Making the Local News is a comprehensive assessment of contemporary local news production. Whether analysing the distinctive editorial formats of local daily and weekly papers, free papers and alternative press, local press regulation, the coverage of political and business news, or the contribution of national and local government agencies to the construction of local news agendas, this up-to-date textbook traces the shifting position of local newspapers within local, national and multi-national media. Taking into account the rapid technological advances of recent years, Making the Local News * looks at the changing training requirements of local journalists * assesses the implications of advances in new technology (such as the internet) for the production and reporting practices of local newspapers * considers the future role of local newspapers within the wider setting of national and multinational media and communications.
The opening section surveys the current state of a variety of local media, including newspapers, radio, and regional and cable television, and further contributions are grouped into sections covering the economic organisation of the local press, the range of papers available (from free weeklies and paid dailies to 'alternative' newspapers), sources for local news, and changing editorial content.