Philly Journalism Woes Continue: “Metropolis” Shutting Down

On the day that the Daily News and Inquirer have reached a temporary armistice with its ownership group, another publication has bitten the dust. In in email accompanying the last issue of the non-profit Philly journalism outfit “Metropolis,” editor Tom Ferrick announced he was shutting the venture down.

Metropolis has been covering Philly for three years, and has been doing important investigative work right up until today’s goodbye notice. (See this recent piece on a massive city council slush fund.) But now, Ferrick has decided to call it quits. The website ran on only $80,000 a year, and Ferrick felt he needed more than that to increase the site’s influence. “The mantra is business is ‘grow or die,” Ferrick wrote in an email accompanying the publication’s final issue. “It applies to web ventures as well.”

Side note: Ryan Briggs, the reporter who broke the slush fund piece, joined City Paper two weeks ago as a reporter. He replaced Isaiah Thompson, who joined the newly-launched Axis Philly, in late 2012. [Curbed]