installer

administrative assistant

Valnet Inc.

I worked freelance at Valnet's Screen Rant starting in 2016, and it was actually a decent gig initially. They made no secret that they wanted list writers, which wasn't really what I wanted to do, but it was a way to build clips and get paid so I figured why not. At first they just wanted lists with 10 entries, and it was a pretty quick and easy writing process. It could be fun at times, and was even surprisingly decent compensation. Then within 6 months of working there, they raised the lists to 15 entries.

Facebook was trying to phase out featuring listicles and wouldn't show Screen Rant's top 10 lists anymore, so Screen Rant got around this by raising their lists to 15 entries...except they didn't raise the pay alongside that. The pay remained the same, but they claimed we'd actually be making more because "more entries means more views." You make the majority of your money at Screen Rant through views, so the idea sounded reasonable, except most readers weren't reading the entire article, which meant you wouldn't get views for every entry. Basically, this meant more work for no pay increase.

I stuck with it anyway, and even started working at one of Valnet's other companies, CBR, as well. CBR is set up the exact same way as Screen Rant, and at this point the problems with Valnet started leaping out to me.

In addition to no pay bump for the extra work, Valnet's freelancers aren't all committed to quality journalism. You could frequently tell some writers idea of research was to simply Google a topic, find the first pertinent article, then paraphrase everything someone else wrote. This got to the point that writers at Screen Rant even began doing this to other writers on the site, effectively leading to the site putting out the same article twice. This was ethically murky and didn't sit right with me.

It only got worse, as Valnet then started delving into less tasteful subjects to get views, regardless of the response from readers. So you'd see articles published like "15 celebrities struggling with drug addiction" or "the 15 most well-endowed superheroes" or articles that denigrate real life cosplayers because the writer doesn't like the amount of clothes the models are wearing. Sure, this stuff got attention, but readers also felt these subjects were in poor taste, and just wanted the movie and comic news Screen Rant and CBR were originally known for.

In addition, the pay also got slashed again, this time with the company taking away base pay for articles. Basically, the original format is for each list you got a guaranteed $30, plus .40 cents for every 1,000 views your article got. Valnet took away the $30 and raised the pay per views only slightly, claiming this new way could make you more money than before if your article was super popular. But most articles aren't getting millions of views, so in reality you were simply getting less money for most articles.

Between the pay cuts, the dubious ethics of writers not doing their own research, and the articles that disparaged real life people, I finally went to my editor looking to find a resolution to these issues. I openly offered to work with them to figure something out that would be fair for everyone, and stop resorting to tacky articles. I genuinely wanted to work out a compromise with them. But they became upset over my criticisms and terminated working with me. Management doesn't take feedback from their readers or writers. As long as people are clicking on articles, the editors are happy and will ignore everything else. They even sent out emails encouraging writers to not read the comments, saying the readers don't know what they actually want.

Valnet used to be a decent gig, especially if you're a starting journalist. Now you're putting in full time hours for less than part time pay. I'm sure the editors are paid decent, but this is not a good company for freelancers. The only decent aspect is it's a work from home job where you set your own hours. Other than that, the articles require far more work than the pay is worth, the staff will let quality slide for the sake of views, and you'll be treated with constant disrespect from readers who have become jaded against Valnet's push towards clickbait.

I interacted with cool people through Valnet, so they're not all bad. Some freelancers and editors there do care, but there's too many others who have their priorities mixed up and spoil the job. I would highly recommend not working here. The meager pay won't be worth the toll you'll endure from the stress and the knowledge that you're just churning out trivia articles with little substance. Eventually you'll get fed up with feeling exploited and you'll want out.

I lasted until 2018, but wish I had quit or been terminated sooner. Work somewhere that shows they value you with fair pay, and where you can write articles about actual news. You won't find that at Valnet.

Having worked as a writer and editor for almost 20 years, I’ve experienced several digital newsrooms (and their operations), and Valnet is hands-down my favorite. Valnet is a lot more hands-on and fast-paced than other editorial operations, and that has been a massive plus in my opinion.

