Media

From newspapers to neighborhood blogs, all the media we are consuming and considering.

RECENT POSTS

AOL Patches up with Ballston

ballston

Arlington County via Flicrk

Ballston, VA

Local (and from what I can gather, volunteer-run) blog ArlNow.com has some interesting news about AOL:
“Internet giant AOL is rolling out a local news site devoted exclusively to the Ballston-Virginia Square area. The Ballston Patch will launch on September 13 with a paid, full-time editor at the helm.”

The Ballston Patch has the following “introduction”:

Ballston-Virginia Square Patch is a hub of local news and information for and about Ballston-Virginia Square — and we’re launching soon…Our mission is simple: to make people’s lives better by providing quick and easy access to the local news and information that is most relevant to them.

It sounds like a neighborhood blog crossed with Yelp!:

Ballston-Virginia Square Patch is much more than a news site. It will also include a comprehensive events calendar, restaurant reviews, and a rich directory of all of Ballston-Virginia Square’s important places. We want to be the place you go to find a dentist, a mechanic, an activity for the kids, or the name of the official to call for a building permit or to make a noise complaint. And our listings won’t be skimpy Yellow-Pages stuff—we’ll provide detailed information like maps, products sold and even photos of every business.

Developing…

Washington Times is NOT on Dan Snyder’s Shopping List

washington-times

David All

I’d heard that it was, earlier today. But according to this breaking news from the City Paper

Dan Snyder’s spokesman Tony Wyllie called to say that the boss “has no interest in buying the Washington Times.”

Dan Snyder– as many of you probably know– is a local billionaire who owns the Washington Redskins.

DC: Home of the Free…Bloggers

twobloggers

Mike Licht, NotionsCapital.com / Flickr

Two bloggers, after Norman Rockwell

File this one under “Yet Another Way DC is Better”: in Philadelphia, niche bloggers are being asked to fork over $300 for a “Business Privilege License.”

Are you scratching your head? Me, too.

Even though small-time bloggers aren’t exactly raking in the dough, the city requires privilege licenses for any business engaged in any “activity for profit,” says tax attorney Michael Mandale of Center City law firm Mandale Kaufmann. This applies “whether or not they earned a profit during the preceding year,” he adds.

If Philly’s bloggers are feeling persecuted, I would humbly like to offer up DC as a saner alternative. We’re not perfect, but we’re also not targeting hobbyists who sometimes update their Blogspot.