El Orden Mundial (in English: The World Order) started as a blog that a group of international relations students began writing in 2012. It has become a sustainable business that employs 10 people and collaborates with Spanish national media, radio, and television stations. El Orden Mundial defines itself as half media outlet and half think-tank that aims to understand and explain the world.
Its four founders were 23 years old in 2015, when they launched a website to publish international analyses, aiming to be the reference outlet in that field in Spanish. Two years later, they created a company, raised 40,000 euros in a crowdfunding campaign and developed a simple and accessible writing style.
"Combining in-depth analysis and an accessible tone is the key. We offer a calm analysis inspired by models such as The Economist," co-founder Eduardo Saldaña said.
The team consists of analysts, journalists, and cartographers with an average age of 25, plus collaborators worldwide.
The primary pieces of information are articles of 1,000 words accompanied by maps and infographics. Apart from the website, the media organisation has two newsletters, a podcast, and, most recently, books.
Most of its revenue comes from its 4,154 subscribers, and the rest from collaborations with other media outlets, the sales of maps, training, and some advertising. At least 60% of its audience comes from Latin America and the rest from Spain.
"We don't see ourselves so much as a media that aims to save the world, but as a company that provides a useful service that people want to pay for," Saldaña said. He believes this business vision has helped them to focus on product design, deciding the length of texts, knowing the audience and defining metrics. "We have spent a lot of time training the team and the network of collaborators in this way of thinking, in this style."
Last updated: January 2023