Via: Tuned In
Andrew Sullivan was one of the first mainstream media writers to start a blog–back when you still had to explain what a “blog” was–a decade ago. He was one of the first to turn that blog into his principal full-time writing gig. And now, he’s among the first to try to sell his blog writing directly to his readers. Starting in February, Sullivan announced Wednesday, he’s taking his blog from The Dish away from The Daily Beast, the latest media outlet to host it, and relaunching it as an independent, ad-free site, asking readers for $19.99 a year. It would be “the purest, simplest model for online journalism,” he wrote: “you, us, and a meter. Period. No corporate ownership, no advertising demands, no pressure for pageviews.” (Sullivan describes the “metered” system at more length, but in essence some content would be free, with a charge for unfettered access.) The buzz in the media–at least among other journalists, always fascinated by any proposition that puts “Internet writing” and “money” in the same sentence–has amounted to two questions: Will this plan work for Sullivan? And is will it work for online media generally? I have no doubt this will work for Sullivan–in that maybe this plan will succeed or it won’t or he’ll have to change it, but it will survive in some form if he wants it to. The Dish has really been an independent entity for a long time: first he ran it solo, then he signed contracts with The Atlantic and The Daily Beast (and at one point TIME), essentially leasing the brand out for a fee. He might draw enough loyal paying subscribers to make it work; if not, he can shop his brand to a new patron. (Foster Kamer theorizes this is the real endgame.) But is it a new model for blogging generally? As journalists go, Sullivan may be like Louis CK or Radiohead: established creators who have been able to monetize DIY efforts themselves after becoming famous in more conventional ways. Sullivan is a media independent
Read full story at: Tuned In
Posted: January 3rd, 2013
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