The
Los Angeles Times Friday began inviting readers to rewrite the paper's editorials and then post their own versions on the Web site's new "wiki." The initiative was designed "as a way to get
more reader interaction with the newspaper's editorials," Michael Newman, deputy editor of the editorial pages, told
OnlineMediaDaily. The first day was bumpy, though, according to
Editor
and Publisher, which reported that one participant "defaced" the pages with a profane saying. The
Los Angeles Times initiative comes as newspapers struggle to keep their growing number of
online readers engaged. A report released last week by Nielsen//NetRatings showed that 21 percent of Web users who read newspapers now primarily do so online.
--Wendy Davis
