indie rock to cover mainstream music including pop, rap and metal, and began covering issues of gender, race and identity in music, influenced by movements such as MeToo and Black Lives Matter.[21][24] Schreiber said that "our tastes broadened with age and experience", and that Pitchfork could make a difference to social causes.[21]

In July 2010, Pitchfork launched Altered Zones, a blog aggregator devoted to underground and DIY music.[25] In 2011, Pitchfork relocated to Brooklyn, New York.[26] On May 21, Pitchfork announced a partnership with the website Kill Screen, in which Pitchfork would publish some of their articles.[27] Altered Zones closed on November 30.[25] On December 26, 2012, Pitchfork launched Nothing Major, a website that covered visual arts,[28] which closed in October 2013.[29] Pitchfork launched a film website, The Dissolve, in 2013. It closed in 2015, citing "financial challenges".[30] Kaskie later said he remained proud of The Dissolve and that it was "a huge success from the creative and editorial, design and everything else".[14]

In 2013, the rapper Chief Keef was arrested for violating a probation sentence by using a rifle in a promotional video by Pitchfork. Staff later described the episode as a low point and an example of how Pitchfork mishandled hip hop artists.[9] In December, Pitchfork launched The Pitchfork Review, a quarterly print journal focused on long-form music writing and design-focused content. Pitchfork planned a limited-edition quarterly publication of about 10,000 copies of each issue, printed on glossy, high-quality paper.[31] It was expected that about two thirds of the content would be original, with the remaining reused from the Pitchfork website.[31] The International Business Times likened the literary aspirations to The New Yorker and the Paris Review.[32]

In 2013, Pitchfork won the National Magazine Award for general excellence in digital media.[4] As of 2014, Pitchfork was receiving around 6.2 million unique visitors and 40 million pageviews every month, with an expected annual revenue growth of 25 to 40 percent. Its primary revenue came from advertising.[33] That August, Pitchfork had 2.47 million unique visitors, more than the websites for Spin or Vibe but fewer than Rolling Stone's 11 million.[33] By this point, Pitchfork was had grown to capacity, and began to seek ways to find investment to fuel its growth and ambition. Kaskie said he spent a year in meetings with private equity or venture capitalists to evaluate their potential investment, but due to the fact they all only sought scale, it wasn’t deemed a logical fit based on Pitchfork’s goals. [9]

2015–2016: Purchase by Condé Nast edit

 
One World Trade Center, Manhattan, the site of Pitchfork's offices since 2015

On October 13, 2015, the American mass media company Condé Nast announced that it had acquired Pitchfork.[34] At this point, Pitchfork had about 50 employees, with advertising, sales and development staff in Chicago and editorial and video production staff in Brooklyn.[3] Kaskie said "our needs and wants were converging", and that Pitchfork needed capital and expertise to expand its publication and festivals.[14] The sale boosted Pitchfork's value to advertisers.[4]

The Condé Nast CEO, Bob Sauerberg, described Pitchfork as a "distinguished digital property that brings a strong editorial voice, an enthusiastic and young audience, a growing video platform and a thriving events business".[10] Previously, Pitchfork's independence had been a key aspect of its image.[3][24] Schreiber said it would continue to have "creative independence".[3] Pitchfork relocated to the Condé Nast offices in One World Trade Center, Manhattan.[4]

The acquisition triggered concern; the New York Observer wrote that was a "death knell for indie rock".[4] The Condé Nast chief digital officer, Fred Santarpia, was criticized when he said the acquisition would bring "a very passionate audience of millennial males into our roster".[6] Schreiber responded on Twitter that women were "a huge part of Pitchfork's staff and readership" and that Pitchfork aimed to reach "all music fans everywhere".[6]

On March 13, 2016, Pitchfork launched its first new design since 2011.[35] That October, Pitchfork had 4.1 million unique visitors, up from 2.7 million the previous October.[4] With Schreiber aiming to make Pitchfork the world's best repository for music content, Pitchfork began creating videos and retrospective articles about classic albums released before its founding.[4] The Pitchfork Review ended after 11 issues in November 2016.[36]

2017–2023: Departures of Kaskie and Schreiber edit

 
Anna Wintour, the Condé Nast chief content officer, in 2010

Kaskie announced his departure from Pitchfork in May 2017.[37] He had been frustrated by his diminished role under Condé Nast and Pitchfork's reduced autonomy.[38] On September 18, 2018, Schreiber stepped down as the top editor. He was replaced by Puja Patel, who had worked at Spin and Gawker Media, as editor-in-chief on October 15. Schreiber remained as a strategic advisor.[39] He said he later realized that Condé Nast did not understand Pitchfork and had unrealistic expectations of its performance.[9]

Patel came under pressure to cut costs amid declining traffic from social media, and competition from streaming platforms, which offered a new means for listeners to discover music.[38] Pitchfork staff conflicted with Condé Nast over its attempts to monetize Pitchfork Music Festival by making it into a "luxury" experience.[38] Santarpia left Condé Nast in 2018, leaving Pitchfork under the purview of Anna Wintour, the chief content officer.[38] Two former Pitchfork staffers told The Verge that Wintour did not care about music or understand the internet.[11]

Schreiber announced his departure on January 8, 2019, saying he wanted to "keep pushing boundaries and exploring new things".[40] The Los Angeles Times said the departure came at a time of "existential change" for the media industries, citing the rise of streaming services and social media and the downsizing of many major music publications.[40] That month, Condé Nast announced it would put all its publications, including Pitchfork, behind a paywall by the end of the year.[41] It abandoned experiments with Pitchfork paywalls following criticism from readers.[38] In 2020, Condé Nast laid off the executive editor Matthew Schnipper and the features editor and union chair Stacey Anderson.[8] In 2022 and 2023, Pitchfork had about 3 million unique visitors a month, down by about 36% from 2021.[11]

2024: Merge into GQ and layoffs edit

On January 17, 2024, Wintour announced that Pitchfork would merge with the men's magazine GQ.[42] Staff including Patel were laid off, leaving around a dozen editorial staff, including some working on multiple Condé Nast publications.[38] Max Tani of Semafor reported that remaining staff at Pitchfork and GQ were "depressed and embarrassed" by the merge.[38] As of that month, Pitchfork had the most daily active users of any Condé Nast publication.[43]

Several music journalists and publications reacted with sadness and concern for the future of music journalism.[44] Tani and The Washington Post's Chris Richards expressed disgust that Pitchfork, once independent and provocative, would be absorbed into an establishment men's magazine.[6][38] The American critic Ann Powers wrote that the merge felt "like a highly conservative move at a time when music has proven to be one of our culture's most beautifully progressive spaces".[23]

In The Guardian, Laura Snapes wrote that Pitchfork had provided a vital "leading example" and doubted that specialist music journalism could survive without it. She lamented the job losses, saying that Pitchfork had been one of the last stable employers of freelance music writers.[45] Schreiber said "people are premature to eulogize Pitchfork because there are still a handful of people there who are continuing its mission, albeit with a skeleton crew of a staff". He said he was pleased with the work Pitchfork had published since the announcement of the merge.[9]

