MetaCarta: Mapping the news
New Web site mixes local news items with a map for geographic-based search.
A Cambridge, Mass.-based company is launching a free Web site that maps news articles to their location on a map.
MetaCarta indexes more than 1,400 sources, including stories from the Associated Press, Reuters, and other news sites and blogs.
You can search for a place name or zoom into the map to a specific location, and articles related to that spot will be displayed. Repositioning the map refines the search. You can also browse by category, such as health, politics, sports, and world news.
The AP and Reuters stories are displayed in a window on the site, while clicking on other items sends you to the source site.
There are no ads right now, but eventually there may be classified listings and ads associated with businesses, says Rick Hutton, vice president of content at MetaCarta.
