Arianna Huffington and the Huffington Post Sells OUT?

By James Sheldon on February 7th, 2011

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Props to Arianna and her crew.

The Huffington Post, which is like the wealthy cousin of Manolith–we’re a blog, they’re journalists of sorts–sold to AOL for 315 million. This news shocked me on so many levels.

First and foremost, I had no idea…no…idea…that AOL still existed. Secondly, wasn’t the Huffington Post the little indie that could?

Some people, and/or groups, will be critical about this buyout, but who in their right mind is going to say no to a 315 million dollar deal? People act as if a created journalistic or artistic entity is as precious as a human child.

When a person offers some of their created work to a big money corporation they immediately qualify as a sell-out. You know, the same thing musicians do so they can actually be heard on radio, when their first six albums were too good for radio. Damned if you do; damned if you don’t.

The real of the deal–Arianna isn’t selling out. She’s trading up. If you can trade your Ford Focus for a Mercedes AMG, you don’t say no. You slide into the luxury and enjoy the additional amenities at your disposal.

This is exactly what is happening with the Huffington Post. The little indie that could is going to become the Miramax of the online news world–well, perhaps the Miramax of glory years past. Ms. Huffington and her team are taking over AOL’s push for relevance once again in the online realm. They are, after all, America Online.

This is a win-win for both parties. Arianna Huffington scores a little coin for the legitimacy of her journalistic source, and AOL gets someone in charge who actually knows how to break stories, gather results and push traffic.