I like this Top Ten Newspapers Web site list, too.
It was done by Howard Owens, director of Digital Publishing at Gatehouse Media, who took issue with some of the picks in the Bivings Group Top 10 earlier this week.
Of KnoxNews, he said:

5) KnoxNews.com. Jack Lail has long run one of the best newspaper web sites in the country, and its one of the few sites that has continued to improve with each iteration. The current site features a top half of the home page that is damn near perfect. The bottom half could almost be entirely lost and never missed, which would improve the home page greatly. The overall site architectures is outstanding. There’s room for participation on Knoxnews.com, and blogs and a nice mix of video offerings.

There are 15 newspapers Web sites between the two lists:
Bakersfield.com
Chron.com
denverpost.com
FresnoBee.com
KnoxNews.com
LJWorld.com
MercuryNews.com
NaplesNews.com
NYTimes.com
SFGate.com
SignOnSanDiego.com
statesman.com
TBO.com
Tennessean.com
USAToday.com
Those have been among the best and among the most innovative in the business for as long as I’ve been in it. Certainly arguments could be made for others (Morris sites in Augusta, Savannah and Jacksonville come readily to mind; and, of course, startribune.com)
Make your own list; it’s a non-contact (usually) indoor sport for the dog days of summer. And when you look at your list, I think you’ll have to agree with Howard that some of the most interesting sites are out in the mid-to-smaller markets. Rob Curley and crew’s pre-Washington Post days at Lawrence and Naples being the most over-the-top examples.
Tags: online newspapers | Howard Owens | newspapers | web design