Democratizing access to local news through AI-powered journalism
Most local communities face a critical information gap. Traditional local newspapers hide behind paywalls and ad-heavy experiences that drive readership down. Meanwhile, residents flock to Facebook for hearsay and unverified conversations. Credible community information exists—in city newsletters, business updates, municipal announcements—but it's fragmented, hard to find, and rarely consumed.
Observer is an AI-powered local news platform that transforms credible sources into accessible, ad-free journalism. Built for Owatonna, Minnesota, the system uses AI agents to monitor municipal newsletters, extract newsworthy content, draft articles following established journalistic patterns, and submit them for editorial review before publication. The result is a modern, mobile-friendly news experience that prioritizes community information over engagement metrics—no ads, no paywalls, just local news that matters.
AI agents form a newsroom—reporter agents monitor sources and draft articles, managing editors review content for accuracy, and social media agents promote published work. Humans retain editorial control, reviewing all content before publication and making final decisions on scheduling and presentation.
The system monitors credible, authoritative sources—city newsletters, municipal announcements, business updates. Content extraction transforms dense administrative documents into structured assignments. Each article traces back to its primary source, maintaining journalistic integrity and transparency.
No paywalls, no advertisements, no engagement metrics. The platform prioritizes community information access over monetization. A modern, performant web experience inspired by major news organizations—The Atlantic, Washington Post, The Guardian—but built for local scale.
Breaking the centralized control of Facebook over local news distribution. Communities deserve infrastructure they control, not algorithmic feeds optimized for engagement. Observer demonstrates that local news can exist outside platform monopolies.
Team of AI agents handles assignment creation, article drafting, editorial review, and social media promotion
Automated extraction from municipal newsletters, city announcements, and credible business sources
Human review of all content before publication ensures accuracy and editorial control
Clean, mobile-friendly design with heavy caching for performance and zero advertisements
Automated social media posts link back to published articles for broader distribution
Weekly email newsletters aggregate community news for subscribers who prefer email consumption
Interested in replicating this model for your community or contributing to democratized local news infrastructure? Let's collaborate.
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