The Webby Awards is excited to welcome a slate of brand new experts to the International Academy of Digital Arts & Sciences (IADAS): the 2,000+ member body of Internet experts and luminaries who judge work entered into The Webbys each year.
Meet new Webby Judge David Rogier, Co-Founder & CEO of MasterClass, an online learning environment taught by experts, from comedy courses taught by Steve Martin, to tennis taught by Serena Williams, and well beyond.
We chatted with Rogier about why he’s excited to join IADAS, what he brings to the Academy, and some of his favorite things on the Internet right now.
Read our Q&A below!
“ I’m excited to be a part of a body that celebrates individuals, companies, and platforms that help connect, excite, and inspire us all through technological innovation.”
1. Why are you excited to join IADAS as a Webby Awards judge?
Being a founder of an online education platform, I’m always interested to see how interactive media has evolved and how internet content has progressed. I’m excited to be a part of a body that celebrates individuals, companies, and platforms that help connect, excite, and inspire us all through technological innovation. I am honored to be chosen and look forward to discovering new, talented content creators.
2. Why do you think being a part of The Webby Awards community matters?
We are a generation of doers and dreamers with a can-do attitude. As creatives, we break through barriers and explore worlds of new opportunities to create things that impact culture, educates, and entertains. The Webby Awards has provided a platform for creators to connect and share their creative and technical accomplishments with other luminaries in their respective fields. Being a part of this community will help motivate and curate a new guild of content creators who recognize the inherent potential to innovate and hopefully inspire others to also go out and make their ambitions a reality.
3. What trend or emerging technology are you most excited about in your field of work?
What both excites and terrifies me is media synthesizing. I’m excited that it can make things like learning from Abraham Lincoln possible, but I’m terrified that people may use it to proliferate fake content.
4. What specific project or service caught your attention on the Internet recently and why?
Amazon’s recent initiative to get employees to quit and start delivery companies by offering them a stipend really caught my attention. Amazon is the biggest e-commerce giant in the game and it was interesting to see that their proposed solution to one of the biggest problems in the industry was outsourcing from within.
5. What’s your favorite app or site that other people haven’t heard of?
I am somewhat obsessed with Oddly Satisfying – Subreddit: r/oddlysatisfying.
