Category: News desert
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When the reporters disappear, who’s watching city hall?
As McClatchy cuts reporters, local politicians lose a headache—and communities lose a watchdog. Now that the smoke is clearing from the hedge-fund-inspired cuts at McClatchy newspapers, we’re getting a clearer picture of its “news” strategy across 30 newsrooms from California to Florida. The direction is stark: fewer reporters, fewer local voices and, especially, fewer journalists…
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The hedge fund that owns McClatchy newspapers has forfeited the right to use the McClatchy name
Maybe Chatham Asset Management can call the newspaper group the “Artificial Intelligence Chronicle.” When I heard the news Thursday that the hedge fund that owns McClatchy’s 30 newspapers had decimated what was once one of the nation’s great newspaper groups, I immediately thought about two members of the McClatchy family I had the privilege of…
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Why using tax dollars to fund local news makes sense in California
State funding builds on the philanthropic bridge that’s sustained local news in recent years, giving newsrooms more stable footing. Local news is dying across America — everyone knows that by now. But California is betting on two bold experiments to help reverse the trend. The first is the California Local News Fellowship, the nation’s largest…
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A question I hear often: What news sources are most reliable?
I offer some specific suggestions below — but as a rule: read broadly, question everything, and don’t overlook local news. Whether I’m giving a speech or teaching journalism students at Fresno State, one question keeps coming up: which news sources are actually reliable? My answer: read broadly. And if you want specifics about news sites,…
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From the heart of California, a new health reporting fellowship is telling the stories of residents struggling to access health care.
Veteran journalist offers a closer look at the San Joaquin Valley’s health-care realities In the San Joaquin Valley, many families live with the quiet strain of a health care system that often fails to reach them. This is farmworker country, where small rural communities stretch for miles between towns and the nearest hospital or medical…
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Collaborative Crusade: Journalists, funders unite at Stanford to rescue local journalism from decline
By Jim Boren The atmosphere was charged with optimism as about 200 news leaders and foundation executives convened a journalism conference at Stanford University. Their shared objective: Devise a comprehensive strategy to revitalize the precarious business model of news, especially traditional newspapers. Discussions at the California Journalism Summit revolved around cultivating sustainable support through avenues…
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Without reporters covering city hall, school board, planning commission meetings, democracy at local level threatened by an uninformed citizenry
When I watch TV coverage of a news conference at the White House, I’m reminded of how reporting resources are disproportionately allocated in today’s news environment. The dozens of journalists at the White House are essentially giving us the same story, while many city council and school board meetings across America are not being covered…
