One of the fastest growing media forms over the past decade has been alternative weeklies. Packed with in-depth stories the mainstream media may not cover, they're a great source of story ideas, not to mention interesting reading. But with more than 125 newsweeklies available across the country, keeping an eye on all of them has been nearly impossible -- until now.
The Association of Alternative Newsweeklies launched a wonderful new website earlier this month, AltWeeklies.com, featuring the best stories from 125 weeklies, including L.A. Weekly, Phoenix New Times, Austin Chronicle, Creative Loafing (Atlanta), Boston Phoenix, San Francisco Bay Guardian, and The Village Voice.
Though the publications are weekly, the site is updated daily (Monday through Friday) with articles on everything from crime and politics reporting to sex and food.
In addition to scanning headlines on the front page and the main channels (Politics, Health & Science, Opinion, Movies, Books, Culture), you can easily browse for more specific subjects thanks to two nice features.
The left column of every page on the site features Hot Topics, quick links to the latest alternative media stories on a range of topics in the news, such as the conventions, the Iraq war, Swift Boat veterans, and same-sex marriage.
On the Browse Archives page you can dig even deeper, easily scanning headlines sorted by dozens of topics, from alternative medicine to race relations.
The advanced search page is handy, too, though keep in mind that the site is still young so the articles don't go back very far. As more stories are posted and archived on the site over time, the search will become even more valuable.
SUBMIT YOUR TIPS FOR PUBLICATION
What websites do you find handy when digging for information? Have you used the Web recently for a story? Send me the website and the story and I may print them. E-mail me at: poynter (at) jondube.com
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