If the future of newspaper print is so grim, why would progressives imitate the NYT in print to make their point?

I'd say this story about a fake edition of the NYT, circulated in NY yesterday, is about the best news the NYT has had in a long time. Who says print is dead? It isn't, it just isn't giving (younger) people what they want.

It's interesting that this parody/satire was in PRINT and NOT just a web-based venture.

I rest my case.

Not that the ever-anti dead tree gang over at FishbowlNY see fit to make this rather critical point.

By the way, it wasn't the "Yes Men" who did it, it was me (and a few others).

Wednesday, Nov 12 (Fishbowl NY)
The Future of the New York Times is Fake!

Those of you who work in the city are probably already aware that some enterprising souls (Gawker is pointing to the "Yes Men," which seems to be the case) took the future of news into their own hands today and created their own fake(!) New York Times. The spoof paper, which was distributed by thousands of volunteers across the city, was dated July 4, 2009 and ran the headline "Iraq War Ends." By all accounts it was "an exact replica" of the real thing (notwithstanding the content, obviously):
[The fake Times included] International, National, New York, and Business sections, as well as editorials, corrections, and a number of advertisements, including a recall notice for all cars that run on gasoline.We have yet to see the real thing, but according to people we've talked to it's rather well done — complete with a Thomas Friedman op-ed ("The sudden outbreak of peace in Iraq has made me realize, among other things, one incontestable fact: I have no business holding a pen, at least with intent to write") as well as an apology from the Times for supporting the Iraq war. It even comes with fake ads!
There is even a website to accompany the paper, which was down for much of the morning, is eerily similar to that of the real NYT (except without the page-long Mac ad). As the Times City Room blog noted many of the links lead to "dozens of progressive organizations." Obviously this was a huge and expensive undertaking, but why now?
Bertha Suttner, one of the newspaper's writers, tells Romenesko:
"It's all about how at this point, we need to push harder than ever...We've got to make sure Obama and all the other Democrats do what we elected them to do. After eight, or maybe twenty-eight years of hell, we need to start imagining heaven."Ah yes, heaven. The Times responded to our email (and others' it would seem) thus: "This is obviously a fake issue of The Times. We are in the process of finding out more about it." It's hard to imagine the Times not getting some enjoyment out of such well-done imitation — it is the sincerest form of flattery afterall. Also, we're told that under the parody exception to copyright the Times is pretty much unable to sue.

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LOOKING FOR A CHRISTMAS BOOK GIFT TO BUY?
"Books about cosmopolitan urbanites discovering the joys of country life are two a penny, but this one is worth a second glance. Walthew's vivid description of the moral stress induced by his job as a high-flying executive with the International Herald Tribune newspaper is worth the cover price alone…. Highly recommended." The Oxford Times

Amazon.co.uk

'I read A Place in My Country with absolute unalloyed delight. A glorious book.'

Jeremy Irons (actor)

‘Ian Walthew was a newspaper executive with a career that took him round the world, who one day did a mad thing. He saw a for-sale sign on a cottage in the Cotswolds, bought it, resigned and moved in. For the first few weeks he just lay on the grass in a daze. Then he started talking to his neighbours and digging into the rich history of this beautiful part of England. Out of his inquiries grew this affecting and inspiring memoir.What sets it apart from others of its ilk is the author’s enviable immunity to cliché and his determination to love his homeland better than he used to.

His elegiac account of relearning how to be an Englishman should be required reading for anyone who claims to know or love this country.’

Financial Times

For more reviews visit ianwalthew.com

Business trip to the IHT in Paris or friends and family coming to visit you? Fed up with hotels? Bring the family (sleeps 6) to superb Montmartre apartment - weekend nights free of charge if minimum of 3 work nights booked;. Cable TV; wifi, free phone calls in France (landlines); large DVD and book library; kids toys, books, travel cot and beds; two double bedrooms; all mod cons; half an hour to Neuilly and 12 mins walk from Eurostar. T&E valid invoices.

10% Discount for NYT employees; 15% Discount for IHT Employees



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N.B One element of this posting is fake.

