Kurt Meyer writes a weekly column for the Nora Springs – Rockford Register and the Substack newsletter Showing Up, where this essay first appeared. He serves as chair of the executive committee (the equivalent of board chair) of Americans for Democratic Action, America’s most experienced liberal organization.

Local news coverage is going through significant birth pangs. I’ve intended to write about this topic for some time now, but every time I start, I come across something newsworthy that merits incorporation into my thinking—and into my column. So, this ramble comes with a disclaimer: “This emerging story will be updated as information becomes available.”

The term “birth pangs” indicates my view—more than just a hope—that something new indeed is being born, although from my perch, it’s not yet clear what the “new-new thing” will be. A dozen or more examples are likely to be birthed, multiple workable models. It’s also fair to note that a birth-pangs approach is vastly preferable to a death-throes approach, a term that may well apply to more moribund local news providers.

A factoid from the “State of Local News Project” report, published last month:

The rate of newspaper losses in the U.S. ticked upward in 2023 to two-and-a-half a week…

Since 2005, the country has lost almost a third of its newspapers. Survivors include 4,792 weeklies, often the sole source of news and information in their communities. North and South Dakota, Iowa, and Minnesota lost the most newspapers per capita between 2005 and 2023.

If Iowa’s mention didn’t rattle your thinking a bit, you might not be paying attention.

An additional point worth mentioning, quoting the same source: “Job cuts at dailies have given rise to ‘ghost newspapers,’ so-named because the product is a shadow of what it used to be.” Sound familiar?

I’ll add three points here. Newsroom cuts haven’t just affected dailies. Many a weekly paper that eight years ago employed five people now have a payroll of two. Furthermore, if you think the most talented people are staying, you’re obviously an optimist. Finally, let’s not blame the (indirect) victims; people employed in local news are doing the best they can, often with scarce and shrinking resources. 

Communities are different and require vastly different news sources. Nevertheless, all communities and models share common challenges. First, it’s a major puzzle to figure out how to generate adequate financial returns on an investment of talent and energy. In most cases I’m familiar with—admittedly, a relatively small number—standing behind a valuable local news source is a committed person/family/group having resolved that local news is vitally important. Accordingly, they’re willing to withstand less than sterling compensation to support this conviction. We should all be grateful. 

Second, yes, qualities like fairness, accuracy, speed, and thoroughness matter, but does the public care enough to cover additional costs required for these valuable (essential?) characteristics? Simply stated, is “pretty good” sufficient when it comes to things like fairness and accuracy?

Third, the list of diverse talents required to maintain dependable local coverage is long, especially for understaffed entities: writing, editing, sales, photography, layout, production, operations, and so on. Remember, coverage does not take vacations and must meet deadlines, all the while evaluating what’s important for informed citizens to know and understand.

So, how to wrap up this essay on an upbeat note? My attempt: Digital outlets have emerged to fill some voids. The Iowa Writers’ Collaborative is one example; this column and I are part of that effort to make a wide range of news and commentary freely available.

Also, there are numerous public policy proposals at the federal level to help rebuild local news. Some may result in support before it’s too late. Furthermore, examples abound of civic-minded philanthropists stepping up with high-impact donations, hopeful of sustaining societal returns. Hooray, when this actually happens.

Finally, if there’s a common theme to successful coverage, it’s encompassed in the word “local.” Invariably, thriving models are owned locally and are sensitive to their communities: listening, building relationships, responsive to readers, subscribers, and advertisers. If this blend were easy to achieve, trend lines might be in the opposite direction.

And what can we all do about it? At a minimum, we can subscribe, or renew our subscription, to a local news provider. And consider gift subscriptions for others who might be interested. I’ll share more about this topic in 2024. Thanks for reading.