To Tune or to Surf, That is the Question

How many people still watch the evening news? It's a good question. With the increased presence of localized blogs, it's possible that many of the 6 o'clock news ratings may be the result of leaving the television on while cooking in the kitchen.

Marketwatch's Jon Friedman said that the blog is making consistent impact in local news coverage - even in Antarctica (although, a bit of a recommendation for those of you at McMurdo Station - don't title your entries, "Snow and Boredom.") With the kind of on-the-ground, update-from-a-WiFi-hotspot access, local bloggers are definitely making an impression.

But will they stand on their own?

Although local blogs can be updated at any time, it doesn't look like they'll be offering any more use than the local "community" channel that schoolchildren watch for snow days (if you're from the Northeast, that is). Sure, local blogs have flavor, pictures, and a voice, but their audience can't be as generalized as the local news is. In the restless world of internet surfing, I can't imagine reading something as general as a local news broadcast.

To boot, the experience is different: with the local news on in the central room of a family house, even if a (for example) teenager isn't interested in watching the news on a regular basis (or at all), if they "hear" something important - a crime near their high school, etc. - they'll pay attention. A computer screen can't offer the same communal experience.

Not to mention that if one were to read such an event occurring on a blog - would it be true? (Hopefully.) Would the police cooperate with a blogger? (Doubt it.) Would everything be written neutrally? Well no - it's a blog, you read it for the voice. So while I can read all about a local community board meeting on Develop Don't Destroy Brooklyn, I'm fairly certain that I won't get the full picture of what happened, much less neutrality. But entertainment? No doubt.

It's clear to me that a local blog offers me true local flavor - but I don't think I'll be waiting for the next Matt Drudge of the neighborhood to pop up anytime soon. Until then, I'll leave the final say to the broadcasters.