MNN Celebrates Third Anniversary

MNN Boards- The Micronational News Network (MNN) is today celebrating the third anniversary of what many people would have once considered unimaginable- a service offering continually updates news and information for micronations.

In what started as a long overdue replacement for the old Micronations Today ezboard, MNN provided a forum-based news service, with dedicated journalists providing the articles. This formula became a success and MNN became a big hit, with users posting more than 580 news stories alone before the start of the blogging revolution.

MNN has been about more than just providing the news, however. From its first post it has provided a neutral environment where people can meet and exchange ideas, hold conferences and discuss issues. As a result, over the years MNN has hosted numerous conferences and organisations, including the Micronational Cartography Society, the Currency Exchange Organisation, the Apollo Foundation and more recently the Micronational Recreational Warfare Society and FNORD Awards.

Its success can be seen in many ways. Not only has the board amassed close to 12,000 posts and 360 members, but it has welcomed more than 75,000 unique visitors- a post and view count that would put most nations to shame.

When the Apollo Inquisitor spoke earlier today with the founder and owner of MNN, Sir Iain de Vembria, it was quickly able to engage his excitement and satisfaction. He spoke of his surprise at the growth of the service, and how it continues to grow, culminating with the recent launch of MNN 24/7- the blog service inspired by Cyberian Jack Santucci and enacted by Sander Dieleman. De Vembria accredits the success of MNN to its neutrality, stating that it

"...has succeeded by providing dedicated fora and services requested by micronationalists, [expanding] from the four original fora to the fifteen-plus ones today. Its ongoing success is founded on the principal of attracting people's interest and keeping it, which includes giving them as much control as possible, and therefore an interest in keeping things going."

When asked if he had any future plans for the service, he informed us that the news had probably been developed about as far as it could go, but that "...the existing features will be maintained, and any suggestions for new ones will continue to be accepted and implemented if they have merit."

Congratulations MNN! Heres to another three years!

Related Links:
MNN Forums
MNN Website
MNN History

The Apollo Inquisitor is a partially owned subsidiary of the Micronational News Network.

A Flurry of FNORDs

For the fourth time in three years, micronationalists are busily nominating their choices for the People's FNORD Awards. This year there are over thirty awards available for nomination, although only the most popular will make it through to the final round of voting by five top judges.

The FNORD Awards are named after a combination of Emperor Joshua Norton and the Illuminatus Trilogy and were inspired by the original Norton Awards, which have long ceased to be. Their aim is to recognise micronationalists who have "lived up to the example of crazy genius that Norton pioneered" and "made the micronational world a much more interesting place."

The format of the awards has changed over the years, but this year sees the return of the voting judges, and a record number of awards. Nominations will close at the end of this weekend in time for several days of intense voting by the judges.