Let's not forget the job done by journalists at the New York Times and initially at the Brunswick News for digging out and reporting the facts of the case, keeping it alive. Newspapers are intended for far more than just carrying Black Friday advertisements.
Let's not forget the job done by journalists at the New York Times and initially at the Brunswick News for digging out and reporting the facts of the case, keeping it alive. Newspapers are intended for far more than just carrying Black Friday advertisements.
Ted, Look who I found yesterday. She's speaking for all journalists as you are, too! Thank you.
Angie Drobnic Holan, editor-in-chief, PolitiFact:
I’m grateful for people who take time to send notes of appreciation and encouragement to journalists. Between boatloads of misinformation and media bashing from all sides, there are some days when being a journalist is just plain hard. On those days, a few notes of praise can make all the difference. Here are just a few of the comments the team at PolitiFact received recently: “I appreciate your work to bring truth to the people.” “I believe in what you are trying to do.” “I love what you do. It’s critical to expose damaging falsehoods.” Those words mean a lot in tough times. If you appreciate a journalist’s work, take a minute this month to let them know.
Thanks, Fern. Did you know that many, many real journalists throughout the world are murdered daily because they research and publish the truth. Many of them are killed by thugs who have been hired by fossil fuel companies, governments, and other corporations that fear their raping counties of natural resources might be delayed.
No one has been held to account in 81% of journalist murders during the last 10 years, CPJ’s 2021 Global Impunity Index has found.
By Jennifer Dunham/CPJ Deputy Editorial Director
Published October 28, 2021
Somalia remains the world’s worst country for unsolved killings of journalists, according to CPJ’s annual Global Impunity Index, which spotlights countries where members of the press are singled out for murder and the perpetrators go free.
The index showed little change from a year earlier, with Syria, Iraq, and South Sudan, in that order, again coming in behind Somalia to occupy the worst four spots on the list, as conflict, political instability, and weak judicial mechanisms perpetuate a cycle of violence against journalists.
Excellent suggestion! I do this often, and even get replies!! But, frankly, I stay away from the righties because most of them have ears closed and eyes shut unless one echoes their diatribe.
Yup. Sinclair is not a news organization. They are in the business of engagement for serving marketing (ads). They follow what Facebook has made so apparently simple. In order to charge customers for advertising, they must first demonstrate engagement, and that metric can be manipulated with enragement practices and content.
Impressive! Thank you. The website graphics are very well done. I have read they are securing a wide grip among numerous outlets to promote a very conservative; right wing. I am not seasoned enough or familiar enough with them to assert the latter one way or the other.
Sinclair, Fox, Facebook are engaged in an immoral and unethical practice for profit. They do not care who they hurt, by how much, nor the greater effect on civil society.They feed off Demagogues that fan the flames of indifference, outrage, and hate. How long will we choose to keep it legal?
"How long will we choose to keep it legal?" I fear that cat is already out of the bag. Or, the genie out of the bottle. Either way, they "ain't" going back.
Much of the free press in America and the rest of the world is disappearing largely because of Murdoch, Sinclair, Gannett, and a couple of other companies that control almost all of the media,
In the U.S. the Fairness Doctrine played into the hands of the Murdochs at the behest of Reagan. Truth and fact in reporting became its casualty. Electronic technology did not help in some respects, because of the celerity with which "news" is broadcast and skewed to a particular political ideology. While I believe most news/media outlets really want to be on the right side of integrity and morality, several do not want to be there, are not there and are nefarious by intention.
Exactly. Same spectacle as a sports game. The bigger the rivalry, the more outrageous and emotional the pregame is, the closer the game, the more attentive the viewers or, “spectators” to it all. It’s interesting that Sinclair also owns a pro wrestling venue. That’s where their playbook comes from.
Lesson 10: “To abandon facts is to abandon freedom. If nothing is true, then no one can criticize power, because there is no basis upon which to do so. If nothing is true, then all is spectacle. The biggest wallet pays for the most blinding lights.”- Dr. Tim Snyder
Corporate control of mass communications, of political parties, of the branches of government and the courts. Wealth gap and inequality at historical highs. Ownership of the means of production, capital, access to credit, and power highly concentrated at the top.This creates class conflict. And history shows that the conflict can either be reduced by increasing equality by reordering the wealth and increasing freedom ( access to the vote). When this doesn’t happen, revolutions do.
Or not. To believe in only one possible outcome, to think it that oligarchy is the only inevitability, doesn’t take history nor those who are taking responsibility for making it into account. We are Heather’s Herd, and we are chipping away at what RFK labeled “the vanity of false distinctions”.
Ah, yes, RFK. One of my champions! His brother was my Commander -in-Chief. I admit to being skeptical and cynical at this stage in my life. It has been a life-learning experience!! If we are part of "Heather's Herd", we are well-advised not to stand in one place for too long; or, being too silent.
Very true, and a dangerous state of affairs for democracy. Without a robust fourth estate to question and publicize the actions of government, the ever present lure of corruption - not to mention idiocy - has no check on it. The larger problem seems to be that currently there is no strong financial model for gathering and disseminating in depth news. With smartphone cameras anyone can be an amateur reporter, but that seems to squeeze out the space for professionals. To the detriment of us all.
Intellect has given sway to sound bites and half-a**ed opinions marketed as "news" of, worse, "facts". The idiocy to which you speak was lauded by Sarah Palin (OH, GOD!) when she railed publicly against intelligence and those "intellectuals". Unknown to her ilk, being "smart" takes work.
Aren't you discounting the advent of the Internet? It more than anything brought about the ruin of local papers. It lowered the barriers to entry and, at the same time, undercut the basic advertising model that had always paid the bills. In truth, many cities wouldn't have newspapers today without chains like Gannett that mastered how to publish on the cheap. By cheap, I mean papers with many fewer stories, and often stories of diminished quality. Even in pre-Internet years, newspaper readership had been steadily eroding. Corporate consolidation that led to mega-chains began decades ago.
Yes, Michel, the advent of the Internet certainly has had a lot to do with the demise of newspapers. Companies like Sinclair, etc., probably about five now, have taken control of the media all over the U.S. Since they have, the various newspapers, radio and TV stations have had to put out what those corporations want published. Hence, Fox, etc., have usurped independent news. Thanks for mentioning the Internet, which has caused this.
Yes, Sinclair has wreaked havoc on quality journalism. I was ecstatic when its merger with my employer for 18 years, Tribune Company, fell through in 2018. Sinclair was deprived of 42 Tribune TV stations, mostly in large cities.
Michael, I recently read, perhaps here or in WAPO, that The Hill has been taken over by a right wing organization and is obviously now giving us another right wing slant for Washington, D. C. Disqusting.
Spot on! Not only did it lower barriers to enty, the Internet also relaxed on matters of truth and fact. Credible and reliable sources became more critical while also becoming much more difficult to discern real truth and actual fact.
🤣🤣🤣 While some regarded him as the Shining White Knight, I regarded him as the Knight of Darkness. He set our country on its current path of self-destruction.
With an absolute hideous reputation on racism; denial of the HIV/AIDS crisis because he and Falwell Sr. deemed it God's curse for being queer. The Iran Contra affair for which Ollie North (hated by most US Marines) fell on his sword for Reagan.
Subscriptions to quality National and local newspapers should be viewed as a civic responsibility as well as essential to being informed. While it is true that advertising revenue is essential to the survival of our news journals - national and local - it is the existence of a strong subscriber base that drives advertisers to support those newspapers. A free and independent press is an essential element to the survival of democracy. When the light of democracy is threatened it is free and independent journalism that supplies the power to keep the light on.
I want to think more about what government support means to the health of a free press. Government needs to support the idea and existence of a free and independent press. However, interference by the government or picking “winners and losers” amongst media sources would undermine their independence. It can be a delicate balance and getting it wrong could be quite dangerous. Best if government maintains a reasonable distance from individual news media while supporting them and maintains transparency and openness.
