This chapter compares how Frederiksberg and Ringwood, two digitally mediated communities, handled the COVID-19 pandemic as local democracies with weakened journalism. It examines how information, trust, and free expression unfolded when local newspapers offered little coverage, leaving Facebook groups and municipal pages to fill the gap. In Frederiksberg, local politicians and officials became key information providers, while group moderators shaped debates over restrictions and censorship. In Ringwood, moderation was stricter, critical views on vaccination were silenced, and engagement remained low despite the pandemic’s severity. The chapter shows how the crisis revealed the fragility of public deliberation when communication depends on informal actors and platform algorithms, illustrating the randomness and vulnerability that define casual democracy in times of global crisis.