Two Washington Posts: Print and Web

COMMENTARY
Deborah Howell has written an interesting piece detailing the difference between the print Washington Post and the Web washingtonpost.com. Sure to invite territorial responses from the Web published (make that unedited) crowd, the story should probably be required reading for bloggers who link to the Web Post.

When I came to DC, I became fascinated with the idea that local politics are also national politics. However, my original impression was somewhat short sighted. There are many distinct local communities both inside and outside the beltway. The folks in those areas are the hard-copy Washington Post's audience. Far from the beltway, the Web's washingtonpost.com plays to an international crowd. Like the communities they play to, the two posts are in some way the same but in many ways very different.

UPDATED COMMENTARY
Sure enough, Howell's article set off a firestorm that has produced some of the best name calling by bloggers I have seen recently on the Web. What seems to be overlooked the most in these comments, of course, is any notion of local vs. International Washington Post. Another point missed is that some simple news aggregations, such as Google News, make no distinction between opinion and news. As such, Froomkin's column could easily be misinterpreted by the less learned amongst us.

In any case, many of the comments are from liberal bloggers defending a Web column that is written, according the column's author, by frequently dredging those very blogs to find cut-and-paste content. Sadly, the vitriol is slung far and wide, sometimes dragging in Republicans and conservatives alike, who are as-if on cue, blamed for all that's wrong on the planet. I'll admit that I have read some strikingly eloquent digressions into why Web journalism will bury print journalism. However, I really haven't been sold on the idea that the process of professional journalists will be supplanted by the pajama wearing wannabe Krugmans with their laptop newsrooms who always tend to link 'real' news for something to write about.

NEWSLINES
"Political reporters at The Post don't like [washingtonpost.com's] columnist Dan Froomkin's 'White House Briefing,' which is highly opinionated and liberal. They're afraid that some readers think that Froomkin is a Post White House reporter.

The Web site adds to The Post's prestige, and the world is moving toward the Web. The Web is a wonderful place for The Post to put newsprint-eating texts and documents, such as presidential speeches, and other information, such as congressional votes, that readers want.

But I agree with The Post's political writers here; the Web site should remove the "White House Briefing" label from Froomkin's column."

NEWSBYTE
The Two Washington Posts
(washingtonpost.com) As far as most readers are concerned, washingtonpost.com is The Washington Post. But it's not, really. They are quite different, though the content is much the same and the Web site delivers Post content 24 hours a day.

The Post is primarily a local newspaper, no matter how or where it's read. Its circulation, as reported in September, is 671,322 daily and 965,920 Sunday. The Web site's reach is huge -- 8 million unique visitors a month, about 1.3 million of them local. Read full story.

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