As with support for the Public Broadcasting Service, funding can be organized and dispensed to avoid the pitfalls you mentioned, which are generally veiled obstacles to avoid doing what is necessary. It is well known dodge.
I subscribe to many publications that I don't read every day just to keep them supported and alive. I am concerned about corporations buying up local papers the way the corporations are buying up housing, turning it into rental property and nudging out people with VA loan approval. PSB is member supported and would be even more member supported if we all knew government grants were not available. We have to keep the changing of "who is in charge now?" issue of our political system. It is all too common that we see things from our own perspective and think it should be clear to others what is right and wrong. PBS is good, right? Well, not to many of the current "right." I agree with Bruce on this.
Fern I applaud your suggestion, though I’m leery of how it might be implemented. At one time Voice of America, back in the days of Edward R. Murrow as director of USIA, set the standard for objective new reporting. Under Trump, VOA’s factual objectivity was trashed and it became a voice for Tubby Trump. Also, who would determine what news sources should be supported/subsidized? Frontline is another investigative source that for more-than-a-generation has maintained its integrity. Personally, I would welcome, as part of a compensation packet, digital access to the NYT and Washington Post given to all Foreign Service Officers and others in US government. But, under First Amendment, shouldn’t Fox and others be included?
As an alternative, I would encourage far greater financing of the NEH, NEA, and Public Broadcasting Corporation. Though Lynne Cheney was, at times, a blight on the National Endowment for the Humanities, on balance it has been a positive for Americans. NPR is a beacon of light in many corners of America. Years ago I recall that Berlin spent more on supporting ‘culture’ that did the United States.
I am heartened that more nonfiction books are sold annually than fiction. As Sergeant Friday said “Just the facts, m’am.’
Delighted to see you Keith, and to spend some time thinking about the options, which you have laid out. Plenty of historical examples to review, too. Thank you.
"Though Lynne Cheney was, at times, a blight on the National Endowment for the Humanities..."
One thing we can thank the then somewhat doddering and somewhat demented old Cold Warrior James Billington for, is holding on to his tenure as Librarian of Congress - the plum Liz Cheney really had her greedy eye on.
I am pondering the support of the Free Press by the government with respect to Fox News. I have no trouble with the News. I do have extreme concern about the lies, fabrications, conspiracy theories and hate that the well-known part of Fox perpetuates. Censorship is dangerous but I think we should be able to come up with standards. The standards of course are problematic in themselves but if the public is to support news agencies we need to come up with standards. We individually are, of course, the best filters of information and maybe in the end that’s what we should rely on before wading into the murky waters of standards and censorship. You know the free market of ideas.
The role of the former "Fairness Doctrine" that used to apply to broadcast media until the Reaganmonster did it in.
The long and dishonorable history of "yellow journalism" in instigating wars....
The ongoing role of (say) the Washington Post and New York Times in legitimizing official lies--even from liars as gross and obvious as trump-- (long-after-the-fact breast beating doesn't cut it!)
The blackouts of independent thinkers from DuBois to Chomsky to Sanders to Zinn....
Robin, The subject up for discuss has to do with funding of local news operations. Local newspapers are fast disappearing. Rural areas are not served. The more news the more democracy. Newspapers bring more than news - entertainment, sports, business, local activities, the functions local government's, wedding announcements, obits -- sense of community. Dependence on social media works against a well informed fact oriented news. There will be good, bad and outlets in between. Less isolation and more interaction.
I have to agree with this, having watched the decline of news organizations with growing alarm for the past 20 or so years. It's a tricky question to be sure. But if a financial model can't be found that allows for a vigorous news industry, it is certainly in the best interest of a healthy democracy that some type of taxpayer support be made available.
I agree. However, subscriptions to some local newspapers are prohibitively expensive, making it impossible for many to subscribe to the local paper. A subscription to the local paper in my parent's region is over $700/year.
That sounds like an online price. I bargained the Palm Beach Post seven days a week down to $50 a month for a paper edition which I prefer to their $20 monthly online e-edition, which includes every page of the paper version, even the ads. Eventually, there will be no paper editions at all, which will be good for the trees in our forests, which are not unlimited.
Bruce—I write in response to your remark, “it is the existence of a strong subscriber base that drives advertisers to support those newspapers.” I would note, back in the 60s, The New Yorker audience actually grew in numbers, mostly college students in their late teens and early twenties, because of its clear and moral stand against the Vietnam War. It was then that ad pages began their drastic disappearance, the majority of which withdrew because The New Yorker had begun to attract “the wrong kind” of reader. Translation: people not of the “right” age and income brackets. Media observers and analysts repeatedly have noted, “The standard cure for ‘bad demographics’ in newspapers, magazines, radio and television is simple: Change the content.” (Source: Media Observer and Analyst Ben H. Bagdikian)
I understand your view. However, the problem for any media is not and has never been in any single case the growth of its subscriber base with a less desirable demographic. It is and has always been the shrinkage of its reach with a desirable demographic for its advertisers when compared to alternatives. No advertiser stops using a forum because it’s reach increases. It does so because there are more cost effective ways to reach its desired audience. So subscribe to and support quality journalism including by supporting those who support it.
Bruce—Indeed, I appreciate your statement that “it [the problem for any media] is and has always been the shrinkage of its reach with a desirable demographic for its advertisers when compared to alternatives.” Still, as a point of clarification, I would note that I had used what had happened to The New Yorker as an iterative and cautionary example to show how markets drive editorial decisions. I fret over whether media, a commercial, profit-driven enterprise, can meaningfully engage in public service and nurture the public trust and still make the sort of money they currently do.
I look at it this way, we should pay for content, like the music industry where Pandora, Spotify et al are starving the creators, we should disavow those platforms until they pay for their raw materials
I don’t read The Atlantic Cover to cover, but I pay for the content nevertheless
I agree. A while back Jeff Bezos asked what he could do with his money that would do the most good. I wrote a long suggestion that he fund start up local news papers in small towns around the country and it would have cost him a pittance and its value would grow exponentially. Alas, it didn't happen.
Brilliant idea Martha!❤️ Bezos has had many chances to return the Post to a prominent role in correcting mis/disinformation, but there are a lot of small local papers that could shine a light on what goes on locally and needs to be told.
Our town’s little local newspaper went belly-up about two years ago. Had been in business for 100 years. It had many years of being a right-wing publication but for about 5 years, we had a very open-minded editor. Unfortunately, he passed away at a very young age.
Perhaps we will see a resurgence of local newspapers…
beginning small but with potent and pertinent news… because citizens are coming to understand our democracy is at stake and the Murdoch’s of the country are not giving us the true story.
Exactly right. But what if there were no newspapers? I don't worry about the Times but I do worry about the future of local news. There are hundreds of Brunswick Newses that have closed shop. Also, many of these civic guardians are no longer locally owned. They have been bought up by venture capitalists with no interest in the profession. Newsrooms have been gutted; reporters get paid slave wages. Of course, revenue from advertisers has all but dried up thanks to the Internet, today's equivalent of the efficient network of roads that all led to Rome. We know how that ended.
If not locally owned, what’s the difference from closing shop? The effect is the same. The people are not connected to each other anymore. The people are conditioned to think only in terms of National stories. They become tribal. Us vs Them.
Before Gutenberg invented movable type, there were other means of communication than newspapers, even just people sitting around a fire exchanging ideas ... which is more or less what we do on the internet. People find ways to exchange ideas. The Incas, whose architectural skills (Machu Picchu) were noteworthy couldn't even read or write.
"Quipu (also spelled khipu) are recording devices fashioned from strings historically used by a number of cultures in the region of Andean South America.[1] Knotted strings for collecting data, government management and keeping records were also used by the ancient Chinese, Tibetans and Japanese,[2][3][4][5] but such practices should not be confused with the quipu, which refers only to the Andean method."
I was just thinking about that as I read this. I carry mine with me everywhere, even from room to room in my own house (mostly for safety reasons.)
