Howard Owens, no longer GateHouse Media's online strategist, explains why GateHouse felt it had to sue the Times over boston.com's Your Town sites.

After finally reading GateHouse's complaint and editor Greg Reibman's affidavit, I'm not worried about finding some guy at my door with a document in a blue jacket (speaking of documents, here they all are).

OK, truth be told, I wasn't really worried about that to begin with, so, yes, I was getting all drama-queenish on Monday (see Adam Reilly's take). But the GateHouse suit still bothers me.

GateHouse Media honcho Kirk Davis stops just short of threatening a lawsuit, but tells Boston Daily he'll be watching the Globe's impending Mega-micro-hyperlocal Newton site with two eagle eyes, to make sure boston.com doesn't try to stomp on his Wicked Local territory. He even gets off a good crack about the 800-pound gorilla now being more like a 200-pound gorilla, which is kind of funny in an ironic sort of way, coming from a guy whose own employer's stock is now worth like negative 3 cents a share, but whatever.

And here I sit, wondering if the issue is simply one of scale. I link to and quote from Wicked Local sites all the time. While my motives are pure as the driven snow, (of course!), I do make money from this site. But I'm no financial threat to GateHouse, whereas the Globe, yeah, a bit of a different issue. Still, Google makes money from putting ads next to GateHouse content on its pages, too.

Dan Kennedy analyzes the brewing battle in more detail.

Wicked Local to add social networking.

Via MetaBoston.

After yesterday's shooting/standoff up the street from us, here's my new news hierarchy:

First, check Channel 4 and Wicked Local (the latter is where I first read about the shootings). Chances are, they'll have the news first (however, Wicked Local only covers Roslindale, West Roxbury and Allston/Brighton).

The next day, check the Herald. They'll likely have photos and a lot of details (in this case, the more seriously injured person's name - which the paper got from his grandmother - and details about the SWAT team being called in).

Then, if you're really bored, check the Globe, where, if you're lucky, you'll get a desultory story that reads as if the reporter never even left his desk.