A false rumor making the grounds at Facebook claims that the factchecking site Snopes is owned by George Soros, the billionaire philanthropist. However, Snopes is owned by Snopes Media Group, a California Based S Corporation. It is overseen by a board consisting of David Mikkelson, Brad Westbrook, and Chris Richmond. As far as we are aware, none of these three individuals have ties to Soros or any of his organizations.
Snopes is funded through digital advertising, paid memberships, direct contributions, and merchandise sales. Advertisers and vendors do not have contact with the site’s editorial staff, and do not influence the content they publish. Snopes does not accept political advertising.
Snopes has slightly over $1 million in annual revenues as of 2019. They received $636,000 from GoFundMe, $522,000 from private donations, $90,000 from shareholder financing, and $30,000 from merchandise sales. Of that money, 47% goes to employee compensation, 32% for legal expenses, 17% for technical support and advertising services, and 4% for overhead.
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