Style edit

Pitchfork attracted attention for its unusual, passionate and stylized reviews, which differentiated it from the more scholarly and formal style of magazines such as Rolling Stone.[4][2] The critic Steve Hyden said Pitchfork offered an alternative to music magazines at the end of the 20th century, which were publishing content about Star Wars, nu metal and pop punk.[12] He characterized the Pitchfork voice as that of the outsider mocking the mainstream.[12] Pitchfork contributors said the site was immediately divisive among music fans.[9]

In the Washington Post, J. Freedom du Lac described Pitchfork as entertaining, "hilariously snarky" and "occasionally even enlightening".[46] The Los Angeles Times writer August Brown described it as "raucous, passionate, sometimes blinkered but always evolving".[21] In Slate, Matthew Shaer wrote that the best Pitchfork reviews were "cagey, fierce, witty and graceful".[47] The journalist Dave Itzkoff described Pitchfork reviews as "defiantly passionate and frustratingly capricious" with an "aura of integrity and authenticity that made such pronouncements credible, even definitive, to fans ... insinuating themselves into the grand tradition of rock criticism, joining the ranks of imperious and opinionated writers".[2] Schreiber described the reviews of one early Pitchfork writer, Brent DiCrescenzo, as dense with dialogue and pop culture references, "exploring outlandish scenarios".[12]

Pitchfork's style changed in the 2010s as it broadened its scope and audience, shifting to poptimism.[4][45] The contributor Craig Jenkins said the site had needed to change its "walled-in" perspective, and that it had been "antagonistic toward the stuff that the average person would be appreciating".[9] Plagenhoef felt that the inflammatory "stunt reviews" were limiting, and wanted Pitchfork to be seen as trustworthy and thoughtful.[43] Snapes said some had lamented the change, suggesting that it made Pitchfork "a less specific proposition". However, she felt it reflected modern music consumption and found it heartening that Pitchfork was reviewing a variety of genres and artists.[45] Under Puja Patel, who became the editor in 2018, Pitchfork covered more female, non-binary, queer and non-white artists.[48]

Pitchfork also switched to a more professional style. The editor Amy Phillips illustrated this by comparing her coverage of the announcement of two Radiohead albums, years apart; the first was excitable and "unhinged", whereas the second was more professional and factual.[9] In 2014, the contributor Nate Patrin said Pitchfork had become "what publications like the Village Voice used to be in terms of letting writers go deep without feeling pressured to talk down to readers", with long-form articles and documentaries.[33] By 2017, according to Bloomberg, its reviews had become "as erudite as those of the music magazines that Pitchfork had all but eclipsed in influence".[4] The critic Ann Powers wrote in 2024 that "in the past decade Pitchfork had nurtured many of the best and most influential writers working today".[23] She felt that "great music writing messes with productivity by creating a space to slow down and really immerse in someone else's creative work ... The best writing at Pitchfork or anywhere reflects that process and is as variegated as the human experience itself."[23]

In 2012, a Pitchfork poll asking readers to vote for their favorite music found that 88% of respondents were male. Statistics recorded by Quantcast found that men comprised 82% of Pitchfork readers and that most were aged 18–34.[24] In 2015, The Guardian credited Pitchfork for pioneering design techniques that combined print design and technical innovation to create the impression of a "forward-facing, vibrant title".[49]

Review system edit

Pitchfork reviews do not represent an editorial consensus but the opinion of the individual reviewer.[47] Writers who did not want to use their names used the pseudonym Ray Suzuki, similarly to the filmmaker psuedonym Alan Smithee.[43] By 2021, Pitchfork had published more than 28,000 reviews.[5]

Unlike other music publications, which typically assign scores out of five or ten, Pitchfork uses a decimal scale of 0.0 to 10.0.[46][49] The system has drawn mockery as arbitrary and overprecise.[49] DiCrescenzo described it as "knowingly silly",[50] and in 2021 Pitchfork wrote that it was an "admittedly absurd and subjective" signature element.[5]

In The Ringer, Nate Rogers wrote that a 10.0 from Pitchfork "carries all the historical weight of five stars in Rolling Stone or five mics in The Source ... with its maddening and theoretically precise approach to decimal places, such that an ocean of feeling separates an 8.1 from an 8.9."[43] Though Pitchfork has awarded perfect scores in retrospective reviews, Patel said that it was a "once-in-a-decade thing" for new albums.[43]

Some reviews experimented with the score system. The 2005 Robert Polland album Relaxation of the Asshole received a simultaneous 10 and 0; the review for the 2007 Radiohead album In Rainbows, which allowed fans to pay what they wanted to download, allowed readers to enter their own score.[43] After Pitchfork changed its content management system to require a number, these albums were given fixed scores.[43]

Criticism edit

Prose edit

Pitchfork reviews have been criticized as pretentious, verbose and inaccurate.[46][47] Itzkoff wrote that Pitchfork was overwrought and sometimes hard to understand, with an abundance of adjectives, adverbs and misused words.[2] Shaer identified examples of "verbose and unreadable writing ... dense without being insightful, personal without being interesting".[47] In City Pages, Thomas Lindsay wrote that its prose was florid and sometimes impenetrable, and contained factual errors.[51] Similar criticisms came from Rob Harvilla of the East Bay Express and Claire Suddath of Time.[46][20] Responding to criticism in 2006, Schreiber said he trusted his writers' style and opinions.[51]

Elitism edit

In its early years, Pitchfork was criticized as mean-spirited and elitist, and for publishing reviews that do not meaningfully discuss the music, playing into stereotypes of the cynical hipster.[46] In 2018, the music journalist Robert Christgau described the early years of Pitchfork as "a snotty boys' club open to many 'critics' ... Too many amateur wise-asses and self-appointed aesthetes throwing their weight around."[52]

Many scathing early reviews were by Brent DiCrescenzo, who wrote lengthy reviews that rarely addressed the music.[53] For example, his review of the 2001 Tool album Lateralus consisted mostly of a list of the equipment used by the drummer.[53] Some reviews consist only of single images or videos, implying the record is beneath critical analysis.[53] Schaer wrote in 2006 that Pitchfork typically triumphed acts it had "discovered" and attacked beloved legacy acts and bands popular on music blogs.[47] Some believed that Pitchfork deliberately waited for excitement to build around an act before dismissing it with a critical review.[47]

Itzkoff argued that the obtuse and confrontational style was part of the Pitchfork business model and made their reviews memorable.[2] He suggested that the writers' lack of training or experience, and the fact that they worked for low or no pay, created a sense of authenticity and undermined the authority of traditional media.[2] Schreiber conceded that Pitchfork had a reputation for snobbery, but said its writers were "really just honest, opinionated music fans".[46]

