This is pretty recent, I think. There used to be a lot more newspapers with dedicated newsrooms in smaller cities. Carl Bernstein's first job was in Elizabeth, NJ. CJ Chivers started in Providence, RI. Dean Baquet started in NOLA.
That's because Dean Baquet is from NOLA - his family owned Lil' Dizzy's restaurant for years
Journalism is quite different in that most journalists don't make all that much. Also credentialing isn't nearly as big a factor. In fact, a lot of people in the industry look down on J-schools. The common career path among the non-freelance journalists I know at more prestigious publications is knocking around trade pubs and (at least formerly) small city papers before getting their break. (But, yes, connections matter too.)
What's the relevance of journalism? It's not a lucrative industry and neither are individual journalists well-paid.