As a remote editor, I can seamlessly balance my daily work with other things, and the flexibility is incredible. One of my favorite things about Valnet is the unrivaled editorial support, and rolling updates to our CMS (Emaki) - which is the most robust yet intuitive CMS I’ve ever used, and just one of the myriad, cutting-edge resources provided to editorial staff.

Valnet’s culture is exceptionally friendly and fun, and it’s genuinely a great place for people who love producing the best possible content. If I ever need editorial support, it comes immediately. Whenever I “work late,” it’s 100% because I’m having fun doing something, never because of a poorly adjusted workload. There is space for professional development, a ton of opportunity to pick up and master valuable new skills, and so much investment in the editorial side of publishing it continually shocks me. (If you’ve been doing this for a long time, you know it’s almost always the opposite.)  

Anyone who has worked in digital publishing consistently over time knows that the work has evolved well beyond simply writing. Images, videos, and broadly, diligent content management are essential, non-negotiable aspects of this industry for any writer/editor/website; they are no longer “extras,” and have become part and parcel of publishing. Personally, I consider my editorial standards to be high, and Valnet’s focus on producing and publishing exceptional content is (again) a huge plus.

Overall, Valnet is truly “fast-paced,” which is not for everyone. On the flip side, it is perfect for content creators who truly love this work, enjoy doing it, and are invested in maintaining high standards. Moreover, digital publishing is notoriously volatile, and it’s really wonderful to know the company is proactive in adjusting for those fluctuations in the landscape.

As a person who works in a VHCOL area, the compensation is on par with similar positions where I live, both for in-person and remote positions local to me. Literally everyone is approachable and kind, and I (for real!) look forward to starting work each day. 

Ultimately, employers with a large remote presence often attract people primarily looking for remote work in addition to people looking specifically for an editorial position. If your primary focus is “remote” and not “editorial,” I can see how Valnet might be a poor fit. I really wish I could think of one “con” to balance my review, but there haven’t been any since I got here.

I worked at Valnet for nearly two years, and the biggest issue with the job was the communication between the various teams. While working in a remote environment was very convenient, it became very stressful very quickly due to the lack of strong communication between the various team leads, fellow writers, and upper management.

The company expects writers to cover trending entertainment and pop-culture news, develop and pitch their own original ideas daily, and meet the twenty-five a week article limit all with limited to outright terrible communication. 

I understand the editors have a lot of writers/other responsibilities that they have to manage on a daily basis, and it's no doubt difficult for them to stay abreast with their workload, however, writers shouldn't have to bear that burden. If managing so many  people is that steep of a challenge for them, the company should strongly consider hiring more people, developing a more robust training for new hires, and restructuring their twenty-five article minimum.

Speaking of the poor training, it's arguably worse than the communication. Simply making new hires watch a few slideshows that provide a general overview of the position isn't enough. It's even worse when the slideshow isn't up-to-date (I was hired in Q4 of 2022, but the  new hire slideshow that I completed contained information from 2019).

The pay is also fairly low, there are no benefits since you're an independent contractor, advancing with the company is a tedious process, and the Discord channel that's used to communicate between different teams is cluttered with a bunch of people. It is so cluttered, that it isn't uncommon for you to have to ask the same question multiple times, sometimes over the course of multiple days, just to get an answer. 

Overall, the silver lining with this job is that you get to cover news surrounding pop culture and entertainment (if that's something you're passionate about), you get early access to news regarding the entertainment industry, and it is a work-from-home position for anyone looking for remote work. However, I'd strongly advise searching elsewhere since the demands of the editors are never consistent, the pay is low compared to other internet publishing jobs out there, and the communication is abysmal. 

