Future of local media: In search of a sustainable purpose

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  Quantumrun Foresight
• November 22, 2021

The newspaper industry has been undergoing a significant transformation, with a decline in physical newspapers and a shift towards digital platforms. Despite these challenges, local newspapers have managed to carve out a niche for themselves by focusing on local content, building a strong community fanbase. However, the rise of search engines and social media platforms, along with changes in advertising budgets, present new challenges and opportunities.

Future of local media context

Since 2004, the US newspaper industry has seen a decline in the number of newspapers, with one out of every five closing their doors. This trend has led to a substantial reduction in newspaper jobs, with the industry experiencing a roughly 50 percent decrease in employment. In 2019, this pattern continued as the two largest newspaper companies in the US, Gannett and GateHouse, completed a merger that was expected to result in further layoffs in newsrooms that were already stretched thin.

However, despite the challenges faced by the newspaper industry as a whole, local newspapers have managed to maintain a high level of trust and confidence from the general public. These local media organizations have carved out a niche for themselves by focusing on local themes, heroes, and concerns. This focus gives them a competitive edge over national news firms, as they are able to provide coverage that is directly relevant to their readers. This localized coverage helps to build a strong community fanbase for local outlets, which in turn helps to keep them financially viable.

Despite the relative success of local newspapers, the 2020s may still present significant challenges for these outlets. Many local media organizations are struggling to compete with search engines and social media platforms, which often aggregate their headlines and limit web traffic to their websites. This trend, coupled with the fact that traditional advertising budgets are increasingly being diverted to these digital platforms, may continue to put financial pressure on local newspapers.

Disruptive impact

As local news organizations grapple with financial challenges, a shift towards digital platforms becomes an increasingly viable strategy. Platforms like Facebook and Twitter, could provide these organizations with a lifeline, allowing them to tap into the vast audiences that these sites host. This move could lead to an increase in readership and potentially boost subscription rates for local media outlets. 

In addition to embracing digital platforms, local media outlets may also need to explore unconventional sources of funding to sustain their business models. Philanthropists, who are often interested in supporting initiatives that contribute to the public good, could provide much-needed financial support to local news organizations. This support could help these outlets continue to focus on relatable content even if the readership is limited.

However, the need to attract online audiences could lead to a greater emphasis on sensational or click-worthy content. Similarly, the reliance on philanthropic funding could influence the type of stories that are covered, depending on the interests of the donors. Furthermore, local media outlets may need to increase the number of advertisements they run, which could also impact the user experience. As such, while these strategies could help local news organizations stay afloat, they may also lead to changes in the way local news is presented and consumed.

Implications of local media sustainability

Wider implications of local media sustainability may include:

• An increased focus on reporting local stories that aren’t readily available on national news outlets.


• Greater levels of direct government subsidies for local news outlets to maintain basic levels of local news coverage.


• The growth of local media co-opts for outlets operating in the same towns, cities, or states/provinces that can pool resources and provide specialized services to individual local media members.


• Increased job opportunities for social media managers, programmatic advertising managers, and other online specialists to support the online business activities of local media outlets.


• Reduced levels of local government accountability and an increase in various forms of private-sector corruption should local media reporting become uneconomical in select communities.  


• A more environmentally friendly media landscape, reducing the need for physical newspapers.


• A greater digital literacy among the population, as individuals need to navigate online platforms to access local news.


• An increased cultural exchange and understanding, as people from different regions gain access to local stories from across the country.

Questions to consider

• Do you believe a shift to fully online platforms will affect the authenticity of local media?


• How do you think philanthropists can or should support the finances of local media?