Across U.S., local news outlets spiral farther downward

The Medill Local News Initiative at Northwestern University on Wednesday released its third annual report examining the state of local news. A total of 127 newspapers closed last year, leaving a couple hundred counties without any news source and roughly 1,600 counties with only one source, according to the report. Almost 55 million Americans have limited access to local news, living in what the report calls news deserts. From 2022 to 2023, newspaper jobs dried up, including a couple thousand positions filled mostly by reporters and editors. Since 2005, the country has lost more than a third of its local newspapers, according to the report.

What factors have contributed to the loss? Many rural counties do not have audience or advertising support for a local newspaper, said Tim Franklin, who directed the research project. The Medill researchers found that print and digital circulation has declined by more than 60 percent since 2005.

One in four American adults reported getting their news from print sources, while 57 percent said they get their news digitally, according to a separate Pew Research Center report.

What else did the study find? There was a net increase of 81 stand-alone digital news sites last year, though the total includes 30 newspapers that converted from print to digital. Most of the new sites are in metro areas, according to the report. Researchers also identified 740 local news sites operated by nationally networked outlets like Patch, Axios, and States Newsroom. However, none of the new websites cover counties designated as news deserts. More than 180 formerly daily newspapers now print less than three days a week, according to Medill’s report. 

Dig deeper: Read Randall E. King’s WORLD Opinions piece about how journalists are also first responders.