A quick online search for regional news websites reveals that many have been launched in the last two years. They closely monitor local news and announcements in addition to developments on the national stage.

Cities including Tabuk, Madinah, Jazan, Yanbu, Wadi Al-Dawasir, Taif and Qatif are now very well represented by these websites.

They provide local news, investigative stories, opinion articles from local writers, cartoons and service announcements.

The main reason for establishing regional online sites is to ensure publication of many of the local stories that do not make it to the Kingdom’s mainstream newspapers. They also provide services for local residents, such as wedding announcements, deaths and employment opportunities.

For example, although water shortage issues in Taif affecting the city for the past two months were covered by mainstream newspapers, regional news sites in the city continued to pay closer attention to the daily suffering of local residents.

Locals also posted an open letter to city officials urging them to find a speedy solution to the problem.

A regional online news site in Afif, south of Riyadh, launched a campaign on its homepage to find places for high school graduates at nearby universities.

The "I have the right to finish my university studies" campaign called for the establishment of a local college so students would not have to leave their home city for higher studies.

A regional online news site from Tabuk in northern Saudi Arabia posted an opinion article from a well-known local writer in the area criticizing the migration of the region's intellectual and creative brains to other parts of the country.

An online news site from Unaizah in the Qasim region covered the social problems that its women reporters face when they want to work in the media, especially opposition from the local community.

A Jazan online news site played an important role in covering the events of the war against the infiltrators from Yemen last year. The website was a source for many newspapers and provided a wealth of information and photos. It also carried daily investigative reports of the pain and suffering refugees forced to leave their villages had to endure because of the violence.

A website in Wadi Al-Dawasir, in the south of Riyadh province, stated that its goal was to highlight regional news of the area neglected by local newspapers, particularly social, architectural, industrial, tourism and commercial developments.

However, only three out of 26 regional news sites had their exclusive cartoons.

Abdullah Al-Alwani, who owns the Yanbu News website, said he created the online newspaper in 2002 because Yanbu was not receiving enough attention from the local newspapers.

"Our goal was to serve the local community and let them know what is going on in their city," said Al-Alwani, who claimed that the website helped a man receive enough donations to furnish a mosque.

The online newspaper has a listings section for different social occasions in the city. It also provides instant hard news supported by photos and videos.

Al-Alwani said that his website has managed to survive through advertisements. He said that he does not pay reporters because they prefer to write for free about their city.

The site receives 20,000 visitors everyday, added Abdullah, who said he is also facing competition from 30 local websites.

Abdullah Al-Amri was the owner of a regional Madinah news site that is deactivated now.

He decided to end the venture as he was unable to find a company that could give the website a unique layout. Al-Amri was also having great difficulty recruiting professional reporters. He told Arab News that he would activate the site again only if these problems were solved.

Saud Kateb, a mass communication and media studies professor at King Abdul Aziz University and a specialist in online media, claimed regional news sites would not be able to compete in the market, although he added that their presence was important for local communities.

When asked if online newspapers could survive without advertisements, Kateb said that their owners were not looking to make a profit and would survive because they are supported by local businessmen.

Kateb also said that no local newspaper has managed to become a definitive source of community news in the way regional news sites have.

He added that online newspapers have managed to reveal new talents and provided better opinion writers than columnists at local newspapers.