Phew. There's been a lot of great discussion surrounding the sale of Famous to The Bee. Some has been touching, some scathing, and some incredibly humorous. The Famous team- myself, Suzi, Sosasosad, and Mojo in Modesto- have put thousands of hours (not to mention sweat and tears; I can't recall any blood) into developing a platform that would promote art, entertainment, and discussion in communities in the Central Valley. It makes me proud to know so many people care so deeply about the mission of this site.

If you liked Famous last week, you'll like it next week. Nothing about the site- its tone, your freedom to say whatever you like (in accordance with our terms of service), its sometime criticism of the paper and other media, and discussion about issues that are important to us- will change. The only change you'll see will be for the better, and since this site exists to serve its community, we hope you'll let us know what you'd like to see.

The Bee is not looking to make Famous like any of its other publications. From discussions with the publisher on down, no one there wants to come in and change things. We would not have sold Famous to a party that we thought would destroy all of our eye-glazing, finger-breaking efforts. We hope you'll reserve judgment for a few weeks. The news industry is changing; I think the Bee has a lot to learn from what happens on this site, and I'm sure your comments are not going unnoticed.

To those who want to say goodbye to Famous because it is no longer owned by me (even though I'll be sticking around), I suppose I should be flattered that you've allowed me to be your capitalist overlord. This venture has always been a for-profit business. Our business is creating online platforms for community; without the community there is no business. Transferring ownership is what I feel will serve this community best. It will allow it to grow, and allow it to evolve positively. And if anything happens that the community doesn't like, I trust you'll let us all know!