Crosbie's message started a flurry of postings to the list, which have dominated the discussion in the last few days. I encourage you to read through the list archive of the last several days. The discussion is lively and many excellent points have been made. The whole issue is an emotional one for publishers. The debate is played out close to my home with the two leading newspapers in the Denver metro area.
Most news organizations do retain their old brand name in their online properties.
But if you buy the argument that an old-media brand can hurt you online, it can make sense to go with a completely new name. Way back in 1993, I was part of a small team of people who began to envision an online service for the San Francisco Chronicle . Many news companies are recognizing the importance of new brand names severed from old names. With those two sites, the venerable Mercury brand name is still visible, but secondary to the new brand name. He sees a critical difference between newspapers that seek to expand their local audience vs. those that want to reach out to wider audiences.