Local News All About Forward-Thinking

The more I read national "news," the more I want to stay away from that world. Local news is where you find the good stuff anyway.


At a local level, you find the stories that validate journalism as a contribution to society. Whether it's a story about a downtown revitalization project or a report on area schools, local news seems to always look toward the future with a sense of hope and optimism.

Local economy stagnant? Let's find out how people are making it better. New businesses? New restaurants? New housing?

Poor standardized test scores? Let's ask the school systems what they're doing to improve education.

Record-high gas prices? Let's see how factory workers and stay-at-home moms are adapting.

You see, local news is all about forward-thinking, and it's stuff that matters to real people.

Average Joe doesn't want to hear why Oliver Stone thinks Bush is the worst president in history. Or about the falling-out between Obama and his psychotic former pastor.

It'll be interesting to see if news becomes more localized as print journalism dies.