Amazon, Kindle and MSM subscription prices

This, from fishbowlNY. And there was the NYT telling us that 90% of MSM revenue came from print circulation, so don't mess with it.

Not when it costs you nothing to produce it on P&D.

Wednesday, Oct 29
Amazon.com Practically Giving Away Newsweek SubscriptionsAmazon.com is offering a subscription to Newsweek for $20 (90 percent off the cover price!) — 20 percent cheaper than the magazine's own Web site sells it. The mag chopped circulation figures in late 2007 and ad pages plummeted 22 percent in the first half of 2008, but as some point these desperate schemes to boost circ start to do more harm than good, don't they?

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LOOKING FOR A CHRISTMAS BOOK GIFT TO BUY?
"Books about cosmopolitan urbanites discovering the joys of country life are two a penny, but this one is worth a second glance. Walthew's vivid description of the moral stress induced by his job as a high-flying executive with the International Herald Tribune newspaper is worth the cover price alone…. Highly recommended." The Oxford Times
Amazon.co.uk

Amazon.com

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What Does the Future of The New York Times Co. Hold? Bankruptcy according to 37% of the readers of FishbowlNY.

It can't help you sell adverts or subscriptions to Manhattan's media community, when over a third of them, as judged by a poll being run by Fishbowl NY, think the New York Times Company is going to go bankrupt.

The results of this poll are as of Sunday, 26th October, 2008, 1850 hrs CET (Paris).

Presumably, by bailout (8%), people are thinking of some selfless person willing to pay off the NYT's $1.2 billion debt and help the company take itself private.

Anyone willing to step-up to the plate? It sounds off the radar but I actually wouldn't rule that out, if things get really bad, or at least not rule out a consortium from New York's great and good 'liberal elite'.

Friday, Oct 24
What Does the Future of The New York Times Co. Hold?
The New York Times Co. is in trouble. Its revenue stream is drying up and Moody's might cut its bond status. Can the Paper of Record survive?

Bankruptcy 37%
Business as usual 31%
Bailout 8%
Bloomberg on speed dial 24%

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LOOKING FOR A CHRISTMAS BOOK GIFT TO BUY?
"Books about cosmopolitan urbanites discovering the joys of country life are two a penny, but this one is worth a second glance. Walthew's vivid description of the moral stress induced by his job as a high-flying executive with the International Herald Tribune newspaper is worth the cover price alone…. Highly recommended." The Oxford Times

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Police investigate white powder at New York Times (IHT)

The Associated Press
Wednesday, October 22, 2008
NEW YORK: An employee of The New York Times opened a letter Wednesday containing a white powder that officials later said was harmless.
The discovery comes after more than 30 letters containing a suspicious powder were mailed to Chase bank branches and federal banking regulators' offices in nine cities. Officials said those letters, postmarked Amarillo, Texas, also appeared to be harmless.
A law enforcement official said the letter sent to the Times didn't appear to be related to those sent to the financial institutions.
The Times letter did not carry a Texas postmark and contained a different substance, said the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak publicly.
The newspaper told employees the powder was found Wednesday morning when an employee opened a letter on the 13th floor of company headquarters in midtown Manhattan. Police were called and said they didn't believe it was harmful.
The law enforcement official also said the Times letter tested negative for dangerous toxins.
The newspaper closed one lobby to the building, but it was reopened by about 6 p.m.
Anthrax-tainted letters were sent to media outlets and offices in 2001. Five people died, and since then, officials have been cautious when suspicious powders are detected.

Wednesday, Oct 22
Anthrax to NYT Office?
So basically we are assuming that over the next two weeks things will just proceed to get crazier as the reality of a Barack Obama presidency, helped along no doubt by the Liberal media elite(!), begins to sink in to a certain portion of the population. To wit: Radaronline is reporting that the NYT office received an envelope today containing a "white granular substance." Per the in-house email:

At about 11:30 a.m. today an employee on the 13th floor of our headquarters building in New York opened an envelope addressed to The New York Times. A white granular substance was in the envelope. The New York City police were called and are now on site investigating. The 41st Street side of the lobby is closed but people are able to get in and out of the building. We will keep you updated on any developments.

