We are the Austin Post, and so – for that matter – are you.

We started the Austin Post in July 2009 as we watched, with a mix of sadness and fascination, at the slow unraveling of the traditional newspaper business.

We believe that newspapers play a critical role in the democratic process.  That they help frame the conversation, and encourage informed debate and decision-making.

But we also recognize that the traditional newspaper model doesn’t work in the age of the Internet.  And this issue is even more acute when it comes to local news.  Many communities are facing the prospect of life without a local paper.

But while the Internet creates problems for the traditional model of local journalism, it also creates opportunities for a new kind of newspaper that can play the same critical democratic role – perhaps even more effectively.

And that’s why we started the Austin Post – a not-for-profit, community-centric newspaper that leverages the very same technology changes that have created the so-called “crisis of journalism.” 

What makes us different?

• Our mantra, with apologies to Lincoln, is “of the people, by the people, for the people.”  We want to foster a living conversation about issues of particular relevance to the people of Austin.  We have no editorial agenda.  We will reflect the differing points of view of the community.  We are conversational democracy, not aristocratic rhetoric.
• We don’t rely on a staff of professional writers.  Our contributors include hundreds of people that are living and breathing what’s happening in Austin.  They are engaged in the action and part of the story, not watching from the sidelines.  Citizen journalists or “bloggers”?  We reject the derisive associations attached to each.  They are the people who are doing, and talking about it with a passion borne of personal involvement.
• Our editorial staff is also the people.  You decide what content is “fit to read”.  You hold writers accountable for their facts, their point of view, and the clarity of their argument.  You become part of every story, and stories evolve to become conversations that reflect the wide diversity of thought that makes Austin such a fascinating place to live.

The Austin Post is a venture of the Trilogy Employee Foundation, the charitable arm of Trilogy Enterprises – one of Austin’s first and longest-lived technology firms.  We have a small team led by Trilogy President Scott Brighton and our Editor, Karie Meltzer.  Feel free to reach out to either of us with thoughts, suggestions, or frustrations at scott@austinpost.org and karie@austinpost.org.

We have big plans for the Austin Post, and you’ll see it grow and mature a lot in the months to come.   But you – the readers, the writers, and the Austin community – will set much of its evolution and direction.  Let the conversation begin.