As people turn increasingly to the Internet for their news, there is concern whether they are learning enough about what goes on in their communities. With '"the thinning down of newspapers and local television in America, there is measurably less local, civic information available,'' said Alberto Ibarguen, president and chief executive of the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation. ''So what are the consequences of that?'' The foundation and the Aspen Institute, a nonpartisan think tank, hope to find out. They are setting up a commission, funded by the foundation, to analyze whether people are getting the local news they need to make decisions in their communities. The panel will make recommendations that might include actions by the Federal Communications Commission or tax policies aimed at helping communities better meet their information needs, said Ibarguen, former publisher of The Miami Herald. The commission will be led by Theodore Olson, former solicitor general who represented George W. Bush before the Supreme Court in the contested 2000 presidential election, and Marissa Mayer, vice president of search products and user experience at Google. The foundation said Olson was selected for his expertise in First Amendment issues and Mayer for her experience with new media and technologies. http://www.tvnewsday.com/articles/2008/04/14/daily.5/
