For two centuries, local newspapers served their communities, providing citizens with a range of essential information: weather forecasts, sports scores, high school graduations and the like. They also provided the framework for civic engagement, helping residents understand what was at stake in their towns and cities and equipping them to hold their elected officials accountable. Yet today, research shows that the steady stream of quality, relevant local news has disappeared from thousands of places. It has created what researchers call “news deserts.”
The vast majority of Americans who get local news still do so from their daily newspaper, though the shift to digital is underway. In 2024, 62% of those who consume local news do so through their TV sets but nearly as many (67%) get it through a website, app, email or social media.
A variety of entrepreneurs — some journalists at legacy news organizations and others from for-profit start-ups — are trying to fill the local news void with a range of new business models. But the results so far have been mixed.
Most Americans say their local news does a good job of covering important community issues and serving as a watchdog on elected officials. But views toward local news are more polarized than those toward national news organizations. And some Americans – particularly Republicans and those who lean Republican — have highly negative assessments of their local news outlets. These views contrast with more positive assessments of local news among Democrats and Democratic-leaning independents.
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