Ezra Klein is leaving the Washington Post

[octoberlib]

The Washington Post announced Tuesday that its star economics blogger Ezra Klein will be leaving the paper to start a new venture.

"When Ezra joined us in 2009, he was a wunderkind blogger with brash confidence and a burning desire to write a column in the print newspaper," Post editors wrote in a memo to staff. "As he leaves us, Ezra is still a brash wunderkind, but now his burning desire has a grander scope: He is looking to start his own news organization, an ambition that befits someone with uncommon gifts of perception and analysis. Ezra’s passion and drive will be missed, but we will take pride in watching him chart out his new venture."

The move comes after weeks of discussions between Klein and the Post brass over Klein's future, including a proposal by Klein to start the new venture in-house with more than three-dozen staffers and a multi-year budget of at least $10 million. The Post declined that proposal.

Melissa Bell, the Director of Platforms at the Post, and Dylan Matthews, a member of Klein's "Wonkblog" team, will also be leaving to take part in the new venture.

http://www.politico.com/blogs/media/2014/01/ezra-klein-out-at-washington-post-181583.html

http://www.poynter.org/latest-news/mediawire/236466/washington-post-announces-ezra-klein-is-leaving/

[frazzled]

1. I wonder who's bankrolling the new venture

Because that's a pretty grand scheme, requiring a lot of bazookas.

When the Washington Post went behind a pay wall last year, I think it really cut into readership of that blog. I know I used to check it out every day, and even comment sometimes. Now, I rarely go there, and notice that the comments have reduced to a trickle. Maybe that also entered into his decision.

I'm a little perturbed by this. Back when the whole idea of blogs started, I was skeptical that it would be revolutionary. I said back then that it would eventually just recapitulate traditional journalism, with an "authorial voice" speaking and everyone else passively receiving. (Sure, there are comment sections, but it's sort of like letters to the editor on the back page; it's really basement-level. back-room participation.) Never did I imagine that most bloggers had ambitions larger than becoming the star op-ed writer. Starting your own "news organization": that's Citizen Kane level chutzpah.

Well, I'll watch it with interest. I think Ezra is smart, even when I more than sometimes disagree with him. But I worry a bit about the megalomaniacal nature of this. They're going to have to work hard at keeping it "real."

[octoberlib]

2. Vox Media was mentioned.

Vox Media
Company
Vox Media Inc. is an American internet media company that currently has six main editorial brands: SB Nation, The Verge, Polygon, Curbed, Eater, and Racked. Vox is headquartered at 1201 Connecticut Ave NW in Washington, D.C. Wikipedia
Founded: 2011
Founders: Tyler Bleszinski, Jerome Armstrong, Markos Moulitsas

[frazzled]

3. Wow ...

Armstrong the paid stock touter who ended up paying fines to the SEC?

He and Markos have the millions and millions needed to fund such a venture? These guys have become behemoth moguls. Now I really repeat my concerns about the consolidation of the blogosphere. It's gone from underground blogger to captains of industry.

[KoKo]

4. I didn't know about that...

I remember a Jerome Armstrong from early days of Daily KOS... I thought he wasn't well liked on the site or something. There was always some snickering about "Jerome."

I stopped reading KOS after 2004 or so. So...didn't keep up with what went on over there. Anyway...he was touting stocks on KOS? Maybe he's a good trader and that's how they fund VOX?

[octoberlib]

5. I had no idea he coined the term 'netroots'

Jerome Armstrong (born February 26, 1964, in Los Angeles, California) is an American political strategist. In 2001, he founded MyDD, a blog which covered politics with an openly Democratic partisan perspective, making him one of the first political bloggers. Armstrong coined the term netroots,[1] and was referred to as The Blogfather[2] for having mentored many other famous bloggers such as Markos Moulitsas in their early years.[3] He is credited as one of the architects of Howard Dean's '04 grassroots Presidential campaign, and bringing those tactics to campaigns globally.[4][5] He is one of the co-founders of Vox Media.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jerome_Armstrong

[frazzled]

6. Who knows

But these guys have big ambitions, and don't seem to mind running a bit foul to get there.

Prominent liberal blogger Jerome Armstrong has agreed to pay nearly $30,000 in fines in a settlement with the Securities and Exchange Commission over allegations that Armstrong touted the stock of a software company on Raging Bull, an Internet bulletin board, in 2000, without disclosing that he was being paid to do so.

http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2007/08/08/blogger-agrees-to-pay-30000-in-sec-case/

The Commission's Complaint, filed on April 14, 2003, alleged that beginning on March 6, 2000, Armstrong touted the stock of BluePoint Linux Software Corporation ("BluePoint&quot by posting unsubstantiated, favorable buy recommendations on the Raging Bull internet site. Armstrong posted over eighty such recommendations during the first three weeks that the stock of BluePoint was publicly traded. According to the Complaint, Armstrong praised BluePoint's investment value and encouraged investors who were experiencing trouble having their orders filled to keep trying. The Complaint further alleged that the promoters of BluePoint were secretly transferring stock in three other companies to Armstrong at prices below the then current market for those three stocks and that Armstrong made at least $20,000 by selling the shares he received from the promoters of BluePoint. The Complaint alleges that Armstrong did not disclose in his internet postings that he was being compensated for making the postings.

http://www.sec.gov/litigation/litreleases/2007/lr20228.htm