I love Markos. I think that the tone he has set for this site, his management of it, and even his marketing of it have been smart and professional, and I think he has done a great service to progressives and the nation.
That said, this site has outgrown Markos. It's time for a name change.
Have you noticed that since CTG has come out, and especially since Yearly Kos, the MSM has had this tendency to treat us as something akin to a cult of personality? Part of this is simply irresponsible reporting. But part of it is structural, in the way news can be reported. One can't do a story on all the millions of readers of this site. One can't quote everyone posting a diary or a comment. But one can use a spokesman to represent the masses, and Markos has come to be something like the spokesman, not just for this site, but for all left-of-center Americans who use the web for political news and discussion.
I don't mind Markos continuing to be a spokesman; he's earned it. But we need to make it clear that he is a well-known representative voice for a broad-based movement, and not the leader of a cult. There are many voices here. In a way, this site will always belong to Markos; but I think he would be the first to admit that this site is also much larger than himself, and that part of the power of the web is that it allows politics to move away from a model focused on single figurehead leaders.
What happens if Markos someday fucks up and does something stupid? Hey, we're all human. But if this community's identity is based around "kos" then it will be an excuse to discredit us. What if Markos wants someday to move on and do something else with his life? He's still a young guy. We need to have a community where he is simply the much-loved founder, not the source of identity. If we change the name of the site now, while he still (I assume) has no plans to do anything else, it will probably give more options both for him personally and for the community if conditions change later.
I have my own idea for a name change that would be simple and that would convey effectively the idea that this is about a community and not about one man. But I don't want to post it yet, because I don't want reaction to be a referendum on my idea for a new name; rather, I am curious to see first whether you all feel the same about the need for a name change. Take the poll below or leave a comment. If everyone thinks I'm wrong, I will shut up. If there is some agreement, I may post again with my own suggestion for a new name.