Take a Peek at Ezra Klein’s New Washington Post Wonkblog Group Blog

Since I learned what a blog WAS in 2003 and started TMV in December 2003 (the original site was on Blogger) Ezra Klein has been one of my favorite must-read bloggers. I first started reading him when he was doing a blog from college. He was always one of the more solid Internet analysts who didn’t sound like a tiresome, wannabe polarizing radio talk show host or someone puking up the most negative talking points of what he read or heard from writers or broadcasters who already agree with him. He could write on a wide variety of topics and do it well. Klein did NOT gain a following because of his partisan screaming but because of his thinking and attempts to give readers his best take.

In May 2009 Klein became the Washington Post’s first pure blogger hire, writing on politics and economics. It was well-deserved. He again became a must-read.

Today Klein and the Post begin a new chapter.

Take a Peek at the Washington Post’s new, reburbished Wonkblog featuring Klein and some other extremely talented writers. It’s a logical next step: the Post is creating a solid group blog that’ll feature posts on politics and economics and it’ll be a blog heavy on content versus partisan polemics — trying to inform readers as a journalistic versus political party tool — a quality not always seen in blogs, many of which increasingly look like partisan appendages.

Here’s the Post’s press release which is worth running in full:

The Washington Post launches Wonkblog with Ezra KleinKlein’s policy column expands to include more healthcare, energy and economic reporting with three new writers

WASHINGTON, D.C.-Today, The Washington Post launches Wonkblog (http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/ezra-klein), a new online feature combining reporting and analysis on economic and domestic policy. An outgrowth of Ezra Klein’s popular policy column, Wonkblog provides robust news updates, interviews and analysis throughout the day with reporting by policy writers Suzy Khimm, Sarah Kliff and Brad Plumer, and continued reporting and commentary by Klein.

“It is abundantly clear that government policy and regulation are critical for businesses and the health of the U.S. economy,” said Raju Narisetti, managing editor, The Washington Post. “Wonkblog will build on Ezra’s insightful work on important issues such as healthcare, energy and financial reform.”

In addition to appearing on washingtonpost.com, Wonkblog will have a frequent presence in The Post’s daily business section and in Sunday Business.

“Our goal with Wonkblog is to deliver policy news in an aggressive, engaging and accessible way,” said Ezra Klein, Wonkblog editor. “We’re focused on breaking down the jargon and delivering news that helps link the effects of policy to our readers’ lives. Suzy, Sarah and Brad are already excelling at that task in the posts they’ve penned this past month leading up to the Wonkblog launch.”

· Suzy Khimm, who comes from positions at Mother Jones and The New Republic, focuses on economic and financial policy news. At The Post, she has already published articles on entitlements, tax structure, debt and unemployment benefits..

· Sarah Kliff takes the lead on healthcare reporting with the latest in the Affordable Care Act, health exchanges, Medicare, and Medicaid policy. Kliff recently joined The Post from Politico where she covered the intersection of health and politics….

· Brad Plumer, formerly a reporter on Congress and editor at The New Republic, reports on energy policy. Over the past month, his posts have included analysis of the gas tax, climate change and energy subsidies…

Wonkblog will be debuting with a redesigned look offering an increased number of stories viewable per page; the most popular posts on top; and easy access to stories by topic, month or week. This is a new way for readers of The Post to view the news and will also be extended to other blogs-such as The Post’s politics blog The Fix http: //www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/the-fix/ .

The Wonkblog launch is sponsored by America’s Natural Gas Alliance.

So Take a Peek at Ezra Klein’s new Washington Post groupblog Wonkblog and you’ll agree:

It’s another must-read.

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