Digg facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Digg, Inc.

Type of site	Social news
Available in	English
Founded	November 2004; 20 years ago (2004-11)
Headquarters	New York City, U.S.
Area served	Worldwide
Owners	Kevin Rose Alexis Ohanian
Founder(s)	Kevin Rose
Key people	Justin Mezzell (CEO) Kevin Rose (chairman) Alexis Ohanian (advisor)
Registration	Optional
Launched	December 5, 2004; 20 years ago (2004-12-05)
Current status	Active

Digg (also known as digg) is an American website that collects and shows interesting articles from the internet. It focuses on topics like science, important news, and popular online trends. Digg was relaunched on July 31, 2012. It lets people share content on other social media sites like Twitter and Facebook.

Before its relaunch, Digg was a very popular social news website. Users could vote for content they liked by "digging" it, or vote against content they didn't like by "burying" it. Digg soon faced competition from other similar sites, such as Reddit.

The Story of Digg

An early version of Digg.com from 2004.

How Digg Started

Digg began as an idea in November 2004. It was created by Kevin Rose, Owen Byrne, Ron Gorodetzky, and Jay Adelson. The first design of the website had no advertisements. To make money, Digg first used Google ads, then switched to MSN ads in 2007.

Digg allowed users to find and share web content. They did this by submitting links and voting them up ("digg") or down ("bury"). The website collected these votes to create lists of popular content. You could vote on Digg.com or by using "digg" buttons on other websites.

Early Updates and Growth

Digg had many updates in its early years. In July 2005, Digg v2 came out with a new look, a friends list, and easier voting. In 2006, Digg v3 added categories like technology, science, and entertainment. More design changes happened in 2007.

By 2008, Digg's homepage had over 236 million visitors each year. Digg became so big that it could send a lot of traffic to websites that were featured. Some websites saw a sudden increase in visitors after their content was submitted to Digg. This was called the "Digg effect".

In July 2008, Digg almost sold to Google for a lot of money, but the deal didn't happen. The website then had a big redesign in 2010 that many users didn't like.

Changes in Ownership

By 2012, Digg had about 3.8 million unique visitors in the U.S. After its co-founders, Jay Adelson and Kevin Rose, left, Digg was sold in three parts in July 2012. The Digg brand, website, and technology were sold to Betaworks. Some staff members went to "SocialCode" (part of The Washington Post Company). And some of its patents (special rights for inventions) were sold to LinkedIn.

In April 2018, an advertising company called BuySellAds bought Digg.

The Return of the Founders

In March 2025, Kevin Rose (Digg's original founder) and Alexis Ohanian (who co-founded Reddit) bought Digg back. They are relaunching it with a new focus. The new Digg is mainly for people using mobile phones. It will also use AI (computer intelligence) to help users find content.

In June 2025, Digg was relaunched by Kevin Rose and Alexis Ohanian. They want to focus on real human interaction and building a community. This is important because of the rise of AI-made content. The new Digg aims to help moderators and creators. It will also explore ways to make sure users are real people. The goal is to create a platform that avoids manipulation by bots, while still using AI responsibly for things like moderation.

Website Redesign and User Migration

Digg homepage in 2008 before the redesign.

The Big Changes of Digg v4

In 2010, CEO Jay Adelson said Digg would have major changes. He mentioned that "Every single THING has changed" and the "entire website has been rewritten." The company switched to a new database system. Adelson said, "We've got a new backend, a new infrastructure layer, a new services layer, new machines—everything."

Jay Adelson stepped down as CEO on April 5, 2010, before Digg v4 was launched. Kevin Rose, another founder, temporarily became CEO.

Problems with Digg v4

Digg's v4 was released on August 25, 2010. It had many bugs and problems. Users were very unhappy. Digg also faced issues with "power users." These users would work together to promote only their own articles. This made it hard for new or different content to appear on the front page.

These problems, along with strong competition from Facebook (whose "like" buttons became very popular), caused Digg's website traffic to drop. Many staff members also left the company.

Users Move to Reddit

After the difficult redesign, many Digg users left and went to a competing site called Reddit. Digg's traffic dropped a lot in the next month. Meanwhile, Reddit's traffic grew significantly in 2010. Digg never fully recovered from the v4 redesign. By July 2012, Digg's monthly visitors had fallen by 90% from its highest point.

The Betaworks Era (2012-2018)

In July 2012, Digg was sold in three parts:

• The Digg brand, website, and technology went to Betaworks.
• 15 staff members joined a project at The Washington Post.
• The patents (special rights for inventions) were sold to LinkedIn.

