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    Local news

    Local news: A reporter in every town that lost one.

    In 2026, 238 American counties had no local news source at all, and nearly 47 million Americans lived with limited or no local news. When a local paper closes, the town's borrowing costs go up.

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    Ryan K. Hertel · heyitskenton

    The problem

    What we're up against.

    • Counties with no local news.

      In 2026, 238 counties had no local news source, and 26 became news deserts in a single year, mostly as small rural papers closed.

    • One closure away.

      In more than 1,400 more counties, just one local source remains, and nearly 47 million Americans live with limited or no local news.

    • Papers keep closing.

      170 newspapers closed or merged in the past year, nearly three a week, and close to 3,500 have stopped printing since 2005.

    • Who it hits.

      People in news desert counties are, on average, poorer and older than the rest of the country, with less schooling.

    What works

    Proven, and ready to grow.

    • Watchdogs save taxpayers money.

      When a local paper closes, the area's government pays more to borrow, about $650,000 more per bond issue.

    • Companies keep to the rules.

      After a local paper closes, nearby company facilities' violations rise 1.1% and their penalties 15.2%.

    • More people vote.

      Across American history, one more local newspaper raised turnout by about 0.3 percentage points.

    • Races stay competitive.

      After the Cincinnati Post closed, fewer candidates ran for local office in the suburbs that relied on it, incumbents won more often, and turnout fell.

    • Nonprofit news is growing.

      Nonprofit newsrooms in one national network took in over $750 million in 2025, up 14% in a year, by their own count.

    What a family could fund

    Where the money goes furthest.

    • A reporter, shared.

      Report for America places reporters in local newsrooms and pays 50% of the salary in the first year, up to $27,500 for early-career reporters, while local editors make every editorial decision.

    • Already at work.

      It says it helped its 200 newsrooms raise $7.4 million locally, on top of $3.5 million it paid toward salaries.

    • Newsrooms that last.

      The American Journalism Project says its $10 million a year for three years led to $53 million more in yearly, recurring revenue for its newsrooms.

    • Saving the paper in town.

      The National Trust for Local News keeps community papers going, and says it's now the main local source in over 40 counties.

    • Rural towns are left out.

      More than 95% of the biggest journalism grants of recent years went to cities.

    Honest limits

    What money can't promise.

    • Still leaning on grants.

      Foundation grants are still the largest source of nonprofit newsrooms' money, 48% of it.

    • New outlets open where news already is.

      Nearly 80% of news startups are in cities, and more than two papers are lost for every startup.

    • Fewer people follow closely.

      21% of Americans follow local news very closely, down from 37% in 2016.

    • Trust has slipped.

      70% of Americans trust information from local news at least somewhat, more than national outlets but less than before.

    • Owners can shape coverage.

      When one company bought many local TV stations, their coverage shifted from local to national politics.

    Hard questions

    Asked and answered.

    1. You might ask

      Won't a rich family's newsroom just push its views?

      Ryan

      The risk is real: a new owner can change coverage. The safeguard is structure: give through programs where local editors decide, at least two steps from donors, and newsrooms that publish who funds their journalism.

    2. You might ask

      Why not let the market decide?

      Ryan

      The advertising model that paid for local news collapsed, and 88% of Americans paid nothing for local news last year, yet everyone pays when the watchdog goes, through costlier government borrowing.

    3. You might ask

      Do people even read local news?

      Ryan

      Fewer follow it closely, but 65% get news from local TV at least sometimes, and 80% say local outlets matter to their community.

    In the slider

    See what your fortune could do here.

    Local news

    The slider prices this cause with these numbers:

    • A local reporter costs about $70,000 a year in pay and benefits, by a local news coalition's estimate.
    • The whole need is two reporters, the same coalition's rule of thumb, for each of the 238 counties with no local news and the more than 1,400 with only one source: about 3,276.
    • A reporter isn't a newsroom: a county with no outlet also needs one built, at roughly $500,000 to start.
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    More of the Blueprint

    Keep reading.

    5 more chapters on the way

    Back to Keep 100

    Sources

    Every number in this chapter, and where it came from.

    1. Source 1: The State of Local News: 2026 Report (opens in a new tab)

      Medill Local News Initiative, Northwestern University, 13 October 2026. Checked 16 October 2026.

    2. Source 2: Financing dies in darkness? The impact of newspaper closures on public finance (Gao, Lee and Murphy) (opens in a new tab)

      Journal of Financial Economics, February 2020. Checked 16 October 2026.

      Compares places where papers closed with places where they didn't.

    3. Source 3: The State of Local News: 2025 Report (opens in a new tab)

      Medill Local News Initiative, Northwestern University, 20 October 2025. Checked 16 October 2026.

    4. Source 4: When the local newspaper leaves town: The effects of local newspaper closures on corporate misconduct (Heese, Perez-Cavazos and Peter) (opens in a new tab)

      Journal of Financial Economics, August 2022. Checked 16 October 2026.

    5. Source 5: The Effect of Newspaper Entry and Exit on Electoral Politics (Gentzkow, Shapiro and Sinkinson) (opens in a new tab)

      American Economic Review, December 2011. Checked 16 October 2026.

      Mostly American daily papers from 1869 to 1928.

    6. Source 6: Do Newspapers Matter? Short-run and Long-run Evidence from the Closure of The Cincinnati Post (Schulhofer-Wohl and Garrido) (opens in a new tab)

      National Bureau of Economic Research, March 2009. Checked 16 October 2026.

      The authors call their results statistically imprecise.

    7. Source 7: The 2026 INN Index (opens in a new tab)

      Institute for Nonprofit News, 9 June 2026. Checked 16 October 2026.

      The members' own figures.

    8. Source 8: FAQ for Newsrooms (opens in a new tab)

      Report for America. Checked 16 October 2026.

      The program's own terms.

    9. Source 9: Impact Report (opens in a new tab)

      Report for America. Checked 16 October 2026.

      The program's own figures.

    10. Source 10: Impact (opens in a new tab)

      American Journalism Project. Checked 16 October 2026.

      The organization's own figures.

    11. Source 11: National Trust for Local News (opens in a new tab)

      National Trust for Local News. Checked 16 October 2026.

      The organization's own account.

    12. Source 12: Revenue and Expenses (2026 INN Index) (opens in a new tab)

      Institute for Nonprofit News, 9 June 2026. Checked 16 October 2026.

    13. Source 13: The State of Local News 2026 (opens in a new tab)

      Medill Local News Initiative, Northwestern University. Checked 16 October 2026.

    14. Source 14: Local News Fact Sheet (opens in a new tab)

      Pew Research Center, 14 April 2026. Checked 16 October 2026.

    15. Source 15: How Americans' trust in information from news organizations and social media sites has changed over time (opens in a new tab)

      Pew Research Center, 29 October 2025. Checked 16 October 2026.

    16. Source 16: Local News and National Politics (Martin and McCrain) (opens in a new tab)

      American Political Science Review, 19 February 2019. Checked 16 October 2026.

    17. Source 17: Membership Standards (opens in a new tab)

      Institute for Nonprofit News. Checked 16 October 2026.

    18. Source 18: Size of the Gap (opens in a new tab)

      Rebuild Local News, 4 April 2023. Checked 16 October 2026.

      Rough estimates from a coalition that advocates for local news.