Local news is a key lever to a healthy democracy. It helps communities understand what’s at stake in local elections, equips them to participate in the political process by voting and contacting their elected officials, and holds public agencies accountable. It also bolsters the economy and creates jobs, while reducing political polarization. But over the past decade, local journalism has been hit particularly hard, with some newspapers closing altogether and others drastically reducing their editorial staffs to make ends meet.
The good news is that Americans continue to value their local media, with a majority saying local outlets are important to their community’s well-being and that they do many things very well. These sentiments hold across all partisan and demographic groups, though Republicans and independents are somewhat less positive about local news than Democrats and Democratic leaners are. Some also think local journalists should take a more active role in their community, with roughly three-in-ten Americans thinking they should advocate for change – a view that is especially common among Democrats and young adults.
The report offers several policy ideas to help rebuild local news ecosystems, including a local news tax credit, which would provide new revenue streams for struggling publishers and encourage more Americans to support their local newspapers. In addition, the report explores ways to leverage the power of philanthropy and social impact bonds to support local news, and it looks at policies that can help address the broader challenges facing the industry, such as digital privacy rules, public broadcasting policies, the need for digital platforms to better compensate local news organizations for content, and labor protections.
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