Reversing the decline of local news
Photo by Maxim Hopman on Unsplash
Are we living in the information age? Perhaps too much so.
A 24/7 fire hose of information comes at us from every direction. Streaming TV, cable news, podcasts, radio, YouTube channels, TikTok influencers, Facebook friends, Twitter and more—drowning us in a deluge of eye-catching, attention-seeking, ad-supported entertainment. Worse, it dilutes important and useful information like local news and journalism the way Lake Superior would absorb a packet of Kool-Aid.
Many people get overwhelmed and check out of the news cycle entirely, and often politics, too. Being uninformed is one of the main reasons cited by people who have decided not to vote. Those who shut the news out end up putting their focus on what is happening in Lansing, Washington D.C., Hollywood, or New York rather than what is happening in their own village or town.
And who can blame them? The major outlets in big cities have appealing, high-quality products that you can’t get locally. They’re widely available, and inexpensive if not entirely free. They focus on “hot button” topics where people have strong, black-and-white opinions that they express loudly. They get your blood pumping, for good or bad reasons.
Quality local news can be hard to find. It’s usually a little quieter, and the discussions less vitriolic. Often, the local paper either costs a few bucks or is surrounded by advertisements, each more attention-grabbing than the articles they’re placed next to. But the impacts are close to home. Worried about dog parks, bike trails and business developments? That’s local government, not Lansing. Schools and busing? That’s a local and state issue, not one for Washington.
Further eroding readership, the quality of local reporting has been slipping, fueled by the loss and consolidation of local newspapers and media organizations nationwide.
Two-thirds of daily newspapers in the United States are owned by the same 25 companies, like Ogden Newspapers, which owns the major daily papers in the Upper Peninsula, including the “Daily Mining Gazette.” As these companies acquire new businesses, they try to increase profits by implementing cost-cutting measures that undercut local reporting.
Some of the strategies they use include hiring less-experienced editorial staff for lower wages and fewer benefits, reducing the total number of staff, and creating collective hubs to spread resources around a region.
TV6 operates as a hub, with their main offices in Negaunee and news gathered in Houghton and other communities by a single individual in a satellite office. Ogden has been trending toward a regional-hub structure in the upper peninsula, too. They’ve reduced the number of local reporters in Houghton and laid off all the Houghton-based printers since buying the newspaper. The creative department is gone, and advertisements are designed by a non-local design house that services many of Ogden’s newspapers. Pagination is done by editorial staff rather than having a dedicated individual or department. All of these changes lead to a newspaper that produces less local news, and of lower quality.
Meanwhile, the advertising that commercial newspapers rely on for much of their income has been fleeing to websites like Facebook and YouTube, which, unlike traditional news media, can target a specific audience based on criteria like age, sex, and interests, a clear advantage for advertisers.
When the hollowing-out of quality and coverage becomes extreme enough, newspapers are referred to as ‘ghost newspapers’. They’re still published, but they’re a vanishing wisp of what they once were. Sometimes these papers are converted into “penny savers” or publish only business features, entirely abandoning their journalistic purpose. They can no longer adequately cover the news in their communities, and the communities suffer as a result.
Not having adequate news coverage can lead to many things. An ineffective or corrupt local government, lack of knowledge of helpful community services, missed opportunities for education or personal growth, and the lack of a unifying community identity.
Copper Beacon is part of a wave of “new media” that is rising to meet these new challenges across the world. As a nonprofit corporation, it’s unlikely that any other corporation will want—or even be able—to purchase the outlet. Our board is made up of people from the community who have an interest both in journalism and this community’s well-being, not just profit. Working with freelancers lets us hire and educate a broader diversity of reporters than having a smaller full-time, and permanent writing staff. We promote quality over quantity, publishing on a weekly schedule rather than daily to give busy reporters time to gather sources and interviews. Avoiding reliance on advertising for our funding keeps us from being beholden to market forces and the whims of local business.
Copper Beacon has been designed from the ground up to resume the community-focused, high-quality aspects of journalism that commercial news has left behind in the 20th century.
You can read more about our mission, vision, and history on Copper Beacon’s About page.
Information from this editorial is supported by, among other things, ‘The Expanding News Desert’ by Penelope Muse Abernathy.