Here are three recent newspaper-related web site launches to note …

McClatchy’s new national/international news service site, news.mclatchy.com. Note the attempt to be the platform, not just a static news site. Sure, it’s an aggregation of only McClatchy’s stuff, but there is ample opportunity for conversation, including comments and blogs. It’s a worthy experiment to highlight the substantial resources McClatchy puts into non-local news. Also worth noting, no advertising and no apparent plans for advertising (the design offers no obvious consideration for dropping in advertising later) . It’s all about the news and the audience. UPDATE: I just noticed remnant advertising on section fronts … off to the side. My recommendation: Drop remnant ads until real advertisers buy in. The CPMs of remnant aren’t worth it. UPDATE II: BTW, we can expect, I’m sure, to see some of Mike Drummond‘s work on this site in the coming weeks and months.

From the Rochester Democrat & Chronicle, RocMen.com, a site for men. I can’t think of another newspaper company that has created a site catering to men, so that’s unusual right there. There’s lots of repurposed content here, but also a chance to build community. The main thing to note is that like iGoogle or NetVibes, you can redesign the page, moving content modules around at will.

From SignOnSanDiego.com comes AmplifySD.com, a local music site. I was familiar with AmplifySD, the online radio station featuring San Diego music and musicians, but became aware only today that SOSD had turned the site into a local music wiki. Great idea. The radio station lives on, but now local music fans can add and modify content. Given San Diego’s strong local music scene, great move. I love the brand, too.