A recently released report from Northwestern
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Medill found in 2023 the average number of newspapers disappearing had increased to 2.5 per week from two in 2022. As a result, this year already 131 newspaper closures across 77 counties have either merged with another newspaper or stopped publishing entirely. Consequently, Medill has updated their forecast and now projects that by the end of 2024, one-third of U.S. newspapers will have disappeared since 2005. Presently, of the 3,143 counties in the U.S., there are 204 counties (a.k.a. “news deserts”) without any local newspaper. Moreover, there are now 1,562 counties (over one-half of all counties) with just one newspaper. Often times that newspaper is published weekly.
Medill found “news deserts” are more likely to be in lower income areas in which broadband access is less prevalent. The median household income in “news desert” counties is $54,587, compared to $74,580 for the total U.S. Moreover, in “news desert” counties, 16.6% are below the poverty level compared to the national average of 11.5%.
In addition, Medill, for the first time, listed 228 counties (7%) with only one newspaper as “endangered.” The “watch list” counties include two million people and are predominantly located in the South and Midwest. Many of these areas have significant racial minority populations with the average poverty rate of 22%.
The report also noted some positives for the newspaper industry, among them 164 startups over the past five years.
Penny Abernathy, a Medill visiting professor and co-author of the report, noted, “The significant loss of local news outlets in poorer and underserved communities poses a crisis for our democracy. So, it is very important that we identify the places most at risk, while simultaneously understanding what is working in other communities.”
Another casualty is the loss in the number of journalists. Medill noted that nowadays there are 43,000 fewer journalists. This is a drop of about two-thirds of the total number of journalists from 2005. Most of these journalists had been at daily newspapers. Texas, now the second most populated state in the country, has had its population grow 50% since 2005. At the same time there has also been a decline in the number of journalists working in Texas of 65%. Similarly, two of the least populated states, South Dakota and Alaska, have had their population grow by 20% since 2005, yet have lost one-third and two-thirds of their newspaper journalists, respectively.
Medill noted an initiative by the Federal Communications Commission, in 2011, to increase digital and broadcast outlets to improve its local news coverage, with newspapers facing financial difficulties. Despite the FCC’s plea, in its report, Medill reported there are now approximately 550 digital-only local news providers as well as 700 ethnic media outlets and 225 public broadcast stations offering local news. A majority of these digital only news providers are located in metropolitan areas away from “news deserts”.
Although the loss of newspapers in nonurban areas continues to be documented, the latest Medill report found in recent years, two-thirds of the newspapers that have ceased publication are located in or near major metropolitan centers. Since 2005, 20 of the 50 largest metro areas have seen a decline of up to 50% of its community newspapers. A large majority of these shutdowns have been in suburban or ex-urban areas rather than in the central cities. Among the prominent metros with a large falloff in published newspapers include New York, Chicago and Boston.
The Alliance of Audited Media which audits and tracks the paid circulation of print for years reported this year the combined paid print and digital circulation at 504 newspapers was 10.2 million. In 2005 for the same publications, the paid circulation for printed newspapers only had been 50+ million.
Local News Initiative director at Medill, Tim Franklin said, there are two trends accelerating newspaper closures. One is a wave of independently owned newspapers that have finally given up after years of struggling with pandemic-era economic stressors. The other is large newspaper chains selling off or closing properties in the face of declining revenue and large debt burdens.
According to the Pew Research Center, in 2022, the estimated ad revenue for newspapers based on an analysis of financial statements for publicly traded newspaper companies. was $9.8 billion, a 5% drop-off from the previous year. In 2005, estimated ad revenue for newspapers was $49.4 billion. Furthermore, in analyzing publicly traded newspaper companies, Pew reported in 2022 digital advertising accounted for 48% of total ad dollars, an increase from 17% in 2011.
Another byproduct facing the newspaper industry is consolidation which creates a lack of diverse opinions. Medill noted that over half the dailies and about one-fourth of all weekly newspapers are now owned by ten companies. The increase in acquisitions and mergers have also resulted in the loss of jobs in journalism.
Nonetheless, at a time when the political landscape is polarized, having a diversity of opinion is important. With one or zero local newspapers available, that difference of thought has been disappearing. Furthermore, the loss in the number of professional journalists comes at a time when the country is awash on social media and other platforms with non-creditable information resulting in a country with misinformed citizens.