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Only $9 to go for NYT Company to join GateHouse Media (Fishbowl)

Wednesday, Oct 22
NYSE Says Goodbye to GateHouse Media
GateHouse Media, which publishes 97 daily newspapers and 400 other publications, will be delisted from the New York Stock Exchange before the market opens on Friday.
For more than a year, the per share price has hovered below the $1.05 minimum required by the exchange, trading at less than $0.17/share today. It traded for $20/share when the stock debuted on the market in October, 2006.
GateHouse attempted to keep its ticker symbol alive by submitting a business plan to NYSE last month, but the exchange decided "the 'abnormally low' price of the stock makes it appropriate" to suspend trading.

CORRECTION

26th October, 2008

Thanks to an alert Think! reader, I am told that the the above piece from FishbowlNY is incorrect.

Apparently, GateHouse Media did not go below $1.05 until July of this year.

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More Chinese Water Torture - NYT Technology Coverage

I've blogged many times on the cumulative affect of media criticism of the NYT, not so much in the consumer market, but in the trade market. If young wired media buyers don't buy the NYT brand on a subject as important as technology, why would they think the NYT's readers do?

To the power of people two years behind the curve?


Tuesday, Oct 21
NYT Writes Wired Article, Two Years Later
The New York Times isn't known for the timeliness of its technology coverage, but today's article about how bot networks are a danger to the Internet comes almost two years after Wired covered the same problem — much more thoroughly — in its November, 2006 issue.

Attack of the Bots (Wired) — "The latest threat to the Net: autonomous software programs that combine forces to perpetrate mayhem, fraud, and espionage on a global scale."

A Robot Network Seeks to Enlist Your Computer (NYT) — "An automated program lurking on the Internet has remotely taken over the PC and turned it into a 'zombie.' That computer and other zombie machines are then assembled into systems called 'botnets' — home and business PCs that are hooked together into a vast chain of cyber-robots that do the bidding of automated programs to send the majority of e-mail spam, to illegally seek financial information and to install malicious software on still more PCs."

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NYT Co. Chief Advertising Officer Discusses Plans to Help Advertisers, Increase Spending

Tuesday, Oct 21

In an effort to stem falling advertising revenues, The New York Times is being proactive. The company recently launched a new trade campaign, To The Power of The Times, designed to show advertisers the value of spending their money with the brand and also came out with an extensive marketing survey detailing how word of mouth among affluent women can help brands expand.
We spoke with Denise Warren, senior VP, chief advertising officer of The New York Times Media Group, earlier about the two campaigns. She described how they will help her company retain advertising revenue and understand its consumers better, as well as what the future holds.
"[The trade campaign] is designed to get you to focus on the impact of advertising in The New York Times," Warren said. It's equates simple, well-known mathematical formulas with the Times to show how advertising with the paper can benefit a company or brand. In the future, Warren explained that the NYT Co. will break the campaign down even further to target specific section of advertisers (fashion, retail, etc.)
The marketing survey details affluent women, and specifically a group of "Women Marketing Multipliers." "They talk more about products," Warren said. "They consume more products. And to the extent that we can help advertisers more effectively reach them, that helps advertisers create more efficiency in their advertising buys."
Was the campaign successful? "Way too soon" to tell how it's worked, Warren thought, adding that the press releases for the marketing campaign had just gone out a couple days ago and that so far, response had been positive.
So what's on tap for the future? "We are just getting the results back from an international study," Warren said. "I'm hoping we will be able to call it 'Global Marketing Multipliers' but I don't know until we get the results back. It's really an attempt to understand the global influential audience."
Posted by Noah 04:18 PM Newspapers

Here's the Women Multiplier Press Release for those that buy it, which knowing how this household functions, I do.

