Founded in 2009 by three veteran journalists—Frances Dinkelspiel, Lance Knobel, and Tracey Taylor—Berkeleyside came into being to fill a news vacuum in their hometown. The idea sparked when the three friends realized that despite Berkeley being a famous and active city, traditional newspapers were shrinking and failing to cover local issues thoroughly. They decided to launch a strictly digital news site, originally working from their kitchen tables, to provide the community with reliable daily reporting. Today, the site is a nonprofit owned by Cityside, an organization created by the founders to support local journalism in the Bay Area. Today, Berkeleyside is based in Berkeley, California, and serves as the primary news source for the city. They focus entirely on hyper-local issues, covering topics like city council meetings, housing and development, crime safety, and public schools. They are also well-known for their dedicated food section called "Nosh," which covers the extensive dining and restaurant scene in the East Bay. One interesting fact: A unique fact about Berkeleyside is its history with funding. Before transitioning to a nonprofit, they were the first local news site in America to launch a Direct Public Offering (DPO). This allowed their own readers to buy stock in the company, meaning over 1,000 community members actually became investors and owners of the news site to help it grow.