Anschutz Goes Hyperlocal

When I started this blog in 2005 I was interested in the idea that local writers, bloggers, and video makers would start to cover their neighborhoods, and, if there were enough of us, we could cover the city. Independent, multiple viewpoints, beholden to no one. Recently, I began to notice Examiner.com, for which one of Denver's local bloggers has begun writing. I decided to check out the possibility of doing so myself, when I ran into this (from Reuters).

Examiner.com Acquires NowPublic DENVER, Sept. 2 /PRNewswire/ -- Examiner.com (www.examiner.com), the insider source for everything local, has acquired Vancouver-based NowPublic (www.nowpublic.com), a pioneer in user-generated content and the largest participatory news network in the world. Examiner.com, whose audience has grown more than 200 percent since the beginning of the year and now has more than 15,000 Examiners (Examiner.com's expert writers) in 109 U.S. cities, is the industry leader in creating local content, and will leverage NowPublic's innovative search and publishing technology to solidify its leadership position in providing local news and information, delivering on the long-held promise of relevant, robust hyperlocal content to both consumers and advertisers. "Every day we hear discussions about whether hyperlocal content will ever be scalable, sustainable or profitable as a business entity," said Rick Blair, CEO of Examiner.com. "Examiner.com is rapidly becoming the solution to the hyperlocal puzzle. In the last year we have created the depth of content consumers and advertisers expect. With the acquisition of NowPublic, we have the technology to further engage our community of over 17 million unique visitors per month and distribute our stories in new and innovative ways." … About Examiner.com Launched in April 2008, Examiner.com serves 109 markets across the country and is the insider source for everything local. Examiner.com's content is contributed by Examiners; passionate, informed, and knowledgeable local influencers. Examiner.com is a division of the Clarity Digital Group, LLC, wholly owned by The Anschutz Company, a Denver-based investment company with a broad array of assets in print and digital media; live sports and entertainment; hospitality; film production and exhibition; wind energy development and transmission; as well as ranching and oil/gas exploration. For more information, visit Examiner.com. About NowPublic NowPublic is a crowd-sourced, participatory news network that mobilizes an army of reporters to cover the events that define our world. In its short history, the company has become the largest news organization of its kind with contributing reporters in more than 6000 cities and 160 countries. The Guardian has named NowPublic.com one of the top five most useful news sites on the Web and TIME Magazine named it one of the Top 50 Websites for 2007. NowPublic Technologies Inc. is a Vancouver-based company. The company owns and operates NowPublic, which showcases its platform for citizen journalism.

Anschutz will be the Rupert Murdoch of Web 2.0. So much for independence. P.S. I guess I won't be applying for a spot with the Examiner. With my posts about Anschutz (AEG) taking over City Park and selling beer with Hickenlooper ... probably not. This extremely wealthy right-wing guy is getting control of everything.