Mathew Ingram Joins GigaOM
There are some stories that write themselves. This is one of them. About four years ago, I traveled to Toronto to attend the inaugural mesh web conference. There I learned two things: Paul Kedrosky is as funny in person as he on his blog. And Mathew Ingram is one sharp cookie.
Context & Ripple Effects
GigaOM has spent the past few years turning from Om Malik's solo blog into a multi-property operation: a dedicated video blog launched back in December 2006, $4.5 million in new funding raised in October 2008 to fuel the expansion, and a subscription research arm, GigaOM Pro, rolled out in May 2009.
Hiring Mathew Ingram fits that build-out. Ingram arrives from his own blog, where he has been a vocal defender of open, networked journalism — arguing that flawed citizen reporting beats no reporting at all (as he put it last November) and noting readers' 'if the news is important it will find me' attitude. The announcement itself is characteristically personal: Malik recalls meeting Ingram at Toronto's inaugural mesh conference about four years ago, alongside investor Paul Kedrosky.
First-order effects
- GigaOM gains a full-time writer whose beat — how news and media work on the web — complements its existing gadget-and-startup coverage at a moment when the site is staffing up across properties.
Second-order effects
- For GigaOM Pro, an established voice like Ingram adds editorial weight to a paid research product whose credibility depends on recognizable bylines rather than anonymous analysis.
Third-order effects
- If the pattern holds, standalone tech bloggers keep getting absorbed into funded blog networks, shifting the economics of independent tech commentary from ad-supported personal sites toward salaried positions inside small media companies.
The trend: Independent tech blogging is consolidating into venture-funded media operations that hire their best solo voices as staff.