Talk:Beacon Reader

Importance of the article

This article is important because it has coverage in many major newspapers, and described a remedy for the reduced number of investigative journalists in the world's newsrooms - a lamented casualty of the Internet information revolution (see Decline of newspapers). I have no connection to this site, or anyone connected to it. In my view, it is more worthy of inclusion as most of the other sites listed in the Crowdfunding list. It is used a source for articles on Wikipedia. Travelmite (talk) 08:57, 25 August 2016 (UTC)

• New York Times writes: "With news publications increasingly charging for their once-free websites and apps, they face a critical question: Will readers pay for digital content? Now, one Internet start-up has put a twist on that question: Will readers pay for a journalist?"Travelmite (talk) 09:09, 25 August 2016 (UTC)

• American Journalism Review: "Can crowdfunding help sustain journalism? If so, what kind of fundraising platforms will be required? So far, research suggests that crowdfunding has been less successful for journalism than for other types of projects, but Beacon is one of the startups trying to change that ..." Travelmite (talk) 09:12, 25 August 2016 (UTC)

• Pew Research Centre: "Beacon, was launched in 2013 as a platform dedicated to crowdfunding journalism based on a subscription model but now focuses more on partnerships and matching funds" Travelmite (talk) 09:15, 25 August 2016 (UTC)

• Columbia Journalism Review: "When Ferguson blew up, she went there and started tweeting breaking news. She got picked up by the Beacon Reader, an Oakland, CA-based website that allows selected journalists to publish their work and raise money from readers. Reilly, who went to Ferguson to cover the story, brought Stewart to the attention of HuffPo’s DC bureau chief, Ryan Grim. Grim, knowing that there was no room in his budget to create a reporter slot for someone stationed in Ferguson, floated the idea of crowdfunding it. According to Grim, Arianna Huffington, who still manages the site she sold to AOL in 2011, “loved the idea.” HuffPo partnered with the Beacon Reader to raise the money. Stewart will provide some stories on the side for her Beacon Reader followers." Travelmite (talk) 09:18, 25 August 2016 (UTC)

• Nieman Foundation for Journalism (Harvard): "core team of 28 writers is made up mostly of freelancers who live and work abroad, with bylines from outlets like The New York Times, The Washington Post, the BBC, CNN, Time, Foreign Policy, The Guardian, and more." Travelmite (talk) 14:41, 25 August 2016 (UTC)

• San Francisco Chronicle: "We’re starting a news experiment at The San Francisco Chronicle, and we need you, our readers, to help make it a success. Today (September 16, 2015) we became the first newspaper-based media company to pursue crowdfunding with Beacon ..." Travelmite (talk) 14:46, 25 August 2016 (UTC)

More work to do

Further reliable sources are available and will be inserted. Try to resist deleting this article. Travelmite (talk) 23:18, 25 August 2016 (UTC)

Disclaimer

For the record, I have no connection in any way with this project, not as a writer, grant holder or even as a friend of anyone with such a connection. It seems to me to be an extremely interesting development in the information revolution, which I found in a Google search. Travelmite (talk) 07:11, 27 August 2016 (UTC)