The keys to the castle were handed to the wrong people - Anonymous employee Daily Kos Employee Review

2.0
Jun 3, 2025
Anonymous employee
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

Working at Daily Kos used to feel so good, even when the news was horrible. The comp and benefits were great, the management took the time to understand their team members, and the work felt meaningful and important. The company culture was unlike any that most of us had experienced before joining Daily Kos, compassionate, fun, and focused on effecting positive change. That all changed over the last few years, when a few narcissistic new hires making huge salaries created a C-suite in their own image, and began systematically destroying the company.

Cons

A few toxic narcissists joined top leadership a few years ago and appointed themselves "chief officer" of this sector or that one. This vanity C-suite spent a couple years laying off most of the union members and constantly announcing new goals and strategies—before going silent on both. In addition to laying off scores of people, they pushed out nearly a dozen more. Rather than replacing the people the get rid of, the C-suite just makes other people, typically union employees, take on more work without an increase in pay. They get away with it because they crafted overly broad official job descriptions for each role years ago. Overextending everybody has led to a drastic reduction in quality of work and a huge increase in employees dreading their workday. Longtime employees feel trapped—not just because of the instability of the media industry writ large, but because of the amazing benefits and decent cash compensation combined with working from home. Tellingly, new employees that stick around more than a year or so are increasingly rare. I am currently interviewing for other jobs. Can't wait to tell the "chief" of my department how I really feel and leave this place behind. It really was a great place to work once upon a time, but those days are long gone.

Explore other reviews about Daily Kos

5.0
Oct 14, 2022
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

Nimble little company with smart people

Cons

Still growing into ourselves and learning how to lead and be accountable.

1.0
Jun 16, 2026
Anonymous employee
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

Opportunity to work alongside peers who care about the mission.

Cons

The internal culture is a textbook example of performative progressivism. Throughout my career, I have worked for a wide range of standard, mainstream companies that make no public claims about social justice or grassroots values—yet those organizations routinely treated their staff with far more professional dignity, equity, and respect than what is practiced here. It is the least supportive environment I have encountered. Senior management significantly deteriorated. Promotions appeared to be heavily driven by nepotism rather than competence or qualifications, leaving the company with a leadership tier that lacks the experience required to steer the organization. This created a culture of "yes-men" who openly complain about ownership to staff but fail to provide strategic direction or advocate for employees. Innovative ideas from talented staff were routinely dismissed. The company’s internal operations do not reflect its public grassroots branding. Despite hiring dedicated DEI expertise, the organization actively regressed, gutting the very diversity of thought and representation that once made the workforce unique. The current "Frankenstein" state of the platform is the direct result of senior leadership making panic-driven, reactionary choices to cover for poor financial management. These decisions severely damaged labor relations, leaving the union highly dissatisfied and staff morale at an all-time low.

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