On July 20, 2012, the new owners, Betaworks, announced they were rebuilding Digg from scratch. They wanted to make it feel like a new startup again. They set a six-week deadline for the project. They asked existing users for their ideas to help design the new website.

The "rethought" Digg launched as Digg v1 on July 31, 2012. It had a front page chosen by editors, more images, and sections for top, popular, and upcoming stories. Users could also share content more easily on sites like Twitter and Facebook. Unlike other communities like Reddit, Digg's front page content was chosen by editors, not just by users.

When Google Reader announced it was closing, Digg said on March 14, 2013, that it was creating its own RSS reader. Digg Reader launched on June 28, 2013, as a website and an app for Apple devices. An Android app came out on August 29, 2013. Digg announced that Digg Reader would close on March 26, 2018.

The BuySellAds/Money Group Era (2018-2025)

In April 2018, an advertising technology company called BuySellAds bought Digg. Todd Garland became the CEO.

During this time, Digg continued to have an editorially chosen homepage, similar to the Betaworks version. A team of five editors chose the daily content, creating 150 to 200 posts per day. About 12 of these were sent out in a daily email. Garland explained that they looked for people who understood "the heartbeat of the internet" and how content becomes popular.

Later, Money Group bought Digg.

The Rose-Ohanian Era (2025-Present)

In March 2025, it was announced that Digg founder Kevin Rose and Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian bought the website back. Justin Mezzell was named the new CEO. The site is mainly for people using mobile devices. The new Digg will use both AI tools and human moderators to manage content.

In April 2025, an early access group called Groundbreakers was opened. It had a small sign-up fee and was limited to 23,000 members. Groundbreakers reached its limit on April 21, 2025. Members were promised "updates, mockups, and experiments" and a "front-row seat to how Digg is being rebuilt." Users who joined Groundbreakers got to reserve their username and will receive a special badge on the new platform.

Challenges Faced by Digg

User Influence and Fairness

It was possible for some users to have too much influence on Digg, either alone or in groups. These users sometimes tried to promote or hide pages for their own reasons.

Serious attempts by users to unfairly control the site began in 2006. One top user was banned after trying to promote a story for money. Another group of users openly formed a 'Bury Brigade' to remove articles they didn't like.

Digg hired a computer scientist to create a special algorithm (a set of rules for a computer) to stop special interest groups from taking over Digg. Digg executives also removed some features that gave "superusers" extra power.

However, later that year, Google increased its ranking for Digg. Soon after, many companies started offering to "pay for Diggs" to get stories on the front page. One top user reportedly charged a lot of money per story, with a bonus if it reached the front page.

There was also a group called "Digg Patriots" accused of working together to hide articles they didn't agree with. This kind of behavior went against Digg's rules. Digg investigated these claims.

The AACS Key Incident

On May 1, 2007, an article appeared on Digg's homepage that contained a special code (an encryption key) used to protect movies on HD DVD and Blu-ray discs. Digg, following legal advice, removed posts about this secret number and banned users who submitted it.

Many Digg users saw this as giving in to big companies and limiting free speech. Digg's CEO, Jay Adelson, said they removed the article to follow legal requests. However, the Digg community strongly protested. They posted many articles and comments using the encryption key. The user response was so big that one user called it a "digital Boston Tea Party."

Because of this huge user protest, Digg changed its mind. They announced: "But now, after seeing hundreds of stories and reading thousands of comments, you've made it clear. You'd rather see Digg go down fighting than bow down to a bigger company. We hear you, and effective immediately we won't delete stories or comments containing the code and will deal with whatever the consequences might be."

Digg v4 Problems

Digg's version 4 release was very unstable. The website was often unavailable or had problems for weeks after its launch on August 25, 2010. Many users who finally reached the site complained about the new design and that many features were removed. Kevin Rose promised to fix the issues and bring back some features.

Alexis Ohanian, a founder of rival site Reddit, wrote an open letter to Kevin Rose. He said that the new Digg seemed to be influenced by investors and was moving away from its original idea of "giving the power back to the people."

Unhappy users organized a "quit Digg day" on August 30, 2010. They used Digg's own features to fill the front page with content from Reddit. Reddit even temporarily changed its logo to include the Digg shovel to welcome users leaving Digg.

Digg's traffic dropped a lot after v4 launched. Publishers also reported fewer visitors from Digg. The new CEO, Matt Williams, tried to address user concerns in October 2010, promising to bring back many removed features.

Timeline of Digg History

See also

In Spanish: Digg para niños