Syndicated 'Huffington Post' to Start in September and Run Twice a Week

By: Dave Astor Syndication of content from The Huffington Post group blog/news site is now scheduled to start the week of Sept. 12, and the package will be two days a week rather than daily.

Tribune Media Services gave the feature a beta test, from early June into July, with approximately 10 newspapers. TMS was not surprised to find that papers didn't feel they could use "The Huffington Post" on a daily basis. "It was a question of available space," said John Twohey, TMS vice president for editorial and operations, when contacted today by E&P Online.

The feature will be offered on Tuesdays and Thursdays, with each package including two Op-Ed-length blog entries and one selection of blog excerpts from The Huffington Post site. Each of the three components is expected to run 700 to 800 words.

Editors from both the site and TMS will choose what gets syndicated, according to Twohey.

The original hope was to launch the feature in early July. But finishing and analyzing the beta test took time, and then August approached. Twohey said TMS is just about ready to go with "The Huffington Post," but noted that August -- when many newspaper people are on vacation -- is not an ideal time to start a feature. So the launch was pushed back until after Labor Day.

Twohey said he didn't know how many newspapers might subscribe to the feature by the time it formally begins.

The Huffington Post site, which started in May, is named after author/TMS columnist Arianna Huffington. It features contributions from approximately 300 celebrity bloggers from the worlds of politics and entertainment, as well as links to news stories.