This month marks Bluestem's sixth anniversary of blogging about news in Greater Minnesota, along with original reporting. This post will remain at the top of the blog until the end of the month; to read new material, just scroll down.
What began as an attempt to bring one-stop news aggregration and commentary about politics in Minnesota's First Congressional District during the game-changing 2006 Gutknecht-Walz contest has grown to look for the emerging stories across rural Minnesota (BSP leaves Duluth and the Range to Minnesota Brown).
It's been over a year since I've asked readers to help support the site with a donation.
Use this button if you wish to donate:
Along the way, we've been listed as one of the best state political blog at the Washington Post and nominated as an essential blogger by CBSMinnesota.
Bluestem hopes to continue to cover and comment on Greater Minnesota politics; the domain name has just been renewed for another five years. That renewal is a good example of the costs related to keeping the blog alive: hosting costs, mileage, phone and other basic tools for reporting, and increasingly, the cost of online subscriptions to daily papers (they, too, have to secure a revenue stream).
This blog receives no assistance from progressive organizations, which have chosen to advertise in or support other blogs they deem more worthy of their dollars as the November elections approach. This choice gives Bluestem the freedom to be independent of talking points and campaign plans determined somewhere other than rural Minnesota. It also leaves the "bleg" as one of the few ways Bluestem can find the funds to devote time to research and posting.
Use this button if you wish to contribute:
Like reading Bluestem's content? Please consider using the paypal button above (checks accepted; email for my snail mail address) or something from my modest wish list (mostly coffee and cat treats).
The blegathon will run through July.
Thank you
Sally Jo Sorensen
Editor and Proprietor
Cartoon: Sally Jo Sorensen, by Ken Avidor.
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