Nice comment. The article is long but worth reading. Besides applying to newspapers we may soon see the same logic apply to newsmagazines, and ultimately all magazines.

The recommendations at the end of the article almost look like a startup project -- not making a "local paper" but rather a platform others can use to create their own "local papers" without needing much technical knowledge. The startup provides the hosting and tons of templates and pointers to clip art, etc. The customer provides the content. The startup manages the finances and takes a cut of the ad revenues in addition to renting the hosting and software.

Or is that not an original idea?