On March 18, Seattle almost certainly will lose an institution nearly as old as the city itself. The illuminated globe atop the Seattle Post-Intelligencer building will go dark. But perhaps all is not lost. If the Hearst folks decide against funding an internet edition of the P-I, a group of seasoned reporters and columnists will form a subscriber-supported cooperative to provide local news and opinion online:
We are a group of P-I journalists. Our goal is to allow P-I reporters to continue serving Seattle as watchdogs and informing the public on such key issues as city politics, helping people navigate the current economic crisis, the environment, and education. Additionally, we intend to continue the work of recognizable writers as Robert Jamieson, Mike Lewis, Art Thiel, and many others.
Jump below.
Forgive the brevity of this diary. I post it to bring attention to this brave endeavor, which might well be a template for saving good journalism at the local level all over the country. I recommend that everyone, particularly fellow Seattle-ites, read the full proposal. As of now, the cooperative group is testing the water, seeking pledges and feedback.
In this economic climate, we believe our role to "comfort the afflicted and afflict the comfortable" has never been as important, and we intend to use lessons learned by a generation of community bloggers in expanding the idea of the work done by professional journalists.
Should the Seattle Post-Intelligencer close, we intend to begin a news website to fill the void left in our community. We hope that the Hearst Corporation will start a online-only P-I that performs the important role the newspaper has played in this community, but we stand ready to continue our work for the public interest.
Every region and locality needs a cadre of paid, full-time reporters, reporters who know the lay of the land, who know where the bodies are buried. Furthermore, a city the size of Seattle needs competing groups of reporters to keep the process honest and free of undue influence. Here's hoping we can keep the fine journalists at the P-I on the job!