I live in a small town, but my house is on a corner facing a state highway and a side street that provides traffic a shortcut through town. Since I'm only two blocks from the historic downtown, the speed limit on these two streets is 30 mpg. Nevertheless, local hoodies and their souped-up Mustangs, local white supremacists in their gigantic pickup trucks festooned with Confederate flags, "soccer moms" late for whatever errand they might be on, and truckers who fail to notice the various signs slowing traffic - all drive down this street well over the speed limit, endangering children and pets and even homeowners who might be working in their yards. I posted a comment on my FB page about the speeding and was literally attacked by various members of the aforementioned who said I should "take down license plates and report them if this was really true." Of course, there's no time to do such a thing with a vehicle whizzing by at 45 mph. But I have thought about just standing on my front porch with my cell phone on video and turning THAT over to the local police department. A single patrol car could probably issue enough tickets to balance the police department's budget for a year, if they had the sense to position a vehicle at this intersection! It's a sign of the times that I even thought about doing something like this!
I have a granddaughter at age 10 did a science project on this, now she had the help of her father on this but it was still Amy who took the data and wrote the report. Her dad is a computer science professor but they only use a stop watch and a tape measure. They live close to Amy's grade school in Waterloo Ontario. They timed the cars flying through the school zone and then calculated their speed. Amy and dad did the calculations for her report. The teacher liked the report and sent a copy to the local paper. New enforcement followed.
While I agree with the sentiment of supporting local news, unfortunately, all local newspapers are not equal. If you live in a heavy red area, the newspaper often reflects the community, only occasionally allowing an opposing view on the OpEd page. Bravo for the Brunswick, GA reporter!
There are many subscribers in this forum who are life-long urban dwellers and have little to no idea what passes for news in underserved and rural areas. It is the assumed that news, via tv, radio and internet, is equally available to all*. Of the three, radio is sometimes the best available. I can tell you, from personal experience, that when we bought our property and built our home on the eastern plains of Colorado in the late 90s, phone lines had not yet been run so not only did we not have a landline we had no internet access at home for 5 years. (We both had in town jobs where we had access to news and information.) We did have cell phones that may or may not have had a signal at any given moment; they were unreliable at best. Papers national or local (Denver, Colorado Springs dailies) were not available for delivery.
Often overlooked is the fact that local publications in rural areas may not be newspapers at all but advertising pages with a few tidbits of "local news", human interest and recipes thrown in. Sometimes people don't understand the distinction. The stories are frequently about a local sports team or event that is sponsored by a business that advertises in the paper. They are often "free" and available in boxes on the street and inside the businesses that advertise in them. People pick up these publications because they are free and contain just enough content to be of interest. And because these publications are free people are lulled into the idea that it must be easy and inexpensive to produce a (quality) newspaper so why pay for it? . Sadly, legitimate local newspapers are becoming a rarity more quickly than most might guess.
My point is this, there are large swaths of rural, sparsely populated areas in the US. Those rural dwellers' inability to freely access reliable, accurate news and information is a disadvantage in their decision making processes. They take what they can get and it's not always honest or reliable.
*Biden's Broadband Infrastructure initiative will help equalize the ability of rural dwellers have to access to a broader range of news and information. For everyone, this is a plus.
Lin, I will answer your comment in 2 segments. First, yes, it is often likely that libraries in rural red areas carry none of the "national newspapers" and may carry the "most local" large paper, frequently Gannett, Sinclair, etc., but often not even that. It is difficult for urban dwellers, especially coastal urban dwellers, to understand just how narrow the scope of news and opinion can be in these areas. It is frequently not an option of picking and choosing from a vast array of sources but what is presented to you locally. This includes material that one's pastor deems acceptable for consumption.
The Poynter Institute is a valuable asset to the Journalism community. It can be invaluable to both students and working journalists as well as the public at large (specifically Politifact). My daughter received valuable guidance more than once from Poynter while in J School and after, particularly with regards to investigative journalism.
I appreciate the willingness of subscribers to search out resources like Poynter and promote them. Unfortunately, Poynter is unable to tackle the compounded issues of "news deserts" in small, far flung communities across the United States. I say this as someone who was born and raised in a town with a great daily, the Washington Post, has lived in major metro areas across the United States as well as in isolated rural areas that are unbelievably detached from the real news of our country and the world.
One if the issues that is choking the life out of our country right now is the libral urban coastal dweller's arrogant belief that they always know more and they always know better than the rural dweller. (I am an expat urban coastal liberal, I know what a jerk I can be). Many do not understand the deep seated distrust that keeps rural folk from picking up a mainstream newspaper and what it is they distrust. That's not okay. Entrenched arrogance is one of the things that keep small town and rural readers from seeking more center and liberal news sources We need to acknowledge and address that issue honestly and aggressively.
Thank You, Daria. Like you, I have lived in DC but also in rural Illinois.
Being from NYC, I always was surprised at WaPo's swipes at the Times and even DC Metro's swipes at the NY subway. I'd never experienced that going the other way.
What I found, in Illinois was that when people asked where I was from and I said NYC, they expressed assumptions and resentments which truly surprised me. I really had never thought much about Illinois one way or another when I unexpectedly landed there, but clearly they 'knew' all about NYC without ever having been there. I just listened. It was an education.
And maybe that is part of the problem, not that some people in big cities have the wrong ideas about small towns, but that we don't think much about them at all. And that some people in small towns have too little information and too much resentment.
Lin, Migrating from a big city to a rural area teaches many very valuable lessons, including the fact that rural folk can be kind, generous but wary...those of us from places like NYC & DC or LA & San Francisco may be met with suspicion...do we have horns? (😉).
You said, "And maybe that is part of the problem, not that some people in big cities have the wrong ideas about small towns, but that we don't think much about them at all. And that some people in small towns have too little information and too much resentment".
There is a lot of truth in what you've said. Living in México as a US citizen has made me much more aware of how baked in preconceived notions are and how they can negatively impact even the most casual interactions between locals and in comers
lin, There may be a local news movement that there, which can grow and grow. I found the poynter.org yesterday and do not have any idea of the depth or width of what is happening in terms of the growth of local news. I'll just keep digging from time to time, so others may follow and go much deeper into this area than I can. See a sample of wish lists of a few of poynter's people:
Rick Edmonds, media business analyst:
Financially, local news is not out of the woods by a long shot. It’s encouraging, though, how many sources of support have emerged. A partial list: readers and advertiser/sponsors, of course; member/donors; national and local philanthropy, both foundations and wealthy individuals; Google and Facebook through their charitable arms (and they may be paying for the content they borrow before long); Report for America; ProPublica and The Marshall Project mastering local partnerships; even Congress is taking a serious look at federal support, picking up a portion of the salaries of local news professionals. Then there are those journalists who don’t let a little thing like a downsizing keep them from their calling. They step up and do essential work for their communities, often with reduced pay or no pay. I am thankful for them.
Sitara Nieves, Poynter faculty:
I’m grateful for all the local public radio newsrooms that continue to invest in stories that matter. There are plenty of those stories to choose from — and you can hear lots of them just by listening to anything your public radio station produces — but here are two that have stayed with me this year because of the stories they broke, how they keep following that story over time, and how transparent they made their reporting processes.
The first story I’m thankful for is the reporting collaboration between Nashville Public Radio and ProPublica’s Local Reporting Network, published in October: “Black Children Were Jailed for a Crime That Doesn’t Exist. Almost Nothing Happened to the Adults in Charge.” The story is horrifying, meticulously reported, and quickly led to local and state government responses, along with a request for a Department of Justice investigation from 11 members of Congress.
I also appreciate that the reporters, Meribah Knight from Nashville Public Radio and ProPublica’s Ken Armstrong, detailed their extensive reporting process in a methodology section at the end of the story: providing transparency that shows how the story was reported, and also offering a great primer for anyone interested in investigative journalism.
The second is WBEZ Chicago’s multimedia story “Drowning in Debt,” published this month, where María Inés Zamudio reported on how tens of thousands of Chicago homeowners — most in Black-majority areas — are in debt on their water bills after city leaders hiked water costs to raise revenue.
