The Rake/MNspeak hybrid: SecretsoftheCity.com launches

When I interviewed MNspeak founder Rex Sorgatz in spring 2007, he commented on his 2006 sale of his placeblogging site MNspeak to the Bartel family, owners of The Rake (and, formerly, City Pages): “My lingering concern with the site now is actually that they haven’t changed anything (except adding more ads)… I hoped someone would invest in it, push it in new directions, invent new stuff.” Last night, those long-awaited changes have occurred — and MNspeak is no more.

Who is that masked monthly?

According to David Brauer, a mysterious listing indicates that the local snark monthly The Rake may be up for sale. Asking price? Less than $400,000.

Minnesota Monitor is sad to be unable to put up the purchase price,…

The Dirt on Perry’s New Site — And More

Perry digs deep for site name: When asked about the name of his soon-to-launch community and news website a few weeks back, former City Pages editor Steve Perry joked about calling it The Hoe,…

RexSpeak: MNspeak’s Founder Discusses Buzz.mn, Lileks, and the Future of Citizen Journalism

When it comes to harrowing feats, Rex Sorgatz — whose escape from his burning building in a fire that followed the Grand Forks flood was chronicled in a 1998 Pulitzer Prize-winning news story…

A (Possible) Buzz.mn Boycott and a Strib-Vikes Land Deal

The Bleating Quirk: The Rake’s Brian Lambert says what’s been on the minds of many I’ve talked with recently: How come the Star Tribune community blog Buzz.mn has become the sole domain of James Lileks, who was hired to manage…

The Future Online — and in Jail

Your loss, our gain: With so many writers leaving the Star Tribune, recent buyouts at the Pioneer Press and some of City Pages’ best writers without jobs, online news could end up reaping the benefit. Minnesota Public Radio’s coverage…