Race and gender edit

In the 2000s, Pitchfork was criticized for focusing on music made by white men.[21] In its early years, its staff comprised almost entirely white men.[30] In 2007, the female rapper M.I.A. criticized Pitchfork for assuming that her album Kala had been produced entirely by the male producer Diplo. Another Pitchfork writer described the error as "perpetuating the male-led ingenue myth".[54] M.I.A. and the singer Björk argued that this was part of a wider problem of journalists assuming that female artists do not write or produce their own music.[55][56] The Pitchfork contributor Andrew Nosnitsky argued that hip-hop, not indie rock, was the "defining music" of his generation, but that Pitchfork was viewed as the defining music publication for "purely mechanical and straight-up white-supremacy reasons".[9]

Parodies edit

Pitchfork has attracted multiple parodies.[47] In 2005, Pitchfork invited the comedian David Cross to write a list of his favorite albums. Cross wrote that he was surprised by the invitation, citing several insulting Pitchfork reviews of his comedy albums, and instead wrote a "withering and absurdist" article titled "Albums to listen to while reading overwrought Pitchfork reviews".[53][57] In 2007, the satirical website The Onion published a piece in which Pitchfork reviewed music as a whole and gave it a score of 6.8.[49] The music blog Idolator ran a feature asking readers to guess which lines came from Pitchfork reviews and which were fabricated.[20] In 2010, the writer David Shapiro started a Tumblr blog, "Pitchfork Reviews Reviews", which reviewed Pitchfork reviews and assessed their arguments. It attracted more than 100,000 followers and a profile in the New York Times.[58]

Influence edit

 
Pitchfork is credited for launching the careers of indie rock bands such as Arcade Fire (pictured in 2005).

Spencer Kornhaber of the Atlantic described Pitchfork as the most influential music publication to emerge in the internet age.[24] Alex Young, the founder of Consequence of Sound, wrote that "the earliest iterations of Consequence of Sound emulated much of what Pitchfork did — especially as it came to creating an editorial voice, developing a consistent content strategy, and packaging a love of music in a compelling way".[59]

Itzkoff, a former editor for Spin, described the Spin staff checking Pitchfork regularly: "If it was lavishing attention on a new band, we at least had to ask ourselves why we weren't doing the same: by then, our value as a trustworthy and consistent filter had waned."[2] The critic Carl Wilson said Pitchfork drove a "feeding frenzy about band discovery" in North American music journalism, with publications vying to discover new acts.[9]

In the 2000s, Pitchfork was credited with "making or breaking" musical careers, a phenomenon known as the "Pitchfork effect".[46][2] In 2006, the Washington Post described Schreiber as an "indie-rock kingmaker" and wrote that "an endorsement from Pitchfork ... is very valuable, indeed".[46] Megan Jasper, the CEO of the record label Sub Pop, said favorable Pitchfork reviews would immediately drive sales, whereas poorly reviewed albums received "a really loud nothing".[9] She said it became normal for indie rock bands to sell 100,000 records, exceeding label expectations.[9]

The managing editor, Scott Plagenhoef, downplayed Pitchfork's influence, saying it merely "accelerated the process".[2] After Pitchfork awarded 9.7 to the debut album by Arcade Fire, Funeral (2004), it became the fastest-selling record in the history of Merge Records.[46] Other acts whose careers were boosted by Pitchfork in the 2000s include the Dismemberment Plan, Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, Modest Mouse, Broken Social Scene, Bon Iver and Sufjan Stevens.[2][21][46] Schreiber said: "We wanted to create a roster of artists who people found out about through Pitchfork, who became associated with Pitchfork."[9]

After Pitchfork awarded 0.0 to Travistan (2004), the debut solo album by the Dismemberment Plan singer Travis Morrison, his solo career effectively ended.[22] Years later, Morrison described the experience as "frightening and awful".[22] Schreiber said he felt bad for him, but that it was important for Pitchfork writers to be honest.[2] Other albums to receive 0.0 include Zaireeka (1995) by the Flaming Lips, NYC Ghosts & Flowers (2000) by Sonic Youth, Liz Phair (2003) by Liz Phair and Shine On (2006) by Jet.[46][49] The Jet review consisted entirely of a video of a chimp urinating into its own mouth and was widely shared.[43] The authors of the Phair and Sonic Youth reviews later changed their opinions and apologized to the artists.[22][60]

In Slate, Amos Barshad cited the band Black Kids as the most infamous example of Pitchfork "at its most deleterious".[22] Pitchfork's review of the debut Black Kids EP, Wizard of Ahhhs, boosted their career; however, when Pitchfork gave their debut album, Partie Traumatic (2008), a score of 3.3, with a review consisting entirely of a photograph of two frowning dogs and a frowning emoticon, their career collapsed.[22] Plagenhoef said Pitchfork later became more cautious in publishing negative reviews, as they were no longer "little guys on the internet throwing rocks at big artists".[2]

The influence of Pitchfork on musical careers declined with the onset of streaming and social media in the 2010s.[21][22] In 2017, a senior editor for independent music at the streaming platform Spotify said that Pitchfork no longer had the same impact on artists' popularity.[4] However, according to Tani, "Even as its GenX and old millennial fans aged and tastemaking shifted to platforms and influencers, Pitchfork remained the premier publication for music criticism, its year-end lists synonymous with critical acclaim."[38]

References edit

  1. ^ a b c d Rogers, Jude (November 24, 2006). "Site Seers". The Guardian. Retrieved July 16, 2022.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r Itzkoff, Dave (2006). "Inside Pitchfork, the site that shook up music journalism". Wired. ISSN 1059-1028. Retrieved January 29, 2024.
  3. ^ a b c d e Littleton, Cynthia (October 13, 2015). "Q&A: Pitchfork Founder Ryan Schreiber on Conde Nast Sale, Indie Roots and Expansion". Variety. Retrieved July 16, 2022.
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o Leonard, Devin (May 3, 2017). "Pitchfork grows up". Bloomberg News. from the original on November 21, 2018. Retrieved November 21, 2018.
  5. ^ a b c "The History of Pitchfork's Reviews Section in 38 Important Reviews". Pitchfork. May 25, 2021. Retrieved May 25, 2021.
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  8. ^ a b c d Hogan, Marc (January 18, 2024). "Pouring One Out for Pitchfork - 9.2 Music Publication in a 3.7 Digital Media World". Rolling Stone. Retrieved January 28, 2024.
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  12. ^ a b c d e f g Enis, Eli (March 26, 2020). "Everything In Its Right Place: How a Perfect 10.0 Review of Radiohead's Kid A Changed Music Criticism 20 Years Ago". Billboard. Retrieved January 27, 2024.
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  14. ^ a b c "Outgoing Pitchfork president reflects on evolution of the Chicago media company". Chicago Tribune. July 20, 2017. Retrieved January 28, 2024.
  15. ^ a b c Frey, Hillary (November 29, 2004). "Pitchforkmedia.com music dudes dictate culture from Chicago". Observer.com.
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External links edit

