Guardian.co.uk goes local with plans to recruit bloggers in Leeds, Cardiff and Edinburgh

A new local news initiative is planned by guardian.co.uk which is recruiting bloggers in Leeds, Cardiff and Edinburgh to cover community news and local politics.

The website says today: "guardian.co.uk is looking for qualified bloggers to help cover community news, and report on local developments. The project will emphasise local political decision-making, and is scheduled to go live next year."
Emily Bell, the director of digital development at Guardian News & Media, said: "Guardian Local is a small-scale experimental approach to local newsgathering. We are focusing on three politically engaged cities and we expect to launch in early 2010."

Sarah Hartley, formerly with the Manchester Evening News and now the Guardian Local launch editor, added: "While researching developments at the grassroots of community journalism, I've been impressed by the range and depth of coverage from local websites and blogs. This experimental project reflects both the shifting nature of journalism and the reality on the ground."

Guardian editor-in-chief Alan Rusbridger has warned that the crisis engulfing the regional newspaper industry could lead to titles closing and leave cities without their own indigenous news for the first time since the Enlightenment.