GoLocal TV's Lo-Fi Ambition

Well, it ain't "60 Minutes." But news site GoLocalProv gets some points for ambition, if nothing else, with the launch of GoLocalProv TV, a four-week-old television-over-the-Internet newscast.

The production, starring youthful anchors Greg Berman and Laura Marchetti, has a lo-fi feel to it. A brick backdrop - no studio set, here. Pop up, printed quotes from sources - in some cases - rather than on-camera interviews. A little grunge guitar for the intro. There is a "Wayne's World" feel to the product.

But there are bursts of something more. The newscast's main story on Friday - a look at whether Rhode Island's big bet on wind power will pay off - was a bit more substantive than the "it-bleeds-it-leads" fare we so often see on television.

In a market with disappointingly little in the way of media innovation, GoLocal is pushing the envelope a bit. And that's welcome. But, at first glance, the broadcast effort seems to be running into the problem that colors all of GoLocal's endeavors - a lack of resources to match the ambition.

Now, if we could only graft a little of GoLocal's spunk onto a too-staid Providence Journal.