I’m thankful that WBEZ published their reporting methodology in a piece co-authored by data editor Matt Kiefer and Zamudio, which details how WBEZ began reporting the story in the first place. (They’ve been on this story since an initial investigative piece in 2019.) Zamudio and Kiefer show how they used the extensive data they gathered as part of their reporting, which I love. For example, they published the source code they wrote to build the database they created to identify vacant homes with water debt, and made data available for download.
I’m grateful to everyone doing all the work we hear, watch, and read every day. You are appreciated.
Have feedback or a tip? Email Poynter senior media writer Tom Jones at tjones@poynter.org.
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lin, I am curious to know about your interest in journalism -- American and International? What prompted your inquires? Have you worked in the field? Have you been in contact with organizations, such as Society of Professional Journalists (SPJ), Neiman Foundation for Journalism, American Journalism Historians Association (AJHA), Report For America, The Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication (AEJMC), etc. Thanks.
You wrote: "Often overlooked is the fact that local publications in rural areas may not be newspapers at all but advertising pages with a few tidbits of "local news", human interest and recipes thrown in. Sometimes people don't understand the distinction. The stories are frequently about a local sports team or event that is sponsored by a business that advertises in the paper."
This is true of what passes as a "newspaper" in my small town. One other thing they do is post obituaries and letters to the editor, most of which reflect the far right prejudices of the newspaper's owner. Thus, I do not subscribe. They have one reporter, who is primarily an ambulance chaser and sports writer, along with the obits.
Last week our local paper broke the story of a black woman who was hit and killed by a white woman who admitted she’d been drinking. This happened 5 months ago and as yet no charges.Police just recently issued a warrant to pull data from the car.
Several months ago local news reported on a young ,black couple who were arrested after videoing, from their car, the police’s handling of a a young, disturbed teen. The charges were later dropped when the DA realized they didn’t have a case.
Our local paper went under and was bought by another local newspaper that still prints the news for this area, but it's slant to the right makes it hardly worth reading.
We have a local paper owned by a conservative group. They do print letters to the editor from varying points of view. I have also wondered about their main news reporter's political leanings. That's a good thing.
The paper may still be contributing to a sense of community, to business, local activities, etc. As long as the paper is there, perhaps, some moderation will leak through as time goes on.
The return of Local News is not a 'sentiment' KellyS, it is a necessity. A local paper has to be in syn with its community, while the news department, along with reporters focus on the facts, which are reflected in the work.
Sentiment: a view of or attitude toward a situation or event; an opinion. So, to clarify, my view is that local news should be supported. My reality is that, until moving to Ecuador last summer, my "local"Forida newspaper, owned by Gannett, published articles so slanted in support of a MAGA perspective, rarely publishing Letters to the Editor opposing that view, such that I could not support it with a subscription. Often, it was a regurgitation of national news reported much better elsewhere.
Kelly, your comment makes me wonder who is really in control at Gannett owned newspapers. Our “local” paper is owned by Garnett and while they often “regurgitate” national news they also regularly publish Letters to Ed from both sides.
Our Republican county commissioners actually had a proclamation mocking an opinion writer for the editorial board and her immigrant status.Someone got under their skin ! Our elected sheriff and some local politicians often refuse to provide comments to the “local “ newspaper, preferring instead to comment to the truly local, and right leaning news source.
Today’s story in our “local” paper in the You Can’t Make This @#$& Up section:
Fl gov recently visited here for anti-masking mandate press conference along with the local D.A. and sheriff. They showcased the parents of a child with Down’s Syndrome who claimed their daughter was abused at school with a face mask tied to her head. Police reports released this week indicate parents lied to investigators, photos were staged, and the child actually preferred having the mask on.
I would say this “local” story too would get under Repubs skin but alas the damage is done. The father had his millisecond of fame with Tucker and raised thousands through crowd-funding to “ fight mask mandates.”
Our family is all in FL otherwise we would seriously consider Mexico or joining you in Ecuador !
Local conservatives constantly complain about the Gannett-owned Palm Beach Post being too liberal and favoring liberal letter writers. They published one from me today which only got political in its last few words after leading one to think they were reading something about sports. Here's the letter if you're interested in reading it:
“Though sports rarely creep onto the Opinion pages of the Post, a recent article in the Sports section concerning the almost wholesale firing of college football coaches raises questions. Could it be that college sports, particularly football and basketball at large universities, have strayed far from the purposes such educational institutions are intended to serve? Are the schools in it only for the money? Once a university “sells out” in regard to its athletic programs, it is a small step toward “selling out” in other areas, such as politically-motivated appointments to its medical school faculty.”
Thank you, Kelly. Your experience with a local newspaper is not uncommon and then there is the more frequent one of there being none. I have just learned of the Poynter Institute devoted to local news, journalism, teaching and placing reporters. Where there are local newspapers, with news departments antithetical to democracy, other options must be available. Even right-wing outlets may be of service in some ways to communities. This is a larger discussion and, unfortunately, I must quit now. I look forward to more exchanges with you on the subject. Salud!
Correct. That is why Bari Weiss quit their editorial staff and started posting as "Common Sense" on Substack. Writes occasionally, but most postings are by others with whom she agrees.
I don’t want to be a negative voice… but the Times article about Kyle Rittenhouse was almost enough for me to cancel my 40+ years subscription to the same…
Let's not forget the job done by journalists at the New York Times and initially at the Brunswick News for digging out and reporting the facts of the case, keeping it alive. Newspapers are intended for far more than just carrying Black Friday advertisements.
We also need newspapers that aren't owned by the Murdochs insisting on printing biased material and propaganda. We need to protect the free press!
Pick a journalist. One that you read and like. Reach out to them and thank them. Follow them. Read their stories and share them.
Ted, Look who I found yesterday. She's speaking for all journalists as you are, too! Thank you.
Angie Drobnic Holan, editor-in-chief, PolitiFact:
I’m grateful for people who take time to send notes of appreciation and encouragement to journalists. Between boatloads of misinformation and media bashing from all sides, there are some days when being a journalist is just plain hard. On those days, a few notes of praise can make all the difference. Here are just a few of the comments the team at PolitiFact received recently: “I appreciate your work to bring truth to the people.” “I believe in what you are trying to do.” “I love what you do. It’s critical to expose damaging falsehoods.” Those words mean a lot in tough times. If you appreciate a journalist’s work, take a minute this month to let them know.
https://www.poynter.org/
Thanks, Fern. Did you know that many, many real journalists throughout the world are murdered daily because they research and publish the truth. Many of them are killed by thugs who have been hired by fossil fuel companies, governments, and other corporations that fear their raping counties of natural resources might be delayed.
Killers of journalists still get away with murder
No one has been held to account in 81% of journalist murders during the last 10 years, CPJ’s 2021 Global Impunity Index has found.
By Jennifer Dunham/CPJ Deputy Editorial Director
Published October 28, 2021
Somalia remains the world’s worst country for unsolved killings of journalists, according to CPJ’s annual Global Impunity Index, which spotlights countries where members of the press are singled out for murder and the perpetrators go free.
The index showed little change from a year earlier, with Syria, Iraq, and South Sudan, in that order, again coming in behind Somalia to occupy the worst four spots on the list, as conflict, political instability, and weak judicial mechanisms perpetuate a cycle of violence against journalists.
https://www.google.com/aclk?sa=l&ai=DChcSEwjZkYqoqrn0AhXUPq0GHZO1BT8YABAAGgJwdg&ae=2&sig=AOD64_3wU6eSW4b0vHI_qfI_C8Vzez_lXQ&q&nis=1&adurl&ved=2ahUKEwixhYCoqrn0AhUyHTQIHS8FBW0Q0Qx6BAgCEAE
Yes, I am.
Thanks, Fern, because of you mentioning CPJ, I just went to their site, subscribed and donated to them!
Excellent suggestion! I do this often, and even get replies!! But, frankly, I stay away from the righties because most of them have ears closed and eyes shut unless one echoes their diatribe.
