Taiwan ’ s platforms for independent journalism have a history that dates back to Cool-loud ’ s 1997 founding. However, their current period of explosive growth and evolution didn ’ t begin until 2010, and it owes much to Face-book ’ s rapid expansion and readers ’ newfound enthusiasm for sharing articles and information.
若以具指標性意義的《苦勞網》成立時間點 1997 年為分界，台灣獨立網路新聞平台發展也已有 17 年，但受惠於臉書使用人口急遽攀升、閱讀者愛好分享的習慣形成，直到 2010 年後才算來到爆發期，形式也產生突破性進展。