The New York Times Releases Results of First Ever Public Study of Word of Mouth among Affluent Women
NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--October 20, 2008
The New York Times Customer Insight and Advertising Groups announced today the results of a study that for the first time offers detailed information about reaching a key group of affluent, female consumers who have an exponential influence on purchase decisions - the ones who spend more, know more and talk more about the products they like. This is the first major public study ever released that focuses on word of mouth among affluent women. It provides much-needed insight into reaching these key consumers in five major industries: finance, fashion, consumer electronics, automotive and travel.
Given that studies suggest that a majority of consumer purchase decisions are made or influenced by women, this research fills an important gap in understanding how to increase marketing return on investment in today's challenging economic environment.
Based on extensive qualitative interviews and a survey of more than 3,000 women with household incomes of at least $100,000, the research uncovers the behavioral and personality traits that separate these influential women, Marketing Multipliers, from other affluent women.
The study quantifies the purchasing power and influence of this vital consumer target. For example:
-- Marketing Multipliers in the consumer electronics category have almost five times as many conversations about these products than other affluent women; they spend more than twice as much; and more than half (52%) say they accompany family members on shopping trips to advise them on consumer electronics and other tech items.

-- Marketing Multipliers in the fashion category spend more than twice as much as other affluent women on clothes and accessories. They serve as walking, talking ads for their favorite brands: 76% are asked by others where they bought the clothes they are wearing (compared to only 24% of other affluent women).

-- In the travel category, Marketing Multipliers take twice as many trips, and talk more than four times as often about travel brands - including hotels, airlines and car rentals - than other affluent women.

"In a time of tight marketing budgets and an increased focus on return, this study provides advertisers a much better understanding of consumers who are powerful catalysts for purchase behavior and brand influence," said Denise Warren, senior vice president and chief advertising officer, The New York Times Media Group. "The Marketing Multipliers research will help advertisers effectively reach and communicate with this key group of customers."

The New York Times research identified a combination of extensive social networks, past recommending behavior and personality traits that differentiate Marketing Multipliers from other affluent women. The findings show that while Marketing Multipliers have the exact same demographic characteristics of other affluent women, they differ in a number of important ways, including:

-- Marketing Multipliers have different media behavior, especially online, and are active contributors to the virtual world, not just passive readers. For example, they are twice as likely to post to blogs or to publish their own Web pages, compared to other women. They are also discriminating in vetting their sources: 71% of Marketing Multipliers say it is important for an ad to be "on a Web site that I consider trustworthy."

-- Helping other people, learning new things and knowing people from different walks of life are much more important to Marketing Multipliers than to other affluent women. Above all, they are plugged in to new trends: Marketing Multipliers are more than three times more likely to say being an authority - on what is in and what is out - is important to them.-- Marketing Multipliers are more likely to seek out in-depth information on products. In the investment category, for example, 45% follow up on new investment products they see advertised, and 53% of Marketing Multipliers in the Automotive category "follow information related to new safety features."

The research was conducted in conjunction with TSC (The Segmentation Company), a division of Yankelovich, which surveyed more than 3,000 affluent women across the country via an online survey. Additionally, the research company Just Ask a Woman conducted a series of in-depth, ethnographic interviews in New York and Los Angeles regarding the five topic areas.

For more information about specific industry insights and a copy of the white paper, contact Alexis Buryk at 212-556-1234.

Judith Miller to Join Fox News (Fishbowl)

So what do you do if you're a disgraced former investigative reporter for the national paper of record, who, in your own words, became a "lightning rod for public fury over the intelligence failures that helped lead our country to war?" You go work for Fox News of course!

Over at WaPo

Howie Kurtz is reporting that Fox News has signed Judith Miller to be an on-air analyst as well as contribute to Fox's website. Says says Fox senior vice president John Moody: "We've all had stories that didn't come out exactly as we had hoped. [Ha!] It's certainly something she's going to be associated with for all time, and there's not much anyone can do about that, but we want to make use of the tremendous expertise she brings on a lot of other issues." The "for all time" bit does seem a bit overdone, but still that was a pretty fundamental screw-up. Television is the great absolver, however! Miller isn't the only questionable hire Fox has made of late.

