I'm a journalist turned developer and I had a similar idea a while back. I feel local news orgs are missing a trick because aggregation is something journalists can do very well due to the nature of their job (pulling info from disparate sources, fact-checking etc). With so many sources of general data and info you can easily provide value by giving it local and regional context.
Btw - this a throwaway account. Having trouble logging in with my username carlmungz.
Btw - this a throwaway account. Having trouble logging in with my username carlmungz.