The Rasmussen is news of the polar North, delivered directly to your inbox.
The name honours Knud Rasmussen, a Greenlandic-Danish polar explorer, anthropologist and chronicler of the lives and culture of the people of the polar North.
Why ’’rasmussen.is’? Most practically, because .com and all the other obvious domains were taken. But, in the Scandinavian languages, is means ice, which is the most obvious physical feature of the Arctic, and it reflects my Scandinavian location and outlook on the region.
Who am I? Kevin McGwin, the former editor of The Arctic Journal. Between 2013 and 2017, The Arctic Journal provided ’regional news with a global perspective’. I hope The Rasmussen can continue where The Arctic Journal left off.
Regular editions …
Readers of The Rasmussen can expect news about the Arctic in daily and weekly formats. In time, I plan to add monthly and quarterly articles.
As a general rule, articles will be free to read.
The Daily Parse provides a summary and analysis of the main points about a current topic related to the Arctic. Articles are published four or five times a week and include external articles and resources to give readers a place to begin if they would like to learn more.
The Weekly Cover is The Rasmussen’s main story of the week. These articles will sometimes look ahead at one of the more important or interesting topics of the coming week, or they may provide insight and analysis about a current issue.
Planned Quarterly Reports will provide a more in-depth look at an issue or event relating to the Arctic, or a survey about a location in the region.
… occasional features …
A section called ArctiCulture will feature articles about the arts and culture of the region.
I also have a section called UPDATE. My intention isn’t to cover ’breaking’, ’developing’ or even ’day-to-day’ news. The region’s national, regional and local news outlets do a far better job at that than I can. (I recommend Arctic Today, for which I also write.) Sometimes, though, the news can’t wait. In The Rasmussen’s case, this will mostly be news about Greenland or Scandinavia.
The Northerners section will feature interviews and profiles of the individuals who shape – and are shaped by – the region.
A section called Ideas featuring commentary, analysis, arguments and other forms of opinionated thinking will serve as one of the pillars of The Rasmussen. The Related Thinks section will provide links to external commentary and blog posts related to the region.
If you are interested in submitting content, please contact me. And, before you ask, no, I can’t pay for articles. Or at least not yet.
… sent direct to your inbox
All articles will be available at rasmussen.is for free. Newsletter subscribers will receive daily, weekly and quarterly editions sent directly to their inbox. These may include adverts. I’ll also be hounding readers to sponsor my work.
As a service to our readers, The Rasmussen will publish press releases. My ambition is to have a calendar of events related to the region.
A website in the rough
The rudimentary appearance of the website reflects my focus on journalism, and the fact that I have several other irons in the fire. In the short term, my focus will be on getting each edition sent. My apologies ahead of time if I don’t. Things like other assignments, holidays, business travel, kids’ school events and the like may result in interruptions.
As The Rasmussen evolves, my focus will be on improving the website and keeping up with changing tastes in the way journalism is consumed.
I welcome your comments and suggestions.