Shorty Awards Celebrate 16th Annual Winners Including The Kitchen, Bobbie, and Google

And Expand Programs to Support the Creative Community including the 2nd Elevate Creatives Fund in partnership with Wave

NEW YORK, MAY 23, 2024 – The Shorty Awards, the premier platform dedicated to celebrating excellence in digital and social media content, unveiled its 16th annual winners on May 22, 2024.

Brands, agencies, non-profits, and independent creators were honored across 148 categories. It also marked the launch of the second Elevate Creatives Fund and a new partnership with Pantone. The ceremony pays tribute to the birthplace of the Shorty Awards - New York City, for its role in setting cultural trends, featuring live performances from hip hop group W.A.F.F.L.E CREW, interdisciplinary artist Ja'Bowen Dixon and avant-garde visual artist Dalt Jacob.

This season’s notable winners included The Kitchen North America, Verizon Creative Marketing, Bobbie, Google, Loop, TMA, Hearts & Science, Fitzco, Barkley, WRTHY, OMD U.S., Webber Shandwick, The Social Lights, They Many, We Are Social, Barbie, Armed Mind, Al Jazeera Digital, WNBA, Wieden + Kennedy, Whalar, Wayfair, The Walt Disney Studios, TelevisaUnivision, among others, all recognized for their innovative and creative projects. A complete list of the winners is available here.

"This year marks a turning point in digital and social media under greater scrutiny. The Shorty Awards exist to amplify innovative, effective, and meaningful work, to connect creators, brands, agencies, media and technology, and to redefine the rules of engagement," said Junmian Sun, Managing Director of The Shorty Awards. “What started as a grassroots effort to honor the most creative people on the internet 16 years ago, has evolved into a community of hundreds of thousands of digital storytellers who constantly challenge the status quo and move culture forward.”

Following a successful inaugural year, the Shorty Awards in collaboration with Wave, launched the second round of the Elevate Creatives Fund. This initiative aims to enable recipients to pursue and expand their creative projects without financial constraints. Last year, the fund awarded $120,000 to support projects such as disability pride, financial literacy, and climate action. One of the six recipients, Alyson Stoner, also won a Shorty Award this year for her podcast Dear Hollywood.

"We’re so inspired by the winners of the inaugural Elevate Creatives Fund and what they have been able to achieve in their businesses over the last year,” said Kerry Reynolds, VP of Marketing at Wave. “Managing business finances, specifically access to funding, is a top source of stress for creators. That’s why we’re investing further in our partnership with The Shortys to continue the Elevate Creatives Fund, providing access to much-needed funding and expertise so that creators can focus on their passion.”

In addition to the Wave partnership, the Shorty Awards expanded partnerships with organizations including TED, Pantone, EthicalSwag, Advertising Week, Muck Rack, the Female Quotient and more, to better serve the creative community at the upcoming 9th Annual Shorty Impact Awards, dedicated to recognizing purpose-driven work.

About The Shorty Awards:

The Shorty Awards (also known as “The Shortys”) honor the most innovative work in digital and social media, by organizations in all sectors and sizes, as well as individual creatives and creators from around the world.

Founded in 2008, the Shortys’ mission is to celebrate, inspire and push the boundaries of excellence in digital storytelling. Entries are judged on the merits of creativity, strategy, and engagement by the Real Time Academy, a body of hand-selected industry experts and leaders.

The public can also weigh in and select their favorite Shorty Awards contenders during Audience Honor Voting. Notable previous winners include brands, agencies, nonprofits, media, and production companies such as Airbnb, Marvel Studios, HBO, HRC, UNICEF, Nestle, BMW, Paramount+, Digitas, Wieden + Kennedy, 72andSunny etc, as well as influential artists, scientists, authors, and activists such as Greta Thunberg, Bill Nye, Michelle Obama, Trevor Noah, Lizzo, Malala Yousafzai, Conan O’Brien, Lady Gaga and more.

Currently, the Shortys have two annual competitions, the flagship Shorty Awards and Shorty Impact Awards dedicated to honoring the best work with a positive social impact.

THE 14TH ANNUAL SHORTY AWARDS

The Shorty Awards honor the best of social media and digital. View this season's finalists!