Gawker.com
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| URL | http://www.gawker.com/ |
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| Commercial? | Yes |
| Type of site | Blog |
| Owner | Gawker Media |
| Created by | Choire Sicha (Managing Editor) Alex Balk/Emily Gould (Co-Editors) Doree Shafrir (Associate Editor) |
| Launched | January, 2003 |
| Current status | Active |
Founded in 2002, Gawker.com is a blog based in New York City that bills itself as "The source for daily Manhattan media news and gossip" and focuses on celebrities and the media industry with a funny, sarcastic or "snarky" voice.
Gawker is the flagship blog for Nick Denton's Gawker Media; Gawker is one of the most successful nanopublishing ventures to date. The success spawned other blogs including Wonkette, covering Washington, D.C., Defamer, covering Los Angeles, and Valleywag covering Silicon Valley.
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[edit] Editors
Gawker was originally edited by Elizabeth Spiers, the site was next edited by Choire Sicha, from August 2003 to August 2004. When Sicha became editorial director of Gawker Media in August, 2004, Jessica Coen was hired to be the site editor. The editor position was split between two co-editors in 2005, and Coen was joined by guest editors from a variety of New York City-based blogs; Matt Haber was engaged as co-editor for several months, then Jesse Oxfeld joined for longer. In July, 2006, Oxfeld's contract was not renewed, and Alex Balk was installed, while Chris Mohney, formerly of Gridskipper, Gawker Media's travel blog, was hired to become the managing editor, a newly created position.
On September 28, 2006, Coen announced in a post on Gawker that she would be leaving the site to become deputy online editor at Vanity Fair. Balk now shares the site with co-editor Emily Gould. Associate editor Doree Shafrir also writes the site.
In February 2007, Sicha returned from his position at The New York Observer, and replaced Mohney as the Managing Editor.
[edit] Content
Gawker usually publishes more than 30 posts daily on Monday through Friday each week, and it syndicates related content from other Gawker Media sites as well, sometimes reaching 40 posts a day. It now publishes, at a reduced schedule, on weekends. Its content consists of celebrity and media industry gossip, critiques of mainstream news outlets and New York-centric stories. The stories generally come from anonymous tips from media employees, found mistakes and faux pas in news stories caught by readers and other blogs, and original reporting.
On July 3, 2006, when publisher Nick Denton replaced Jesse Oxfeld with Alex Balk, Oxfeld claimed it was an attempt to make the blog more mainstream and less media-focused, ending a long tradition of heavy media coverage at Gawker.[1]
[edit] Gawker Stalker
On March 14, 2006, Gawker.com launched Gawker Stalker Maps, a mashup of the site's Gawker Stalker feature and Google Maps.[2] Gawker Stalker, originally a weekly roundup of celebrity sightings in New York City submitted by Gawker readers, first posted on April 21, 2003, is now frequently updated, and the sightings are displayed on a map.
The feature has drawn criticism from celebrities and publicists for encouraging stalking, and George Clooney rep Stan Rosenfeld called Gawker Stalker "a dangerous thing." Jessica Coen has said that the map is harmless, that Gawker readers are "for the most part, a very educated, well-meaning bunch," and that "if there is someone really intending to do a celebrity harm, there are much better ways to go about doing that than looking at the Gawker Stalker".[3]
[edit] Trivia
In the September 26, 2005 issue, New York Magazine reported Coen's salary as $30,000, a number denied in a post on Gawker.[4][5]
[edit] References
- ^ Oxfeld, Jesse. "Letter From the Ex-Editor: It's a Long Way to Tipperary, It's a Long Way to Go", Gawker.com, 2006-07-03.
- ^ "Introducing Gawker Stalker Maps", Gawker.com, 2006-03-14.
- ^ "Gawker.com launches 'stalker' map", MSNBC, 2006-03-21.
- ^ Gawker also has mentioned various great gay blog sites on the web including fleshbot, and queerclick. "Who Makes How Much - New York's Salary Guide 2005", New York Magazine, 2005-09-25.
- ^ Coen, Jessica. "'New York' Salary Issue, Courtesy of Google?", Gawker.com, 2005-09-19.
[edit] External link
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