  • Official website  

January 01, 1970
pitchfork, website, pitchfork, formerly, pitchfork, media, american, online, music, publication, founded, 1996, ryan, schreiber, minneapolis, originally, covered, alternative, independent, music, expanded, cover, genres, including, jazz, metal, pitchfork, most. Pitchfork formerly Pitchfork Media is an American online music publication founded in 1996 by Ryan Schreiber in Minneapolis It originally covered alternative and independent music and expanded to cover genres including pop hip hop jazz and metal Pitchfork is one of the most influential music publications to have emerged in the internet age PitchforkThe Pitchfork homepage in 2016Type of siteOnline music magazineAvailable inEnglishFounded1996 28 years ago 1996 Country of originUnited StatesOwnerConde NastCreated byRyan SchreiberURLpitchfork wbr comCommercialYesRegistrationNoLaunched1996 28 years ago 1996 Current statusActive In the 2000s Pitchfork distinguished itself from print media through its unusual reviews frequent updates and coverage of emerging acts It was praised as passionate authentic and unique but criticized as pretentious mean spirited and elitist playing into stereotypes of the cynical hipster It is credited with popularizing acts such as Arcade Fire Broken Social Scene Bon Iver and Sufjan Stevens Pitchfork relocated to Chicago in 1999 and Brooklyn New York in 2011 It expanded in the 2000s launching projects including the annual Pitchfork Music Festival in Chicago in 2006 the video site Pitchfork tv in 2008 and a print publication The Pitchfork Review in 2011 It also began covering more mainstream music and issues of gender race and identity As of 2014 Pitchfork was receiving around 6 2 million unique visitors every month The influence of Pitchfork declined in the 2010s with the growth of streaming and social media In 2015 it was acquired by the mass media company Conde Nast and moved to One World Trade Center After the acquisition the former co owner Chris Kaskie left in 2017 followed by Schreiber in 2019 In 2024 Conde Nast announced plans to merge Pitchfork into the men s magazine GQ resulting in layoffs The merge drew criticism and triggered concern about the implications for music journalism Contents 1 History 1 1 1996 2003 Early years 1 2 2004 2005 Growing influence and professional growth 1 3 2006 2010 Expanding operations 1 4 2010 2014 Diversification declining influence and sister publications 1 5 2015 2016 Purchase by Conde Nast 1 6 2017 2023 Departures of Kaskie and Schreiber 1 7 2024 Merge into GQ and layoffs 2 Style 2 1 Review system 3 Criticism 3 1 Prose 3 2 Elitism 3 3 Race and gender 3 4 Parodies 4 Influence 5 References 6 External linksHistory edit1996 2003 Early years edit Pitchfork was created in February 1996 by Ryan Schreiber a high school graduate living in his parents home in Minneapolis 1 Schreiber grew up listening to indie rock acts such as Fugazi Jawbox and Guided by Voices 2 He was influenced by fanzine culture and had no previous writing experience 3 Schreiber initially named the website Turntable but changed it after another website claimed the rights 4 The name Pitchfork was inspired by the tattoo on the assassin Tony Montana in the film Scarface Schreiber chose it as it was concise and had evilish overtones 2 Schreiber wrote the first review of Pacer 1995 by the Amps 5 The record store Insound was Pitchfork s first advertiser 4 Early Pitchfork reviews focused on indie rock and were often critical The Washington Post described them as brutal and merciless writing The site s stable of critics often seemed capricious uninvested sometimes spiteful assigning low scores on a signature 10 point scale with punitive zeal 6 Schreiber said the site s early period was about really laying into people who really deserved it and defended the importance of honesty in arts criticism 7 In 1999 Schreiber relocated Pitchfork to Chicago 8 He estimated that Pitchfork had published 1 000 reviews by this point 9 Around the turn of the millennium the American music press was dominated by monthly magazines such as Rolling Stone creating a gap in the market for faster moving publication that emphasized new acts 10 Pitchfork could publish several articles a day greatly outpacing print media 11 New technologies such as MP3 the iPod and the file sharing service Napster created greater access to music and music blogs became an important resource creating further opportunity for Pitchfork 11 The contributors Mark Richardson and Eric Harvey said this was an important part of Pitchfork s early popularity as music fans could share and listen to recordings while reading daily updates 9 In 2000 Pitchfork s 10 0 10 0 review of the new Radiohead album Kid A written by Brent DiCrescenzo generated a surge in readership and was one of the first signs of Pitchfork becoming a major publication 3 4 It attracted attention for its unusual style and the speed of its publication following the album review 12 Billboard described it as extremely long winded and brazenly unhinged from the journalistic form and temperament of the time 12 While it was widely mocked it boosted Pitchfork s profile 12 Schreiber said he understood the review would make Pitchfork subject to ridicule but wanted Pitchfork to be daring and to surprise people 12 In 2001 Pitchfork had 30 000 daily readers 2 2004 2005 Growing influence and professional growth edit In 2004 Pitchfork hired its first full time employee Chris Kaskie formerly of the satirical website The Onion to run business operations 8 Kaskie later became the company s president and co owner 13 14 Pitchfork s first professional editor Scott Plagenhoef was hired shortly afterwards 9 8 Kaskie and Plagenhoef are credited for turning Pitchfork into a professional operation It began to scale quickly the more money it made the more resources it had for reviews and articles 13 9 As of 2004 Pitchfork had eight full time employees and about 50 freelance staff members most of whom worked remotely and co ordinated through phone and internet 15 Pitchfork writers were unpaid for their first six months after which they could earn 10 or 20 for a review or 40 for a feature In 2004 following staff tensions about Schreiber s advertising income Pitchfork started paying writers from their first articles at a slightly improved rate 15 That year Pitchfork published a positive review of the debut album by Arcade Fire Funeral It became a bestseller and is cited as the first major example of Pitchfork s influence on independent music attracting coverage of Pitchfork from outlets such as the Los Angeles Times 9 The contributor Jess Weiss said the review changed everything 9 By 2005 Pitchfork was attracting around one million readers a month with an annual revenue of around 5 million 4 16 That year Schreiber said he would refuse any offer to buy Pitchfork It would change into the antithesis of the reason I started it This is something I am so in love with this is my entire adult life s work 15 2006 2010 Expanding operations edit nbsp Slint at Pitchfork Music Festival 2007 By 2006 traditional music media such as print magazines music video channels and radio stations had declined or changed focus but music listeners still sought a reliable source of recommendations 2 Without the limitations of print media Pitchfork was able to champion emerging independent acts that major print magazines which had to sell millions of copies every year could not 2 Schreiber said he felt magazines were not even trying to discover new music Publications used to take more chances on artists putting bands on the cover that they thought deserved to be there 1 He said Pitchfork was able to take risks as it was not interested in appeasing bands record labels or advertisers 1 In 2006 Pitchfork had 170 