Ben Parr is an American technology journalist and entrepreneur. He was until November 2011 the Editor-at-Large of Mashable

Mashable

Mashable is an American news website and Internet news blog founded by Pete Cashmore. The website's primary focus is social media news, but also covers news and developments in mobile, entertainment, online video, business, web development, technology, memes and gadgets...

, one of the world's most popular technology news websites. He is a well-known expert and analyst on Internet technology and social media

Social media

The term Social Media refers to the use of web-based and mobile technologies to turn communication into an interactive dialogue. Andreas Kaplan and Michael Haenlein define social media as "a group of Internet-based applications that build on the ideological and technological foundations of Web 2.0,...

. He has been quoted on CNN

CNN

Cable News Network is a U.S. cable news channel founded in 1980 by Ted Turner. Upon its launch, CNN was the first channel to provide 24-hour television news coverage, and the first all-news television channel in the United States...

, G4

G4 (TV channel)

G4, also known as G4 TV, is an American cable- and satellite-television channel originally geared primarily toward young adult viewers, originally based on the world of video games...

, Playboy

Playboy

Playboy is an American men's magazine that features photographs of nude women as well as journalism and fiction. It was founded in Chicago in 1953 by Hugh Hefner and his associates, and funded in part by a $1,000 loan from Hefner's mother. The magazine has grown into Playboy Enterprises, Inc., with...

, The New York Times

The New York Times

The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...

, and other media publications.

Mashable

Parr joined Mashable as a writer in August 2008, but was promoted to Associate Editor in March 2009, Co-Editor in September 2009 and Editor-at-Large in May 2011. His writing focuses on web technology, business and media.

In 2009, Parr started a regular column, The Social Analyst, which focuses on social media trends and their effect on companies in the space.

Awards

In 2010, Parr was named a "Technology Industry Trendsetter, Luminary & Chronicler" by the Public Relations Society of America

Public Relations Society of America

The ' , based in New York City, is the world's largest organization for public relations professionals. The organization has more than 21,000 members, including professionals from public relations agencies, corporations, government, health care institutions, military, professional services firms,...

. In Februrary 2011, Parr was named one of the top 10 tech journalists in the world by Say Media. Parr was also named San Francisco's coolest social media geek by SF Weekly

SF Weekly

SF Weekly is a free alternative weekly newspaper in San Francisco, California. The newspaper, distributed throughout the San Francisco Bay Area every Wednesday, is published by Village Voice Media, a 16-paper alt weekly newspaper chain that also includes the New York City Village Voice and the Los...

.

Personal life

Parr is a serial entrepreneur, having started his first company while attending Northwestern University

Northwestern University

Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston and Chicago, Illinois, USA. Northwestern has eleven undergraduate, graduate, and professional schools offering 124 undergraduate degrees and 145 graduate and professional degrees....

. He is currently advising startups and working on a science fiction novel.

Parr graduated from Northwestern University in 2008.

External links

• Mashable
• BenParr.com
• "The New Ad Age", Playboy 2010-03
• "Mashable Co-Editor Ben Parr Talks the Latest Social Media News on G4", Mashable 2010-03-18
• "Mashable’s Ben Parr Gives Facebook Privacy Tips on CNN", Mashable 2010-11-26