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Tribune article on MCO attracts more than 70 comments
February 6, 2009 – An article in Friday’s Chicago Tribune about Marina City Online was one of the five “most viewed” stories on the newspaper’s Internet edition. By Friday evening, more than 70 comments on the article had been posted on the Chicago Tribune Forum. Tribune reporter Antonio Olivo interviewed Marina City Online editor Steven Dahlman and Michael Michalak, a Realtor who is the web site’s only sponsor. He also spoke with, presumably, officers of Marina Towers Condominium Association, who likened the web site to “a supermarket tabloid.” A decision to limit access to recordings of board meetings was defended by an MTCA officer, saying the content of board meetings is privileged and not meant for public consumption. MTCA president Donna Leonard was quoted in the Chicago Tribune article, saying, “There’s nothing fair and impartial about [the web site’s] reporting whatsoever, nothing even close to fact.” Comments were mostly supportive of Marina City Online and critical of the Marina Towers condo board, if not condo boards in general. One reader defended the MTCA board and Donna Leonard in particular, pointing out, “This board is finally repairing the infrastructure that was neglected under previous boards…while at the same time building reserves without significant assessment increases or any special assessments.” But said one fan, “If you go to [Marina City Online], you’ll be struck with its depth and professional tone. It offers history and wonderful old photos of Marina City, local current news, and of course news about Marina City….Owners want to know what’s going on in their own building and [MCO] provides news – not gossip….There is no other building news source for us. The board’s newsletter is intentional happy-talk. No real issues are addressed….There’s a tendency to not give Marina City owners information; as little as possible is carefully doled out to us. Steven Dahlman reports objectively. Unfortunately our board and its attorney have been coming under scrutiny of late, and they just don’t like it. Good reporting should not be punished.” The story was rewritten by United Press International and distributed on The Wall Street Journal Digital Network. According to Google Analytics, there were 4,524 visits to the MCO web site on Friday.
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Serving the Loop and Near North neighborhoods of downtown Chicago
Chicago Tribune article: 
