The PolitickerME.com Web site is shutting down. An announcement from Politicker’s only full-time reporter, Jessica Alaimo, was posted on the site shortly after 1 p.m. today.

According to that brief item, the New York Observer, Politicker’s parent company, is closing the Maine site and similar sites in several other states. No reason for the decision was given, but it’s almost certainly a result of the poor economy.

Politicker came to Maine in November 2007, a clone of a New Jersey political site the Observer had recently purchased. It promised “Inside Politics For Political Insiders,” and for much of its brief existence, it delivered. Alaimo was regularly the first (and, all too often, the only) reporter with breaking news on candidates, campaign flaps, behind-the-scenes maneuvering and more. Politicker’s in-depth coverage of the 2008 legislative races was unprecedented in Maine. In addition, the site offered detailed analysis of electoral trends and pointed commentary from the anonymous “Wally Edge.”

For a short time, Politicker filled a big hole left by the daily papers’ decisions to jettison most of their experienced political reporters. It will be missed.

Al Diamon can be e-mailed at aldiamon@herniahill.net.

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