Strange Bedfellows

Nick Denton Gets Bromantic with Jason Calacanis

John Hudson Dec 22, 2009

Whether it's Arianna Huffinton bashing Rupert Murdoch or The New York Times needling the Wall Street Journal, the media business thrives on confrontation. So it's refreshing when media moguls find a moment of solidarity. That came today when Nick Denton, founder of Gawker Media and tech blog Gizmodo, expressed his gratitude to erstwhile rival Jason Calacanis, who hired away Denton's editor to set up a rival tech blog, Engadget.

Reflecting on the ruthless rivalry that pitted the two "frienemies" against each other, Denton thanks Calacanis for rousing the "competitor in me." From Wired.com, Denton writes:

In 2004, while vacationing in Brazil, I learned that Jason Calacanis
had set up a rival blog network and hired away Pete Rojas, the editor
of our gadget site, Gizmodo ... But I'm grateful to Calacanis.
I had been taking it easy, and he roused the competitor in me. Gizmodo
now has some 10 times the traffic it had then; it's eclipsing
Engadget. I always say to myself: It's never as bad (or as good) as it
seems at the time.

Calacanis shares the moment on Twitter, promoting the post and saying, "good memories."

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John Hudson

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