Wednesday was a difficult day for The American Independent News Network, which is the larger entity that operates The Iowa Independent. Our chief executive and founder announced two of our sister sites would close and their content would be moved to The American Independent.
A recently introduced bill could have far-reaching impact on the U.S. sugar industry, including American Crystal Sugar, a farmer-owned cooperative that locked out 1,300 Midwest workers on Aug. 1.
The chairman for Herman Cain’s Iowa effort says the campaign “relied more on the word of farmers than Washington regulators” in deciding to run an ad containing claims the Environmental Protection Agency says are false.
The Iowa Senate will remain under the control of a slim 26-25 Democratic majority when it reconvenes in January 2012.
As the caucuses draw near, traditional media outlets have noticed the impact Iowa Independent has had on news across the country. Thursday, Wired Magazine profiled the Iowa blogosphere, which writer Sarah Lai Stirland says “play[s] a pivotal role in the squeaky-close 2008 primary season.” In the story, she describes the influence Iowa Independent has wielded in the national discussion about the presidential race.
The bulk of the political commentariat’s attention on local media still revolves around state newspapers like The Des Moines Register. But local blogs have now risen to play a pivotal role in the squeaky-close 2008 primary season — courted by the presidential campaigns, and taking the pole position as vehicles for new negative stories or previously unvoiced viewpoints that can quickly grow into controversial national discussions.
…And even veteran old-guard journalists say local blogs are having a national impact.
“I think they help to inform the public, and challenge the public’s thinking,” says Chuck Offenburger, a former Des Moines Register reporter who covered the state for a quarter-century. “Many times I notice, like with the Iowa Independent or smaller papers, they’ll be out in front of the media on some campaign appearance, and then the larger media then works their way around to it.”
Founded eight months ago, the Iowa Independent is staffed with a motley mix of part-time contributing bloggers and more-established local writers. Its sole full-time employee is Martyn — a former Democratic field coordinator and student political blogger who graduated from Grinnell College earlier this year. Martyn admits he’s enjoying the limelight, but says his blog will continue long after the national press has moved on.
Iowa Independent is the state’s largest online-only news outlet. With a team of citizen journalists across the state, its on-the-ground perspective on the presidential race has made it a top destination for journalists and readers who are interested in Iowa.
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