UTICA-ROME -- First he was a morning show host... then a TV show host... then both at the same time. Now, Bill Keeler has a brand new venture -- and this one's no laughing matter. He's launched a new "online newspaper" aiming to serve Utica, Rome and the Mohawk Valley.
The new uticadailynews.com wasn't supposed to "go public" until March 1. Keeler Productions spokeswoman Kristy Clifford says the site had been in beta-testing for the past 30 days, when it "was discovered by a local blogger last weekend, and the word quickly spread."
Clifford says uticadailynews.com will cover happenings in Madison, Oneida, Herkimer, Otsego and Montgomery counties, with updates "every hour, seven days a week."
Keeler, who has worked at WRCK and Kiss-FM (WSKS/WSKU) before moving to his current home at 92.7 The Drive (WXUR), says, "there’s a real need for another 'news voice' in Central New York. We’ve teamed up with some very experienced journalists and photographers who really want to make this the best bookmark for news in the area.”
Among those experienced journalists, is Nancy L. Ford, whose resumé includes more than 15 years as a photojournalist for the Utica Observer-Dispatch.
Keeler admits he has a pretty busy schedule, between his 3-hour daily radio show, a weekly TV show and other projects. When it comes to the online newspaper business, Keeler vows to let the newsroom staff handle itself. “I don’t want to be running down the hallway telling people what they should and shouldn’t write. I want to launch it, sell the ad space and watch it grow,” he said.