Craig Newmark

Craig Alexander Newmark (born December 6, 1952) is an American Internet entrepreneur best known for being the founder of the San Francisco-based international website Craigslist.

Newmark was born in Morristown, New Jersey, the son of Joyce and Lee Newmark. He attended a Jewish religious school. His father, an insurance salesman, died when he was thirteen and his mother struggled financially, moving Craig and his brother Jeff into an apartment. In 1971, he graduated from Morristown High School and thanks to scholarships, attended college at Case Western Reserve University, where he received a bachelor of science degree in 1975 and a master of science degree in 1977.

After college, Newmark worked at IBM for 17 years as a programmer, living in New Jersey, Boca Raton, Florida and Detroit. In 1993, he moved to San Francisco to work for Charles Schwab, where he was introduced to the Internet—which at that time was still commercial-free. He developed Craigslist as a free marketplace where people could come together – without charge – and exchange information. It has been described as an “internet commune.”

Newmark remains active at Craigslist in customer service, dealing mostly with spammers and scammers. He also operates Craigconnects, a site that publicizes charitable organizations. – Wikipedia

“Last year, on the way to DonorsChoose.org, the phrase “libertarian pragmatist” came to me. The folks there also suggested “civic libertarian” but the first one captured not only my perspective, but that of much of the Internet industry.”