000 daily readers and was publishing five album reviews a day with six full time employees 1 2 Schreiber said that Pitchfork was able to sustain paid freelancers and eight employees though they were always cutting it close 7 He said he had attracted interest from investors but wanted to retain control and that journalistic integrity was his priority 2 7 In August 2006 an internal Pitchfork server containing promotional copies of hundreds of albums was hacked including the upcoming Joanna Newsom album Ys 17 In the mid 2000s Pitchfork expanded its operations In 2006 it launched the annual Pitchfork Music Festival in Chicago 6 The first Paris Pitchfork Music Festival was held in 2011 18 Kaskie said it was exciting to see acts Pitchfork had championed playing to large crowds We start to see these bands playing in front of audiences 10 times the size of their biggest show ever That s the goal man To put fucking Titus Andronicus in front of 10 000 people 9 In April 2008 after acquiring the live music show Juan s Basement Pitchfork launched Pitchfork tv a website displaying interviews music videos and feature length films 19 In November it published a book The Pitchfork 500 covering the preceding 30 years of music 20 By the end of the 2000s Pitchfork had become influential in the music industry credited for launching acts such as Arcade Fire and Bon Iver 6 Employees at record labels and record stores would use it to anticipate interest in acts 7 It was also attracting large sponsors such as American Express and Apple 4 2010 2014 Diversification declining influence and sister publications edit The influence of Pitchfork on music careers declined around the turn of the decade as streaming and social media fractured audiences and reduced the need for gatekeepers 21 22 Streaming services began to fulfil Pitchfork s function of helping new artists find audiences and independent music criticism moved to podcasts and YouTube 21 Declining music industry revenues reduced advertising spending and Pitchfork faced competition from advertisers such as Facebook 11 According to the Los Angeles Times The internet era that birthed Pitchfork s blend of saucy writing outre tastes and massive popularity was by and large over 21 Over the following decade Pitchfork shifted its editorial range and style 23 It began running features and news alongside reviews coming to resemble a more conventional music publication 23 It also diversified from indie rock to cover mainstream music including pop rap and metal and began covering issues of gender race and identity in music influenced by movements such as MeToo and Black Lives Matter 21 24 Schreiber said that our tastes broadened with age and experience and that Pitchfork could make a difference to social causes 21 In July 2010 Pitchfork launched Altered Zones a blog aggregator devoted to underground and DIY music 25 In 2011 Pitchfork relocated to Brooklyn New York 26 On May 21 Pitchfork announced a partnership with the website Kill Screen in which Pitchfork would publish some of their articles 27 Altered Zones closed on November 30 25 On December 26 2012 Pitchfork launched Nothing Major a website that covered visual arts 28 which closed in October 2013 29 Pitchfork launched a film website The Dissolve in 2013 It closed in 2015 citing financial challenges 30 Kaskie later said he remained proud of The Dissolve and that it was a huge success from the creative and editorial design and everything else 14 In 2013 the rapper Chief Keef was arrested for violating a probation sentence by using a rifle in a promotional video by Pitchfork Staff later described the episode as a low point and an example of how Pitchfork mishandled hip hop artists 9 In December Pitchfork launched The Pitchfork Review a quarterly print journal focused on long form music writing and design focused content Pitchfork planned a limited edition quarterly publication of about 10 000 copies of each issue printed on glossy high quality paper 31 It was expected that about two thirds of the content would be original with the remaining reused from the Pitchfork website 31 The International Business Times likened the literary aspirations to The New Yorker and the Paris Review 32 In 2013 Pitchfork won the National Magazine Award for general excellence in digital media 4 As of 2014 Pitchfork was receiving around 6 2 million unique visitors and 40 million pageviews every month with an expected annual revenue growth of 25 to 40 percent Its primary revenue came from advertising 33 That August Pitchfork had 2 47 million unique visitors more than the websites for Spin or Vibe but fewer than Rolling Stone s 11 million 33 By this point Pitchfork was had grown to capacity and began to seek ways to find investment to fuel its growth and ambition Kaskie said he spent a year in meetings with private equity or venture capitalists to evaluate their potential investment but due to the fact they all only sought scale it wasn t deemed a logical fit based on Pitchfork s goals 9 2015 2016 Purchase by Conde Nast edit nbsp One World Trade Center Manhattan the site of Pitchfork s offices since 2015 On October 13 2015 the American mass media company Conde Nast announced that it had acquired Pitchfork 34 At this point Pitchfork had about 50 employees with advertising sales and development staff in Chicago and editorial and video production staff in Brooklyn 3 Kaskie said our needs and wants were converging and that Pitchfork needed capital and expertise to expand its publication and festivals 14 The sale boosted Pitchfork s value to advertisers 4 The Conde Nast CEO Bob Sauerberg described Pitchfork as a distinguished digital property that brings a strong editorial voice an enthusiastic and young audience a growing video platform and a thriving events business 10 Previously Pitchfork s independence had been a key aspect of its image 3 24 Schreiber said it would continue to have creative independence 3 Pitchfork relocated to the Conde Nast offices in One World Trade Center Manhattan 4 The acquisition triggered concern the New York Observer wrote that was a death knell for indie rock 4 The Conde Nast chief digital officer Fred Santarpia was criticized when he said the acquisition would bring a very passionate audience of millennial males into our roster 6 Schreiber responded on Twitter that women were a huge part of Pitchfork s staff and readership and that Pitchfork aimed to reach all music fans everywhere 6 On March 13 2016 Pitchfork launched its first new design since 2011 35 That October Pitchfork had 4 1 million unique visitors up from 2 7 million the previous October 4 With Schreiber aiming to make Pitchfork the world s best repository for music content Pitchfork began creating videos and retrospective articles about classic albums released before its founding 4 The Pitchfork Review ended after 11 issues in November 2016 36 2017 2023 Departures of Kaskie and Schreiber edit nbsp Anna Wintour the Conde Nast chief content officer in 2010 Kaskie announced his departure from Pitchfork in May 2017 37 He had been frustrated by his diminished role under Conde Nast and Pitchfork s reduced autonomy 38 On September 18 2018 Schreiber stepped down as the top editor He was replaced by Puja Patel who had worked at Spin and Gawker Media as editor in chief on October 15 Schreiber remained as a strategic advisor 39 He said he later realized that Conde Nast did not understand Pitchfork and had unrealistic expectations of its performance 9 Patel came under pressure to cut costs amid declining traffic from social media and competition from streaming platforms which offered a new means for listeners to discover music 38 Pitchfork staff conflicted with Conde Nast over its attempts to monetize Pitchfork Music Festival by making it into a luxury