San Francisco Journalists Bring Wit and Smarts to the World Wide Web with 'Salon'

Apple Computer, Adobe Ventures L.P., Borders, Inc. Help Launch Journalists' Dream Publication

SAN FRANCISCO, California--November 20, 1995--People who spend their time surfing the World Wide Web no longer have to turn off their computers and walk down to the corner newsstand to get their daily dose of intelligent and fun discussion about modern culture. Today, some of San Francisco's top journalists have launched SALON--a new World Wide Web site that aims to bring lively, smart and engaging discourse about the arts, books and ideas to the Internet.

The venture, which is funded by Apple Computer, Inc., Adobe Ventures L.P., and retail bookstore experts Borders, Inc., is the creation of David Talbot and David Zweig. Talbot, the SALON Web site editor and CEO, is the former arts and features editor of the San Francisco Examiner. Zweig, the SALON Web site publisher and president, has a long history in publishing and entrepreneurial ventures.

SALON (http://www.salon1999.com) marries the immediacy and free-spiritedness of the Internet with the intelligence, spirit and variety of daily journalism. Talbot and Zweig have assembled an impressive staff, including Internet expert Howard Rheingold, award-winning art director Mignon Khargie and TV critic Joyce Millman, a two-time Pulitzer Prize finalist in criticism.

"We aim to bring to electronic media the sort of intelligent and provocative discussion of cultural issues that seems to have disappeared from the mass media today," Talbot said. "We see the promise of a cultural rebirth in the ascendance of the World Wide Web, and we hope SALON contributes to that renaissance."

Unlike other magazines which came to the Internet by way of print progenitors, SALON was created solely for the World Wide Web. Inside the SALON Web site, people will encounter not only authors, artists and thinkers, but a kinetic community of readers and kindred spirits eager to thrash out cultural, political and literary issues. During the startup period, SALON will publish biweekly, and after that on a weekly basis, with daily updates.

In addition to each issue's interviews and features, SALON departments will bring the reader daily editorials, cultural news in-brief, an interactive mystery, reviews of movies, fiction, multimedia, and music, and conversation in the form of live chats with celebrity guests and topical discussion threads. The premier issue features interviews with authors Amy Tan and John le Carre, commentary by Camille Paglia, a roundtable on America's strained race relations with authors Shelby Steele, Richard Rodriguez, Stanley Crouch and Jim Sleeper and an essay by Armistead Maupin.

Realizing the creative significance of SALON and its potential draw for Macintosh users, the Apple Internet Services division of Apple Computer, Inc. has backed the venture. Apple provided start-up financing for the project and, going forward, aims to develop further co-marketing and content production relationships with SALON. "SALON fits perfectly with our aim to provide a portfolio of Web sites that appeal to Apple customers in the home and creative professions" says Peter Friedman, vice president of the division. "But more importantly, we see in SALON an unstoppable cultural force aimed at making the Web the 21st Century equivalent of a 15th century Florentine piazza--and we want to make sure we're there!"

"We believe that SALON is a good example of the marriage of visually rich content with an exciting new medium--the World Wide Web," said Fred Mitchell, vice president of business development for Adobe Systems. "We are very excited about participating in this new venture and look forward to our continued involvement." Adobe Ventures L.P., was established in June 1994, and is currently a $40 million venture capital limited partnership between Adobe Systems Incorporated and Hambrecht & Quist Group. It is chartered to invest in innovative companies strategic to Adobe's businesses. Hambrecht & Quist Group is a venture capital, investment banking and securities brokerage firm specializing in emerging growth companies in chosen areas of industry focus, including technology and life sciences.

Borders Inc., the nationwide chain of book and music superstores based in Ann Arbor, Michigan, is co-sponsoring the new magazine through the underwriting of "Sneak Peeks," a preview section of forthcoming books that will appear in SALON. And Borders will help Web surfers find SALON by distributing bookmarks featuring the site's Internet address in its nearly 100 stores nationwide. Sneak Peeks titles and reviews will also be displayed in all of its stories. In addition, SALON readers will be able to order titles featured in the magazine by e-mail from Borders.

"This is an ideal alliance--both Borders and SALON celebrate the excitement of discovery and new ideas," said Robin Wagner, senior vice president of merchandising at Borders. By virtue of residing on the Internet's World Wide Web, SALON is available to people using any type of computer--Macintosh, PC-compatibles, etc.--so the common ground of users becomes the passion for reading and thinking rather than technology preference.

The SALON Web site (http://www.salon1999.com) was developed using software technology from WebGenesis (http://www.webgenesis.com), an Ithaca, New York-based firm owned and operated by twelve Cornell University students with an eye for the future. Saturn Corporation (http://www.saturncars.com) is SALON's charter advertiser.

Apple Computer, Inc., a recognized pioneer and innovator in the information industry, creates powerful solutions based on easy-to-use personal computers, servers, peripherals, software, online services, and personal digital assistants. Headquartered in Cupertino, California, Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) develops, manufactures, licenses and markets products, technologies and services for the business, education, consumer, scientific, engineering and government markets in over 140 countries.

Adobe Systems Incorporated, (NASDAQ:ADBE) founded in 1982, is headquartered in Mountain View, California. Adobe develops, markets and supports computer software products and technologies that enable users to create, display, print and communicate electronic documents. The company licenses its technology to major computer, printing and publishing suppliers, and markets a line of applications software and type products for authoring visually rich documents. Additionally, the company markets a line of powerful, but easy to use products for home and small business users. Adobe has subsidiaries in Europe, Asia and the Pacific Rim serving a worldwide network of dealers and distributors. Adobe's 1994 revenue was approximately $598 million.

NOTE TO EDITORS: If you are interested in receiving Apple press releases by fax, call 1-800-AAPL-FAX (1-800-227-5329) and enter your PIN number. If you do not have a PIN, please call the Public Relations Hotline at 408-974-2042.

Apple, the Apple logo and Macintosh are trademarks of Apple Computer, Inc. Adobe is a trademark of Adobe Systems Incorporated. SALON is a trademark of SALON INTERNET, INC. All rights reserved. A production of SALON INTERNET, INC. Borders is a registered trademark of Borders, Inc. All other brand names mentioned are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective holders and are hereby acknowledged.