Tampa Tribune editor: paper is an add-on to the web site

jessicadasilva.com

6 pointskennyroo2 comments

Making newspapers hyperlocal is a scary thought.

I think one of the big values that newspapers and other media -- skipping the intrinsic bias diatribe -- bring is a breath of coverage. I read the newspaper for some amount of news, but I also find it invaluable to have a breath of information brought to my attention.

Part of the value of my higher education (and even my lower) was the breath of topics I was exposed to. If all I read is the huffingtonpost I'm doomed...

Aren't community papers essentially already "hyperlocal" (think SF Bay Guardian, East Bay Express, etc.)? Even at the city paper level for most small- and mid-sized cities, the local section is a big part of why people subscribe (think SF Chronicle).

A large percentage of the national reporting in these papers comes from the AP, so the papers aren't adding any unique perspective -- they're just delivering the content to you... at a high cost. You may rely on those AP stories for a broader view of the nation and world, but for the owners of the paper it's a whole lot cheaper to deliver you that news online.

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