The Cascade PBS newsroom, formerly Crosscut.com, is an American
nonprofitnews website based in
Seattle. In contrast to traditional news organizations, the website mainly engages in
analytic journalism. It merged with local
PBS member station
KCTS-TV in 2015, with both unifying under the Cascade PBS name in 2024.
Until November 2008, the site's editor was former Weekly and Seattle Union Record editor
Chuck Taylor, who was also a reporter, editor, and graphic designer at the Seattle Times. He left Crosscut during its transition to a nonprofit. For almost a year, the site was edited by Brewster alone until former Seattle Post-Intelligencer and Seattle Times editor Mark Matassa joined in September 2009. Matassa only stayed with Crosscut for three months, leaving in December to join the administration of new Seattle mayor
Mike McGinn.[4] He was replaced by his sister, former Times journalist Michele Matassa-Flores, and former P-Icolumnist Joe Copeland. Matassa-Flores left in the summer of 2011. Crosscut was then edited by Greg Hanscom (executive editor), Drew Atkins (managing editor), and Copeland (senior editor). Florangela Davila later came on as managing editor. Currently, Victor Hernandez serves as executive editor, Mark Baumgarten serves as managing editor, and Knute Berger is the editor-at-large.
Transition to a nonprofit
On November 17, 2008, Brewster announced that a switch to
nonprofit status was being explored by Crosscut LLC, which necessitated temporary staff cuts.[5][6] Brewster remained the only employee until September 2009, when grant funding finally materialized and Crosscut was able to hire an editor and support staff,[7] including an editor, an advertising director, and eventually a Web developer.
In October 2009, Crosscut initiated its first pledge drive. Nearly 400 people donated money to support the site's continued existence.
Acquisition by KCTS-TV
On December 2, 2015, it was announced that
KCTS-TV, a local
PBS member television station based in Seattle, would merge with Crosscut and another website to form Cascade Public Media.[8][9][10][11] The station's existing newsroom was merged with Crosscut's.[12] KCTS-TV and Crosscut unified under the Cascade PBS name on March 1, 2024,[13] coinciding with their move in January to a new facility on
First Hill that formerly served as the longtime home of
Childhaven.[14][15]
Notable writers
Knute Berger, who continued his column "Mossback" about the idiosyncrasies of Seattle living, history and politics, after leaving his post as editor-in-chief of the Seattle Weekly