SALON UPS THE ANTE. One of the more heartening media developments of the past year is the revival of Salon, the pioneering webzine that downsized and struggled through the dot-com bust. With new funding in place, Salon is now opening a revived Washington bureau, to be headed by none other than Sidney Blumenthal, ex of the Phoenix, the New Yorker, and the Clinton White House.

Salon is also publishing excerpts from a new book by former Boston magazine editor Craig Unger called House of Bush, House of Saud, and is partnering with MoveOn.org, the London Guardian, and the new liberal radio network, Air America.

Timothy Karr reported the details earlier this week at Mediachannel.org. And here is Salon editor/founder David Talbot's letter to readers.

Salon and Slate are the two big survivors of the mid-'90s new-media boom. With Slate occupying much the same neolib-cum-neocon ground as the New Republic, Salon's renewed relevance is welcome news to everyone on the left side of the political spectrum.

NEW IN THIS WEEK'S PHOENIX. The battle against broadcast indecency has media moguls running scared, as they are all too willing to sacrifice free speech on the altar of corporate empire-building.

Also, for the past six years, one of the Boston Herald's favorite targets was Mike Barnicle. Until now, that is.