Americans fail to appreciate local papers

yahoo AP ^ | 9/26/11 | Barbara Ortutay

[EBH]

A majority of Americans don't seem to recognize the value of their local newspaper.

According to a survey from the Pew Research Center, most people say they wouldn't miss local news if their newspaper no longer existed. But at the same time, they say they rely on their newspaper for a broad range of local information.

Sixty-nine percent of those surveyed said their local newspaper's absence wouldn't have a major effect on their ability to keep up with information about their community. But print and online versions of newspapers ranked first or tied for first on 11 of 16 local news topics the survey asked about. People said they turn to newspapers first for everything from community and crime news to arts and culture, social services, zoning and development. Newspapers tied with the Internet for news on housing, schools and jobs, and with TV for local political news.

"People may assume that because they go to the newspaper now for that information, it is available somewhere else," said Tom Rosenstiel, co-author of a report on the survey and director of Pew's Project for Excellence in Journalism. "I'm not sure if that is correct."

Overall, Americans turn to a broad range of online and offline sources when it comes to getting local news and information.

TV is still the most popular source of news for most people, according to the survey. Nearly three-quarters said they watch local newscasts or look at local TV websites at least once a week.

And everyone, it turns out, wants to know about the weather. Eighty-nine percent of respondents said they received information about the weather from some source. It was followed by breaking news, 80 percent; local politics, 67 percent; and crime, 66 percent.

[prolusion]

“Americans fail to appreciate local papers”

That’s funny, local papers fail to appreciate Americans.

[Wonder Warthog]

"The local papers stopped doing serious coverage of local events (including major car crashes and criminal activity) a long time ago, happy to simply repackage AP feeds, print syndicated comics and maybe add some sports scores from the high school teams."

Not in my experience. The local weekly where I currently live in Washington state is almost totally local news, as is the weekly from my home town down in Louisiana, which I still subscribe to (and which I think they send here by strapping said paper to the back of a turtle and having it swim round Cape Horn). VERY little AP byline stuff, and almost no comics.

Maybe local DAILY papers are different. I've never lived in a locale where there was a "small" daily local paper.

[Dr. Sivana]

Yes, the local daily papers are different. I have found that the weeklies, while local, have only fluff, and little hard local news (e.g. attempts by the nearby town to annex unincorporated territory, car crashes, etc.)

[Wonder Warthog]

"I have found that the weeklies, while local, have only fluff, and little hard local news (e.g. attempts by the nearby town to annex unincorporated territory, car crashes, etc.)"

Again, I have not found that to be the case for the two weeklies I am most familiar with. Both of them have crime reports, trial reports, accident reports, and much other local information, which "is" of interest at the local level, and unlikely to be reported elsewhere. And I think that is why purely local papers will survive when big dailies go "belly-up".