Reach however is only part of the story. The deal allows Huffington to distribute the Post’s progressive content without the progressive label. When people read news content from the “Huffington Post” they know what they are getting, news and opinion from the progressive point of view. Now that same news and opinion can be recycled and distributed across the internet under the “politically neutral” name of AOL.
In other words it will be the same biased one-sided crap that it used to be (I have no problem with that part of it) but in a non-descript brown paper bag (I have a huge problem with that).
As Jeff Dunetz noted bias isn’t a big deal when you head to a site with a reputation for it. If I go to the Drudge Report, I know what side I’m seeking. If I hit the nutcases at Kos or Oliver Willis, it’s because I want left-leaning news.
Now what?
This is a watershed moment for the media in the United States and it remains to be seen just how much Arianna’s politics seep into the other content at AOL and how much she’s reined in in the name of journalism being separated from editorial content.
My guess? Not much because controversy will drive pageviews and that’s all this is about anyway.