Keep a watch on the Sinclairs. They are gobbling up broadcast sites across the land.
Yup. Sinclair is not a news organization. They are in the business of engagement for serving marketing (ads). They follow what Facebook has made so apparently simple. In order to charge customers for advertising, they must first demonstrate engagement, and that metric can be manipulated with enragement practices and content.
https://compulse.com/?utm_term=sinclair%20broadcast%20group&utm_campaign=Compulse+-+Brand&utm_source=adwords&utm_medium=ppc&hsa_acc=1404611682&hsa_cam=14090246053&hsa_grp=124791233025&hsa_ad=536589439122&hsa_src=g&hsa_tgt=kwd-1548874620&hsa_kw=sinclair%20broadcast%20group&hsa_mt=e&hsa_net=adwords&hsa_ver=3&gclid=Cj0KCQiAy4eNBhCaARIsAFDVtI3OjyxhehviFLz96J3ay9eUtVGATxa7xGGtxSY5nzsGEHx1J23NwbgaAirLEALw_wcB
Impressive! Thank you. The website graphics are very well done. I have read they are securing a wide grip among numerous outlets to promote a very conservative; right wing. I am not seasoned enough or familiar enough with them to assert the latter one way or the other.
Sinclair, Fox, Facebook are engaged in an immoral and unethical practice for profit. They do not care who they hurt, by how much, nor the greater effect on civil society.They feed off Demagogues that fan the flames of indifference, outrage, and hate. How long will we choose to keep it legal?
"How long will we choose to keep it legal?" I fear that cat is already out of the bag. Or, the genie out of the bottle. Either way, they "ain't" going back.
Yes, the Sinclairs are insidious.
Yup.
You are too kind. I would opt for nefarious or pernicious.
You're right, of course.
Thanks! But, insidious also captures their psyche.
Much of the free press in America and the rest of the world is disappearing largely because of Murdoch, Sinclair, Gannett, and a couple of other companies that control almost all of the media,
In the U.S. the Fairness Doctrine played into the hands of the Murdochs at the behest of Reagan. Truth and fact in reporting became its casualty. Electronic technology did not help in some respects, because of the celerity with which "news" is broadcast and skewed to a particular political ideology. While I believe most news/media outlets really want to be on the right side of integrity and morality, several do not want to be there, are not there and are nefarious by intention.
“We are not in the entertainment business”-Jim Lehrer
I believe Fox News does claim to be entertainment!
Exactly. Same spectacle as a sports game. The bigger the rivalry, the more outrageous and emotional the pregame is, the closer the game, the more attentive the viewers or, “spectators” to it all. It’s interesting that Sinclair also owns a pro wrestling venue. That’s where their playbook comes from.
"Knuckle dragging" style "entertainment". 🤣😁😈
So true! Sadly, today's ratings rule over reason and integrity.
Lesson 10: “To abandon facts is to abandon freedom. If nothing is true, then no one can criticize power, because there is no basis upon which to do so. If nothing is true, then all is spectacle. The biggest wallet pays for the most blinding lights.”- Dr. Tim Snyder
Corporate control of mass communications, of political parties, of the branches of government and the courts. Wealth gap and inequality at historical highs. Ownership of the means of production, capital, access to credit, and power highly concentrated at the top.This creates class conflict. And history shows that the conflict can either be reduced by increasing equality by reordering the wealth and increasing freedom ( access to the vote). When this doesn’t happen, revolutions do.
Say "Hello!" to the new American fascist oligarchy. Soon, the majority will be nothing more than serfs.
Or not. To believe in only one possible outcome, to think it that oligarchy is the only inevitability, doesn’t take history nor those who are taking responsibility for making it into account. We are Heather’s Herd, and we are chipping away at what RFK labeled “the vanity of false distinctions”.
Ah, yes, RFK. One of my champions! His brother was my Commander -in-Chief. I admit to being skeptical and cynical at this stage in my life. It has been a life-learning experience!! If we are part of "Heather's Herd", we are well-advised not to stand in one place for too long; or, being too silent.
Very true, and a dangerous state of affairs for democracy. Without a robust fourth estate to question and publicize the actions of government, the ever present lure of corruption - not to mention idiocy - has no check on it. The larger problem seems to be that currently there is no strong financial model for gathering and disseminating in depth news. With smartphone cameras anyone can be an amateur reporter, but that seems to squeeze out the space for professionals. To the detriment of us all.
Intellect has given sway to sound bites and half-a**ed opinions marketed as "news" of, worse, "facts". The idiocy to which you speak was lauded by Sarah Palin (OH, GOD!) when she railed publicly against intelligence and those "intellectuals". Unknown to her ilk, being "smart" takes work.
Aren't you discounting the advent of the Internet? It more than anything brought about the ruin of local papers. It lowered the barriers to entry and, at the same time, undercut the basic advertising model that had always paid the bills. In truth, many cities wouldn't have newspapers today without chains like Gannett that mastered how to publish on the cheap. By cheap, I mean papers with many fewer stories, and often stories of diminished quality. Even in pre-Internet years, newspaper readership had been steadily eroding. Corporate consolidation that led to mega-chains began decades ago.
Yes, Michel, the advent of the Internet certainly has had a lot to do with the demise of newspapers. Companies like Sinclair, etc., probably about five now, have taken control of the media all over the U.S. Since they have, the various newspapers, radio and TV stations have had to put out what those corporations want published. Hence, Fox, etc., have usurped independent news. Thanks for mentioning the Internet, which has caused this.
Yes, Sinclair has wreaked havoc on quality journalism. I was ecstatic when its merger with my employer for 18 years, Tribune Company, fell through in 2018. Sinclair was deprived of 42 Tribune TV stations, mostly in large cities.
Michael, I recently read, perhaps here or in WAPO, that The Hill has been taken over by a right wing organization and is obviously now giving us another right wing slant for Washington, D. C. Disqusting.
Spot on! Not only did it lower barriers to enty, the Internet also relaxed on matters of truth and fact. Credible and reliable sources became more critical while also becoming much more difficult to discern real truth and actual fact.
One can thank Ronald Reagan for the Murdoch invasion. His papers are forbiddin in other countries. FOX is his empire of poison and hate.
Don’t worry, I blame Reagan for quite a lot of things!
🤣🤣🤣 While some regarded him as the Shining White Knight, I regarded him as the Knight of Darkness. He set our country on its current path of self-destruction.
His last name was not Reagan, rather is was really "Rayguns."
With an absolute hideous reputation on racism; denial of the HIV/AIDS crisis because he and Falwell Sr. deemed it God's curse for being queer. The Iran Contra affair for which Ollie North (hated by most US Marines) fell on his sword for Reagan.
Our subscription support of local, regional and national news/journalism is a critical component of the battle for equalities and the system of laws
Subscriptions to quality National and local newspapers should be viewed as a civic responsibility as well as essential to being informed. While it is true that advertising revenue is essential to the survival of our news journals - national and local - it is the existence of a strong subscriber base that drives advertisers to support those newspapers. A free and independent press is an essential element to the survival of democracy. When the light of democracy is threatened it is free and independent journalism that supplies the power to keep the light on.
Government support is essential as a the 'free-press' is crucial to Democracy.
I want to think more about what government support means to the health of a free press. Government needs to support the idea and existence of a free and independent press. However, interference by the government or picking “winners and losers” amongst media sources would undermine their independence. It can be a delicate balance and getting it wrong could be quite dangerous. Best if government maintains a reasonable distance from individual news media while supporting them and maintains transparency and openness.
Yes! With all the corporate welfare (looking at you, oil companies, pharma) why is no help given to newspapers?
I agree. It’s healthy when our President and Congress has a love/hate relationship with the press.
As with support for the Public Broadcasting Service, funding can be organized and dispensed to avoid the pitfalls you mentioned, which are generally veiled obstacles to avoid doing what is necessary. It is well known dodge.
For one thing, government can be more careful about monitoring news monopolies.
Needs to be addressed. Yes, lin!
