LOCAL journalism needs to be more local, business owners have claimed, saying it too often runs syndicated news agency content that has no relevance to local audiences.
One business owner in Burton-on-Trent said: “You cannot survive by churning out syndicated ‘clickbait’ or generic copy-paste stories to feed an algorithm.”
Speaking to Newspage, businesses also said that, when a story is relevant, it too often includes commentary from people who are not local, and often London-based — again due to syndication and its ostensible efficiencies.
As expected, many business owners criticised the volume of ads on many local news sites, while one said local news publishers should “stop chasing ‘eyes on glass’ with intrusive tech and start delivering hyper-local value that AI cannot replicate”.
However, many who shared their views with Newspage believe that local journalism can be revived, and that it is not starved of talent — but rather investment. They also offered tips on how to make it “brilliant” again.
Recycled
Shaun Sturgess, Director at Swansea-based Sturgess Mortgage Solutions, runs a South Wales mortgage brokerage and says a lot of the content he reads feels like “recycled national stories”.
He said: “As a mortgage broker based in South Wales, I find it frustrating when local media use quotes from brokers in England or London for regional mortgage stories. It makes the coverage feel disconnected from the realities of our local market.
“South Wales has very different property prices, incomes and buyer profiles compared to the South East, so national commentary rarely reflects what’s actually happening here.
“Local journalism would feel far more relevant if it included genuine insights from local experts who work with homebuyers and understand the nuances of our area day to day. Readers want content that feels authentic and rooted in their community, not recycled national stories.
“There’s huge potential for local mortgage and property news to be more insightful if the media simply looked closer to home.”
Painfully thin
Kate Allen, Owner at Kingsbridge-based Finest Stays, agreed and says she hasn’t bought a local newspaper in a decade.
She said: “Local journalism has become painfully thin. Most stories are only a few shallow sentences with no research, no voices from local businesses or residents, and platforms so overloaded with ads you can barely find the article. Clickbait headlines usually lead to a paragraph of nothing.
“There is demand for real reporting. More meaningful local news from business people appears on LinkedIn than in our local papers, which says everything. What we need is deeper dives into local issues, comments from people who actually live and work here, and genuine investigative journalism.
“Interview councillors, business owners, community leaders; anyone who can add insight. I haven’t bought a physical local paper in a decade, and advertising in them feels pointless.
“If I’m going to read a local story, I want depth and multiple perspectives. Even a sports report could be richer: speak to the captain, the players, the people behind the club. Less advertising. More substance. Real news that respects its audience.”
Clickbait
Kate Underwood, Founder at Southampton-based Kate Underwood HR and Training, said the key issue with local journalism is the lack of local focus — and flavour.
She said: “If local news cannot tell me what is going on in my own high street, I honestly do not know who it is for. As a small business owner, most local outlets miss what actually matters. I want to know who is opening or closing, who is hiring, what the council is up to with parking, business rates, crime and regeneration. Instead I get national stories with the town name bolted on.
“Then there is the clickbait, like ‘You will never guess what happened on this local road’ and you get three lines of badly written, often inaccurate copy. It feels like local news is treated as second class next to the big national newspapers.
“Add in the wall of adverts and pop-ups and I am out. I only click if something clearly affects local jobs or businesses.
“Local news could be brilliant again if it cut the junk, dropped the clickbait and focused on proper reporting about high streets, local businesses, the council and the stories that actually matter in the community.”
Cost-cutting with a masthead
Colette Mason, an AI Consultant at London-based Clever Clogs AI, pointed the finger at syndicated content: “Local journalism isn’t failing because journalists got worse, it’s failing because the business model collapsed and nobody’s built a replacement that works.
“You can’t compete with AI-scale content farms for online ad pennies while your print revenue dies. So you cut staff, run syndicated stuff and wonder why readers left. They left because you stopped being local.
“When five local sites run identical agency copy, you’re not journalism, you’re cost-cutting with a masthead. The solution is hyper-local focus: the 5-mile radius. Planning applications on your street. School governor decisions. Local investigations. That’s the moat AI can’t cross.
