NEW YORK, Jan. 17, 2019 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Enterprise publishing platform WordPress.com VIP today announced a significant investment in The News Project Inc., a startup company that has created a new WordPress-based news and information publishing platform founded by veteran digital news executive Merrill Brown.
The News Project’s platform offers users “news business in a box,” a bundle of publishing technologies and services designed to provide end-to-end support for small to mid-size news organizations. In addition to WordPress VIP’s financial investment, VIP technology plays a critical role The News Project’s bundle, which includes a complete CMS and technologies to help launch, operate and grow sustainable news properties. Other TNP partners include 10up, Piano, Associated Press and Charming Robot.
“In this difficult business climate for news organizations, we want to double down on our commitment to journalism and a free and sustainable press,” said Nick Gernert, head of WordPress.com VIP. “We’re thrilled to work with Merrill and TNP’s team on this shared vision.”
Small to mid-size news organizations, in particular, often struggle with the demands of technology selection and management and even more with how to harness that technology in ways that allow them to drive a sustainable business model. The News Project is designed as a single, elegant solution to that ongoing challenge.
“WordPress has been at the forefront of independent publishing in the digital era,” said Merrill Brown, Founder and CEO of The News Project. “We are grateful for WordPress.com VIP’s ongoing partnership and support at this early stage, and look forward to working closely with their team to make best-in-class publishing technology accessible for news organizations at any scale.”
Among the first news organizations to license the technology is CALmatters, a leading source of politics and policy news in California.
"We're excited to partner with The News Project," said Neil Chase, chief executive officer of CALmatters, "to improve the experience for our audience while allowing our journalists to work faster and smarter."
About The News Project
The News Project (TNP) provides technology, resources and expertise to help launch, operate and grow viable news and information properties. TNP has developed a state-of-the-art publishing technology platform, bundling business-critical partnerships and services that will support dynamic and sustainable models journalism ventures of any scale.
About WordPress.com VIP
WordPress.com VIP offers industry-leading managed hosting, support, and guidance to power digital experiences at scale. VIP’s digital publishing clients span the media landscape, from focused outlets such as Quartz, Mother Jones, and FiveThirtyEight, to some of the biggest publishers in the world, like News Corp, Meredith, and Abril. VIP also supports digital marketing platforms across a number of verticals for clients, including Capgemini, Hachette Book Group, Spotify, and Facebook. For more go to vip.wordpress.com.
Media Contact
press@newsproject.net