Local media publications are dying out. The New York Times recently reported that over 360 newspapers in the country have gone out of business since just before the start of the pandemic, and that we’re continuing to lose our papers at the same rapid rate since 2005. It’s important to understand the national impact of losing our local papers, and why they play such a crucial role in our communities.
I recently attended the Master Speaker Series at Suffolk University titled, “The Decline of Local News and Rise of Polarization” where a panel of seasoned journalists addressed this issue and how it affects our politics and communities on a larger scale. The conversation was heavy with grief and loss, which is to be expected in a room full of passionate storytellers and believers in the pursuit of truth and access to information.
However, there were some glimmers of hope that stemmed from the recent expert panel on our local news publications:
A Remedy for Polarization
National news, by nature, covers issues in a much broader manner than local news. This quickly causes readers to consume the coverage from the lens of their own political affiliations, furthering the divide and reinforcing our partisan identity. Associate Professor of Political Communication at Louisiana State University, Jousha Darr, shared a study on a local newspaper in California that experimented with dropping national news from their paper. Throughout the duration of just a month, they found that the opinion page drastically lowered mentions of political parties and were addressing local issues within their community rather than the national issues taking place over 3,000 miles away in D.C. Darr argued, “Polarization slows when newspapers become more local.”
Young Journalists Restore Faith
Opinion columnist and former editorial-page editor at The Boston Globe Renee Loth brought a positive perspective to the conversation by taking a look at today’s young journalists who have a shared passion and vision for our local news outlets. Loth shared a story from West Virgina about the Mountain State Spotlight team, a group of investigative journalists who recently worked to uncover a series on the state’s foster care system and discovered that out of state group homes were leading kids to abusive, unsafe living situations. The beacon of hope – all of the reporters were under 35 years of age. She highlighted the future this predicts that the younger generation still feels a drive and responsibility to uncover and share these local stories.
An Opportunity to Reimagine
While it’s true our current news cycle and consumption is largely national, we still need to be able to think locally. Charles St. Amand, a practitioner in residence, journalism, and communication at Suffolk University, shared that since this community-level lens brings us together and lessens the divide, we have an opportunity now to rethink the way we produce and deliver local news for the benefit of our communities and overall efforts toward social good and positive change. Digital news, for example, provides stories more frequently than the printed paper. This is one route we can take to continue delivering timely, relevant news to people in our communities.
While we can acknowledge that as a country we are living in times of great division, we can still see the hope and opportunity for change to take place. Local news can start the process of coming together. Elevating local voices, stories of good, and breaking issues in our backyards is a great place to begin. These action steps are crucial to creating more just and equitable communities that accurately reflect the people they represent.
To learn more about how PR pros can help support local news efforts read this blog post, “As Local Media Dwindle PR Pros Can Help.”
