Pros
I think everyone who worked at Patch learned critical digital skills that are very much in demand in the wider world of media today. Plus, those coming from newspapers would probably all agree they'd be doing less digital and less well had they stayed put. Great co-workers. A sense of serving my hometown, which was awesome.
Cons
People seem to have a lot of cons to say about Patch. My personal sense is that many beefs were personal, not global. Ventures are created, scaled and survive (or fail) all the time. It's a fun and exciting thing to be a part of, for better or worse. The only con for me, honestly, was the bad press. Much of it coming from people who ran their own hyperlocal sites who clearly didn't want the competition. It's a little silly for the guy at Pepsi to run down Coke when at the end of the day, more soda drinkers benefits everyone. Let the reader decide who is better. And Patch colleagues who thought they could do better, should have. People start websites every day.
