21 Jul 2018

Samoa Planet closes down

8:34 am on 21 July 2018

The Samoa Planet website, which publishes news, blogs and other Pasifika stories will close after nearly two years.

Its founders, Lani Wendt Young and Tuiloma Sina Retzlaff, announced the decision on the website this week, saying they were pursuing other endeavours.

The pair are some of Samoa's most well-known journalists and are known to be strong advocates against family violence and sexual abuse.

Lani Wendt Young

Samoan writer, Lani Wendt Young Photo: FB Lani Wendt Young

That crossed over to material on Samoa Planet, which published many stories about women's issues.

In March, the founders were targetted by the anonymous blogger, O Le Palemia, who alleged the website had been created to cover-up government corruption, something the pair have vehemently denied.