“It can’t attend council meetings or know why the chippy closing matters. Do proximity brilliantly or die trying to be a budget national. There’s no middle ground left.”
User-hostile design
Rohit Parmar-Mistry, Founder at Burton-on-Trent-based Pattrn Data, who also runs an AI consultancy, was withering in his verdict: “Visiting a local news site today is a masterclass in user-hostile design. My phone heats up loading fifty programmatic ads and auto-playing videos before I can even read a headline. That isn’t journalism, it’s an ad-delivery mechanism that treats readers like data points.
“The challenge for small local papers is immense, but many are digging their own graves by trying to mimic the corporate giants. You cannot survive by churning out syndicated ‘clickbait’ or generic copy-paste stories to feed an algorithm.
“Small papers can’t win the volume game against the internet; they have to win on trust. To stay relevant, local media must stop chasing ‘eyes on glass’ with intrusive tech and start delivering hyper-local value that AI cannot replicate.
“We need less automation theatre and more genuine investigation. If you offer a clean, readable product that respects the user, people will return. If you offer a seizure-inducing mess of pop-ups, they won’t.”
Ads are “disruptive”
Like many, Derby-based wellbeing coach, Sarah Gatford, said the ‘local’ is missing in too much local journalism and, like many others, criticised the volume of ads.
She said: “Local news rarely delivers. Stories tell me what happened without explaining why it matters or connecting to wider patterns. I want insight, not just incident reporting.
“The advertising makes sites virtually unreadable. I abandon articles halfway through because the experience is so cluttered and disruptive.
“What’s the point of “local” news that could appear anywhere? I want the connections between issues, the history behind tensions, genuine community voices with something to say. I’d read depth and context. Stories that explore real impact on people.
I’d be interested in solution-focused journalism showing what’s working, what communities are trying. Questions that dig rather than accept easy answers. The quality feels thin, as journalists are working with impossible constraints.”
Starved of investment
Patricia McGirr, Founder at Burnley-based Repossession Rescue Network, said journalists aren’t to blame, but the rather the lack of investment: “Local journalism isn’t short on talent. It’s starved of investment. Stretched newsrooms are filling space, not reporting stories, and readers can tell.
“They’re served quasi-national features they’ve already seen on social media and identical copy repeated across multiple sites. Communities want news rooted in real streets, not repackaged content.
“Expert commentary is rising because the old model relied on seasoned hacks to shape the angle, and those ranks have thinned. The truth is simple. If local news stops being local, it stops being interesting.”
Sam Kirk, Managing Director at Retford-based J-Flex Rubber Products, a manufacturing firm, said one problem is that social media has already eaten a large share of eyeballs.
He said: “As someone based in the Midlands, I often find that local outlets are too slow to report on incidents happening nearby. More often than not, I hear about things first through local social media rather than through the actual news sites.
“There’s clearly an appetite for real-time, community-specific information, but the trouble is social media has already filled that gap.
“Although I understand the need for advertising, the volume and placement of ads, especially on mobile devices, makes articles difficult to read and navigate. I quite often don’t get to the end of an article for this reason.
“There’s certainly more syndicated or regional content nowadays, rather than genuinely local. Quite often during the summer holidays I’ll see ‘day out’ suggestions that aren’t specific to the immediate area, for example, ‘great family activities only an hour away’. That’s useful, but it’s not what I’d consider local news.”
Advertising crucial
But Dawn Maria France, Editor-in-Chief at Yorkshire Women’s Life Magazine, a journalist herself, believes local media are increasingly find a way to blend important advertising with creative content.
She said: “Local news media are essential to our communities. They shine a light on local events, initiatives and the inspiring stories of our neighbours. This connection not only keeps us informed but also gives us a sense of belonging right in our own neighbourhoods.
“It’s impressive to see so many dedicated journalists working hard to deliver trustworthy and relevant news. Their focus on accountability and storytelling really makes a difference.
“Plus, advertising is crucial for keeping local journalism alive. Many outlets have found creative ways to blend ads with engaging content, which also helps support local businesses. Ultimately, local journalism is the heartbeat of our community, reinforcing its vital role in our everyday lives.”
Photo by Markus Winkler on Unsplash
