Viva La Cola!

Founded in January 2009, PubliCola is a blog about Seattle written by journalists who are dedicated to non-partisan, original daily reporting that prioritizes a balanced approach to news. Started by longtime local editor and award-winning reporter Josh Feit, PubliCola is the first online-only news site in state history to get media credentials to cover the state capitol.

PubliCola was off and running. In June 2009, PubliCola hired another award-winning journalist, super-sourced Seattle city hall reporter Erica C. Barnett.

People were afraid that blogging would change journalism. Instead, we believe journalism can change blogging. Twenty-first century journalism may look and feel different, and yes Erica isn't afraid to get cranky, but we're committed to making sure online news still delivers independent, reliable, even-keeled coverage. And most of all, we're committed to making sure the coverage sparks honest civic debate.

Bringing you cola for the people, PubliCola is named after Publius Valerius PubliCola, the alias for the authors of the Federalist Papers—the original bloggers.

The first online-only news site in state history to get media credentials to cover the state capitol and Seattle city hall, PubliCola has been called a “must-read” by the Seattle Post Intelligencer and a hot “New Media Mover and Shaker” by Seattle Magazine—which also cited our own Erica C. Barnett as the city's No. 1 news nerd.

Arab Festival Readings: Rabih Alameddine and Alia Yunis

The best readings this weekend are happening at the Arab Festival at Seattle Center.

rabih

Rabih Alameddine

At 4 p.m. on Saturday, featured novelist Rabih Alameddine reads from The Hakawati , the story of Osama al-Kharrat’s return to Beirut where he visits his dying father. It’s received numerous glowing reviews , including a starred review from Publisher’s Weekly.

At 11 a.m. Sunday, Alia Yunis presents her debut novel, The Night Counter, about a dysfunctional Middle Eastern family.

See the full schedule here.