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Meeting the Revenue Challenge: Philanthropy's Role in Local News Growth

Mark Fuerst, Caroline Porter, Feather Houstoun

Philadelphia, PA: Wyncote Foundation (2026), 32 pp.

"Starting in February 2025, we set out to identify and examine success stories among local news groups, where success was sustainability in business operations, even if that term has a range of interpretations. We reasoned that the experiences of these successful organizations might carry predictive ... more

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The Local News Playbook: Creating Value for a Sustainable Future
Deep Insights

London; Miami: FT Strategies; Knight Foundation (2026), 105 pp.

"Drawing on global interviews with newsroom leaders, a cross-market survey of exemplary organisations, and FT Strategies’ work with more than 1,000 media businesses worldwide, the playbook identifies the core drivers that distinguish financially sustainable, community-rooted local news. It reframe ... more

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Cines de pequeña escala: nuevas estéticas, prácticas y plataformas en la región andina

Christian León, Diana Coryat, Noah Zweig (coord.)

Quito: Editorial El Conejo; Universidad Andina Simón Bolívar Ecuador (2025), 363 pp.

"Este libro examina el surgimiento de los cines de pequeña escala en los Andes, que abarcan las periferias digitales de Ecuador, Bolivia, Perú y Colombia. Analiza críticamente las prácticas audiovisuales heterogéneas y los agentes subalternos, dilucidando las tensiones, contradicciones y resist ... more

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15 anos: Geografias da comunicação. Orientações teóricas e metodológicas do percurso

Sonia Virgínia Moreira, Maria José Baldessar, Daniela Cristiane Ota, Roberta Brandalise, Jacqueline da Silva Deolindo, Paulo Celso da Silva

São Paulo: Intercom – Sociedade Brasileira de Estudos Interdisciplinares da Comunicação (2024), 419 pp.

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News deserts in Ukraine: Mapping localities without local news

Media Development Foundation (MDF) (2024)

"First of all, following a reform in 2020 that reorganised Ukraine’s districts, merging many of them to form larger ones, the situation on the map is not critical. There are indeed "unhealthy districts", but the overall situation is better than it could be. With the exception of the temporarily oc ... more

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Understanding Homeless Media: A Study on Social Media Based Informal Local News in Five Indonesian Cities

Geger Riyanto et al.

Remotivi; Internews (2024), 107 pp.

"Homeless media refers to news outlets that initially distributed information solely through social media, with the majority of them now based on Instagram. Nowadays, as our findings suggest, homeless media outlets have emerged as an important source of local news, referred to for their quick update ... and locally relevant content. Using content analysis of their news, interviews with homeless media founders and personnel, and discussions with media audiences, this study attempts to understand their emergence and dynamics, how they are positioned among other actors in the contemporary Indonesian media landscape, and their prospects and issues. [...] The following are the main findings of this study: • Homeless media outlets are mostly run informally, with only a few employees. Only one from nine we interviewed is registered as a media entity, and that was only after years of operation. There are two homeless media outlets that are only managed by one person. Others are mostly managed by two to five people. They may hire more on occasion if they need to create higher-quality content, such as endorsements. • Four homeless media outlets we interviewed began as something entirely different, such as hobby, community, or paid Instagram promotion pages. They changed course after noticing increased engagement by providing local news, as well as citizens voluntarily sending them newsworthy incidents to be published. • As the majority of homeless media outlets are not legally registered as a media entity, this raises concerns about governance among government officials and journalists. However, our homeless media interlocutors stated that they have implemented an internal code of conduct, particularly in terms of filtering misinformation. • The informality of homeless media outlets provides them with advantageous flexibility, allowing them to respond to audience submissions or circulating internet content while making quick decisions about what content to publish. • The most engaging content on homeless media is related to crime, followed by city facts, eccentric citizen behavior, city romantization, commotion among citizens, and accidents; however, they most frequently post about shopping/service recommendations, government policies, crime, culinary recommendations, and city facts. • Homeless media outlets provide impressively specific and local news to their audiences immediately after it occurs, thanks to audience submissions and the circulating local social media content. They function as an effective local information hub. • Nonetheless, because homeless media outlets rely on social media as a publishing platform and distribution channel, losing their accounts, whether due to a social media ban or hacking, can pose a significant risk to their operations. Our interlocutors have no plans to mitigate the risk. This happened to another account managed by @merapi_uncover personnel, and they were unable to do anything about it. • Many of our audience interlocutors admit to being first exposed to local news through homeless media, and they actively use homeless media outlets to learn about recent events in their community, such as incidents they witnessed or traffic jams. • Homeless media’s most engaging content—city facts and romantization—evokes a sense of connection between the audience and their city. • Although not all, homeless media outlets may become participatory spaces, with citizens using them to draw attention to incidents or public issues, or to respond to other posts. [...]" (Executive summary, pages 3-5) more

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Reimagining Public Media: Strategic Leadership and Innovation in Local News

Feather Houstoun, Mark Fuerst, Sarah Lutman et al.

