"Skagit Breaking" breaks into instant news

Skagit Breaking proves a point – People want news about their neighbors and they want it fast.

The popular online Facebook page posts a mix of police scanner chatter and community announcements and in about three and a half years, has grown to 68,700 “likes,” the equivalent of subscribers in the Facebook world.

Followers get Skagit Breaking’s updates in their Facebook feeds and can publically comment on the posts or message the page directly, where the moderators often quickly respond. Much of its non-scanner information is submitted by its readers.

Behind the scenes, there are typically...