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The Free Press

Independent media company built on Substack by journalist Bari Weiss.
Media 📍 New York, USA Founded 2021
Current Valuation
$150M
as of 2025-Q3
PRIVATE

IPO Outlookprivate

Is The Free Press going public?
No. The Free Press is private and has not filed to go public. There is no S-1 on file.
What is The Free Press' valuation in 2026?
The Free Press is valued at $150M as of 2025-Q3, set by its Acquisition (Paramount) ($150M, Sep 2025). That is the last confirmed mark, not a live price — private shares do not trade continuously.
Has The Free Press filed an S-1?
No public S-1 is on file for The Free Press.
Who are The Free Press' investors?
The Free Press' investors include Marc Andreessen (personal), David Sacks, Bill Ackman, Howard Schultz, Paramount (acquirer).
Answers are derived from the roster record shown on this page — filing status, last round and confirmed marks. Where the record is silent, the answer says so rather than guessing.
The Free Press is an independent media company founded by Bari Weiss after leaving The New York Times, growing from a Substack newsletter to a $20M+ revenue publication in five years. In September 2025 Paramount agreed to acquire it for $150M with Weiss becoming editor-in-chief of CBS News.

Company Profile

CEO
Bari Weiss
Founded
2021
HQ
New York, USA
Employees
~50
Total Raised
$17M
Est. Revenue
$20.4M (2025-Q2)
Last Round
Acquisition (Paramount) — $150M (Sep 2025) · Lead: Paramount
IPO Status
none

Fundraising Status

Acquisition (Paramount) · $150M · 11 mo ago
noneTotal raised $17M

Latest Funding Round

RoundAmountDateLead InvestorPost-Money
Acquisition (Paramount)$150MSep 2025Paramount

Talent Signal

Hiring trend
Hiring downtrend
0% of roles posted in last 30d
Open roles
3
via lever
Product-build share
0%
engineering, research, product, design
Trajectory
tightening
go-to-market push — Only 0% of open roles build product — hiring is concentrated in sales/marketing/ops (3 of 3 open roles are other).
Open roles trending down; no tracked executive churn.
Open roles by month
Open roles by month3Aug '26
Open roles by function
Open roles by functionOther3
product-building   go-to-market / G&A
Contributions EditorSenior EditorSenior Producer, Video
Counted from The Free Press's live job board as of 2026-08-17; role functions classified from posting titles. Open-role counts are an activity signal, not headcount. Refreshed monthly.

Founders & Key People

Bari WeissNellie Bowles

Investors

Marc Andreessen (personal) · David Sacks · Bill Ackman · Howard Schultz · Paramount (acquirer)

Products

  • The Free Press (newsletter & site)
  • Honestly podcast
  • Live Debates events
  • TGIF column

Competitors

The Atlantic · Tablet · Bari Weiss-era WSJ Opinion · Substack-native publications
mediajournalismsubstackindependent-newsacquisition
Private-company numbers are not real-time. Reflects publicly disclosed valuations from press releases, news reports, and tender offers as of 2025-Q3. Refreshed quarterly.