Local news – or media — is the broad category of print and broadcast journalism that serves a specific geographic market. It can include newspapers, radio stations, TV networks and hyperlocal websites that tell the stories of a particular town or neighborhood. Historically, it’s also meant the local newsroom where journalists gather to report and produce these stories.
The local news ecosystem has grown into a massive business with major corporations selling, merging and acquiring local outlets. Research continues to show that local news sustains local businesses, helps people understand what’s at stake in elections and holds government accountable, reduces political polarization, increases civic participation, and encourages a culture of democracy.
For television, local news is often defined by a station’s Designated Market Area (DMA), based on the physical reach of its broadcast signal. But for newspapers, there is a greater variety in audience size and scope. Newspapers in different markets share similar audiences, but many are highly focused on specific towns and neighborhoods.
Local newspapers can be especially effective at connecting with communities to engage them in public affairs, and their local presence enables them to build trust and connect audiences to national issues. Their reporting can shape community discourse, and their engagement strategies can counteract distrust that makes it easy for people to find misinformation. This selection of 13 local stories that made a difference in 2019 highlights some of these strategies, from partnerships between smaller newsrooms and larger organizations (like ProPublica’s Local Reporting Network) to developing new audiences in underserved communities.
About the Author
