A website started by Ashton Kutcher is accused of plagiarizing articles, lists and videos from Buzzfeed, the Huffington Post and Matador Network.
A+ was established by the 36-year-old actor in 2011 and touts itself as a “platform that will leverage viral social storytelling to create positive change in the world.” But the Daily Dot — which documented its findings with screen shot comparisons — reports that Kutcher’s site has lifted entire articles with little to no changes or attribution. Sometimes the changes are as minimal as a new headline and a line asking readers to share the story.
The site claims to draw 30 million unique visitors a months, a number that is attributed to Kutcher’s heavy promotion of its content on social media.
After the Daily Dot inquired about the allegations last week, the articles in question, along with all content pre-dating July, were deleted. All posts from Twitter prior to Aug. 6, and Facebook before Aug. 4, were scrubbed as well. A+’s Evan Beard responded by saying that the website was looking into the accusations.
“We take these allegations seriously and are looking into them,” he said in a statement. “The content that was removed was taken down as a precautionary measure. Respecting the intellectual property of others is extremely important to us.”
The Guardian pointed out that this isn’t the first time the actor has been accused of plagiarism this year.
Last month, photographer Marsel van Oosten called out the “Jobs” star for stripping one of his photos of its watermark, and posting it as if it were his own.
A request for comment from Kutcher was not immediately returned.