guardian

Michael Arrington gets crunched by AOL

TechCrunch editor and founder Michael Arrington has left the technology site only a year after being purchased by internet giant AOL. In a statement, AOL said: “The TechCrunch acquisition has been a success for AOL and for our shareholders, and we are very excited about its future. Michael Arrington, the founder of TechCrunch, has decided to move on from TechCrunch and AOL to his newly formed venture fund.” The move comes hot on the heels of a bitter dispute between Arrington and AOL blog network editor-and-chief Arianna Huffington, who took over at the helm after AOL acquired the Huffington Post for $315 million. The two became embroiled in a public debate over editorial independence at TechCrunch after news emerged that AOL invested $10 million in Arrington’s venture CrunchFund. According to the Guardian , the news was also met with opposition from journalists who argued that any start-ups Arrington’s CrunchFund invested in would also receive preferential treatment at TechCrunch. The relationship between Huffington and Arrington has often been strained, but came to a head last week when confusion over Arrington’s role at TechCrunch resulted in him publicly issuing an ultimatum on the TechCrunch site .

View original here:
Michael Arrington gets crunched by AOL