The Washington Independent — which, over the last three years, has been a must-read for those of us who appreciate our online news presented by incredibly intelligent reporters who possess a keen understanding of policy and why things matter — announced today that it would be closing up shop. In a statement posted on the Independent’s website this afternoon, editor Aaron Wiener explained that, despite all its sparkling journalism, TWI was simply swallowed by the financial realities of the day:

But TWI was not just a journalistic experiment; it was also a financial one, and ultimately, the successes of the former couldn’t sustain the strains of the latter. Our first year was marked by a kind of exceptionalism, the feeling that we were expanding as other newsrooms were contracting, that this new model of journalism would survive as our dead-tree colleagues struggled. But in the end, we fell prey to the recession just like everyone else.

TWI has always relied on donations, primarily from foundations seeking to promote journalism in the public interest. Those donations began drying up long ago. I’m grateful to the American Independent News Network for keeping TWI alive long past the point when its expenses began exceeding its receipts. But it wasn’t sustainable, and today the bosses informed us they’re pulling the plug. On Dec. 1, TWI will begin mirroring the content of our network’s other national site, The American Independent. TWI’s reporters and I will look elsewhere for work.

What a bummer. While we’re sure that TWI’s staff of excellent reporters and editors will land on their feet elsewhere, we’ll be crossing our fingers for them.