Crosscut.com is a nonprofit, online newspaper

Online newspaper

An online newspaper, also known as a web newspaper, is a newspaper that exists on the World Wide Web or Internet, either separately or as an online version of a printed periodical....

 based in Seattle, Washington

Seattle, Washington

Seattle is the county seat of King County, Washington. With 608,660 residents as of the 2010 Census, Seattle is the largest city in the Northwestern United States. The Seattle metropolitan area of about 3.4 million inhabitants is the 15th largest metropolitan area in the country...

, United States. Crosscut's stated purpose is to "produce journalism in the public interest". Its content is mainly news analysis rather than breaking news

Breaking news

Breaking news, also known as a special report or news bulletin, is a current event that broadcasters feel warrants the interruption of scheduled programming and/or current news in order to report its details. Many times, breaking news is used after the news network has already reported on this story...

 like other online newspapers or blogs.

Founding

Crosscut was founded in 2007 by David Brewster

David Brewster (journalist)

David Clark Brewster is an American journalist and the founder, editor and publisher of the Seattle Weekly and the online Northwest "newspaper" Crosscut.com...

, who also started the Seattle Weekly

Seattle Weekly

Seattle Weekly is a freely distributed newspaper in Seattle, Washington, United States. It was founded by Darrell Oldham and David Brewster as The Weekly...

in 1976 and launched Town Hall Seattle in 1999. Other investors included former Seattle mayor Paul Schell

Paul Schell

Paul Schell, born Paul Schlachtenhaufen on October 8, 1937, in Fort Dodge, Iowa, was the 50th mayor of Seattle, Washington. His four-year term as mayor began on January 1, 1998....

, former Seattle City Council

Seattle City Council

The Seattle City Council is committed to ensuring that Seattle, Washington, is safe, livable and sustainable. Nine Councilmembers are elected to four-year terms in nonpartisan elections and represent the entire city, elected by all Seattle voters....

man and KING-TV

KING-TV

KING-TV, virtual channel 5, is a television station in Seattle, Washington, affiliated with the NBC network. Owned by Belo Corporation, it broadcasts on UHF digital channel 48. Its offices and broadcasting center are located just east of Seattle Center...

 commentator Jim Compton

Jim Compton

Jim Compton was a member of the Seattle City Council, first elected in 1999. At his resignation in December 2005, he was chair of the Utilities & Technology Committee, vice chair of the Energy & Environmental Policy Committee, and a member of the Government Affairs & Labor Committee.Compton got his...

, and former KING Broadcasting Company president Stimson Bullitt.

Editors

Until November 2008, the site's editor was former Weekly and Seattle Union Record editor Chuck Taylor, who was also a reporter, editor, and graphic designer at the Seattle Times. He left Crosscut during its transition to a nonprofit. For almost a year, the site was edited by Brewster alone until former Seattle Post-Intelligencer

Seattle Post-Intelligencer

The Seattle Post-Intelligencer is an online newspaper and former print newspaper covering Seattle, Washington, United States, and the surrounding metropolitan area...

and Seattle Times editor Mark Matassa joined in September 2009. Matassa only stayed with Crosscut for three months, leaving in December to join the administration of new Seattle mayor Mike McGinn. He was replaced by his sister, former Times journalist Michele Matassa-Flores, and former P-I columnist

Columnist

A columnist is a journalist who writes for publication in a series, creating an article that usually offers commentary and opinions. Columns appear in newspapers, magazines and other publications, including blogs....

 Joe Copeland. Matassa-Flores left in the summer of 2011.

Transition to a nonprofit

On November 17, 2008, Brewster announced that a switch to nonprofit status was being explored by Crosscut LLC, which necessitated temporary staff cuts.

Brewster remained the only employee until September 2009, when grant funding finally materialized and Crosscut was able to hire an editor and support staff, including an editor, an advertising director, and eventually a Web developer. Crosscut currently has seven employees.

In October 2009, Crosscut initiated its first pledge drive. Nearly 400 people donated money to support the site's continued existence.

Notable writers

• Knute Berger
  Knute Berger
  Knute "Skip" Berger is an American journalist, writer and editor based in Seattle, Washington.Berger is a columnist for Crosscut.com, writing under the name "Mossback"...
  
   – former editor-in-chief of the Seattle Weekly. At the Weekly, Berger wrote "Mossback", a column about the idiosyncrasies of Seattle living, history and politics. After leaving the Weekly, Berger continued writing "Mossback" for Crosscut. His articles remain one of the most popular features on the site.
• Ted Van Dyk
• Steve Clifford
• David Brewster
  David Brewster
  Sir David Brewster KH PRSE FRS FSA FSSA MICE was a Scottish physicist, mathematician, astronomer, inventor, writer and university principal.-Early life:...