A friend of mine just sold out. Which is reprehensible, unless I can
figure out a way to do it too:
FOX INTERACTIVE MEDIA ENTERS INTO LANDMARK AGREEMENT WITH THE AMERICAN
MIND BLOG.
Pioneering political weblogger joins forces with Fox Interactive Media's
Growing MySpace Community
line
ALLENTON, Wis. and LOS ANGELES, Calif., April 1, 2007 - News
Corporation's Fox Interactive Media and blog publisher Sean Hackbarth
today announced Hackbarth's political blog The American Mind
(
http://www.theamericanmind.com) has been purchased for an undisclosed sum.
Fox Interactive Media will provide its MySpace blogging platform to
Hackbarth to publish his political blog The American Mind along with the
promotional opportunities to reach millions of MySpace users.
Along with continuing his cutting edge political commentary Hackbarth
will consult with Fox Interactive Media and MySpace in building a
vibrant political blogging community.
"Going pro is a webloggers dream," said Hackbarth. "Starting in 1999 by
hand coding and manually uploading my posts onto the web I didn't
imagine the blogosphere would become so important to politics. Now, I
have the resources to go all Web 2.0 on politics and the blogosphere."
"By consulting with Fox Interactive Media and MySpace my years of
hands-on political communication and commentary will get millions of
people interested and informed. I will be helping find new ways for Fox
Interactive Media to become a force in the political blogosphere. Buying
The American Mind is only a first step if I have any say in it," said
Hackbarth.
"This deal is the next step in our evolution as a significant
interactive player," said Ross Levinsohn, President of Fox Interactive
Media. "Forming a strategic partnership with a blogging pioneer allows
us to expand our business, add to the vibrant political discussion on
the internet, and position us for the excitement of the 2008 elections."
"What Fox News Channel did for cable news Sean's The American Mind blog
will do for the internet," continued Levinsohn. "We've plucked someone
with tremendous experience, years of insight, and a passion for politics
to inject MySpace with blogging gravitas."
Hackbarth will begin publishing The American Mind on MySpace
immediately. Relocation plans calls for Hackbarth to move to Des Moines,
Iowa.
"The first Presidential caucuses are in Iowa. Candidates are running
around begging for support. Des Moines isn't the most exciting place,
but I have to be where the action is. If it's in the land of ethanol
subsidies so be it. I'll be there on the ground in the midst of the
Presidential hoopla, " said Hackbarth.
"Our purchase of The American Mind underscores News Corp's continued
evolution to become a powerful force in the digital media marketplace.
To have come this far and gained such a vital, passionate voice like
Sean's is truly remarkable," said Peter Chernin, President and Chief
Operating Officer of News Corporation. "This is an exciting time in our
history as a forward thinking media company. We're jumping full bore
into politics offering provocative commentary and the ability of our
users to talk back."
In addition to MySpace.com (
http://www.myspace.com ), Fox Interactive
Media properties that will benefit from the Google integration include
top ranked online videogame and entertainment site IGN (
http://www.ign.com ), dynamic collegiate and pro sports network
Scout.com (
http://www.scout.com ), leading site for movie lovers
Rottentomatoes.com (
http://www.rottentomatoes.com ), popular men's
lifestyle site AskMen.com (
http://www.askmen.com ); as well as
Gamespy.com (
http://www.gamespy.com ), Gamespyarcade.com (
http://www.gamespyarcade.com ), Fileplanet.com (
http://www.fileplanet.com ), Direct2drive.com (
http://www.direct2drive.com ), Teamxbox.com (
http://www.teamxbox.com ),
3dgamers.com (
http://www.3dgamers.com ), Gamestat.com (
http://www.gamestat.com ), Cheatscodesguides.com (
http://www.cheatscodesguides.com ) and Gamermetrics.com (
http://www.gamermetrics.com ).
About Fox Interactive Media:
A division of News Corp. (NWS and NWS.A), Fox Interactive Media (FIM) is
an integrated network of sites offering socially rich media experiences
centered on entertainment, news, information and self-expression. The
company's network includes Internet assets from News Corp., including
the highly trafficked Foxsports.com (
http://www.foxsports.com ),
Americanidol.com (
http://www.americanidol.com ) and Fox.com (
http://www.fox.com ). FIM also owns and operates such category leaders
as MySpace.com (
http://www.myspace.com ), the number one social
networking site on the Web; Scout.com (
http://www.scout.com ), a
dynamic collegiate and pro sports network; and IGN Entertainment (
http://www.ign.com ), a network of leading gaming and entertainment
sites including men's lifestyle site AskMen (
http://www.askmen.com )
and premier destination for movie-goers Rotten Tomatoes (
http://www.rottentomatoes.com ) among others.
Contacts:
Media:
Fox Interactive Media
Ann Burkart 310-969-7220
Julie Henderson 310-969-7141
The American Mind
Sean Hackbarth 414-234-4252
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Received on 2007-04-01 04:54:35