WHEN

When It Started, Where We Are Now, and Where This Is Going

1. When It Started

The roots of the World Comedy Web stretch back to 2019, when Rampantly was first launched in Los Angeles as a label of the Center for Poetic Justice. It began as a radical social media experiment—a megaphone for artists, organizers, and shows excluded from mainstream coverage.

In 2020, when the global pandemic shut down stages and clubs, Rampantly evolved. It began producing digital open mic shows, offering free representational access to performers, and most notably, sharing profits and digital tools with comedians, producers, and grassroots show brands.

In 2021, Rampantly formalized its expansion into platform development by launching:

• Comedy.ink for illustrators, authors, and comic writers

• Laugh.Social for comedy venues

• BigFunFest for festivals

These labels began building the databases that would anchor the World Comedy Web.

In 2024, Rampantly launched the World Comedy Web as a federated, multi-site platform. Shortly after, it began incorporating the World Comedy Foundation as a nonprofit to steward the public mission of equitable access, cultural preservation, and ethical representation.

2. When It Became a Movement

The World Comedy Web is not just a platform—it's a living reorganization of media infrastructure.

Today, it is the first comedy-centered digital ecosystem designed to:

• Redistribute access to live performance tools

• Provide career support without gatekeeping

• Build permanent archives of local scenes and artists

• Give the public a role in governing how comedy is curated, preserved, and shared

This is not a startup play.This is not influencer-driven tech.This is a tool for regenerating the cultural commons through grassroots comedy and ethical media.

3. When We Are: Right Now

We are at the beginning of a global transition from extractive media platforms to federated, cooperative systems—and comedy is leading the way.

Right now:

• WCF membership is open to the public at comedy.foundation

• Members are beginning to organize metro chapters and submit ombuds reflections

• Producers are listing shows through rampantly.la

• Open mics are being discovered through THAT Comedy Guide

• Talent is being seen, heard, and remembered—without being monetized as content

The system is live, the tools are real, and the work of building them is already underway.

4. When We Look Ahead

The future of the World Comedy Web is built on radical optimism and local control.

We believe:

• Media must serve the people who create it—not the platforms that host it

• Representation must be earned through trust, not bought with reach

• Comedy is a healing force, a form of resistance, and a civic practice

• Infrastructure should uplift those who contribute—not disappear them when they lose relevance

• The arts must be used to rejuvenate the human spirit, restore laughter to the people, and rebuild our connection to one another

This platform is being built city by city, region by region, not from the top down but from the roots up.

What we’re building isn’t just about shows.It’s about organizing.It’s about power.It’s about making sure the people who make us laugh can also shape the systems that surround them.