If you are a loyal viewer of Ozarks Public Television, you may have caught my recent appearance on “Sense of Community,” a show that takes an in-depth look at public affairs issues.
As a TV show guest, I'm no Tom Hanks or George Clooney — but, if you missed it live, you can catch the show in the video section of the OPT website.
Gregory Holman, a reporter and editor for KSMU Public Radio and KOZK Ozarks Public Television, invited me to join him to talk about local news, what has been happening with the decline of traditional media, and what is the future in a community like Springfield and a region like the Ozarks.
The Hauxeda collaborates with Holman and his colleague, Michele Skalicky, the KSMU news director, on occasional projects. We support each other as nonprofit news organizations — both housed on campus at Missouri State University as part of its public affairs mission.
In organizing my thoughts for the interview, I was brought back to the foundation of what led us to launch the Hauxeda, and what led me back to Springfield two years ago.
Local news really matters for the quality of life in our community.
And the future depends on you.
Newspapers, number of journalists, in steep decline
Although more recent data is not available, a 2021 report from the Pew Research Center found that across the U.S., more than 30,000 local journalists have lost jobs since 2008.
A more recent report from Northwestern University, called The State of Local News, paints a similar bleak picture. Since 2005, more than 2,500 newspapers have closed. That means roughly one-fourth of the papers that existed just 20 years ago are gone. While most of those eliminated are weekly papers, the change means about 20 percent of Americans live in what are called “news deserts.”
The report clearly states the danger if such a trend continues:
“This is a nation increasingly divided journalistically, between those who live and work in communities where there is an abundance of local news and those who don’t. Invariably, the economically struggling, traditionally underserved communities that need local journalism the most are the very places where it is most difficult to sustain either print or digital news organizations.”
Researchers have found communities without strong local journalism see lower civic engagement, less efficient government, and less accountability among local leaders. A 2018 report from the University of North Carolina journalism school concluded: “Our sense of community and our trust in democracy at all levels suffer when journalism is lost or diminished.”
Daily Citizen is one answer to the problem
Springfield has not been immune to these economic and societal forces at work across the country. The newsroom staff at the Springfield News-Leader is less than one-third of the size it was when I left there in 2014 after four years as executive editor. Local TV also has experienced some consolidation in news staffing.
The Daily Citizen was founded to help fill some of the gaps left by the persistent reductions made by for-profit media in staffing, coverage and publication schedules.
One of the main things that makes us different from traditional media is we are a nonprofit, independent organization.
The Daily Citizen works for the community. It is run by local people and supported by local people and organizations. Our Board members are not compensated and will get no return on their investment. Our journalists are committed to telling the community’s stories in a nonpartisan, factual manner.
Like other nonprofits in our community, we need to make just enough money to sustain — and hopefully expand — our operations. Our current annual budget is roughly $1.3 million.
We have a five-year plan to reach sustainability and are relying on generous donors to help cover our expenses while we build the long-term revenue.
Through support for the Daily Citizen, you are doing something about it
This is where you come in.
We eventually expect revenue from subscribers will cover roughly 40 percent of our budget, with the remainder coming from sponsorships from local businesses, donations from individuals and limited grant funding.
In the end, the amount of local journalism — news and features specifically about Springfield and the immediate area — will depend on your help, through subscriptions and other donations.
We will only have as many journalists here as the community is willing to support.
If you've read this far, I thank you for your investing your time and interest in the challenges facing local journalism.
If you are not already a subscriber, I hope you will consider joining the more than 1,800 people who already do so. Details can be found here. We have a couple of different options for trial rates, or people can choose a monthly subscription if they want to take a test drive.
And I would ask you to consider a donation in addition to your subscription. Your gift supports 100 percent local news that connects you to your community.
P.S. Stay tuned in the coming weeks for some exciting news for readers of the Daily Citizen. We'll soon be making it easier than ever to access our content from your mobile devices.
