An assessment of newspapers from ghost towns in the United States is proposed in this paper as a means of improving the definitions of frontier journalism beyond national time periods, expansion over geographical space, and primitive policy and practices. It is suggested that an evaluation be made by measurement and appraisal of those newspapers' coverage of community functions to detect when they provided environmental surveillance so as to warn or forecast possible signs of community decline. A list of guiding questions and a review of the literature of frontier advocacy journalism is provided. A news content analysis of the quality of life in areas of land use and development, economics, transportation, human/group relations, government, health, information/education, recreation/entertainment, and natural resources is suggested. (Author/MKM)