I'm still smarting over the demise of the East Valley Tribune. No matter how hard its management tries to spin it as good news, it's not. It's a blow to the metro Phoenix, which is now left with just The Arizona Republic and The New Times. Both the Republic and New Times have some quality, but they also have a lot of flaws.

But that means there's an opportunity for something new to rise. The time is ripe for a brand-new sort of news source. Not a newspaper, not television. Let's go online.

Okay, so what's new about that? The way it generates revenue. As it is, newspapers are sweating over the fact that overall, their Web site contact is not generating cash. People can view most content for free. But every news Web site that I know of is ignoring a huge source of revenue:

The reader comment section.

Now, I readily admit that I've called the reader comment sections a petri dish for stupidity and intolerance. But that tiger is out of its cage, so let's throw a big leash on it. Here's how to make it work for future media: Charge people to comment. Set up a fee structure that charges either by the comment, for a set number of comments per month, or a competitive rate for unlimited monthly or yearly comments.

Of course, this will not work by itself. The comment subscription fees need to be coupled with an ass-kicking blend of provocative, risky and in-your-face writing, plus a take-no-prisoners style of reporting. That means editors and publishers who don't care if granny stains her panties because a writer used a naughty word, and reporters groomed to turn a PR flak's glib response into a minefield.

A Web site that puts both of these concepts into practice has a chance at creating a news source for a new time. We can't go back to the days when chubby men in cheap, rumpled, brown suits and press cards sticking out of their fedoras clod-hopped to the nearest phone booth to dictate a story. But if the media wants to survive and be significant beyond entertainment, it collectively needs to think about how it can be more interesting and generate some revenue.

The idea's a bit rough and needs some shaping, but I see potential.