Throughout history, Americans have looked to local news for an overview of what’s going on in their communities. They want to know the weather forecast, how their high school baseball team did and what their local government is up to. Until recently, this information was usually available in their local newspaper or on a local TV station.
But the financial pressures on local journalism have led to a wave of consolidation that has reduced the number of local newspapers and shifted the delivery of news content. As a result, the share of adults who say they are following local news has dropped significantly since last year.
In many cases, local newspaper outlets have merged with or been bought out by larger media companies, leaving many towns without their own news source. In others, the local news void has been filled by entrepreneurs with innovative new business models. But most of these efforts remain small and are focused on specific markets or demographic groups.
The town of Eudora, Kansas, for example, lost its local newspaper in 2009. But a decade later a group of journalism students has launched an online news site that covers the community’s top issues. Its coverage of town politics, school closings and the occasional waterskiing squirrel has given the town a vital news outlet that serves a need. Overall, Americans give local news a positive evaluation for its ability to keep them informed, serve as a watchdog and amplify stories about their community.