'Complacent' local press needs BBC challenge

Still a lot of fall out from the decision by the BBC Trust to block the BBC's proposal to spend £68 million beefing up its local websites with video reports. The decision followed intense lobbying by regional newspaper publishers. But Victor Keegan writing in Technology Guardian BBC has right to be in local arena today argues that more local presence by the BBC would lead to monopoly regional publishers being less complacent.
He writes: "The argument that local BBC video will depress commercial activity could be turned on its head: the presence of the BBC in many areas covered by local newspaper monopolies may be just what they need to galvanise them out of complacency. I come into contact with local papers in London and Herefordshire. In London my local paper covering Paddington, Marylebone and Pimlico last had a video on its website more than three weeks ago. In the country example, there are two papers in neighbouring country towns owned by the same company. I can't find any videos at all. If I owned them, I would like to keep the BBC out too."