GoFailMe: The Unfulfilled Promise of Digital Crowdfunding

The U.S. and Canadian social safety nets are inadequate, leading to financial precarity. Crowdfunding is a popular way to seek and donate to charity, but for-profit enterprises like GoFundMe fail to provide the help they promise. GoFailMe explores the failure of these sites, highlighting their revenue without providing the promised assistance. It questions when we turn to others for help, who succeeds and fails in the digital crowd, and who benefits from these sites. The failure of GoFundMe and others is emblematic of the inability of the for-profit sector and Big Tech to engineer an end to social inequality.

Format: Hardback
Length: 230 pages
Publication date: 26 September 2023
Publisher: Stanford University Press

The United States and Canada's social safety nets are inadequate, leaving many people vulnerable to financial instability. In the face of unexpected expenses, such as medical bills or property damage, this precarious situation can quickly become untenable. Traditionally, individuals have relied on their communities, neighbors, families, and loved ones for support. However, in today's world, seeking and donating to charity through crowdfunding has become increasingly popular. For-profit enterprises have also recognized the potential of this instinct for helping, making it a lucrative business.
GoFailMe, a new book by Erik Schneiderhan and Martin Lukk, sheds light on the workings of these crowdfunding sites, particularly GoFundMe. The book reveals that these sites generate massive revenue without delivering the assistance they promise. They often fail their users, putting them through an emotional rollercoaster while obscuring the truth with deceptive tactics. Through extensive access to interviews, surveys, and hundreds of thousands of crowdfunding cases across North America, Schneiderhan and Lukk provide critical insights into important questions: When do we turn to others for help? Who succeeds and who fails in the digital crowd? Whom do these sites benefit? Ultimately, the failure of GoFundMe and others is a reflection of the inability of the for-profit sector and Big Tech to address social inequality.

Dimension: 229 x 152 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781503609044