Should city pay postage to distribute community weekly?

The Madison, Wis., suburb of Fitchburg has entered a deal with a community-newspaper publisher to cover at least $30,000 in postage to revive the print edition of the town's paper, which stopped printing the paper in 2009. An article in the Wisconsin State Journal broaches the conflict-of-interest topic (would the deal curb editorial independence, despite assurances from both the publisher and the mayor that it would not?). It also briefly touches on the "value of community newspapers," though it does not expand on that point.

Here's the link: "A community newspaper returns -- with help from city hall."