With big news organizations
cutting back their Washington staffs, who's keeping an eye on federal agencies like the Department of Veterans Affairs?
Small outfits like
VAWatchdog.org.
Poynter's
St. Pete Times reported Sunday that the five year-old site
was responsible for "two of the biggest stories about the Department of Veterans Affairs in recent months."
It's not as if the work of VAWatchdog.org founder Larry Scott, a former radio newsman based in Vancouver, Wa., will replace the efforts of reporters on the beat in D.C. The
Washington Post's
Walter Reed stories and the
McClatchy bureau's reporting on veterans' health issues are just a couple of examples of strong, ongoing coverage.
VAWatchdog.org raises some legal and usability issues with its practice of republishing -- rather than linking to -- coverage produced by other sites and news organizations. But sites like Scott's will be increasingly important as traditional government coverage is scaled back. E-Media Tidbits contributor Alan Abbey, a former Washington correspondent himself,
described some of the coverage opportunities created by the cutbacks.
The big question: Can a combination of advertising, specialized sales and donations generate enough revenue to sustain such coverage by relatively small, independent initiatives like VAWatchdog.org?
