Future fears in flyover country

Over at Flyover, John Stoehr has a concerned, thoughtful piece on 'hyperlocalism' (the re-focusing of newspapers entirely on local material to the detriment of national reporting and arts coverage) and other eager ideas for re-inventing newspapers in the flickering light of the internet. Mr. Stoehr doesn't come to any ringing conclusions; he mostly expresses some well-founded (and familiar-sounding) worries:

"While I understand why some are celebrating the potential of emerging technologies, I'm still skeptical. We don't live and work in a vacuum. While the technology, like the phonograph, may change our consciousness, we still have to make a living.

"I don't mean to sound alarmist or even Marxist. I just think there's reason to worry as long as profit-driven, growth-oriented companies run newspapers. They are going to do what's best for shareholders, not journalism and not for readers ...."