August 30, 2009 – 26 of the city’s better-known bloggers and operators of online media sites gathered in a basement meeting room at Tribune Tower on Saturday morning to decide the future of the Chicago blogosphere – or at least discuss it.

Marina City was represented twice in the group. Mike Doyle, an east tower resident who writes Chicago Carless, moderated the event. Marina City Online editor Steven Dahlman was also invited to attend.

According to Doyle, the discussion meetup “had a thoughtful and wide-ranging discussion about the financial sustainability of Chicago’s local blogosphere.”

While many web site operators toil passionately to create and promote their sites, earning a living from the site is often an elusive goal.

The diverse local online community also includes The Beachwood Reporter, Chicagoist, Chitown Daily News, Gapers Block, and Windy Citizen.

“We laid to the side the issue of local news to focus on the potential for financial sustainability among Chicago blogs,” says Doyle. One of the ideas discussed was a local advertising network to sell ads based on the aggregated traffic of member sites.

Chicago Tribune provided the meeting space, food, and refreshments.

(Above) 26 bloggers and operators of online media sites, including two from Marina City, attended the “Community Blogging and Online Media Discussion Meetup” on Saturday at Tribune Tower.