Bundaberg Regional Council has defended starting its own "good news" website, claiming it aims to fill a hole in the changing media landscape.

Key points: The council's Bundaberg Now website has been accepted by Microsoft as a news source and has also been appearing in Bing News searches

The council's Bundaberg Now website has been accepted by Microsoft as a news source and has also been appearing in Bing News searches Dr Denis Muller says presenting the site as if it is independent news is simply dishonest and cannot be considered journalism

Dr Denis Muller says presenting the site as if it is independent news is simply dishonest and cannot be considered journalism The LGAQ says the creation of council publications is a genuine attempt to fill the gap left by a decline in resourcing regional news

The regional council launched its Bundaberg Now website in February, throwing at least $20,000 into advertising, describing it as a "news channel".

Documents obtained under Right to Information show the council has been monitoring its online engagement in comparison with local traditional media, including Bundaberg's NewsCorp paper NewsMail.

In the first month of operation, council data discovered its own "news" website had 6,000 engagements in a single week, compared with NewsMail's 5,100.

The website's front page contains no indication that it is owned, operated and produced by the council.

Documents show two months after its launch, the Bundaberg Now website was accepted by Microsoft as a news source and it also began appearing in Bing News searches.

The council is now pushing for the website to be recognised as a news source on other platforms like Google.

'Lack of independence'

Dr Denis Muller from the University of Melbourne said the publications could not be considered journalism.

The Bundaberg Now website appears in Bing News searches. ( Source: Bing News )

"They can get Google, they can get Facebook, they can get the President of the United States to declare it's a news site, that doesn't make it a news sites — they're just declarations," Dr Muller said.

The site's primary authors are council staff and its editor is council's executive officer of communications, Michael Gorey.

In April, the council used ratepayer money to register Bundaberg Now as a business name and also left the option open to involving an external business partner.

Bundaberg Regional Council spent $2,000 advertising its new website on buses in the region. ( ABC Wide Bay: Johanna Marie )

Dr Muller said presenting the site as if it was independent news was simply dishonest.

"The very idea of just producing 'good news' gives the whole thing away, because the world is not just full of good news — the world is full of good news … and bad news — and journalism needs to cover it all," he said.

"It's a lack of independence and it's a lack of providing the community with a broad range of perspectives on issues, and fundamentally it's a problem of propaganda masquerading as news.

"Now they are all issues that affect journalism ethics … [it] adds to the problem, it doesn't add to the solution."

As ABC News was compiling this story, Bundaberg Regional Council conducted a Freedom of Information (FOI) request of its own to the ABC.

The council's FOI sought to identify if commercial interests had expressed views and/or attempted to influence opinions in relation to the Bundaberg Now website.

Idea taken from Ipswich, council says

Mr Gorey said the concept was originally developed by Ipswich Regional Council, defending it as an independent news source.

"We're putting out truthful information," Mr Gorey said.

"I've got a team of journalists who are all trained in newspapers or other medium — they're very ethical people — what they write is factual, correct, truthful, and accurate — they're all principles in our communication plan that we all abide by."

Mr Gorey compared the site to other media outlets that did not disclose ownership on their front pages.

"Where is it on the front page of the ABC that it's Australian Government-owned?" Mr Gorey said.

"Where is it on the front page of the Channel 7 website who their shareholders are? Where is it on the front page of NewsMail's site that it's owned by Rupert [Murdoch]?"

Communications employees of the Bundaberg council join journalists to film a press conference with the Mayor. ( Facebook: Jack Dempsey, Bundaberg Regional Council Mayor )

Bundaberg Mayor and former state LNP MP Jack Dempsey said the council was planning to share its technique with other regional councils.

"News media — whatever form it will be in the years to come, not just here but right across Australia — is so vital to be able to get that information out to the community," Cr Dempsey said.

"Right across Queensland, and particularly within regional and rural communities, [we've] seen a decrease of all the little community papers that used to address the positive stories that were able to bring a community together — it was part of the fibre."

Spending blitz to promote website on Facebook, Google

Documents show more than $18,000 of ratepayer money was spent advertising the website on commercial radio, online and on buses in just four months.

About $4,000 was spent advertising on radio and buses, while close to $14,400 was spent advertising the website on Facebook and through Google Advertisements in the same period.

The advertisements had not disclosed the website's link to local government.

Next financial year the council is set to increase its spend in the communications and media department by more than $460,000 to more than $1.8 million.

The council says $14,400 was spent advertising the website on Facebook and through Google Advertisements over four months. ( ABC News )

However the council said the increase was not due to the running of Bundaberg Now.

Dr Jason Sternberg, senior lecturer in media studies at Queensland University of Technology, said it was a worrying trend in the regional media landscape.

"I think the issue in relation to the Bundaberg site is one of transparency," Dr Sternberg said.

"The website does say that it was produced by the local council, however that is in the finest of fine print — you have really got to scroll around the website to find that information.

"When you read on the website that it is designed to be a source of 'good news' for the region, that immediately flags that you might want to question the level of independence.

"What becomes a problem is when it's promoted as independent, fair, balanced — all those hallmarks or journalism — if it promotes itself as doing that, it needs to be held accountable in those terms."

'Public relations sites … not news'

News Corps executive editor of digital for Queensland, Bryce Johns, said with the "fake news" movement, people would make their own decisions on the site's independence.

A story published by Bundaberg Now on the site's Facebook page. ( Facebook: Bundaberg Now )

"They're public relations sites in my view, not news sites … the questions we should be asking is, is this something rate payers are comfortable with?" Mr Johns said.

When asked if he felt it was possible the site could be an independent source of news, Mr Johns said it was unlikely.

"I think eventually they'll find that they're in place to build infrastructure, not websites," he said.

Local Government Association of Queensland (LGAQ) media executive Craig Johnstone said the creation of council publications was a genuine attempt to fill that gap left by a decline in resourcing of regional news.

"Their job isn't to spruik the work of the council, their job is actually to cover news in the local community," Mr Johnstone said.

Mr Johnstone said he would not be surprised if in the next few years there were more of these publications.