Shortly after Hillary Clinton suspended her campaign last June Fox announced that her top advisor Howard Wolfson would be joining its lineup of talking heads. According to NYMag this makes him the "makes him the most prominent Democrat ever placed on the conservative channel's payroll." Perhaps Fox is gearing up for a coming Democratic administration, arguably the first one it's ever had to deal with since it became household name during the Bush years. Of course, before you express too much wonderment, NYMag also points to this minor phenomenon:

There exists in Washington, of course, a kind of permanent political class...These people aren't without their political beliefs, but above all they are professionals. They may tear into each other by day, or from one campaign to the next, but in the shape of their lives they are more alike than they are different. They eat at the same restaurants, go to the same parties, and send their kids to the same schools...Howard Wolfson is a particularly nimble and skillful member of the permanent political class.

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IDG CEO: 'We Have to Create Something Entirely New for the Web' (Fishbowl)

Tuesday, Oct 14

Last week, we heard Bob Carrigan speak at the 2008 American Magazine Conference about making money in the online world. The CEO of IDG Communications worldwide had some interesting ideas, so earlier today we spoke with him by phone.
Carrigan, whose company publishes GamePro, Mac World, PC World and a host of others, said that since IDG's publications are in the technology sector, the company "jumped in early and has been experimenting aggressively" on the Web. On the b-to-b side of the business, they are using their vast databases to develop lead generations that are then sold to marketers. This practice has been increasingly successful and lucrative.
Carrigan also spoke about his vision for magazine Web sites. "The industry talks a lot about the transition from print to online ... We have to create something entirely new for the Web," he said. "It's about creating something that's pure for the Web."
But how does one do that? Well, having your own global news service is a great start.
The IDG News Service is a "global new service" that "only syndicates news to internal IDG sites," he said. Although its been around for upwards of 20 years — pre-Internet, it was used primarily to send news around the world for inclusion in the international editions of various magazines — the service has been instrumental in providing sites with interesting, constantly refreshed and original content. "[Our] brands will take the stories and make them their own," Carrigan said. "Most technology stories are relevant to their Web site."
IDG Web sites also rely on their users to create content. "We have very active communities that contribute content and insight," the CEO explained, while remarking that features from the print magazines make up less than one percent of the content on each site. The result is a "standalone" site that can "compete against pure play competitors."
In the near future, IDG — like so many other companies — will look to expand into the mobile realm. Having a presence in 85 countries helps this venture. "In the area of mobile, the U.S. is way behind," Carrigan said, noting that many developments in the mobile arena have come from IDG's outposts across the Atlantic.

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Media Criticism about NYT from Fishbowl

Yeah, I know. Fishbowl. Again.

I follow it closely simply because I want to see the agitprop being fed Manhattan media buyers.

Friday, Oct 10

Is the Daily Intel Influencing The New York Times?

Today's New York Times headline email that pops up in our inbox at 5:30 a.m. every morning includes John Eligon's article "Young, Black and Republican in New York, Blogging Against the Tide." It's a look at the life and times of Richard Ivory, founder of HipHopRepublican.com, and other young, black Republicans in the Barack Obama-led Democratic world.
Interestingly, the article "appeared in print on October 9, 2008, on page A35 of the New York edition," meaning it could have been in yesterday's email. Interesting. Clearly, the article had more traction then editors thought it would. One reason for that might be Jessica Pressler's Daily Intel post "Young Black Republican Kind of Maybe Prefers Obama, Now That You Mention It." It was the most-commented on story at NYMag.com yesterday.

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How Are Media Stocks Doing? (Last Friday from Fishbowl)

This from Fishbowl last Friday - more drip feed, anti-MSM, print is dead Chinese water torture on the world's young and impressionable media buyers and planners,

NYT stock is currently at, let me see......

For Q1 and Q2 2008 the total revenues for the New York Times Media Group, which includes the IHT, were down 2.8% and 4.4% respectively versus 2007.

