The Incline
 | |
 Screenshot of The Incline (May 2019) | |
| Type of business | Private |
|---|---|
Type of site | News |
| Available in | English |
| Founded | September 13, 2016 |
| Headquarters | Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, U.S. |
| Area served | Pittsburgh |
| Owner | WhereBy.Us[1] |
| Key people | Colin Williams (Local director) |
| Industry | Internet, media |
| URL | theincline |
| Advertising | None |
| Registration | None |
| Current status | Active |
The Incline is an online newspaper focused on the Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania region. Launched in 2016, the news outlet curates syndicated content[2] and produces original stories aimed towards millennials.[3] Instead of ads, The Incline's revenue comes from events. The best known of which is their "Who's next" event series.[4] In March 2019, The Incline was acquired by WhereBy.Us.[1]
History
Spirited Media founded Philadelphia's web-only local news site Billy Penn in 2014. Billy Penn functions as a mixture of links to news articles produced by other outlets with its own original reporting mixed in.[5] Rather than direct ad sales, Billy Penn found success with an event-based business model. Spirited Media looked for new cities to deploy it in.[6] In 2016, Pittsburgh was identified as the second city after major investments came from Gannett.[7] The Incline deviated from Billy Penn, by selling ads upon its introduction in order to gain exposure and awareness.[2]
The Incline was launched in September 2016. The news outlet was named after the Duquesne Incline.[8] Because of the presence of Silicon Valley companies working with Carnegie Mellon University and the absence of a tech business website in Pittsburgh, the Incline focused more on technology news compared to its Philadelphia counterpart.[9] The Incline was also experimented on curation of news based on the moods of their readers.[2]
Awards and recognition
The Incline won the award for the “Biggest blockbuster story” at the Hearken's 2018 Champions of Curiosity Awards.[10] The Incline obtained recognition in multiple categories from the Press Club of Western Pennsylvania at the 54th Golden Quill Awards.[11] The Incline won an award from the 30th Anniversary Vann Media Awards for their coverage of business news.[12]
References
- ^ a b Owen, Laura (March 19, 2019). "Pittsburgh local news site The Incline finds a new home at WhereBy.Us". Nieman Lab. Retrieved May 18, 2019.
- ^ a b c Grubisich, Tom (October 21, 2016). "With Launch of The Incline in Pittsburgh, Sprited Media's Brady Says 'We Want to Be a Connector'". Street Fight Magazine. Retrieved May 18, 2019.
- ^ Mullin, Benjamin (November 10, 2017). "Spirited Media Fights Collapse of Local News". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved May 18, 2019.
- ^ Krewson, Chris (January 26, 2018). "Inside a local media company's pivot to reader revenue". Digital Context Next. Retrieved May 18, 2019.
- ^ Rieder, Rem (October 19, 2016). "Rieder: Developing models for digital local news". USA Today. Retrieved May 18, 2019.
- ^ Stelter, Brian (May 9, 2016). "Billy Penn taking its formula to Pittsburgh with help from Gannett investment". CNN Business. Retrieved May 18, 2019.
- ^ Mullin, Benjamin (May 9, 2016). "Next stop for Billy Penn founder: Pittsburgh". poynter. Retrieved May 18, 2019.
- ^ Blumenthal, Jeff (Sep 14, 2016). "Billy Penn launches sister website in new market". Philadelphia Business Journal. Retrieved May 18, 2019.
- ^ Lichterman, Joseph (September 13, 2016). "The Incline, Billy Penn's new sister site, launches in Pittsburgh". Nieman Lab. Retrieved May 18, 2019.
- ^ "The winners of Hearken's 2018 Champions of Curiosity Awards". Hearken. Dec 11, 2018. Retrieved May 18, 2019.
- ^ "Press Club of Western PA Announces 2018 Golden Quill Winners" (Press release). Pittsburgh: The Press Club of Western Pennsylvania. May 24, 2018. Retrieved May 18, 2019.
- ^ "Pittsburgh Federation Announces Winners in 30th Anniversary Vann Media Awards Contest" (PDF). Pittsburgh Black Media Federation (Press release). May 3, 2018. Retrieved May 18, 2019.