TAPinto
 | |
Type of site | News |
|---|---|
| Headquarters | New Providence, New Jersey, U.S. |
| Area served | New Jersey, New York |
| Founder(s) | Michael Shapiro |
| Key people |
Michael Shapiro, CEO Lauryn Shapiro |
| Industry | Local News |
| Services | Online news and opinion |
| Website |
www |
| Launched | October 2008 |
| Current status | Active |
TAPinto, formerly The Alternative Press, is a network of independently owned and operated local news websites based out of New Providence, New Jersey. The network covers more than sixty towns throughout New Jersey and New York.[1]
TAPinto was founded by New Providence residents Michael and Lauryn Shapiro in October 2008 to provide independent local news via the Internet.[1] Each TAPinto site is independently owned and operated by a franchisee, who pays an annual fee and a percentage of advertising revenue. In exchange, the network provides a content management system and helps with both the business and editorial sides of their operation.[2] Some sites are operated by individuals, while others are operated by a group of two to four people who each work on the site part-time.[2] Many of the site owners are journalists, such as magazine journalist Jackie Lieberman and former Star-Ledger reporter Fred J. Aun, who operates TAPinto Roxbury. Several are former editors for Patch Media, a now-defunct hyperlocal news network formerly operated by America Online.[3][4]
In 2014, the network was rebranded as "TAPinto" and began using the new web address of TAPinto.net. In 2016, TAPinto was the primary source when it covered how a Yorktown man won a $76,000 jackpot on the TV game show Wheel of Fortune; TAPinto reported that the contestant learned about the show's theme in advance and studied prodigiously, enabling him to solve an entire puzzle while only knowing the first letter.[5] It has sponsored political events such as the annual Meet the Mayors breakfast.[6] TAPinto sponsored summittoday.org, a free community calendar for the city of Summit by providing a digital solution for content creation, as well as hosting the site free of charge.[7]
References
- 1 2 TAPinto: About Us
- 1 2 Michele McLellan, April 6, 2014, Can local news scale? The Alternative Press tests a franchise model in New Jersey, Knight Digital Media Center, Retrieved May 5, 2016]
- ↑ TAPinto.net Announces Launch of Bridgewater-Raritan Site, Franchised by Former Bridgewater Patch Editor and Current Newspaper Owner Audrey Blumberg
- ↑ Former Patch Editors See Bright Future for The Alternative Press Model
- ↑ Jaclyn Hendricks (March 30, 2016). "Contestant solves 'Wheel of Fortune' puzzle with one letter". New York Post. Retrieved May 5, 2016.
...$76,000 jackpot...“Wheel of Fortune,” ...correctly guessed the opening-round toss-up puzzle with the help of the lone letter “D” ... I came up ... list of puzzles themed ... anything on the water,” Santoli told local website Tapinto....
- ↑ Ledger Local (March 10, 2016). "Area Chambers to host 'Meet the Mayors' Breakfast on April 2 in West Caldwell". NJ.com. Retrieved May 5, 2016.
...Six local Chambers of Commerce ... League of Women Voters ... New Jersey State League of Municipalities as hosts of the annual "Meet the Mayors" Breakfast. ..Media sponsors are: TAPinto ....
- ↑ Ledger Local (December 1, 2015). "Local organizations Summit Today, city-wide community calendar". NJ.com. Retrieved May 5, 2016.
...More than 25 organizations in Summit have joined together to create summittoday.org, a free community calendar that is available for non-profit and other local organizations to post information online about events in Summit....TapInto Summit generously donated a digital solution for content creation and development of the site, and will continue to host it free of charge as a service to the community.