By Dee Anne Finken—LWVWA Director, Local News and Democracy 

The refrain that local news is in crisis has become common knowledge among people who are involved in their communities and who follow the actions and decisions of their city and county councils and school board trustees.   

But last week, we got a closer look at just how rapidly the crisis is growing when scholars at Northwestern University’s Medill School of Journalism—among the nation’s most preeminent researchers on the topic—announced their latest findings. 

Their news isn’t good.  

With an average of 2.5 newspapers now closing each week—up from two a week a year ago—more than half of the counties in the nation now have either no local news source or only one remaining outlet. According to Penny Abernathy, co-author of Medill’s annual “State of Local News Project,” that remaining outlet is typically a weekly newspaper.  

The implications of this worsening situation should be of even greater concern for those of us working to defend democracy and empower voters. As the League of Women Voters of Washington’s study “The Decline of Local News and Its Impact of Democracy” and scores of other research projects have illustrated, the decline is linked with reductions in voter turnout, decreased candidate participation, increased government costs, less effective public health education, reductions in civic engagement, and increased political polarization. 

In spring 2023, after the LWVWA adopted the study, members also reached consensus on a Local News and Democracy position. The position states “it is the responsibility of the government to provide support for conditions under which credible local journalism can survive and thrive.”  

To be clear, the position does not specifically call on government to provide funding to support newspapers—for profit or nonprofit. It simply says government has a responsibility to make sure that conditions are such that allow local news publications to serve us. It is purposely written broadly so League members have the flexibility to support a wide variety of thoughtful efforts while rejecting those that aren’t. 

In reaching consensus on the position, League members in Washington considered the actions of US founders, including their decisions to enshrine protection for a free press in the Constitution and to establish a federal postal service with reduced rates for publishers. The latter measure was to ensure early Americans were kept informed about the actions of their leaders by way of the most effective news distribution vehicle of the times. 

Earlier this year, in Washington, the position allowed the League to advocate for one piece of legislation that will help—at least minimally—stem the tide. WA Senate Bill 5199, approved with wide bipartisan support, extends a Business & Occupations tax preference for qualifying publishers to a full exemption. Those in the industry say that savings will likely equate to the salaries of three full-time positions at the Seattle Times, one full-time newsroom position at each of the other dailies and a half of a position at weeklies. 

Small successes, but a start. 

Meanwhile, because rebuilding local news also means educating consumers about how to distinguish between news and opinion and mis- and disinformation, the League also will advocate this session on behalf of two measures designed to boost news media literacy and digital citizenship in Washington schools. 

The reality, though, is that the decline of local news is a nationwide problem, a situation clearly detailed by Medill scholars and others. As such, it can’t be effectively addressed through efforts in a single state. This is why the LWVWA Board voted earlier this year to seek national adoption of the LWVWA news position by concurrency.  

The road to national concurrence is a long one and requires considerable effort, including securing support from local and state Leagues from across the country.  It will require Washington delegates to attend the national convention in Washington, D.C., in June 2024, where they can hold caucuses and canvass for support.   

The LWVWA has sought national concurrence on only a small number of state positions, according to former LWVWA president Judy Golberg, who has been active with LWVUS for several years. 

The local news crisis is a national problem, added Golberg, who is from LWV Benton/Franklin counties. “This is an issue we should all be concerned with.”

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