A new survey makes the case for saving the local news industry, finding that most Americans want robust coverage of local civic issues but it’s getting harder to find. This is ominous with elections approaching. But it should also be encouraging to local news outlets and those working to sustain them.
A strong majority of Americans, 70 percent, are interested in news about local politics, Pew Research Center found. About the same share, 66 percent, look to local outlets for local political news.
But only one-quarter told Pew they are satisfied with the quality of government and politics news they get, and more than half said it’s not easy to find information they need to make voting decisions in local elections.
More than half of U.S. counties no longer have any substantial local news coverage, because so many local papers have failed or cut back, so it’s going to be harder to find out what’s going on locally.
Even where papers remain, coverage is diminished because newspaper newsrooms, which produce most local coverage, lost two-thirds of their journalists over the last two decades. No wonder surveys find people are less satisfied with the local news report.
The Pew report, done in partnership with the Knight Foundation, also found more interest in presidential elections than local elections, 81 percent to 70 percent.
Again, that’s not surprising, given that the survey was done in January of a presidential election year. With less local journalism, Americans’ news diet is heavier on national and partisan politics.
While many outlets still do great work, with fewer journalists there’s less time to do groundbreaking work. Fewer publishers are investing in investigations and opinion writing, and there’s more emphasis on lighter fare to snag the attention of web skimmers. That all affects the quality and availability of local civic news. That’s why the industry needs help stabilizing its business models and replenishing newsrooms.
Pew found that Americans who feel more attached to their communities are more interested in local policy and election news. Among those who feel very or somewhat attached to their communities, 91 percent and 81 percent, respectively, are interested in news about local laws and policies.
I see a virtuous circle that needs to be restored.
Among those who feel attached to their local community, 81 percent get local government news from local outlets, Pew found. And 27 percent of them paid or donated to a local news source.
Pew, in response to my questions, was more circumspect.
“We do know Americans who feel a strong sense of attachment to their community are more likely to engage with local news — however, it’s not obvious whether, e.g., consuming news from a local newspaper influences your sense of attachment to the community, or whether you’re more likely to turn to a local newspaper because you already feel attached to their community,” it replied.
The America’s Newspapers trade group is doing its own study to learn more about how people feel about local news and their trust in it. “From what we’re seeing from our research that’s underway now … Americans do tend to trust their local newspapers, but there does remain some skepticism with media in general,” said Dean Ridings, the group’s CEO.
More research may clarify the questions, but there is a simple answer to the broader issues raised: Save and grow the local news ecosystem. Robust local journalism fosters civic engagement and community connection, which builds interest in local news.
The survey affirms that most Americans, Republicans and Democrats alike, hunger for decent coverage of core news topics.
If they can figure out who is running to represent them, they should ask candidates what they’ll do to help support and revive the local news industry.
Brier Dudley is editor of the Seattle Times’ Save the Free Press Initiative.
