This 12 months started with a collection of bleak tales concerning the predicament of native information in America, however there are shiny spots.
One is in Philadelphia, the place the Lenfest Institute for Journalism retains discovering methods to develop native and regional protection and generate useful concepts for the trade.
Lenfest just lately printed a report on its impression in 2023, which is inspiring for these hoping native journalism finds methods to outlive and thrive.
It was additionally a chance for me to have one other dialog with Jim Friedlich, Lenfest’s CEO and government director, concerning the trade, potential options and how one can broaden protection on this 12 months of disruption and election rancor.
The nonprofit, began with a $20 million donation from a cable entrepreneur in 2016, has change into a form of analysis and improvement program within the birthplace of America’s democracy.
Lenfest experiments with methods to maintain information organizations and launch new ones, and organizes nationwide occasions to share findings and assist shops be taught from one another.
Friedlich describes it as having concentric circles, with The Philadelphia Inquirer on the middle. Lenfest owns the every day newspaper and operates it as a for-profit subsidiary.
The following ring features a nonprofit, statewide information startup co-founded by Lenfest referred to as Highlight PA that shares its reporting with greater than 100 shops.
Additional out are nationwide applications supporting new and present information operations. For instance, with the Texas Tribune, Highlight PA and Lenfest fashioned a collective of 36 statewide information organizations in 26 states. They meet nearly to share “challenges, accomplishments, failures, alternatives and threats,” Friedlich mentioned.
Lenfest emphasizes collaboration and leveraging charity. One in every of its gatherings spawned Press Ahead, the $500 million and rising philanthropic fund to save lots of native information.
Lenfest additionally convened a bunch of dailies, together with this one, to chart a course away from print and towards a digital future, which I’m much less obsessed with.
It does all this at comparatively low price. Final 12 months it supplied $13.5 million in grants and raised $11.2 million from 3,000 donors. Of that, $6.5 million went to the Inquirer, $2.5 million to Philadelphia’s native information ecosystem and $3.9 million to fund Highlight PA.
The report additionally described a undertaking that I hope different cities emulate.
For an election to decide on Philadelphia’s one centesimal mayor final 12 months, Lenfest orchestrated a citywide effort to lift consciousness of points at stake and enhance voter engagement.
“In that sense it was a very comfortable 12 months,” Friedlich mentioned. “A brand new mannequin and a brand new stage of collaboration was form of born and grew up.”
Greater than 70 information organizations and group teams participated in “Each Voice, Each Vote.” It was anchored by a public opinion survey figuring out residents’ high points. That led to front-page Inquirer tales about points similar to public security and potential options.
Lenfest’s report quoted Reverend Luis Cortes, CEO of the group group Esperanza: “By no means within the metropolis’s historical past have there been so many mayor boards or a lot information protection on so many subjects vital to the way forward for our metropolis.”
“The impression of that was actually important,” Friedlich mentioned. “It allowed a number of information organizations to cowl the problems that Philadelphians cared about in addition to, or extra so, than the horse race between the candidates.”
The undertaking, began by one other native basis, can be prolonged for 2 extra years. Its subsequent focus can be on accountability and civic engagement, “following by means of on the pre election work into the protection of a brand new administration, and the way individuals can become involved and make their voices heard,” Friedlich mentioned.
Many native papers are chopping protection of federal points as they give the impression of being to cut back prices and deal with their native franchise. Friedlich believes it is a mistake and they need to search for methods to extend engagement throughout this presidential election 12 months.
“We expect the very best and best nationwide election protection can be a patchwork quilt of robust native protection,” he mentioned.
Pennsylvania is among the key swing states, he famous, and up to date elections have come down to a couple tens of 1000’s of votes.
“What occurs on the bottom with protection of Biden and Trump because it applies to Philadelphia, because it applies to Pittsburgh, because it applies to Lancaster, because it applies to Scranton, could have a significant and doubtlessly decisive impression,” he mentioned.
Impartial voters who “are nonetheless making up their minds belief their native information greater than some other supply,” he mentioned. “So we’re dedicated to deeper protection, deeper engagement and deeper involvement in native races and native protection.”
Cities with solely a ghost newspaper operating wire tales and pablum might imagine it is a fantasy.
However profitable fashions make the case that native information will not be a misplaced trigger, if dedicated native house owners and group help are discovered. All will profit if federal help comes by means of, particularly locations missing the sources of massive coastal cities.
Additionally they present there’s nonetheless demand for high quality protection that, at its greatest, continues to have interaction voters and produce communities collectively to deal with main points.
How can individuals reconcile this with bleak trade information?
“I hope the message, that folks ought to take away, is that native information has by no means been extra essential and has by no means confronted higher headwinds,” Friedlich mentioned. “The best way to reconcile that’s to do one thing about it.”
He suggests civic-minded, native executives and buyers spend money on native information shops. Others can subscribe to their native newspaper or help new information organizations.
“Philadelphia doesn’t need to be a unicorn,” he mentioned. “The cash concerned will not be in contrast to what goes right into a well-funded orchestra or regional hospital or a well-supported native college.”
I’d add that involved residents can even hold writing to their state and federal elected officers and urge them to intervene and assist save native information, which Friedlich described as “the important gasoline that drives democracy.”
