An article in Editor and Publisher looked into a study that said a good chunk of the reason people don't subscribe to daily newspapers is that there isn't enough local news and poor writing — 54 percent. Another 26 percent said poor customer service and delivery was why they didn't subscribe.
Most interesting, of people who subscribe to a daily newspaper 38 complain about the lack of local content. Another 22 percent complained about poor writing.
Content is king. Regardless of medium people expect it to be good. And that goes double if they are paying for it.
Large drops in circulation by dailies (compared to increases for Hippo) is a direct reflection of the declining local content.