We sporadically examine media stocks because it's depressing but gives us an excuse to run the fun Monopoly guy image.
So, with the financial crisis upon us and all, how are they doing? Not well, according to our quick and totally incomplete survey.
News Corp: -0.56

Time Warner: -0.92

Gannett Co., Inc: -0.52

McClatchy Newspapers Inc: -0.18(Bright spot!)

The New York Times: -0.04
The list goes on. Maybe there's a TV in the bar we can watch.

(Also, over at TechCrunch, Erick Schonfeld writes how many Google employees are now holding worthless stock in the company.)

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The Death of Opinion (fishbowlNY)

I'm not that interested by the specifics of the subject below, but I was attracted by fishbowl's headline - The Death of Opinion.

I recently put it to someone that maybe the NYT and the IHT really ought to get out of the op-ed business altogether. They nearly fell off their chair.

I wasn't entirely sure I meant it when I said it, but I think this idea could do with some further consideration. By me, for starters.

Anyway, the article for what it's worth....

The Death of Opinion: Newspaper Music Critic Removed From Post for Being Critical

For almost 30 years, Donald Rosenberg has covered the Cleveland Symphony Orchestra, first for The Akron Beacon Journal and, since 1992, The Plain Dealer. Earlier this week, he found out his services would no longer be needed as he was being transferred to an arts and entertainment writer.

The move came a shock and many believe executives at the Plain Dealer gave into pressure from the orchestra community who felt Rosenberg was overly critical of its maestro, Franz Welser-Most. Susan Goldberg, the paper's editor, denied the claims, telling The New York Times, "No outside criticism is going to change our internal decision-making process."
Terrance C. Z. Egger, publisher of the Plain Dealer and also a member of the orchestra's board, could not be reached for comment by the Times.
Zachary Lewis, a 28-year-old former intern of Rosenberg, will handle the symphony beat.
After the jump, the music critic community jumps to Rosenberg's defense.
The Baltimore Sun's music critic Tim Smith took Rosenberg's side, writing:
Don's musical background is as good as it gets, his evaluations reasoned and sensitive. He has covered the Cleveland Orchestra for nearly three decades (including a stint with another area paper), and he's the author of the definitive book about that orchestra. So what did he do wrong? He has questioned, more than once, the sanctity of the Cleveland Orchestra's music director, Franz Welser-Most.
Smith goes on to accuse the Plain Dealer of caving to "pressure from a faction representing the orchestra and the man on its podium." He writes, "Ultimately, this calculated attack on a music critic doing his job casts a suspicious light on his detractors and their motivations."
The Orange County Register's Arts Blog (which noted Welser-Most's nickname "Worse-Than-Most") also took the writer's side: "Rosenberg was only doing his job. To state the obvious: A critic is not supposed to be a cheerleader, or to help the local orchestra sell tickets."

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The NYT Now Allowing Comments on its Op-Ed Pieces (fishbowlNY)

"Many of you who read the New York Times online will no doubt already have noticed that a comments function has been added to the op-ed columns," writes fishbowlNY.

I hadn't noticed because I don't read NYT editorials. They are behind the news curve, predictable and in the age of the commenteriat, not that interesting.

Anyway, that aside, here's what fishbowlNY has to say:

Now instead of spending Sunday brunch screaming at your relatives and friends over the latest Friedman, Dowd, or Rich column (really, is Kristol even worth the effort?) you can post it directly to the Times webpage, in CAPITALS if you so choose.
We put a call in to the Times to find out exactly when the comments went live, and whether they have any idea which column has accumulated the most so far, and are still waiting to hear back (we imagine they are having a pretty busy time of it this week thanks to a certain senator from Arizona). But based on a cursory glance at this week's posts we're going to hazard a guess that MoDo is probably leading. However! As we look again to get a better tally it seems that not all of her columns in the last two weeks have allowed comments, or else, maybe they've been removed? Ideas anyone?

Politico as a model for newspapers? (Fishbowl)

Four Questions for Politico's Jim VandeHei

Politico, the Washington-based paper/website that has become a major player in this election season since launching in January of 2007, announced this morning that come November 4 it was actually planning on (gasp!) expanding.

