I'm editor and founder of the online reporting project Homicide Watch D.C. and I cover every homicide in our nation's capitol.
The site launched in late September 2010 and I couldn't be prouder. The community growing around the site is fantastic and being able to commit to doing public service journalism every day is a joy.
I came into the project with certain skills: I was a long time traditional newsroom reporter and had covered crime. But being a publisher, and newsroom manager, and CEO and CFO is an entirely different matter.
At a recent journalism conference, reporters and editors from across the United States asked me how I was doing it. How a niche website gains traction. How I manage the editorial operations. How I decide what to cover. How I fund my work. How Homicide Watch might work outside of D.C. So I'm opening my notebook.
I don't have all the answers to these questions, I don't even have most of the answers. But I'll share with you what I'm doing, how it's working, and what I'm reading and thinking about. I hope you'll share too, and I look forward to a valuable conversation about online, independent public service journalism.