The concept isn't new - it's already been suggested that the government give some of that free bailout cash to newspapers.But David Scharfenberg of the Boston Globe is proposing something different; $100 million in bailout money for newspapers to establish or improve their web presence: But there are ways to keep young journalists employed and, more importantly, to preserve the sort of journalism that keeps our democracy afloat.Some have suggested changes in tax law that would make it easier for philanthropies to buy major news outlets, others favor a National Endowment for Journalism that newspapers could tap to pay for the investigative and international reporting now getting short-shrift.But we need something bigger. Congress, intent on jump-starting the economy, should set aside $100 million - well under 1 percent of the stimulus approved by the House of Representatives and pending in the Senate - for a national journalism fund.The cash would seed low-cost, Internet-based news...(Read Full Post)