washingtonpost.com Launches ‘Local Life’: A Guide to Living in D.C., Maryland and Virginia
New Section Leverages Best Local Content, Tools from Across the Site in
One Central Location
WASHINGTON, June 5, 2007 —washingtonpost.com, the award-winning news and information Web site, today fortified its position as the best local resource for the D.C. Metro area with the launch of “Local Life,” a gateway to the most compelling local content available on the site.
Launching in tandem with “Local Life” is the new “Local Explorer,” a map-based tool designed to explore the area’s communities in granular detail. Additionally, washingtonpost.com now offers users the capability to search the City Guide’s vast database of locations and movie listings by text message, or SMS.
“Local Life,” located at www.washingtonpost.com/locallife, serves as a centralized location for users to browse useful content relevant to the D.C. area, including traffic alerts, local classifieds, a link to the City Guide and DC Scout, the site’s editorial shopping and style guide. Whether a person is looking to connect with local discussion groups on hot local issues, find local feature stories or research individual communities, “Local Life” will point them in the right direction.
“washingtonpost.com and The Washington Post have a strong reputation for national and political reporting, but we are also the leader in all things local,” said Jim Brady, Executive Editor, washingtonpost.com. “We take pride in being able to offer our readers extensive resources beyond traditional news stories and are committed to providing valuable tools to help our local readers navigate, understand and enjoy the metro area.”
Local Explorer allows users to examine area cities, counties and many local neighborhoods using several criteria, including recent home sales, crime statistics and locations, schools and local amenities, such as post offices, fire and police departments, restaurants, bars, hospitals, movie theaters, places of worship and more.
Users can input a zip code and instantly gain access to a neighborhood’s key information and statistics, as well as links to the latest local news, events, classifieds, and facts and figures. This will be a valuable tool not only for local residents, but also for those interested in moving to or visiting the D.C. area.
“Local Explorer is a one-stop resource to more deeply connect people with the communities they live in, as well as to help them research the areas they are considering moving themselves or their families,” said Brady.
Last month, washingtonpost.com launched a wireless version of the City Guide for Web-enhanced phones, BlackBerrys and similar devices, allowing users to search for restaurant and bar reviews and movie showtimes. Now, users can search the City Guide by text message. For instance, one can send a text message with a search term and location, such as “Irish Pub Capitol Hill,” to W-POST (97678), and can expect to receive up to three text messages with addresses and phone numbers of places that meet the inquiry’s criteria. If one sounds particularly interesting, users can get a short profile from the City Guide by replying with “More” and the number next to the listing.
For Local Explorer, please visit www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/local-explorer
To access the City Guide wireless site, please visit mobile.washingtonpost.com/cityguide.
About washingtonpost.com
Washingtonpost.com is the award-winning news and information Web site of the Washington Post. It offers world-class journalism, a remarkable blend of traditional reporting, and innovative, multimedia content that provides an unmatched level of depth and texture to breaking stories as well as features, plus unique ways for reader to engage with the site, its capabilities and content.
One of four online properties published by Washingtonpost.Newsweek Interactive, washingtonpost.com is the recipient of the first-ever Emmy for original video journalism online and has won numerous other awards, including an EPpy Award for Best Overall Newspaper-Affiliated Site, several Digital Edge Awards, a 2007 National Journalism Award for Web Reporting, National Press Photographers' Association Best of Photojournalism Award, and three consecutive Edward R. Murrow Awards for Overall Excellence for Non-Broadcast Affiliated Website, among others. According to the 2007 Project for Excellence in Journalism, washingtonpost.com is a "High Achiever" as an online news site, earning strong marks in terms of branding, content customization, multimedia and user participation.
For more information, please visit www.washingtonpost.com.
About Washingtonpost.Newsweek Interactive
Washingtonpost.Newsweek Interactive (WPNI) is the online publishing subsidiary of The Washington Post Company (NYSE:WPO). Its mission is to create truly interactive platforms that offer unmatched user experiences by developing editorial products with world-class reporting, multimedia features and award-winning content.
WPNI’s news and information sites, which include washingtonpost.com, Slate, Newsweek.com, BudgetTravelOnline and Sprig.com, inform and encourage conversation and debate while reaching millions of unique and active users each month. WPNI properties’ long lists of awards include the first-ever Emmy for original video journalism online awarded to washingtonpost.com, as well as National Journalism Awards, Pictures of the Year International Award, several Digital Edge Awards, multiple Edward R. Murrow Awards and White House New Photographer's Association Awards, among others.
The company is headquartered in Arlington, VA
####
Media Contacts:© The Washington Post Company