I subscribe to many publications that I don't read every day just to keep them supported and alive. I am concerned about corporations buying up local papers the way the corporations are buying up housing, turning it into rental property and nudging out people with VA loan approval. PSB is member supported and would be even more member supported if we all knew government grants were not available. We have to keep the changing of "who is in charge now?" issue of our political system. It is all too common that we see things from our own perspective and think it should be clear to others what is right and wrong. PBS is good, right? Well, not to many of the current "right." I agree with Bruce on this.
Fern I applaud your suggestion, though I’m leery of how it might be implemented. At one time Voice of America, back in the days of Edward R. Murrow as director of USIA, set the standard for objective new reporting. Under Trump, VOA’s factual objectivity was trashed and it became a voice for Tubby Trump. Also, who would determine what news sources should be supported/subsidized? Frontline is another investigative source that for more-than-a-generation has maintained its integrity. Personally, I would welcome, as part of a compensation packet, digital access to the NYT and Washington Post given to all Foreign Service Officers and others in US government. But, under First Amendment, shouldn’t Fox and others be included?
As an alternative, I would encourage far greater financing of the NEH, NEA, and Public Broadcasting Corporation. Though Lynne Cheney was, at times, a blight on the National Endowment for the Humanities, on balance it has been a positive for Americans. NPR is a beacon of light in many corners of America. Years ago I recall that Berlin spent more on supporting ‘culture’ that did the United States.
I am heartened that more nonfiction books are sold annually than fiction. As Sergeant Friday said “Just the facts, m’am.’
Delighted to see you Keith, and to spend some time thinking about the options, which you have laid out. Plenty of historical examples to review, too. Thank you.
"Though Lynne Cheney was, at times, a blight on the National Endowment for the Humanities..."
One thing we can thank the then somewhat doddering and somewhat demented old Cold Warrior James Billington for, is holding on to his tenure as Librarian of Congress - the plum Liz Cheney really had her greedy eye on.
I am pondering the support of the Free Press by the government with respect to Fox News. I have no trouble with the News. I do have extreme concern about the lies, fabrications, conspiracy theories and hate that the well-known part of Fox perpetuates. Censorship is dangerous but I think we should be able to come up with standards. The standards of course are problematic in themselves but if the public is to support news agencies we need to come up with standards. We individually are, of course, the best filters of information and maybe in the end that’s what we should rely on before wading into the murky waters of standards and censorship. You know the free market of ideas.
Consider:
The role of the former "Fairness Doctrine" that used to apply to broadcast media until the Reaganmonster did it in.
The long and dishonorable history of "yellow journalism" in instigating wars....
The ongoing role of (say) the Washington Post and New York Times in legitimizing official lies--even from liars as gross and obvious as trump-- (long-after-the-fact breast beating doesn't cut it!)
The blackouts of independent thinkers from DuBois to Chomsky to Sanders to Zinn....
One could rant on and on....
Robin, The subject up for discuss has to do with funding of local news operations. Local newspapers are fast disappearing. Rural areas are not served. The more news the more democracy. Newspapers bring more than news - entertainment, sports, business, local activities, the functions local government's, wedding announcements, obits -- sense of community. Dependence on social media works against a well informed fact oriented news. There will be good, bad and outlets in between. Less isolation and more interaction.
I have to agree with this, having watched the decline of news organizations with growing alarm for the past 20 or so years. It's a tricky question to be sure. But if a financial model can't be found that allows for a vigorous news industry, it is certainly in the best interest of a healthy democracy that some type of taxpayer support be made available.
I agree. However, subscriptions to some local newspapers are prohibitively expensive, making it impossible for many to subscribe to the local paper. A subscription to the local paper in my parent's region is over $700/year.
That seems excessive. My local is 156, six days a week
That sounds like an online price. I bargained the Palm Beach Post seven days a week down to $50 a month for a paper edition which I prefer to their $20 monthly online e-edition, which includes every page of the paper version, even the ads. Eventually, there will be no paper editions at all, which will be good for the trees in our forests, which are not unlimited.
My “local” Gannett/Florida Today is 9.99/month for online.
Several ago tried to bargain them down for dad’s paper edition
but they wouldn’t budge. It was ~. 60$.
Mine, The Seattle Times, is $30/year for Sunday only.
"A subscription to the local paper in my parent's region is over $700/year."
Perhaps that is the cost of a paper delivery subscription? Digital may be less expensive.
Our Asheville NC is about $ 400/year. Online would be cheaper but my wife likes the hard copy of crossword and jumble.
Yes, we all might explore local independent papers across the nation and get on line subscriptions to the ones we like.
Bruce—I write in response to your remark, “it is the existence of a strong subscriber base that drives advertisers to support those newspapers.” I would note, back in the 60s, The New Yorker audience actually grew in numbers, mostly college students in their late teens and early twenties, because of its clear and moral stand against the Vietnam War. It was then that ad pages began their drastic disappearance, the majority of which withdrew because The New Yorker had begun to attract “the wrong kind” of reader. Translation: people not of the “right” age and income brackets. Media observers and analysts repeatedly have noted, “The standard cure for ‘bad demographics’ in newspapers, magazines, radio and television is simple: Change the content.” (Source: Media Observer and Analyst Ben H. Bagdikian)
I understand your view. However, the problem for any media is not and has never been in any single case the growth of its subscriber base with a less desirable demographic. It is and has always been the shrinkage of its reach with a desirable demographic for its advertisers when compared to alternatives. No advertiser stops using a forum because it’s reach increases. It does so because there are more cost effective ways to reach its desired audience. So subscribe to and support quality journalism including by supporting those who support it.
Bruce—Indeed, I appreciate your statement that “it [the problem for any media] is and has always been the shrinkage of its reach with a desirable demographic for its advertisers when compared to alternatives.” Still, as a point of clarification, I would note that I had used what had happened to The New Yorker as an iterative and cautionary example to show how markets drive editorial decisions. I fret over whether media, a commercial, profit-driven enterprise, can meaningfully engage in public service and nurture the public trust and still make the sort of money they currently do.
I agree and support that view
I look at it this way, we should pay for content, like the music industry where Pandora, Spotify et al are starving the creators, we should disavow those platforms until they pay for their raw materials
I don’t read The Atlantic Cover to cover, but I pay for the content nevertheless
I agree. A while back Jeff Bezos asked what he could do with his money that would do the most good. I wrote a long suggestion that he fund start up local news papers in small towns around the country and it would have cost him a pittance and its value would grow exponentially. Alas, it didn't happen.
His ex wife, however, has donated money to various organizations that have and hopefully will expose the hidden truth.
https://www.santafenewmexican.com/news/local_news/scott-gives-3-million-to-santa-fe-s-museum-of-contemporary-native-arts/article_2b664cda-ceea-11eb-9669-230e0295d981.html
Brilliant idea Martha!❤️ Bezos has had many chances to return the Post to a prominent role in correcting mis/disinformation, but there are a lot of small local papers that could shine a light on what goes on locally and needs to be told.
Well, not yet, Martha. The game’s not over yet!
Exactly. And keep writing. He may have glossed over your first letter and is closer to being ready to see the next one or the one after that.
His ex wife will!
Tax him and the Zukk to force this.
Our town’s little local newspaper went belly-up about two years ago. Had been in business for 100 years. It had many years of being a right-wing publication but for about 5 years, we had a very open-minded editor. Unfortunately, he passed away at a very young age.
In Sundays NYTs. Local News Outlets Could Reap $1.7 Billion in Build Back Better Aid https://nyti.ms/3o0YQ9U
Thank you! I might have missed this. Answer to a prayer. ho
pe it passes.
Perhaps we will see a resurgence of local newspapers…
beginning small but with potent and pertinent news… because citizens are coming to understand our democracy is at stake and the Murdoch’s of the country are not giving us the true story.
Exactly right. But what if there were no newspapers? I don't worry about the Times but I do worry about the future of local news. There are hundreds of Brunswick Newses that have closed shop. Also, many of these civic guardians are no longer locally owned. They have been bought up by venture capitalists with no interest in the profession. Newsrooms have been gutted; reporters get paid slave wages. Of course, revenue from advertisers has all but dried up thanks to the Internet, today's equivalent of the efficient network of roads that all led to Rome. We know how that ended.
