First Look: Spot.Us for Crowd-Funded Journalism

Tired of reading the same old news day in and day out?  Feel like you’re missing out on a great story in your neighborhood – but the newspapers just aren’t covering it?  Imagine a world in which you, an ordinary citizen, could vote (with your money) on which stories get told.  Imagine a whole new […]

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We Media Mixer: NYC Nov. 13

The U.S. election is over. Next comes the first We Media presidency. What does that mean? Join us for a breakfast mixer and conversation on Nov. 13 at the Samsung Experience in New York to talk about how We Media – not THE media – will cover the Obama presidency. Speakers will include Amanda Michel, […]

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Offbeat Startup: Custom travel books from Dave Sifry

This could be a game changer for book publishing. A new company called Offbeat Guides produces personalized travel books based on your itinerary and travel details. It was founded by Dave Sifry, a serial entrepreneur (and friend) from San Francisco who previously led Technorati and LinuxCare. Dave has participated in our We Media conferences for […]

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Knight News Challenge Deadline: Nov. 1

The John S. and James L. Knight Foundation will make $5 million in grants in the next round of its News Challenge. The News Challenge supports innovative uses of media and technology to help meet the information needs of communities in the connected culture. Think fast. The deadline is Nov. 1. Apply here.

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WashPost-Guardian partner via a … widget

Yes, you too can write for The Washington Post, and for The Guardian in the UK. For their web sites, that is. For an itsy-bitsy rectangle within their web sites, that is. All you have to do is register for a different web site, then add your feeds to include your content, which will appear […]

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The Flickering Wick: CS Monitor drops print

Owned by a church but proudly agnostic in its reporting, The Christian Science Monitor will still have a web site and a weekend print edition. So: There will still be something left to cut when this 100-year-old candle burns out completely. More via Rick Edmonds at Poynter.org.

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Fast Co. Publisher: Voice trumps tradition

The publisher of Fast Co. and Inc. magazines recently eliminated its digital division, laid off 20 employees and merged responsibilities for the company’s print and online publishing products. That doesn’t mean the company has lost faith in digital. John Koten, CEO of Mansueto Ventures, expects his company will grow through digital markets and a smarter […]

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Event: SocialDevCamp East

For developers and others interested in social media, SocialDevCamp East is this Saturday, Nov. 1, at the University of Baltimore. Details here. I can’t attend and no, I will NOT be following the event twitter feed – but I will look for a decent post-event summary.

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U.S. political web sites rising. NY Times Co. – not so much

Noted: Record traffic for U.S. political web sites, including Huffington Post, Politico, Drudge and Real Clear Politics. NY Times Co. chairman/heir Arthur Sulzberger Jr., speaking at a conference in California, asks, “Do we need all this news and information? Do we want all this news and information? Can we tolerate all this news and information?” […]

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