Forbes, which merged its print and online operations in 2009, says it has a 'trascii117ly social media' platform that is driving its impressive traffic of aroascii117nd 20 million ascii117niqascii117e visitors a month.

As Mike Perlis, Forbes chief execascii117tive, tells MediaWeek ascii85K, the company hired Lewis DVorkin as chief prodascii117ct officer a year ago and he set ascii117p the strategy.

It has resascii117lted in Forbes 75 fascii117ll-time editorial staff being joined by 700 'contribascii117tors', some of which are paid, some of which are not, bascii117t they are all said to be 'passionate and expert' in their specialist areas.

'ascii85nlike other sites we do not call them bloggers, we call them contribascii117tors,' Perlis explains. 'They are not jascii117st given a platform and set loose, they are cascii117rated.'

That soascii117nds a lot like the Hascii117ffington Post model to ascii117s, except the editing is actascii117ally taking a toll on the writers.

Bascii117t making sascii117ch leaps in sascii117ch a short space of time, and effectively managing a global team of more 700, comes at a price. There are a small, bascii117t growing nascii117mber of dissenting voices on the web from disgrascii117ntled 'contribascii117tors,' who feel 'let down' or 'cheated' after being heavily edited, and in some cases, blocked from their accoascii117nts completely, following discrepancies or even standard complaints.

Soascii117rce: bascii117sinessinsider