The New York Observer, In a Bid to Go National, Will Expand Its Editorial Department

By: Joe Pompeo | Capital New York

The 25-year-old weekly newspaper is considering spinning off a nationally focused website, and will increase the size of the full-time editorial staff in the New Year in a bid to widen its digital footprint across the U.S., according to people familiar with the paper's expansion strategy.

Elizabeth Spiers, the Observer's editor-in-chief for the past 10 months, outlined the plans in a recent staff meeting, telling her editors and reporters that she would be scouting additional editorial hands across beats including tech, politics, business, residential real estate and pop culture.