According to Matthew Flamm at crainsnewyork.com, The founder of online brokerage TD Ameritrade and new owner of the Chicago Cubs perceives an opportunity as wide as the Hudson River for his year-old local news operation, DNAinfo.com.
“Starting a media company today feels a little like running into a burning building,” the Wyoming-based billionaire says in an e-mail. He compares the digital revolution in media to changes he witnessed in financial services in the 1970s. “Opportunity exists in these moments of upheaval,” he declares.
DNAinfo, a website launched in November 2009 and now exiting the beta phase, represents Mr. Ricketts' ambitious gamble on the future of local news on the Web.
Operating out of 5,000 square feet on Seventh Avenue, the organization has a paid staff of 45—huge by startup standards—including 14 full-time reporters covering 10 Manhattan neighborhoods, from Inwood to the financial district. DNAinfo currently has three advertising sales staffers but plans to add five next year.
Mr. Ricketts, 69, doesn't expect to turn a profit anytime soon but insists that DNAinfo is not a vanity project. The entrepreneur argues that it's a first step toward a viable model for local news that he hopes to roll out eventually in other markets.
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Its nice to see a news outlet that focuses on important matters specifically in Manhattan neighborhoods. I hope DNA is successful!
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