Best Blogs by Forbes

- Forbes.com

http://econlog.econlib.org/

http://www.gothamist.com/
This sophisticated, deliciously urbane city blog began in New York and rapidly spun off to a network of 11 other “–ist” sites, from Shanghai, London and Paris to Los Angeles, Philadelphia and Seattle. In each city, the format stays the same: news and lifestyle topics diced into food, sports, politics, theatre, museums—umpteen categories customized to each city. (In Austin, one category was “tacos.”) In New York, the granddaddy of the –ist sites, posts ranged from the closing of the kitschy landmark Howard Johnson in Times Square to an upcoming exhibit by artist Swoon (known for creating peep holes around the city.)

Best: Extensive archives are searchable.

Worst: The Parisist site is only available in French. Quelle dommage!


One of the most well known vlogs, this site promises a three-minute video newscast every morning at 9 a.m. EST, Monday through Friday. The focus is rarely that of the top news stories of the day, as they claim a "heavy emphasis on international arts, technology and Weblog drama." Although it looks like a traditional gal-behind-a-desk newscast, the casual, irreverent tone comes in and you quickly realize this is no ordinary news show. Cheerful blonde host Amanda Congdon interviews documentary filmmakers and politicians, and then makes time for the latest funny video being passed around the Internet. A recent vlogcast featured a priceless performance by air guitar champion Rockeness Monster. The vlog is based in New York City but features vlogger correspondents from Boston, LA, and Minneapolis.

Best: Vlog host Congdon, plus the site's sleek, simple design.

Worst: Hit or miss topics sometimes miss badly.
http://rocketboom.com/vlog





Whether it's a Mini, a Lexus or Lamborghini this site covers the auto industry news from A to Z. There are short pieces and links to articles on hundreds of specific car models, engines, even the touring and racing of cars around the world. Daily entries may include five or more articles about various aspects of the industry, including a recent post continuing about the new LS7 engine that powers the 2006 Corvette Z06.

Best: Of all the sites we visited, this one had the most responses and commentary to the wide array of posts.

Worst: No test drives, or reliability reviews. It's all news and links.

www.autoblog.com


Daily posts on this shopping blog promise "exactly the right things" to "brighten your eyes, match your couch and fix the annoying problem that's been bothering you." Well, that certainly narrows it down. Browse product recommendations by category, such as Gadgets, Fashions for Men, Home, or Kids. Recent finds run from Shure's E3c Sound Isolating Earphones for your IPod for $165 ("when you're wearing them, you feel as though the music would come out of your mouth if you opened it") to magnetic wall paint.

Best: Searchable.

Worst: No comment or feedback sections; some items link to dead pages.

http://www.mightygoods.com/
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Photography central. This elegantly designed and highly readable site offers links to photo world news, events, books, market updates and reviews of museum and gallery exhibitions. Be sure to scan the Collecting category archives for a treasure trove of tips and info about what to look for and notable sales, both past and future – it’s chock-full of meaty links. Nice photos accompanying many of the postings to whet your appetite.

Best: Searchable by topic, date or keyword. We typed in Arbus and got eight items.

Worst: Looking for in-depth analysis? This isn’t the place.

http://www.galleryhopper.org/
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

This Maryland-based site stakes out the online marketing world with deep news that’s rich in detail and background. It is an essential bookmark for those wanting to keep current on this fast changing arena. One recent posting discusses the booming e-commerce business in Europe (France alone had 40% growth last year). Another talks about how Ajax, the code used by Google Maps and Flickr to create lightning fast dynamic pages, could throw traditional page impression ad measurements into turmoil. Archives—stuffed with hundreds of stories—are broken down into more than 80 categories, such as Sector and Big Picture. There were 220 stories in the Advertainment section alone.

Best: Each story lists related topics by category for further study.

Worst: Strictly a news site. Lacks how-to articles.

http://www.marketingvox.com/
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
A newer literary blog, Galleycat is an offshoot of Mediabistro and the occupation of Nathalie Chica (formerly of the renowned litblog Cup of Chica), known for her pithy drawings and scathing sense of humor. Browse twenty-two categories such as Book Jackets, where Chica compares covers that bear a suspicious likeness to each other, demonstrating that "much more than a book's content is prone to unoriginality." Its list of upcoming events, extensive coverage of publishing news and carefully selected blogrolls make it a must-click for those in the publishing biz.

Best: Galleycat is funny yet still sophisticated; its satire comes through most evidently in its clever headlines.

Worst: The site averages about one or two paragraph-sized posts a day--not a lot if you're really looking for something to read.

http://www.mediabistro.com/galleycat
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -