Top journalistic start-ups of the 2000s

In the past 10 years, Minnesota journalism has expanded more than we could have ever dreamt in 2000. The prevalence and popularity of both the Internet and blogging started a revolution amongst both journalists and regular folks. From shopping guides to aggregators, we’ve got it all. And rest assured there’s more to come. Here are the best publications to arise this decade:

MinnPost — Started in 2007 by Joel Kramer, former Star Tribune editor and publisher, MinnPost seeks to provide local news for, as their tagline reads, “people who care about Minnesota.” Its many facets, from sports to art to politics, are written by journalist luminaries like David Brauer , who pens the popular Brau Blog. Says Brauer of the reaction to MinnPost, “I think the reaction’s been really good. Joel has said we’re not destined to take the place of the Strib or supplant them in any way; we’re a complementary read or secondary read for people who care about Minnesota news.” Brauer estimates that MinnPost receives between 800,000 to 1 million page views per month.

Twin Cities Daily Planet — Twin Cities Daily Planet was started by the Twin Cities Media Alliance to spotlight community news from a variety of sources, from regular folks to professional working journalists. Several Minnesota Daily staffers have had stories picked up by the online publication and its spectrum covers a broad range of news, from suburbs to across the globe.

Culture Bully — How’s this for Hollywood recognition? VH1’s “Best Week Ever” has mentioned this local music-based blog, which is the pet project of 10 writers who cover shows and album releases all around the metro.

Heavy Table — A foodie blog from James Norton, formerly of City Page s, Heavy Table sees local writers testing out new restaurants, visiting breweries and getting an insider’s perspective in all aspects of the local food and drink industry. The writing is delish, the photos scrumptious.

Newsbobber — Former PiPress-er Bob Ingrassia’s aggregation Web site, Newsbobber, which culls information from all sorts of local outlets, blogs included, garnered the interest of Minnesota Public Radio, who recently hired him to create something similar for them. Though the site might not last once he starts working at MPR, he says, “It will live on in spirit with Minnesota Today at MPR. In part, Newsbobber wasn’t meant to be a big stand-alone. It was nice to show off what could be done and in that sense it did its job.”

Ali Shops — Allison Kaplan, shopping and style reporter for the PiPress, runs this comprehensive blog/shopping guide, updating her readers on sales, store openings/closings and also providing a tireless, exhaustive guide to shops in different neighborhoods and suburbs, including Wisconsin.

Twin Cities Statement — Though this publication is relatively new, it’s worth a mention for its lush fashion spreads and emphasis on a sophisticated Twin Cities lifestyle. You can find it at the newsstand or flip through it online.

Lavender — The Twin Cities’ GLBT magazine, Lavender, has made a big splash; it’s available for free at dozens of locations around the metro and covers anything and everything related to the GLBT community, from touring Broadway productions to politics.

Sound Verité — Minneapolis producer Jon Jon posts a song almost every day “for sampling purposes only.” In other words, free MP3s to open up your sound consciousness. And he’s got an amazing ear for unique, downloadable goodness — there are rare covers, like Lykke Li taking on the Shirelles’ “Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow?,” hip-hop gems and mash-ups to boot.