Entertainment and news website Salon.com is attempting to tap into its audience with a blogging and social networking platform.

Readers can sign up for free to Open Salon, which is currently in beta, and set up a profile page and blog on the site. Connections with other contributors can then be made.

Editors will create a ‘cover’ or homepage from the submissions, but will feature the most popular stories, as rated by readers, alongside their own selections.

“Open Salon gets rid of traditional gatekeepers, and makes our smart, creative audience full partners in Salon’s publishing future,” said Joan Walsh, Salon.com’s editor-in-chief, in an introduction to the site.

The new initiative also has a tipping system in place for readers to reward their favourite writers.

The Tippem scheme lets registered members give and receive money from $0.10 to $1,000.