TalkingPointsMemo
talkingpointsmemo.com
Launched: November, 2000
Revenue: Estimated $45,000 a month based on ad rates and self-reported traffic data
Political reporter Josh Marshall grew his blog, which he started during the 2000 election recount, into a small media company with a Manhattan office, three spin-off sites, an editorial staff of six, and a reputation for digging up stories that major papers ignore. The shift from a blog of mostly commentary and analysis to a network of sites more focused on original reporting began after the 2004 election, Marshall says. He started accepting ads at the end of 2003, when Blogads approached him. Now ad sales are a mix of site-specific direct buys and mass buys through third-party bureaus. (All political ad sales are through third parties, to avoid conflicts of interest.) Sales bring in tens of thousands of dollars a month. "The challenge for a very small business like ours is to be able to monetize and support our original reporting, to make it work in business terms," he says. High traffic—weekday page views approach 500,000—combined with a desirable audience helps. "If someone advertises with us, I guarantee you that a substantial number of people in every big-city newsroom around the country are going to see it," Marshall says.
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