If not locally owned, what’s the difference from closing shop? The effect is the same. The people are not connected to each other anymore. The people are conditioned to think only in terms of National stories. They become tribal. Us vs Them.
Before Gutenberg invented movable type, there were other means of communication than newspapers, even just people sitting around a fire exchanging ideas ... which is more or less what we do on the internet. People find ways to exchange ideas. The Incas, whose architectural skills (Machu Picchu) were noteworthy couldn't even read or write.
"Quipu (also spelled khipu) are recording devices fashioned from strings historically used by a number of cultures in the region of Andean South America.[1] Knotted strings for collecting data, government management and keeping records were also used by the ancient Chinese, Tibetans and Japanese,[2][3][4][5] but such practices should not be confused with the quipu, which refers only to the Andean method."
"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quipu
The paradigm shift to relying on the ubiquitous cell-fone cams that capture these moments and are being posted on the Internet.
I was just thinking about that as I read this. I carry mine with me everywhere, even from room to room in my own house (mostly for safety reasons.)
I live in a small town, but my house is on a corner facing a state highway and a side street that provides traffic a shortcut through town. Since I'm only two blocks from the historic downtown, the speed limit on these two streets is 30 mpg. Nevertheless, local hoodies and their souped-up Mustangs, local white supremacists in their gigantic pickup trucks festooned with Confederate flags, "soccer moms" late for whatever errand they might be on, and truckers who fail to notice the various signs slowing traffic - all drive down this street well over the speed limit, endangering children and pets and even homeowners who might be working in their yards. I posted a comment on my FB page about the speeding and was literally attacked by various members of the aforementioned who said I should "take down license plates and report them if this was really true." Of course, there's no time to do such a thing with a vehicle whizzing by at 45 mph. But I have thought about just standing on my front porch with my cell phone on video and turning THAT over to the local police department. A single patrol car could probably issue enough tickets to balance the police department's budget for a year, if they had the sense to position a vehicle at this intersection! It's a sign of the times that I even thought about doing something like this!
I have a granddaughter at age 10 did a science project on this, now she had the help of her father on this but it was still Amy who took the data and wrote the report. Her dad is a computer science professor but they only use a stop watch and a tape measure. They live close to Amy's grade school in Waterloo Ontario. They timed the cars flying through the school zone and then calculated their speed. Amy and dad did the calculations for her report. The teacher liked the report and sent a copy to the local paper. New enforcement followed.
Wonderful!!
Yes, Jack, and it was the local reporter Larry Hobbs at the Brunswick News that would not let go.
It was a mother and a community that would not let go.
And the reporter as well, Kathleen. Are you familiar with his role? Why dismiss his commitment?
Exactly! Hobbs is to be commended for his doggedness.
While I agree with the sentiment of supporting local news, unfortunately, all local newspapers are not equal. If you live in a heavy red area, the newspaper often reflects the community, only occasionally allowing an opposing view on the OpEd page. Bravo for the Brunswick, GA reporter!
Deleted & reposted
There are many subscribers in this forum who are life-long urban dwellers and have little to no idea what passes for news in underserved and rural areas. It is the assumed that news, via tv, radio and internet, is equally available to all*. Of the three, radio is sometimes the best available. I can tell you, from personal experience, that when we bought our property and built our home on the eastern plains of Colorado in the late 90s, phone lines had not yet been run so not only did we not have a landline we had no internet access at home for 5 years. (We both had in town jobs where we had access to news and information.) We did have cell phones that may or may not have had a signal at any given moment; they were unreliable at best. Papers national or local (Denver, Colorado Springs dailies) were not available for delivery.
Often overlooked is the fact that local publications in rural areas may not be newspapers at all but advertising pages with a few tidbits of "local news", human interest and recipes thrown in. Sometimes people don't understand the distinction. The stories are frequently about a local sports team or event that is sponsored by a business that advertises in the paper. They are often "free" and available in boxes on the street and inside the businesses that advertise in them. People pick up these publications because they are free and contain just enough content to be of interest. And because these publications are free people are lulled into the idea that it must be easy and inexpensive to produce a (quality) newspaper so why pay for it? . Sadly, legitimate local newspapers are becoming a rarity more quickly than most might guess.
My point is this, there are large swaths of rural, sparsely populated areas in the US. Those rural dwellers' inability to freely access reliable, accurate news and information is a disadvantage in their decision making processes. They take what they can get and it's not always honest or reliable.
*Biden's Broadband Infrastructure initiative will help equalize the ability of rural dwellers have to access to a broader range of news and information. For everyone, this is a plus.
Yes! Exactly! And many conservative communities even prohibit their public libraries from subscribing to newspapers they disagree with.
Lin, I will answer your comment in 2 segments. First, yes, it is often likely that libraries in rural red areas carry none of the "national newspapers" and may carry the "most local" large paper, frequently Gannett, Sinclair, etc., but often not even that. It is difficult for urban dwellers, especially coastal urban dwellers, to understand just how narrow the scope of news and opinion can be in these areas. It is frequently not an option of picking and choosing from a vast array of sources but what is presented to you locally. This includes material that one's pastor deems acceptable for consumption.
The Poynter Institute is a valuable asset to the Journalism community. It can be invaluable to both students and working journalists as well as the public at large (specifically Politifact). My daughter received valuable guidance more than once from Poynter while in J School and after, particularly with regards to investigative journalism.
I appreciate the willingness of subscribers to search out resources like Poynter and promote them. Unfortunately, Poynter is unable to tackle the compounded issues of "news deserts" in small, far flung communities across the United States. I say this as someone who was born and raised in a town with a great daily, the Washington Post, has lived in major metro areas across the United States as well as in isolated rural areas that are unbelievably detached from the real news of our country and the world.
One if the issues that is choking the life out of our country right now is the libral urban coastal dweller's arrogant belief that they always know more and they always know better than the rural dweller. (I am an expat urban coastal liberal, I know what a jerk I can be). Many do not understand the deep seated distrust that keeps rural folk from picking up a mainstream newspaper and what it is they distrust. That's not okay. Entrenched arrogance is one of the things that keep small town and rural readers from seeking more center and liberal news sources We need to acknowledge and address that issue honestly and aggressively.
Thank You, Daria. Like you, I have lived in DC but also in rural Illinois.
Being from NYC, I always was surprised at WaPo's swipes at the Times and even DC Metro's swipes at the NY subway. I'd never experienced that going the other way.
What I found, in Illinois was that when people asked where I was from and I said NYC, they expressed assumptions and resentments which truly surprised me. I really had never thought much about Illinois one way or another when I unexpectedly landed there, but clearly they 'knew' all about NYC without ever having been there. I just listened. It was an education.
And maybe that is part of the problem, not that some people in big cities have the wrong ideas about small towns, but that we don't think much about them at all. And that some people in small towns have too little information and too much resentment.
Lin, Migrating from a big city to a rural area teaches many very valuable lessons, including the fact that rural folk can be kind, generous but wary...those of us from places like NYC & DC or LA & San Francisco may be met with suspicion...do we have horns? (😉).
You said, "And maybe that is part of the problem, not that some people in big cities have the wrong ideas about small towns, but that we don't think much about them at all. And that some people in small towns have too little information and too much resentment".
There is a lot of truth in what you've said. Living in México as a US citizen has made me much more aware of how baked in preconceived notions are and how they can negatively impact even the most casual interactions between locals and in comers
Liberal
lin, There may be a local news movement that there, which can grow and grow. I found the poynter.org yesterday and do not have any idea of the depth or width of what is happening in terms of the growth of local news. I'll just keep digging from time to time, so others may follow and go much deeper into this area than I can. See a sample of wish lists of a few of poynter's people:
Rick Edmonds, media business analyst:
Financially, local news is not out of the woods by a long shot. It’s encouraging, though, how many sources of support have emerged. A partial list: readers and advertiser/sponsors, of course; member/donors; national and local philanthropy, both foundations and wealthy individuals; Google and Facebook through their charitable arms (and they may be paying for the content they borrow before long); Report for America; ProPublica and The Marshall Project mastering local partnerships; even Congress is taking a serious look at federal support, picking up a portion of the salaries of local news professionals. Then there are those journalists who don’t let a little thing like a downsizing keep them from their calling. They step up and do essential work for their communities, often with reduced pay or no pay. I am thankful for them.