experience 38 Santarpia left Conde Nast in 2018 leaving Pitchfork under the purview of Anna Wintour the chief content officer 38 Two former Pitchfork staffers told The Verge that Wintour did not care about music or understand the internet 11 Schreiber announced his departure on January 8 2019 saying he wanted to keep pushing boundaries and exploring new things 40 The Los Angeles Times said the departure came at a time of existential change for the media industries citing the rise of streaming services and social media and the downsizing of many major music publications 40 That month Conde Nast announced it would put all its publications including Pitchfork behind a paywall by the end of the year 41 It abandoned experiments with Pitchfork paywalls following criticism from readers 38 In 2020 Conde Nast laid off the executive editor Matthew Schnipper and the features editor and union chair Stacey Anderson 8 In 2022 and 2023 Pitchfork had about 3 million unique visitors a month down by about 36 from 2021 11 2024 Merge into GQ and layoffs edit On January 17 2024 Wintour announced that Pitchfork would merge with the men s magazine GQ 42 Staff including Patel were laid off leaving around a dozen editorial staff including some working on multiple Conde Nast publications 38 Max Tani of Semafor reported that remaining staff at Pitchfork and GQ were depressed and embarrassed by the merge 38 As of that month Pitchfork had the most daily active users of any Conde Nast publication 43 Several music journalists and publications reacted with sadness and concern for the future of music journalism 44 Tani and The Washington Post s Chris Richards expressed disgust that Pitchfork once independent and provocative would be absorbed into an establishment men s magazine 6 38 The American critic Ann Powers wrote that the merge felt like a highly conservative move at a time when music has proven to be one of our culture s most beautifully progressive spaces 23 In The Guardian Laura Snapes wrote that Pitchfork had provided a vital leading example and doubted that specialist music journalism could survive without it She lamented the job losses saying that Pitchfork had been one of the last stable employers of freelance music writers 45 Schreiber said people are premature to eulogize Pitchfork because there are still a handful of people there who are continuing its mission albeit with a skeleton crew of a staff He said he was pleased with the work Pitchfork had published since the announcement of the merge 9 Style editPitchfork attracted attention for its unusual passionate and stylized reviews which differentiated it from the more scholarly and formal style of magazines such as Rolling Stone 4 2 The critic Steve Hyden said Pitchfork offered an alternative to music magazines at the end of the 20th century which were publishing content about Star Wars nu metal and pop punk 12 He characterized the Pitchfork voice as that of the outsider mocking the mainstream 12 Pitchfork contributors said the site was immediately divisive among music fans 9 In the Washington Post J Freedom du Lac described Pitchfork as entertaining hilariously snarky and occasionally even enlightening 46 The Los Angeles Times writer August Brown described it as raucous passionate sometimes blinkered but always evolving 21 In Slate Matthew Shaer wrote that the best Pitchfork reviews were cagey fierce witty and graceful 47 The journalist Dave Itzkoff described Pitchfork reviews as defiantly passionate and frustratingly capricious with an aura of integrity and authenticity that made such pronouncements credible even definitive to fans insinuating themselves into the grand tradition of rock criticism joining the ranks of imperious and opinionated writers 2 Schreiber described the reviews of one early Pitchfork writer Brent DiCrescenzo as dense with dialogue and pop culture references exploring outlandish scenarios 12 Pitchfork s style changed in the 2010s as it broadened its scope and audience shifting to poptimism 4 45 The contributor Craig Jenkins said the site had needed to change its walled in perspective and that it had been antagonistic toward the stuff that the average person would be appreciating 9 Plagenhoef felt that the inflammatory stunt reviews were limiting and wanted Pitchfork to be seen as trustworthy and thoughtful 43 Snapes said some had lamented the change suggesting that it made Pitchfork a less specific proposition However she felt it reflected modern music consumption and found it heartening that Pitchfork was reviewing a variety of genres and artists 45 Under Puja Patel who became the editor in 2018 Pitchfork covered more female non binary queer and non white artists 48 Pitchfork also switched to a more professional style The editor Amy Phillips illustrated this by comparing her coverage of the announcement of two Radiohead albums years apart the first was excitable and unhinged whereas the second was more professional and factual 9 In 2014 the contributor Nate Patrin said Pitchfork had become what publications like the Village Voice used to be in terms of letting writers go deep without feeling pressured to talk down to readers with long form articles and documentaries 33 By 2017 according to Bloomberg its reviews had become as erudite as those of the music magazines that Pitchfork had all but eclipsed in influence 4 The critic Ann Powers wrote in 2024 that in the past decade Pitchfork had nurtured many of the best and most influential writers working today 23 She felt that great music writing messes with productivity by creating a space to slow down and really immerse in someone else s creative work The best writing at Pitchfork or anywhere reflects that process and is as variegated as the human experience itself 23 In 2012 a Pitchfork poll asking readers to vote for their favorite music found that 88 of respondents were male Statistics recorded by Quantcast found that men comprised 82 of Pitchfork readers and that most were aged 18 34 24 In 2015 The Guardian credited Pitchfork for pioneering design techniques that combined print design and technical innovation to create the impression of a forward facing vibrant title 49 Review system edit Pitchfork reviews do not represent an editorial consensus but the opinion of the individual reviewer 47 Writers who did not want to use their names used the pseudonym Ray Suzuki similarly to the filmmaker psuedonym Alan Smithee 43 By 2021 Pitchfork had published more than 28 000 reviews 5 Unlike other music publications which typically assign scores out of five or ten Pitchfork uses a decimal scale of 0 0 to 10 0 46 49 The system has drawn mockery as arbitrary and overprecise 49 DiCrescenzo described it as knowingly silly 50 and in 2021 Pitchfork wrote that it was an admittedly absurd and subjective signature element 5 In The Ringer Nate Rogers wrote that a 10 0 from Pitchfork carries all the historical weight of five stars in Rolling Stone or five mics in The Source with its maddening and theoretically precise approach to decimal places such that an ocean of feeling separates an 8 1 from an 8 9 43 Though Pitchfork has awarded perfect scores in retrospective reviews Patel said that it was a once in a decade thing for new albums 43 Some reviews experimented with the score system The 2005 Robert Polland album Relaxation of the Asshole received a simultaneous 10 and 0 the review for the 2007 Radiohead album In Rainbows which allowed fans to pay what they wanted to download allowed readers to enter their own score 43 After Pitchfork changed its content management system to require a number these albums were given fixed scores 43 Criticism editProse edit Pitchfork reviews have been criticized as pretentious verbose and inaccurate 46 47 Itzkoff wrote that Pitchfork was overwrought and