"Yes, there were a few newsletters that matched my preconception: The database includes newsletters from digital-first startups like The Charlotte Ledger and Mirror Indy, local news orgs like LAist and the Dallas Observer, alt-weeklies like the Washington City Paper, and the national 6AM City network (which has made avoiding politics and crime core to its brand). It also features more niche hyperlocal coverage, like Stumptown Savings, which covers Portland, Oregon's food economy and curates the best grocery deals."
"Several appeared to be run by local marketing outfits promoting tourism and local business. Some are run by local nonprofits. There's an alpine mountain cheese newsletter in Boston run by a cheese caterer; a snail mail society newsletter in Arizona; a burlesque newsletter in Denver; the newsletter a college student started for his hometown in North Dakota; the newsletter from a pest control company in Southwest Florida."
"What these wildly varied newsletters do have in common, I realized, and Panjwani confirmed, is a focus on aggregating (and, in some cases, organizing) community events. And many are written by people who don't have backgrounds in journalism. Panjwani, too, is not a journalist; for the past few years, he's worked in financial technology. He has a PhD in economics and did his dissertation on "the economic history of the media," which kindled an interest in local media growth and monetization."
A database catalogs a wide variety of local newsletters, from digital-first startups and local news organizations to alt-weeklies and hyperlocal niche publications. Many newsletters are produced by non-journalists, including local businesses, marketing outfits, nonprofits, hobbyists, and students. Common functions include aggregating and organizing community events. Topics vary widely: food economy, tourism promotion, burlesque, pest control, real estate, startups, live music, parenting, and neighborhood deals. Some networks prioritize avoiding politics and crime in their coverage. The diversity reflects broad local-interest monetization and community engagement strategies.
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