Top news sources in Hampton Roads
These are the 23 active local news sources Executive Producer monitors in Hampton Roads, ranked by credibility tier. Every story cluster on the site is built by deduping coverage across these outlets.
Tier 1 · Official
★★★★3 sourcesGovernment press rooms, official law-enforcement bulletins, and primary-document feeds. Treated as authoritative for facts they originate.
Tier 2 · Major Outlet
★★★10 sourcesEstablished broadcast and print outlets with dedicated newsrooms and editorial standards. Reliable for general coverage but still requires source verification.
Tier 3 · Local/Niche
★★3 sourcesLocal newspapers, hyperlocal blogs, and niche publications. Often first to a story but variable depth and editorial rigor.
Tier 4 · Community
★7 sourcesSubreddits and community feeds. Treated as signal, not source — useful for tipping but never citable on their own.
How we rank sources
Executive Producer assigns every source one of four credibility tiers. The tier determines how much weight that source contributes to a story's newsworthiness score and whether the source can independently surface a story as “breaking.” The methodology is intentionally conservative — a story that only appears in a Tier 4 subreddit will not surface as a confirmed lead until a higher-tier source picks it up.
Tier assignments are based on (a) editorial standards and accountability mechanisms, (b) historical accuracy on stories we've scored, and (c) whether the source originates information versus repackages it. Tiers are reviewed quarterly and adjusted when a source's reliability shifts. See the full sources list for the cross-market view.