Gary Moskowitz filed this report in TIME Magazine last week:

“All politics may be local, but apparently not enough journalism is. As newspapers keep cutting back on staff and printing skimpier editions, journalists, entrepreneurs and ordinary citizens have responded by creating websites to cover the local news they feel is going underreported…

Hyperlocal has become a buzzword as familiar to news junkies as eat local is to foodies. The idea is to get residents involved in the reporting not just by sending in tips but by writing content about important local issues such as school boards and transportation. In professional newsrooms, “we spend too much time on craft and not enough time on community,” says Michele McLellan, a fellow at the Reynolds Journalism Institute at the University of Missouri who spent the past year studying nearly 70 of the best hyperlocal sites…

Most hyperlocal sites don’t have the budget for flashy graphics or searchable databases. Their content comes from observant neighbors (and local gadflies) who care about both large and small goings-on around town.”
[The Yelm Community Blog has a search engine, as all stories and their public documents are stored here for easy access,].

I have thought many times about closing down this blog & every time I do, the number of unique visitors spending more than 30 seconds here keep rising. Thanks to commenters & readers alike, whether you agree or not.