This is an extract. Read the original article in Digital Trends. 

The race to uncover the next big thing in journalism is firmly underway. As consumers turn to the web for their daily news fix, an emerging breed of entrepreneurs are finding innovative ways to manage and capitalize on the flood of online content.

While reporting a story for Digital Trends, I had the enviable opportunity of meeting with the founders of this year’s most promising media ventures. They are a young, fearless and uniquely passionate bunch. Often less concerned with making a quick buck, these entrepreneurs are hell bent on creating a bright future for journalism. Read on for a list of the “ones to watch,” and to discover how the major news institutions like CNN, The Wall Street Journal and The New York Times have enlisted their help.

The content curators
This group is more concerned with content curation, rather than ownership. Information is disseminated to audiences on a variety of platforms including mobile, web and tablet in a personalized way – often with a focus on a specific vertical.

1. Pulse partners with top-tier news organizations to drive cross-platform news consumption.
What’s cool about it? What isn’t? Pulse is the brainchild of Ankit Gupta and Akshay Kothari, and was launched during a class at the Stanford School of Design. Gupta, then 22, and Kothari, then 23, saw Pulse shoot to the top of the most downloaded list in the App Store. After a rocky start (the founders’ successfully fended off a lawsuit from The New York Times), Pulse is currently partnered with virtually every major media institution in the world.

2. Zite: A personalized magazine for iPad and iPhone that gets smarter as you use it.
What’s cool about it? Zite was acquired by CNN for a reported $20 million (in 2011?). And this year, it was named the best iPad App of the year by The New York Times.

3. Flipboard is a social magazine app that aggregates web links from your social circle.
What’s cool about it? Steve Jobs was said to be a fan of Flipboard’s superior design aesthetic.

Honorable Mention: Skygrid, News.me, techmeme.com, Storify, Paper.li, scoop.it, Percolate

The content creators
The most successful platforms in this category welcome citizen contributions – an unfailing cheap source of content. Nonprofit organizations and hyper-local blogs have also made significant gains in this space.

1. PandoDaily: The site of record for tech startups.
What’s cool about it? Founder Sarah Lacy, a former TechCrunch blogger, raised 2.5 million from a veritable “who’s-who” of Silicon Valley investors.

2. The Phenomlist: Showcasing phenomenal people you don’t know.
What’s cool about it? Amanda Schwab and Laura Yao, co-founders, met at a Digital Media Entrepreneurship class at Stanford University. In their first months, they scored video interviews with entrepreneurs from hot startups like Birchbox, Zaarly and Instagr.am.

3. Spot.us: An open-source project to pioneer community-powered reporting.
What’s cool about it? It’s the “kickstarter” for environmental and political journalism, pouring much-needed funds into investigative work.

Honorable Mention: Digital Journal, Allvoices, California Watch, Patch, The Verge, Propublica, Examiner, The Bay Citizen