Seriously, I don't know that there is anything that can or should be done about the inequities in major US newspapers. Some papers are going to be conservative and some liberal, just as in the past some were Democrat, some Whig. The Washington Post has the legal right to represent the Imperialist, Stalinist, Trotskyite, Nazi, or left-liberal viewpoint. If we start restricting their ability to print whatever stupidity they wish, the next time they get into power--and they will get into power again--they will have the legal firepower to restrict ours.
What I find interesting and disturbing is that the liberal bias sells. You'll notice that the Washington Times, which is a fine newspaper offering a satisfying accumulation of right-wing columnists and news stories written from the right-wing perspective, can't compete with the Washington Post. Even many conservatives I know read the Post and not the Times. The Times could not survive economically if it didn't have financial backing. Its subscription rates are low and its ad pages a joke.
The fact is that cities, where major US newspaper pick up their subscribers and generate ad revenues, are located in cities, are bastions of Democratic strength. If there's a way to combat this demographic I can't think of it.
I agree that bias in the broadcast media is a much more serious issue, particularly in taxpayer funded sources like NPR. But I am at a loss to know how to alter or regulate this. As long as journalism schools keep graduating lefties and the American public keeps buying their work, left-wing bias is going to be a problem.
I agree that bias in the broadcast media is a much more serious issue
. . . so you will probably enjoy a thread entitled
Why Broadcast Journalism is
Unnecessary and Illegitimate
Cities are a form of community, just as Free Republic is a form of community. Traditionally, news organizations have sliced the market by geography. Newspapers share many sources in national coverage, and provide unique coverage on local. Hence, as you point out, the larger papers are based on larger geographic population centers (aka the "blue counties").
If we then look at the trend in conservative media, we see some things happening. First there is obviously the web. More on that later. Secondly, in many cities, a conservative local press is beginning to emerge, perhaps publishing weekly or monthly. Here in Charlotte we have the Rhino Times, a weekly, and the Charlotte World, a Christian worldview weekly. Both are popular and have, at a minimum raised public consciousness on liberal schemes at a local level. (The local Stratton case in which the homeschooled children of the Stratton family were removed from their home by the local DSS significantly raised awareness of DSS tactics, strategies, the cash flow generating from the social services system and the overall biases of the system.) The two Charlotte papers are in fact parts of small chains. The Rhino Times also publishes in the Greensboro/Winston-Salem market, the there is a Raleigh World, a Piedmont World, a Columbia World and others. Concurrently, sources of National News are growing in effectiveness, largely via the web. These sources range from the Christian Agape press to the Family Research Center, to WorldNetDaily to the Media Research Center and many others. The "urban centers" of these national services are virtual, but "urban" nontheless in the sense that they represent a critical population mass with a cosmopolitan perspective. These two bases, the local and the virtual urban are both growing and building intricate interdependencies, forming new networks in the process. It seems likely that Metcalf's law concerning networks will apply here, and that as a result, these nascent networks will grow in reach, value and profitability. It is likely that we will see many of these organizations begin to merge in the future.
In answer to your question about what can be done, may I suggest the following:
1) Cancel any subscription you have to your liberal local paper. Wean yourself from depending on them for local coverage and discover the small alternative sources of local news. In the process, starve these liberal outlets of both subscription and advertising revenue. Use your "cancellation dividend" to subscribe to and support the local conservative sources.
2) Use public sources of information (local government websites) and personal networks (ie email lists) to disseminate any local news not covered by the local conservative outlets on a timely basis.
3) If your community currently lacks a local conservative source, reach out to one in a nearby community and find out what it would take for them to expand coverage into your community. Round up support and resources if necessary.
4) Act as a watchdog to track and report on local media bias.
5) Become active in your local FreeRepublic chapter.
6) Support your local conservative Think Tank (eg. The John Locke Foundation in North Carolina.)
These actions should help to accelerate the market forces and network effect already at play.