Roger Sollenberger of New York-based The Daily Beast broke the scoops roiling Herschel Walker's disjointed U.S. Senate campaign.
The Austin-based Sollenberger disclosed this week that the vehemently anti-abortion Walker paid for a former girlfriend's abortion. Walker in his bizarre style has denied the story. Earlier, Sollenberger reported that Walker is the father of two children whom he's ignored.
Founded by Tina Brown, the Daily Beast was a digital journalism pioneer. It's now owned by the IAC corporation, the NASDAQ-listed company that owns a number of online consumer and media sites.
Whiie traditional newspapers struggle in heading to a digital model, sites like the Daily Beast flourish. Former New York Times media columnist Ben Smith this week announced the launch of his Semaphor, which will emphasize international news and Washington politics. Semaphor joins an increasingly crowded field with older sites like the Daily Beast and the recently launched Puck and Axios, recently bought by The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
Along with national and international news, Axios is opening local sites, with daily newsletters mostly curated from other media.
National papers like The New York Times, Washington Post and Wall Street Journal have surged in digital subscriptions. Semaphor and other sites will give them vigorous competition.
Sollenberger's Herschel Walker story shows that old-fashioned investigative reporting will remain vital.
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