sometimes hard to understand with an abundance of adjectives adverbs and misused words 2 Shaer identified examples of verbose and unreadable writing dense without being insightful personal without being interesting 47 In City Pages Thomas Lindsay wrote that its prose was florid and sometimes impenetrable and contained factual errors 51 Similar criticisms came from Rob Harvilla of the East Bay Express and Claire Suddath of Time 46 20 Responding to criticism in 2006 Schreiber said he trusted his writers style and opinions 51 Elitism edit In its early years Pitchfork was criticized as mean spirited and elitist and for publishing reviews that do not meaningfully discuss the music playing into stereotypes of the cynical hipster 46 In 2018 the music journalist Robert Christgau described the early years of Pitchfork as a snotty boys club open to many critics Too many amateur wise asses and self appointed aesthetes throwing their weight around 52 Many scathing early reviews were by Brent DiCrescenzo who wrote lengthy reviews that rarely addressed the music 53 For example his review of the 2001 Tool album Lateralus consisted mostly of a list of the equipment used by the drummer 53 Some reviews consist only of single images or videos implying the record is beneath critical analysis 53 Schaer wrote in 2006 that Pitchfork typically triumphed acts it had discovered and attacked beloved legacy acts and bands popular on music blogs 47 Some believed that Pitchfork deliberately waited for excitement to build around an act before dismissing it with a critical review 47 Itzkoff argued that the obtuse and confrontational style was part of the Pitchfork business model and made their reviews memorable 2 He suggested that the writers lack of training or experience and the fact that they worked for low or no pay created a sense of authenticity and undermined the authority of traditional media 2 Schreiber conceded that Pitchfork had a reputation for snobbery but said its writers were really just honest opinionated music fans 46 Race and gender edit In the 2000s Pitchfork was criticized for focusing on music made by white men 21 In its early years its staff comprised almost entirely white men 30 In 2007 the female rapper M I A criticized Pitchfork for assuming that her album Kala had been produced entirely by the male producer Diplo Another Pitchfork writer described the error as perpetuating the male led ingenue myth 54 M I A and the singer Bjork argued that this was part of a wider problem of journalists assuming that female artists do not write or produce their own music 55 56 The Pitchfork contributor Andrew Nosnitsky argued that hip hop not indie rock was the defining music of his generation but that Pitchfork was viewed as the defining music publication for purely mechanical and straight up white supremacy reasons 9 Parodies edit Pitchfork has attracted multiple parodies 47 In 2005 Pitchfork invited the comedian David Cross to write a list of his favorite albums Cross wrote that he was surprised by the invitation citing several insulting Pitchfork reviews of his comedy albums and instead wrote a withering and absurdist article titled Albums to listen to while reading overwrought Pitchfork reviews 53 57 In 2007 the satirical website The Onion published a piece in which Pitchfork reviewed music as a whole and gave it a score of 6 8 49 The music blog Idolator ran a feature asking readers to guess which lines came from Pitchfork reviews and which were fabricated 20 In 2010 the writer David Shapiro started a Tumblr blog Pitchfork Reviews Reviews which reviewed Pitchfork reviews and assessed their arguments It attracted more than 100 000 followers and a profile in the New York Times 58 Influence edit nbsp Pitchfork is credited for launching the careers of indie rock bands such as Arcade Fire pictured in 2005 Spencer Kornhaber of the Atlantic described Pitchfork as the most influential music publication to emerge in the internet age 24 Alex Young the founder of Consequence of Sound wrote that the earliest iterations of Consequence of Sound emulated much of what Pitchfork did especially as it came to creating an editorial voice developing a consistent content strategy and packaging a love of music in a compelling way 59 Itzkoff a former editor for Spin described the Spin staff checking Pitchfork regularly If it was lavishing attention on a new band we at least had to ask ourselves why we weren t doing the same by then our value as a trustworthy and consistent filter had waned 2 The critic Carl Wilson said Pitchfork drove a feeding frenzy about band discovery in North American music journalism with publications vying to discover new acts 9 In the 2000s Pitchfork was credited with making or breaking musical careers a phenomenon known as the Pitchfork effect 46 2 In 2006 the Washington Post described Schreiber as an indie rock kingmaker and wrote that an endorsement from Pitchfork is very valuable indeed 46 Megan Jasper the CEO of the record label Sub Pop said favorable Pitchfork reviews would immediately drive sales whereas poorly reviewed albums received a really loud nothing 9 She said it became normal for indie rock bands to sell 100 000 records exceeding label expectations 9 The managing editor Scott Plagenhoef downplayed Pitchfork s influence saying it merely accelerated the process 2 After Pitchfork awarded 9 7 to the debut album by Arcade Fire Funeral 2004 it became the fastest selling record in the history of Merge Records 46 Other acts whose careers were boosted by Pitchfork in the 2000s include the Dismemberment Plan Clap Your Hands Say Yeah Modest Mouse Broken Social Scene Bon Iver and Sufjan Stevens 2 21 46 Schreiber said We wanted to create a roster of artists who people found out about through Pitchfork who became associated with Pitchfork 9 After Pitchfork awarded 0 0 to Travistan 2004 the debut solo album by the Dismemberment Plan singer Travis Morrison his solo career effectively ended 22 Years later Morrison described the experience as frightening and awful 22 Schreiber said he felt bad for him but that it was important for Pitchfork writers to be honest 2 Other albums to receive 0 0 include Zaireeka 1995 by the Flaming Lips NYC Ghosts amp Flowers 2000 by Sonic Youth Liz Phair 2003 by Liz Phair and Shine On 2006 by Jet 46 49 The Jet review consisted entirely of a video of a chimp urinating into its own mouth and was widely shared 43 The authors of the Phair and Sonic Youth reviews later changed their opinions and apologized to the artists 22 60 In Slate Amos Barshad cited the band Black Kids as the most infamous example of Pitchfork at its most deleterious 22 Pitchfork s review of the debut Black Kids EP Wizard of Ahhhs boosted their career however when Pitchfork gave their debut album Partie Traumatic 2008 a score of 3 3 with a review consisting entirely of a photograph of two frowning dogs and a frowning emoticon their career collapsed 22 Plagenhoef said Pitchfork later became more cautious in publishing negative reviews as they were no longer little guys on the internet throwing rocks at big artists 2 The influence of Pitchfork on musical careers declined with the onset of streaming and social media in the 2010s 21 22 In 2017 a senior editor for independent music at the streaming platform Spotify said that Pitchfork no longer had the same impact on artists popularity 4 However according to Tani Even as its GenX and old millennial fans aged and tastemaking shifted to platforms and influencers Pitchfork remained the premier publication for music criticism its year end lists synonymous with critical acclaim 38 References edit a b c d Rogers Jude November 24 2006 Site Seers The Guardian Retrieved July 16 2022 a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r Itzkoff Dave 2006 Inside