David Karp

The Mastermind behind Tumblr

From the Series Gateway Biographies

  • Interest Level: Grade 4 - Grade 8
  • Reading Level: Grade 5

What’s more popular than Tumblr? This microblogging site has taken the Web by storm since its founding in 2007. Not much can top it when it comes to capturing its fans’ imaginations, except for perhaps its creator, David Karp.

Karp developed Tumblr after he tried to start a blog and found the process daunting. With most platforms, a blogger faces a huge, empty text box that begs to be filled with words. It was intimidating for a guy who’d never blogged before. Karp had the idea for tumblelogging—creating short blog posts—and built Tumblr as a platform. It lets users easily post both text and images, making Tumblr highly visual and expressive.

Creating a different way to blog came naturally to Karp, who never does things by the book. At fifteen, he dropped out of school. At seventeen, he moved to Tokyo, holing up with a computer and fine-tuning his tech skills. He returned to the states to build a business—but to do that, he stretched the truth. He used a deep voice on the phone with potential clients so they wouldn’t guess how young he was. He didn’t tell anyone how little experience he had. Yet people could see he had a good thing going with Tumblr. The company quickly found support and grew into what it is today: a groundbreaking site for connection and creation. And as the mastermind behind it, Karp is sure to remain a figure to watch.

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978-1-5124-5181-8
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978-1-4677-5975-5
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Interest Level Grade 4 - Grade 8
Reading Level Grade 5
Copyright 2013
Publisher Lerner Publishing Group
Imprint Lerner Publications ™
Language English
Number of Pages 48
Publication Date 2015-08-01
Reading Counts! Level 5.3
Text Type Narrative Nonfiction
BISACS JNF007090, JNF007000, JNF012030
Dewey 338.7' 61006752092
Graphics Full-color illustrations
Dimensions 7 x 9
Lexile 810
ATOS Reading Level 5.7
Accelerated Reader® Quiz 156694
Accelerated Reader® Points 1.0
Features Bibliography/further reading, Index, Reviewed, Sidebars, Teaching Guides, and Timeline

Author: Karen Latchana Kenney

Karen Latchana Kenney was born near the rainforests of Guyana, but moved far north to Minnesota at a young age. She graduated from the University of Minnesota with a bachelor's degree in English and has been writing and editing since. She has worked as an editor at an educational publishing company, but is now a full-time freelance writer and editor in Minneapolis, Minnesota. She has written more than 70 books on all kinds of subjects: from arts and crafts to biographies of famous people. Her books have received positive reviews from Booklist, Library Media Connection, and School Library Journal. When she's not busy writing, she loves biking and hiking with her husband and young son in the many beautiful parks of the state. Visit her online at http://latchanakenney.wordpress.com/.

Lerner eSource™ offers free digital teaching and learning resources, including Common Core State Standards (CCSS) teaching guides. These guides, created by classroom teachers, offer short lessons and writing exercises that give students specific instruction and practice using Common Core skills and strategies. Lerner eSource also provides additional resources including online activities, downloadable/printable graphic organizers, and additional educational materials that would also support Common Core instruction. Download, share, pin, print, and save as many of these free resources as you like!

Gateway Biographies

Discover the human side of newsworthy, historical, and pop culture figures, and learn about people leading key social movements or handling crises. Each biography in this easy-reading series is peppered with quotations and stories, accounts of successes and failures, and descriptions of… View available downloads →

Reviews

School Library Journal

“Children should delight in Karp’s success at such a young age while easily identifying with his need to stretch the truth about his age and experience to prove his worth.” —School Library Journal

Booklist

“This slim, trim biography will have real appeal for readers. Not only does it chronicle the life of a young man with whom they can identify but it also provides insight into the social media world that they’re smack in the middle of.” —Booklist