by BRAD ROLLINS

As we prepare to expand into a new medium, The Mercury continues our dominance of local Internet news compared to the “other Web site.”

The latest rankings of Web traffic by Alexa.com shows The Mercury’s readership has more than doubled in the last three months. The other Web site, by comparison, continues to lose ground — a 23 percent loss — during the same period. Our average reader accesses 9.4 pages a day compared to 4.9 for the competition.

In the same vein, websiteoutlook.com values The Mercury at $6,080 compared to $4,723 for the other Web site. The difference is striking especially when you consider their massive outlay of overhead and personnel compared to our still-small, home-based operation.

The last time I wrote about our dominance in Alexa’s rankings, one of the other Web site’s owners replied, basically, that Alexa.com’s rankings are unreliable. (Given their thorough drumming, I’d be in denial too). So we’ll make them this offer: We’ll publish our Google Analytics web traffic information if they’ll publish theirs. After all, our respective — and prospective — advertisers have a right to know if they’re getting their money’s worth or are investing mainly in hype, smoke and mirrors.

We are grateful and humbled by our rapid rise to become your preferred local news source but we know we have a long way to go. We always welcome your suggestions and ideas for how to better meet your needs.