With the rise of the Internet, newspapers and magazines are fighting to survive. How are local media companies responding? And what does the change in local newspaper ownership mean for Bay Area consumers of news and information?

Patty Fisher writes a twice-weekly column for the San Jose Mercury News about local issues, with a focus on Peninsula communities. Before becoming a columnist in 2005, she spent 15 years on the Mercury News editorial board, writing editorials and commentary primarily about issues affecting children and families. She also has held a variety of editing and management jobs at the Mercury News and the Miami Herald.

Patty was born and raised in the Chicago area, where her father was a newspaper editor. She holds a B.A. in Asian Studies from Wheaton College in Massachusetts and an M.A. in Journalism from the University of Missouri.