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Dateline Pasadena

U.S. news website outsources local government coverage to India U.S. news website outsources local coverage to India

PASADENA/NEW DELHI: The job posting was puzzling: "We seek a newspaper journalist based in India to report on the city government and political scene of Pasadena, California, USA." A reporter half a world away covering local streetlight contracts and sewer repairs?

James Macpherson, editor and publisher of the two-year-old website pasadenanow.com, acknowledged it sounds strange to have journalists in India cover news in this wealthy city just outside Los Angeles. But he said it can be done from afar now that weekly Pasadena City Council meetings can be watched over the Internet. And he said the idea makes business sense because of India's lower labour costs.

The plan has its doubters. "Nobody in their right mind would trust the reporting of people who not only don't know the institutions but aren't even there to witness the events and nuances," said Bryce Nelson, a Professor of journalism at the University of Southern California.

Mr. Macpherson posted the advertisement on the Indian edition of craigslist.org. He has hired two Indians, one of them a journalism graduate from the University of California at Berkeley.

AP

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Dateline Pasadena

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