I was recently employed by Valnet to be a part of the Ad Operations Team. My role primarily requires a lot of data analysis regarding partner performance and the positive / negative impact of set up changes on website monetization. I come from a BSc background – Anatomy and Cell biology to be exact. Never did I imagine shifting gears from, memorizing and reciting all the foramen in the skull, along with their associated cranial nerves, to pivot after pivot in excel. I spent 4 years at McGill completing my BSc degree and most of my work experience after the fact was in the health field. However, during the interview process, Valnet did not focus on the specifics of my past field. HR and management are very open – attitude and willingness to learn, surpass lack of experience in the AdTech field. I was lucky enough to be interviewed by two individuals who were more interested in getting to know who I was as a person and what I wanted to achieve within the company, versus quizzing me on how I could benefit their current operations starting day 1. I’ve been at the company 9 months now and although I still have much more to learn, I have a very supportive manager. Having a manager that has struck the right balance between hands off, yet always available, has provided me and the rest of the team the reassurance we need to seek out new projects, vet out new ideas and develop autonomy in our day to day work – a rarity for most analyst jobs. Being at Valnet, has really proved to me the value of transferable skills. We all do the best, with what we have and grow together. I hope to continue to gain as much as I can from this professional experience and perhaps create a few friendships along the way.

After two literal years of being unable to find payed writing work, I started working for Valnet's CBR during the COVID-19 pandemic and was burnt out within a week. You get a meager $10 per article for their features column (with an oh so generous 50 cents per 1000 views), which, on top of relying on uninspired, lazy, click-bait ideas, usually took me 2 to 4 hours to complete. Additionally, CBR makes the writer find and edit their own pictures, which can often adds to the writer's workload with another hour or so of work. So, unless you pump out writing with little thought or effort, you're usually making around a direct $3 per hour, with wavering "tips" after thirty days. 
The worst part was there were never enough quality content prompts for me to want to write about, and when the odd interesting idea came up, it would take an underpaid duration to write due to the effort I put into trying to craft a well-researched, well-written piece. Then, without fail, the editors would chop up my work and take out any sense of style or personality from my writing. Interesting sentences and diction were almost always reduced to plain, unimaginative drivel. I'd understand if this was a professional, notable publication covering important news, but CBR writes the dumbest, most embarrassing hack content about pop culture imaginable. 
Worse, it's all radically inconsistent; one useless editor will correct you on something you were never briefed on or contradict something you were told before. Funnily enough, many of my articles turned out with more errors after their edits due to the misformatting that would happen following the careless editors' changes.
I hate working for CBR, and I hate working for Valnet. At the end of the day, you get payed pennies for braindead content you'll quickly regret signing on to. You're literally not being payed enough to care.

You are paid very little for articles, it all depends on the word count. You are expected to write the article, proof it, attach your own images, do all the research, apply any links to the article, and so on. For a couple hours of work (including research and gathering images), you could be paid as little as 10 bucks. Not only that, but you are held to an unrealistic high standard with your work with such little pay attached to it. 

You also get paid royalties, so the more viewership you get on your article, you get money for it. However, its literal pocket change, I'm talking a few pennies. Overall, it's a content farm. Go to one of their sites and refresh the page a couple times, articles will pump out. From an outsider POV it looks like quantity over quality, but as I said before, they want the quality too, unfairly so. 

The hardest part of this job isn't even writing, its gathering images for the articles and adhering to the layout rules. Editors and higher-ups either consulted me in an overly sympathetic tone or accusatory. I have a feeling they are overly nice because writers are underpaid and they don't want people to leave, but that's just a theory, maybe they're actually that nice. 

Here are the positives: because it's a remote job and you pick up whatever topics you want from their assignment database, there's a lot of flexibility. They do say that they require a certain amount of articles within a month, but I've never seen this rule be enacted, at least to me. 

Most of the editors are fairly responsive, you get paid on time, and the rest is pretty straightforward. If you like texting vs. calling in professional settings, working your own hours, or want a side-hustle that involves gaming, this might be good for a temporary job. 

At first, this job was a freelancer's paradise. Remote location, flexible schedule, and the opportunity to pitch your own topics. But then the red flags started popping up. 

