Reading this posting gave me a sick feeling. Loss of media outlets is as if a society were blinding itself. At the local level, a newspaper informs and investigates, but also is critical in maintaining a sense of community. Perhaps shifting totally to an on-line presence and having one subscription fee for more than one outlet (e.g., the local daily and a local monthly newsmagazine) might be a more sustainable model. Having parents and schools teach the young that the world is bigger than their own little lives and you might want to care a little about others might help as well.