Sitara Nieves, Poynter faculty:
I’m grateful for all the local public radio newsrooms that continue to invest in stories that matter. There are plenty of those stories to choose from — and you can hear lots of them just by listening to anything your public radio station produces — but here are two that have stayed with me this year because of the stories they broke, how they keep following that story over time, and how transparent they made their reporting processes.
The first story I’m thankful for is the reporting collaboration between Nashville Public Radio and ProPublica’s Local Reporting Network, published in October: “Black Children Were Jailed for a Crime That Doesn’t Exist. Almost Nothing Happened to the Adults in Charge.” The story is horrifying, meticulously reported, and quickly led to local and state government responses, along with a request for a Department of Justice investigation from 11 members of Congress.
I also appreciate that the reporters, Meribah Knight from Nashville Public Radio and ProPublica’s Ken Armstrong, detailed their extensive reporting process in a methodology section at the end of the story: providing transparency that shows how the story was reported, and also offering a great primer for anyone interested in investigative journalism.
The second is WBEZ Chicago’s multimedia story “Drowning in Debt,” published this month, where María Inés Zamudio reported on how tens of thousands of Chicago homeowners — most in Black-majority areas — are in debt on their water bills after city leaders hiked water costs to raise revenue.
I’m thankful that WBEZ published their reporting methodology in a piece co-authored by data editor Matt Kiefer and Zamudio, which details how WBEZ began reporting the story in the first place. (They’ve been on this story since an initial investigative piece in 2019.) Zamudio and Kiefer show how they used the extensive data they gathered as part of their reporting, which I love. For example, they published the source code they wrote to build the database they created to identify vacant homes with water debt, and made data available for download.
I’m grateful to everyone doing all the work we hear, watch, and read every day. You are appreciated.
Have feedback or a tip? Email Poynter senior media writer Tom Jones at tjones@poynter.org.
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Whew! Thanks. And then there a student journalists. I recall decades ago our Erasmus Hall HS editors being feted at Columbia Univ.
Here is a link to formidable work done by students in Kentucky
https://www.wbur.org/onpoint/2020/12/10/the-student-journalists-who-uncovered-a-police-training-manual-that-advocates-violence
lin, I am curious to know about your interest in journalism -- American and International? What prompted your inquires? Have you worked in the field? Have you been in contact with organizations, such as Society of Professional Journalists (SPJ), Neiman Foundation for Journalism, American Journalism Historians Association (AJHA), Report For America, The Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication (AEJMC), etc. Thanks.
You wrote: "Often overlooked is the fact that local publications in rural areas may not be newspapers at all but advertising pages with a few tidbits of "local news", human interest and recipes thrown in. Sometimes people don't understand the distinction. The stories are frequently about a local sports team or event that is sponsored by a business that advertises in the paper."
This is true of what passes as a "newspaper" in my small town. One other thing they do is post obituaries and letters to the editor, most of which reflect the far right prejudices of the newspaper's owner. Thus, I do not subscribe. They have one reporter, who is primarily an ambulance chaser and sports writer, along with the obits.
Ellen, I think that's typical. It is very disheartening to live in that kind of an environment.
Last week our local paper broke the story of a black woman who was hit and killed by a white woman who admitted she’d been drinking. This happened 5 months ago and as yet no charges.Police just recently issued a warrant to pull data from the car.
Several months ago local news reported on a young ,black couple who were arrested after videoing, from their car, the police’s handling of a a young, disturbed teen. The charges were later dropped when the DA realized they didn’t have a case.
So there is hope !
Human life value is weighted. To some, life is not at all precious so long as it is someone else's or another family's.
I hope the victim's family realizes some justice for the victim.
I live in a red county in Florida and I’m very grateful for our local newspaper. The Republicans…not so much !
Our local paper went under and was bought by another local newspaper that still prints the news for this area, but it's slant to the right makes it hardly worth reading.
We have a local paper owned by a conservative group. They do print letters to the editor from varying points of view. I have also wondered about their main news reporter's political leanings. That's a good thing.
The paper may still be contributing to a sense of community, to business, local activities, etc. As long as the paper is there, perhaps, some moderation will leak through as time goes on.
The return of Local News is not a 'sentiment' KellyS, it is a necessity. A local paper has to be in syn with its community, while the news department, along with reporters focus on the facts, which are reflected in the work.
Sentiment: a view of or attitude toward a situation or event; an opinion. So, to clarify, my view is that local news should be supported. My reality is that, until moving to Ecuador last summer, my "local"Forida newspaper, owned by Gannett, published articles so slanted in support of a MAGA perspective, rarely publishing Letters to the Editor opposing that view, such that I could not support it with a subscription. Often, it was a regurgitation of national news reported much better elsewhere.
Kelly, your comment makes me wonder who is really in control at Gannett owned newspapers. Our “local” paper is owned by Garnett and while they often “regurgitate” national news they also regularly publish Letters to Ed from both sides.
Our Republican county commissioners actually had a proclamation mocking an opinion writer for the editorial board and her immigrant status.Someone got under their skin ! Our elected sheriff and some local politicians often refuse to provide comments to the “local “ newspaper, preferring instead to comment to the truly local, and right leaning news source.
Today’s story in our “local” paper in the You Can’t Make This @#$& Up section:
Fl gov recently visited here for anti-masking mandate press conference along with the local D.A. and sheriff. They showcased the parents of a child with Down’s Syndrome who claimed their daughter was abused at school with a face mask tied to her head. Police reports released this week indicate parents lied to investigators, photos were staged, and the child actually preferred having the mask on.
I would say this “local” story too would get under Repubs skin but alas the damage is done. The father had his millisecond of fame with Tucker and raised thousands through crowd-funding to “ fight mask mandates.”
Our family is all in FL otherwise we would seriously consider Mexico or joining you in Ecuador !
Local conservatives constantly complain about the Gannett-owned Palm Beach Post being too liberal and favoring liberal letter writers. They published one from me today which only got political in its last few words after leading one to think they were reading something about sports. Here's the letter if you're interested in reading it:
“Though sports rarely creep onto the Opinion pages of the Post, a recent article in the Sports section concerning the almost wholesale firing of college football coaches raises questions. Could it be that college sports, particularly football and basketball at large universities, have strayed far from the purposes such educational institutions are intended to serve? Are the schools in it only for the money? Once a university “sells out” in regard to its athletic programs, it is a small step toward “selling out” in other areas, such as politically-motivated appointments to its medical school faculty.”
Y'all come to the State of Yucatán...you would be welcome and you would love it here.
Thank you, Kelly. Your experience with a local newspaper is not uncommon and then there is the more frequent one of there being none. I have just learned of the Poynter Institute devoted to local news, journalism, teaching and placing reporters. Where there are local newspapers, with news departments antithetical to democracy, other options must be available. Even right-wing outlets may be of service in some ways to communities. This is a larger discussion and, unfortunately, I must quit now. I look forward to more exchanges with you on the subject. Salud!
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Poynter_Institute
Glad the NYT lived up to their motto THIS time. I'm finding more and more of their reporting to be horribly biased.
Correct. That is why Bari Weiss quit their editorial staff and started posting as "Common Sense" on Substack. Writes occasionally, but most postings are by others with whom she agrees.
I don’t want to be a negative voice… but the Times article about Kyle Rittenhouse was almost enough for me to cancel my 40+ years subscription to the same…
Indeed.
Hedge Funders are buying them up to make them obsolete in our country.Mid West just got a huge offer.