Celebrity. Manhattan. Media. That’s Jossip, a blog that encompasses all of these subjects, and also boasts a very niche audience that contains high-profile people who are attracted to its irreverent tone, punchy headlines and informative news.

Jossip was started by David Hauslaib when he was a junior at Syracuse University majoring in journalism. The site began as a source for commentary where Hauslaib would put his own spin on recycled material from other sources. Now, like any good journalist on a beat, Hauslaib has built up his own network of sources within many Manhattan media circles.

But don’t go throwing around the J-word too fast.

“We don’t claim to be strict journalists,” said Hauslaib, who now serves as editorial director of the site. “But we do employ the same tactics as any reporter.”

One of those tactics at Jossip is working sources as hard as any mainstream reporter, but also acknowledging the fact that today, especially in the online blogging world, unsolicited sources sometimes can be used.

While he may not consider himself a “strict” journalist, Hauslaib does credit his journalism school background for helping him to realize ethical boundaries and giving him a deep understanding of the industry he is covering, something that he thinks gives Jossip the upper hand over many other blogs.

But there is something else in particular that Hauslaib thinks makes Jossip unique.

“I find that there are thousands of blogs similar to the ones I publish that don’t have a unique voice,” he says. Hauslaib explains that voice on Jossip is a combination of knowing the audience, having a witty sense of humor and writing in a conversational tone. Hauslaib also prides Jossip on its constant updates and being a “stream of consciousness source of entertainment.”

“Simply because you can open a blogger account does not mean you are fit to publish commentary in this field,” says Hauslaib. “I wish everyone the best but quite simply, not everyone is meant to be a writer.”

Hauslaib is also making waves in the blogosphere with his newest addition to his site, Jossip.tv. Every week, Jossip posts a 5-to-10 minute clip of Hauslaib commenting on the past week’s biggest stories that were covered on the blog.

Hauslaib claims that everyone in the blogging industry knows that video blogging is the next big thing, and Jossip.tv is just an extension of what his blog is already doing.

“I don’t think you can simply take your format and slap to video and make it work,” said Hauslaib about other blogs who may be looking to expand to video. He admits, however, that he may not be the perfect person in fromt of the camera: “Just because you’re a talented writer online doesn’t mean you will be a talented talking head.”

Jossip’s success has inspired Hauslaib to launch other blogs under the publishing company he started, Jossip Initiatives. Queerty was launched in fall 2005, when Hauslaib was searching for a gay publication like it and couldn’t find one, he says. It won Best Gay Blog at the 2006 Weblog Awards. MollyGood launched in summer 2006 because Hauslaib says he wanted to cash in on the growing celebrity blog category.

Jossip’s most recent writer left the blogosphere for a full-time gig at the New York Post’s Page Six. Hauslaib says he was happy to give his writer the opportunity to succeed in mainstream media, but it is not something he is interested in pursuing. “I think mainstream media is fighting to get online and figure out that there’s an audience there. Jossip has already done that years ago.”

His advice for upcoming journalists? Hauslaib says to treat your reporting like a commodity.

“Each reporter has the ability to turn themselves into a brand,” he says, adding that having writing talent is essential as well. “But if you’re publishing, you also should be publishing a blog.”