Information technology shock

School board and city council meetings are going uncovered. Overstretched reporters receive promising tips about stories but have no time to follow up. Newspapers publish fewer pages or less frequently or, in hundreds of cases across the country, are shuttered completely.

All of this has added up to a crisis in local news coverage in the United States that has frayed communities and left many Americans woefully uninformed, according to a report by PEN America released on Wednesday.

“A vibrant, responsive democracy requires enlightened citizens, and without forceful local reporting they are kept in the dark,” the report said. “At a time when political polarization is increasing and fraudulent news is spreading, a shared fact-based discourse on the issues that most directly affect us is more essential and more elusive than ever.”

Black swan like results. I did not realize the problem would be so bad. Hmm... Lots of stuff happening to us.

An Uber like solution comes to mind. Independent and literate bloggers can contribute important local stories for a one time fee. The aggregation site makes money from the ads and penny pay for view.  Bearer assets comes to mind, the local reader can click a few cents and read some important local news. Get that working then deal with the fall out side effects, whatever they are. Where is Arnold Kling when we need him, this is up his alley.