Totally Free Local News Sources Shrinking

Getting local news is going to start costing online readers of The Journal Times.

Starting Monday, readers will be limited to 15 free stories per month or they can pay $7 a month for a digital subscription. Readers who subscribe to the print version can add unlimited access for $2 more per month with the first two months free.

According to a letter to readers from Publisher Mark Lewis, the newspaper has invested a lot of resources to beef up its Internet presence and print subscribers have been paying for part of that investment. Implementing the pay wall, Lewis writes, will help the paper deliver the news that readers can use.

"We have beefed up our online staff and increased the depth, scope and immediacy of our web coverage," he said in the piece. "It has taken an enormous investment and commitment of staff and the result is our website is now much better than it was in years past."

The Kenosha News and the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel also require digital subscriptions for unlimited online access.