Politics | 10/06/2008 11:30 am
Tina Brown Unveils New Website 'The Daily Beast'

Publishing mogul Tina Brown is back and this time it’s on the Internet.
This morning Brown unveiled her new business venture, a website called The Daily Beast. The site is similar to a news aggregator, in which it delivers the most relevant and breaking stories on politics, culture and business. But it also calls itself an "omnivorous friend" for it serves original content with a high-brow, Tina Brown-esque twist. The site debuted a "soft launch" — meaning ad-free — and is backed by the Internet giant IAC/InterActive Corp, owned by Barry Diller.
The Daily Beast reflects Brown’s experience as a powerful author (she wrote the New York Times bestseller The Diana Chronicles) and editor (her résumé boasts Vanity Fair, The New Yorker and founder of the short-lived startup Talk magazine). The site has a mix of humor and earnestness. There is a story by Adam Hanft cleverly entitled, "Did Antidepressants Cause the Mortgage Crisis?" as well as an investigative story by John Batchelor called "What the New York Times Missed," citing overlooked key facts about the Obama/Bill Ayers relationship. Respected celebrity contributors weigh in on the site. For example, former U.S. President Bill Clinton recommends three economy book and CNN’s international chief correspondent Christiane Amanpour touts a 2007 documentary called "Taxi to the Dark Side," which is about the murder of an innocent taxi driver by American soldiers in Afghanistan.
On the website, readers can also find a lengthy Q & A with Tina Brown. In the interview, the publishing queen talks about her past successes and failures, her Internet-mogul role models and if she — who is almighty with the pen — will be just as powerful with the pixels.
"One thing I think I do understand about the web is that it morphs with amazing speed," she said in the interview.
Click here to read the entire Q & A with Tina Brown























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