First, one of the junior editors deleted parts of an article I worked very hard on without me knowing. I responded by explaining why what I had wrote was relevant, but he didn't even respond. Instead, he brought my content manager into the conversation, who defended him. I pretty much had no choice but to concede, and they tried to make me feel better by saying I could write another article using that content. Aka disregarding my entire defense and trying to capitalize on it instead. About a month later, they terminated me. They said they found plagiarism in my article, yet never explained or specified where. I still to this day had no clue what they meant, and I had no chance to defend myself...again. They locked me out of Asana, Slack, and Wordpress before I could even respond, to the point where I had to e-mail my content manager with questions. Needless to say, he did not respond. 

They figure they can get any of their other writers to complete my tasks. They do not value your quality of writing; they only value your ability to churn out content -- they value quantity over quality. Recognition is rare; you are just a face in a sea of workers. (By the way, the junior editor called me by the wrong name.) If you get one toe out of line, you're done, and you won't get told why. Seriously considering removing this from my resume.

In my opinion as a writer for this company, if you are going to work here, just know that there is not a lot of money behind it. However, the experience gained from this company is important to move up in related job opportunities. 

It is very flexible and you will work with the company’s editors and senior writers to publish or pitch articles for websites in their format. You will also have to work on the links and images in the article. Communication is very good and is performed through Slack and Asana messaging. Everyone is also pretty friendly. 

Sometimes even the editors mess up and the article’s grammar can be terrible. Other times the articles lack substance and are purely “click bait”. But you can make your own articles and publish your own ideas related to the websites topics that could have more substance. 

This company owns CBR.com, ScreenRant, and GameRant. All of which are websites with a good amount of readers so again, it is decent enough to get exposure of your writing skills while also practice and gain experience. Could make good for a portfolio. 

It is possible to have a followership for your writing as you are credited for the articles you worked on. As a result both fan mail and hate mail are possible outcomes of your work. 

There's only one good thing about working for Valnet, and that's the flexible hours. That's it. Everything else about working here is terrible. 

First off, the pay is offensively low for the amount of work expected of you per article. You have to research the topic, write out 1200 words, find and edit your own photos, find and include an ever increasing amount relevant hyperlinks to other articles on their sites only to receive a measly $15. On a per hour basis, it's not even minimum wage. If you're hoping to make good money, you'll have to write an obscene amount of articles, which means sacrificing quality.

That brings us to the next complaint. Quality control is non-existent. Despite having a team of editors, not only are there factual errors within many of the articles, even simple spelling mistakes slip past the so-called "editors". Management is an absolute joke. None of them actually care about the quality of their articles. Just look at any Reddit thread about articles coming from their sites. There's a reason they're seen as jokes. It's very much quantity over quality.

Finally, if you're expecting a good work culture, look elsewhere. They're constantly hiring more and more writers. You're only just a number to them. An easily replaceable number. If their turnover rate could be converted to energy, we'd be able to achieve FTL travel.

Valnet is not a site that values talent or effort. You can be with them for years and they’ll fire you without warning or cause. They’ll say it’s about failure to adhere to developing structure but that’s not quite logical when none of your pieces are ever altered after submission.

It’s a content factory, and a monopoly at that. Valnet now owns just about every entertainment news site, which is why sites like Movie Web and Collider have seen their reputations plummet. And deservedly so. If you make all your sites carbon copies of one another, devoid of any discernible individual personality, people will tune out.

They let people go for not having enough readers, forever failing to wrap their heads around the simple fact that 1. People catch on that all your sites are pretty plastic when they just cannibalize one another and 2. Having 47 ads always going at once makes your site function like a car without an engine.

Don’t treat your employees like cattle. Pay above minimum wage. Hold onto talent instead of pushing it away in favor of a revolving door environment. Or, sell off the sites to someone who not only knows what they’re doing but actually values and recognizes what it takes to make these fun sites both cultivators of talent (Valnet will make you hate writing) and profitable. Or, probably sooner than you hope, you’ll be doing neither. 

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