There is a flip side to this. Yes it was stabilizing to have “boring” news where every provider largely had the same stories. But there was a narrower Overton window of issues to be discussed. A single thread of attention at any one time.

There are advantages to the disjointed, small, grassroots, often histrionic, news of today. We get a lot more perspectives in our news. We get so many it’s overwhelming (and we sadly need to jump into our corners to feel safe).

Anyone can start a Substack now and the market can decide if they’re a journalist. In my town there are several more trusted and prominent than the local broadcast news. Some specialize in a topic like housing. Some focus on govt going’s on. And of course there are local nutjobs (or I think they are, others disagree?

It’s messy and not nearly summarized, but in some ways it’s better and more detailed than bland evening news.