A New Voice in Orange County

H/T to Peggy Lowe over at the Register.

A New Online Investigative News Site Coming to Orange County.

Fmr. Senator Joe Dunn
Fmr. Senator Joe Dunn

A group of Orange County Democratic and liberal leaders will soon launch a non-profit online news site dedicated to “real-time investigative coverage” in three languages. Spearheaded by former state Sen. Joe Dunn, a Democrat from central Orange County, the site will be called “Voice of OC,” and will be modeled on “Voice of San Diego,” a daily news site lauded as an innovative approach to local coverage.

The Orange County site, to be launched by the end of the year, will be funded with a $140,000 start-up grant from the Orange County Employees Association, the county’s largest union. Organizers will also seek donations, foundation money and PBS-style memberships, according to a press release issued today.

Erwin Chemerinsky, dean of the School of Law at UCI, will serve on the board, which will be chaired by Dunn and rounded out with veteran reporters, former lawmakers and attorneys. Norberto Santana Jr., a former  investigative reporter from The Orange County Register, will be executive editor of the news operation.

A press conference is scheduled for Tuesday. The press release described the site as “an independent non-profit online news operation focused on giving residents real-time investigative coverage of the institutions and power brokers that impact their daily lives.”

Read Peggy Lowe’s complete story here.