Pitchfork the site that shook up music journalism Wired ISSN 1059 1028 Retrieved January 29 2024 a b c d e Littleton Cynthia October 13 2015 Q amp A Pitchfork Founder Ryan Schreiber on Conde Nast Sale Indie Roots and Expansion Variety Retrieved July 16 2022 a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o Leonard Devin May 3 2017 Pitchfork grows up Bloomberg News Archived from the original on November 21 2018 Retrieved November 21 2018 a b c The History of Pitchfork s Reviews Section in 38 Important Reviews Pitchfork May 25 2021 Retrieved May 25 2021 a b c d e f Richards Chris January 18 2024 The end of Pitchfork is an ugly omen for music journalism s future Washington Post ISSN 0190 8286 Retrieved January 28 2024 a b c d Freedom du Lac J April 30 2006 Giving Indie Acts A Plug or Pulling It The Washington Post Archived from the original on April 25 2017 Retrieved April 27 2017 a b c d Hogan Marc January 18 2024 Pouring One Out for Pitchfork 9 2 Music Publication in a 3 7 Digital Media World Rolling Stone Retrieved January 28 2024 a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s Kois Dan Pahwa Nitish Winkie Luke March 19 2024 The oral history of Pitchfork from the careers it made to the bands it killed Slate ISSN 1091 2339 Retrieved March 23 2024 a b Cardew Ben October 16 2015 What did Pitchfork get right when most music magazines are losing sales The Guardian ISSN 0261 3077 Retrieved January 28 2024 a b c d e Lopatto Elizabeth March 19 2024 Pitchfork lived and died by the internet The Verge Retrieved March 21 2024 a b c d e f g Enis Eli March 26 2020 Everything In Its Right Place How a Perfect 10 0 Review of Radiohead s Kid A Changed Music Criticism 20 Years Ago Billboard Retrieved January 27 2024 a b Lopatto Elizabeth March 19 2024 Indie rocked The Verge Retrieved April 5 2024 a b c Outgoing Pitchfork president reflects on evolution of the Chicago media company Chicago Tribune July 20 2017 Retrieved January 28 2024 a b c Frey Hillary November 29 2004 Pitchforkmedia com 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peril a word on the purpose of music journalism NPR Retrieved February 7 2024 a b c d Kornhaber Spencer October 13 2015 Pitchfork the Reluctant Men s Magazine The Atlantic Retrieved July 16 2022 a b Altered Zones RIP BrooklynVegan November 30 2011 Archived from the original on March 26 2021 Retrieved May 30 2013 Hopper Jessica Nelson J R December 15 2011 The last of Pitchfork s local editorial staff heads to Brooklyn Chicago Reader Retrieved January 18 2024 Pitchfork Announces Partnership With Kill Screen Pitchfork May 21 2011 Archived from the original on October 13 2016 Retrieved October 13 2016 Welcome to Nothing Major Pitchfork December 26 2012 Archived from the original on June 14 2013 Retrieved May 30 2013 So Long for Now Nothing Major October 16 2013 Archived from the original on February 18 2015 Retrieved September 29 2014 a b Kois Dan Harris Aisha Hamilton Jack Stahl Jeremy Martinelli Marissa Bloomer Jeffrey July 8 2015 The Dissolve Is Folding Here Are Its Best Movie Reviews and Essays Slate ISSN 1091 2339 Retrieved February 5 2024 a b Sisario Ben November 21 2013 With Pitchfork Review a Music Site Plants a Flag in Print The New York Times Archived from the original on November 25 2013 Zara Christopher November 21 2013 Pitchfork Media Takes A Stab At Print With The Pitchfork Review Can It Save Music Magazines International Business Times Archived from the original on February 3 2014 a b c Singer Dan November 13 2014 Are Professional Music Critics an Endangered Species American Journalism Review Archived from the original on September 16 2015 Retrieved September 13 2015 Somaiya Ravi October 13 2015 Conde Nast Buys Pitchfork Media The New York Times Archived from the original on July 9 2017 Retrieved October 13 2015 Introducing Pitchfork s New Website Our first full redesign since 2011 Pitchfork March 13 2016 Archived from the original on March 15 2016 Retrieved March 15 2016 Cush Andy February 23 2017 Sources The Pitchfork Review Pitchfork s Print Quarterly Is Quietly Shutting Down Spin Archived from the original on April 19 2017 Retrieved April 18 2017 Schneider Marc May 30 2017 Pitchfork President Chris Kaskie Is Stepping Down Billboard Retrieved February 5 2024 a b c d e f g h i Tani Max February 5 2024 How Conde Nast bought and destroyed America s iconic music publication Semafor Retrieved February 5 2024 Levine Jon September 19 2018 Pitchfork Founder and Top Editor Ryan Schreiber Steps Down TheWrap Retrieved February 5 2024 a b Brown August January 9 2019 Pitchfork s Ryan Schreiber shaped Internet music journalism and now leaves it behind Los Angeles Times Archived from the original on January 23 2019 Retrieved January 24 2019 Trachtenberg Jeffrey A January 23 2019 Conde Nast to Put All Titles Behind Paywalls by Year End The Wall Street Journal Archived from the original on January 23 2019 Retrieved January 24 2019 Deb Sopan January 17 2024 Conde Nast Is Folding Pitchfork Into GQ With Layoffs The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Retrieved January 17 2024 a b c d e f g h Rogers Nate April 2 2024 The ballad of Ray Suzuki the secret life of early Pitchfork and the most notorious review ever written The Ringer Retrieved April 2 2024 Anger and sadness over Pitchfork merger with GQ BBC News January 18 2024 Retrieved January 23 2024 a b c Snapes Laura January 18 2024 Pitchfork s absorption into GQ is a travesty for music media and musicians The Guardian ISSN 0261 3077 Retrieved January 30 2024 a b c d e f g h i j k Freedom du Lac J April 30 2006 Giving indie acts a plug or pulling it The Washington Post Archived from the original on April 25 2017 Retrieved April 27 2017 a b c d e f g Shaer Matthew November 28 2006 The indie music site that everyone loves to hate Slate Archived from the original on January 10 2007 Retrieved January 12 2007 Flynn Paul January 22 2024 The death of Pitchfork is a disaster for edgy young kids and music fans everywhere Evening Standard Retrieved February 7 2024 a b c d e Cardew Ben October 16 2015 What did Pitchfork get right when most music magazines are losing sales The Guardian ISSN 0261 3077 Retrieved February 3 2024 DiCrescenzo Brent January 9 2013 I gave Sonic Youth a 0 0 rating on Pitchfork Time Out Chicago Retrieved February 3 2024 a b Thomas Lindsey June 14 2006 The Pitchfork effect City Pages Archived from the original on January 11 2016 Retrieved October 30 2006 Christgau Robert October 23 2018 Xgau Sez robertchristgau com Retrieved August 5 2020 a b c d Brown August August 16 2011 Pitchfork turns 15 Here are a few baby pictures Los Angeles Times Retrieved February 4 2024 Pytlik Mark August 21 2007 Album Reviews M I A Kala Pitchfork Archived from the original on April 3 2019 Retrieved January 30 2011 Thomson Paul August 3 2007 M I A Confronts the Haters Pitchfork Archived from the original on October 27 2019 Retrieved December 10 2007 Nicholson Rebecca August 27 2008 Why Bjork is right to stand up for female producers The Guardian London Archived from the original on May 18 2016 Retrieved December 16 2016 Cross David May 16 2005 Albums to listen to while reading overwrought Pitchfork reviews Pitchfork Retrieved February 4 2024 David Shapiro Isn t Much Use to Anyone Vice July 21 2014 Archived from the original on June 28 2016 Retrieved September 8 2017 Young Alex January 19 2024 On Pitchfork and our commitment to music discovery Consequence Retrieved February 24 2024 Pitchfork Reviews Rescored Pitchfork October 5 2021 Retrieved October 5 2021 External links editOfficial website nbsp Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Pitchfork website amp oldid 1219800126, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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