South Africa mobile journalism network Hashtag Our Stories has netted $150 000 in funding from social media Snapchat and a place in the US tech company’s startup accelerator Yellow.
The one-year-old Durban-founded network is run by former social media reporter at CNN, Yusuf Omar and his wife Sumaiya.
Techcrunch reported that the network has been accepted into the accelerator’s first class of nine companies. Hashtag Our Stories is the only non-US participant.
The US tech publication reported that apart from the funding the accelerator will offer business support and a three-month residency in Venice, California, near Los Angeles — for what a source says is a seven to 10 per cent equity stake.
Hashtag Our Stories claims to have helped 200 citizen storytellers in over 40 countries to produce videos with their phones.
