 | |
Type of site | News, digital advertising |
|---|---|
| Founded | 2008 |
| Headquarters | , U.S. |
| No. of locations | 95 |
| Area served | New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Florida |
| Founder(s) | Michael Shapiro |
| Key people | Michael Shapiro, CEO |
| Industry | Local News |
| Services | Local news and digital marketing |
| URL | www |
| Launched | October 2008 |
| Current status | Active |
TAPinto is a network of more than 95 independently owned and operated local news and digital marketing platforms in New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania and Florida. Based in New Providence, New Jersey.[1] TAPinto.net is one of the largest online local news gathering operations in New Jersey. It was founded by New Providence residents Michael and Lauryn Shapiro in October 2008 to provide independent local news. In the past two decades many local hardcopy newspapers have been acquired by national conglomerates that have slashed the newsroom. Other hardcopy newspapers have gone out of business leaving news deserts in their wake. In the coverage vacuum, hyperlocal online media such as TAPinto are often the only local news coverage that many communities get.
TAPinto's Franchise Model
TAPinto operates on a franchise model . Each TAPinto local news and digital marketing platform is independently owned and operated by a franchisee, who pays a small upfront fee, a monthly fee, and a nominal percentage of advertising revenue. In exchange, the network provides thorough training, a content management system, tech development and support, graphic design, billing and credit card processing, contract software, a CRM, ongoing continuing education programs, full-time customer service support, and helps with both the business and editorial sides of their operation. TAPinto provides significant training and support to help local news entrepreneurs own and operate a local news and digital marketing platform in their community.TAPinto also offers a variety of effective and affordable marketing options for businesses of all sizes.
Notable coverage
TAPinto journalists consistently are the first to break major stories in their communities.
In 2023, TAPinto Newark’s reporting caused the State of New Jersey to issue a stop work order on construction of a high school in Newark, New Jersey. Complaints filed by workers and union officials claimed the school was being built by non-union laborers.
Also in 2023, a city official in Plainfield, New Jersey, was removed from a city planning board and a nonprofit's board after TAPinto Plainfield reported on racist comments she made at a community fair.
Almost 250,000 people read TAPinto Stafford/LBI’s story of Taylor Swift being spotted with Channing Tatum and Zoë Kravitz ahead of a wedding in Beach Haven, New Jersey.
Through Open Public Records Act (OPRA) requests, TAPinto journalists have been able to hold the powerful accountable. In 2023, TAPinto Newark filed an OPRA request to find out how much the Newark Public School District paid for a dilapidated building. TAPinto eventually sued the district for withholding information from the public.
TAPinto Sparta reported on a controversial warehouse development beginning in 2022, using OPRA requests to gain valuable information for the public to see.
Partnerships
TAPinto is a member of the Local Media Association, the Local Media Consortium, the New Jersey Chamber of Commerce, Downtown New Jersey, the New Jersey Society of Professional Journalists and the Center for Cooperative Media. Many TAPinto owner/publishers are members of their local chamber of commerce as well as civic and community organizations.
Many TAPinto sites have a partnership with high school newspapers in their communities, including TAPinto Berkeley Heights and Governor Livingston High School’s newspaper, The Highlander.
Honors and Awards
TAPinto’s local news and marketing platforms have received various awards and recognition over the years when it comes to original journalism that impact their communities.
In 2023, the New Jersey Society of Professional Journalists honored TAPinto with three Excellence in Journalism Awards. In 2022, the New Jersey Society of Professional Journalists honored TAPinto with eight Excellence in Journalism Awards. Also in 2022, TAPinto journalists were honored with three Excellence in Local News Awards, from the Center for Cooperative Media at Montclair State University.
In 2023, Franchise Business Review named TAPinto as a Top Franchise, Most Innovative Franchise, Top Low-Cost Franchise and Top Franchise for Women.
TAPinto in the News
In 2023, TAPinto celebrated its 15th birthday as featured in the New Jersey Globe.
1851 Franchise Magazine recently featured TAPinto Founder and CEO Michael Shapiro, TAPinto’s unique franchise business model and Shapiro’s entrepreneurship background.
In 2023, Downtown New Jersey, the only statewide organization that focuses exclusively on New Jersey’s great downtowns, featured a case study by TAPinto on how the Downtown Westfield Corporation has been able to successfully utilize TAPinto to market its initiatives and events, resulting in sold-out events that promoted the business community in Westfield, New Jersey.
In 2022, Editor & Publisher magazine named TAPinto as one of 10 publishers that “do it right.”
Also in 2022, Dan Kennedy of Northeastern University and veteran Boston Globe editor Ellen Clegg interviewed TAPinto Founder and CEO Michael Shapiro on their popular What Works podcast about local news, during which Shapiro gave this unique perspective on what makes local news click.
The Lenfest Institute spoke with TAPinto in a piece about how TAPinto’s franchise model is helping to change the local news landscape.
In 2020, longtime journalist and news commentator Simon Owens listed TAPinto as a news organization that is “thriving.”
In 2017, TAPinto appeared in a New York Times article called “In New Jersey, Only a Few Media Watchdogs Left.”
In 2017, CEO Michael Shapiro appeared on One on One with Steve Adubato discussing the state of news media and the TAPinto model.
In 2016, Columbia Journalism review featured TAPinto and how it is changing local news.