Ed Brayton is a journalist, commentator and speaker. He is the co-founder and president of 
The organization that I work for, the Center for Independent Media, has officially changed its name to the American Independent News Network. I think the primary reason for doing so was because the old name really made it sound like a think tank analyzing the media rather than a real news outlet, which is what it is. Here's the full press release on the name change:
The Center for Independent Media, which publishes award-winning news sites including The Washington Independent, announced today that it has changed its name to The American Independent News Network."The American Independent News Network more accurately reflects the true nature of our work as an online news network," said David Bennahum, President and CEO of the newly renamed organization. "However, while our name has changed, our mission has not. For the past nearly four years, our reporting network-wide has set itself apart from the mainstream media because of our commitment to impact journalism. The American Independent News Network will continue to investigate and disseminate news that impacts public debate and advance the common good."
Since its launch in May 2006, The American Independent News Network's reporters have published 51,934 original news stories (as of February 1, 2010), and have broken dozens of important stories that have been picked up by the established news media and impacted public debate. The high quality of reporting has been recognized with 40 prestigious awards for excellence in reporting from the Society of Professional Journalists, often setting records as the first online-only news site to do so.
Bennahum founded the Center for Independent Media as a nonprofit, nonpartisan, next generation political news organization. Today, The American Independent News Network publishes news sites in five states--Colorado, Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota and New Mexico--and recently announced plans to open a sixth in Florida by June 1, 2010. The organization also publishes The Washington Independent, which covers national political news out of Washington, DC.
Comments
I've been impressed with the quality of the reporting and the coverage. In some ways this groups' efforts points the way to how the media can better serve the people as the Internet's free news content makes publishing a newspaper ever more difficult.
American Independent News Network's initial quality successes also amplifies how and why the public continues to enable a mainstream media with far more resources to operate with such inferior and far more defective standards than a mere start-up, with few exceptions.
Posted by: Michael Heath | February 7, 2010 10:13 AM
You know I always did think it was a think tank. I guess this explains all the news.
Posted by: deep | February 7, 2010 2:29 PM