| URL | http://www.givesmehope.com |
|---|---|
| Slogan | "Life is beautiful today!" |
| Type of site | Blog (user-generated) |
| Launched | May 31, 2009 |
| Current status | Active |
GivesMeHope (GMH) was founded in May 2009 in response to the popular site, FMyLife (FML), itself a spin-off of popular French website Viedemerde.fr.[1] On the site, people share with the world their most hopeful, uplifting moments while answering the question, "what gives you hope?"[2] According to Quantcast, GivesMeHope receives over 500,000 hits every day.[3] As of August 5, 2009, the website has over 160,000 fans on Facebook.[4] A book containing stories from the site was released in the Fall of 2010.[5]
Contents |
The site was co-founded by Notre Dame graduates Emerson Spartz and Gaby Montero.[6] Exhausted by the negativity of the media, they created GivesMeHope.[7] The two refer to the site as "Chicken Soup for the Soul – the 21st Century, Twitter-style version."[2]
GivesMeHope has inspired movements of hope across the country. At Henry M. Gunn high school in Palo Alto, California, four students committed suicide in a period of 8 months. To cope with the grief, students created a blog, modeled after GivesMeHope, to provide a place for members of the community to share their uplifting experiences at the school. The blog was named HMGGMH (Henry M. Gunn Gives Me Hope).[8]
Another movement of hope inspired by GivesMeHope is Operation Beautiful, a website whose mission is to end "Fat Talk.” [9] Participants of Operation Beautiful leave anonymous post-it notes with encouraging messages in public places for other women to find and be inspired by.[10]
The site has received attention from the media due to its uplifting nature.[11] On August 2, 2010, CNN stated that GivesMeHope was a website that may "help renew your faith in the goodness of the human experience." CNN described the stories as "sentimental and, at times, almost heartbreakingly sweet."[12]
On December 30, 2009, the two launched a GivesMeHope spin-off site LoveGivesMeHope.com (LGMH). The site aimed at those who "can't get enough of the love stories on GivesMeHope".[13] As of August 5, 2010, LoveGivesMeHope has over 160,000 fans on Facebook.[14] The stories are shared widely on platforms such as Facebook. Since February 1, 2010, the site has produced some stories that have been shared over 565,000 times on Facebook.[15]
On August 3, 2010, the two creators officially announced that a book was planned for release in Autumn 2010. The book was be published by Ulysses Press, and is a combination of old and new illustrated anecdotes from the website.[4]