FBNY caught up with Politico co-founder Jim VandeHei to find out, among other things, how in this age of print journalism demise his paper is thriving; whether he thinks other newspapers could use Politico as a model in terms of how to make a profit; and whether Politico hopes to become a sort of collective Washington bureau for newspapers nation-wide.

At least once a day FBNY pens a story about layoffs and closures at newspapers nationwide, how is it that the print version of Politico is not only surviving but expanding?

Our print version is not heavily reliant on retail and classified advertising, two categories getting creamed by the economic turmoil. Our advertisers are predominantly companies and groups trying to shape elite opinion or influence a pending legislative debate. We see this as a strong growth area, even in unnerving economic times. There are countless interests who not only want but need to have their voices heard in Washington — and we are among the most efficient and effective ways of reaching those key decision-makers here and around the country. It is no secret that lawmakers, staffers and policy-shapers are inundated with information like the rest of us. With limited time, they turn to the publications and reporters they trust most. That is why we went out two years ago and hired the best reporters in town, with well-earned reputations and followings among political insiders. Because we are essential to these readers, we are essential to our advertising base.

According to today's story in the NYT Politico.com clocks 3 million unique visitors a month. The website has become a real go-to place for online political coverage (not to mention breaking stories), are you concerned about a significant drop in traffic post Nov 4? And how will the upcoming changes affect Politico online?

Nielsen had us at 3.6 million unique visitors last month — our internal data shows a much higher number. I do anticipate traffic will level off or drop a bit after the election. But I do not think it will drop precipitously because there is a huge audience out there for news on the president, Congress and special interests. I can not imagine public interest will fall given the historic nature of the outcome (either the first African-American president or first female VP.) We will continue to break news on the big stories of the day and provide smart and timely analysis — it's in the DNA of the place now. We anticipate we will continue to draw an elite audience (our numbers show our readers are very well educated and pretty wealthy), which is attractive to higher-end national brand advertisers, as well as the issue advocacy community. The public focus will shift to the White House and Congress — and so will we in a pretty big way. We will have among the largest WH and congressional teams in the country. The day after the election, we will launch Politico 44 — a new and we think quite innovative way of covering the most powerful person in the world. This is a long way of saying I don't think things will slow down — in fact, we are bracing (and staffing up) for even more action post-election.

There is a story in The American Prospect right now about the demise of the Washington News Bureau. One of the goals of your expansion is to share content and ad sales with newspapers, something we saw early evidence of at both the conventions. Do you foresee Politico becoming a sort of AP-like Washington bureau for newspapers that no longer have the budget to afford their own?

We could never compete with the Associated Press. It is a massive wire service that covers countless topics. We cover politics and Washington governance. Can you imagine getting your sports news from a place called Politico? Our ambitions are pretty clear and focused: We want it to be emphatically clear to our readers that we provide the fastest, smartest, most essential coverage of Congress, the White House, politics and those who try to influence all three. It is sad and true that many newspapers are being forced to pull back or eliminate their Washington coverage. John Harris and I spend a lot of time thinking about the future of journalism and talking with newspaper editors about ways we can work together to provide coverage in our core areas. We partnered with the Denver Post and St. Paul Pioneer-Press for the conventions — and both efforts were a huge success, in our eyes. We recently launched a new experiment called the Politico Network that allows newspapers to use some of our content. In exchange, we get the rights to sell some of their web advertising inventory. It successful, this would allow Politico to spread its content around the country and make some money for the newspaper partners and Politico.

Politico is unique in that its print version is aimed at a very local audience while its online reach is national. Do you think this might be a format that other print newspapers might be able to follow, or is it only something that could exist and be profitable in Washington?

I don't think our model can be easily replicated, at least on the print side (unless the federal government moves to another city). John and I do think there is a very robust future for niche sites online. The new media formula is pretty simple: If you can build a desirable audience that a class of advertisers wants to reach, you have a darn good chance at success. Advertisers want efficient ways of reaching their target audience, and niche sites offer it (if you can build a big enough audience). We have some thoughts on variations of POLITICO that might work elsewhere — and we might have more on that next year.

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