Wyncote Foundation (2024), 20 pp.

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Between Shadows and Stories: Navigating the Journey of Afghan Journalists, from Aug. 15, 2021 to Aug. 15, 2023

Afghanistan's National Journalists Union (2023), 17 pp.

"The Afghan media landscape stands at a crossroads, navigating a landscape rife with challenges and uncertainties in the wake of the Taliban's resurgence. The post-Taliban era, marked by a thriving media sector with 160 television channels, 311 radio stations, 90 print newspapers, and 26 news agenci ... es, has witnessed a drastic transformation. The current media landscape, with 70 television channels, 211 radio stations, 11 print newspapers, and 9 news agencies, reflects a significant decline in numbers and diversity. Under the de facto rule of the Taliban, the media sector has encountered substantial constraints. Censorship and self-censorship have become rampant, with journalists and media outlets navigating the perilous territory of permissible content. Threats, intimidation, and violence against media professionals have created an atmosphere of fear, leading to an exodus of skilled journalists. Investigative journalism, once a cornerstone of accountability, has been stifled, and access to unbiased information has dwindled, leaving citizens ill-informed. The closure of media outlets has far-reaching implications, including restricted information flow, suppressed free speech, and diminished content diversity. The narrative has further fragmented between Kabul and the provinces, where media freedom varies significantly. Female journalists remain conspicuously absent in many regions, underscoring the entrenched gender disparity in the field. International media outlets, under surveillance and restraints, grapple with maintaining their operations and integrity in an increasingly controlled environment. Social media, once a platform for open dialogue, faces censorship and restrictions, hampering the exchange of ideas. As Afghanistan's media landscape evolves, the absence of comprehensive legal frameworks has exacerbated challenges. The suspension of the Mass Media Law and the Access to Information Law during the transitional phase has left media professionals in a legal gray area. The need for inclusive consultations with media stakeholders to shape these laws cannot be overstated. In this complex milieu, it is evident that safeguarding the media's role as a communication bridge between the government and the people is paramount. Collaborative efforts between the Islamic Emirate, the international community, and media support organizations are essential to prevent the collapse of Afghanistan's media landscape." (Conclusion, pages 16-17) more

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News deserts in Europe: Assessing risks for local and community media in the 27 EU Member States. Preliminary report - Literature review and methodology

Tijana Blagojev, Danielle Borges, Elda Brogi, Jan Kermer, Matteo Trevisan, Sofia Verza et al.

European University Institute, Centre for Media Pluralism and Media Freedom; Local Media for Democracy Project (2023), 41 pp.

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Cajibio: Voces alternativas y comunitarias de un territorio en disputa

Esteban Sánchez Molina

Bogotá: Fundación para la Libertad de Prensa (FLIP) (2023), 35 pp.

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Media Wealth Building: The Report of the Local News Plans Project

Jonathan Heawood, Sameer Padania

Public Interest News Foundation; NewsNow (2023), 43 pp.

"Between September 2022 and January 2023, the Public Interest News Foundation (PINF) worked with local communities in Bangor, Bristol, Folkestone, Glasgow, Manchester and Newry, to create ‘Local News Plans’ for their areas. We facilitated discussions between local stakeholders, including news pr ... more

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Local media in transitional fragile states: The cases of Iraq and Libya

Carola Richter, Anja Wollenberg, Reda Fhelboom

Journal of Alternative and Community Media, volume 7, issue 2 (2023), pp. 137-155

"Local media that cater to their local communities are still rare in Arab countries due to government control and centralization of media production. In some transitional states, however, we observe a mushrooming of new local small media initiatives after regulation modes have changed. Yet, these me ... more

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Puracé: La palabra ancestral y tejidos de comunicación en la cuna del río Cauca

Esteban Sánchez Molina

Bogotá: Fundación para la Libertad de Prensa (FLIP) (2023), 39 pp.

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Der regionale Blick. Medien in Tatarstan und Baschkortostan und Russlands Krieg gegen die Ukraine

Sebastian Cwiklinski

Russland-Analysen, issue 441 (2023), pp. 13-18

"Der Beitrag analysiert die Berichterstattung über den Angriffskrieg gegen die Ukraine in den russischen Teilrepubliken Tatarstan und Baschkortostan, welche sich beide durch die starke Präsenz von turksprachigen Bevölkerungsgruppen auszeichnen. Die Medienanalyse ergab, dass die Berichterstattung ... more

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Small Cinemas of the Andes: New Aesthetics, Practices and Platforms

Diana Coryat, Christian León, Noah Zweig (eds.)

Cham: Palgrave Macmillan (2023), xix, 378 pp.

"This book examines the emergence of small cinemas of the Andes, covering digital peripheries in Ecuador, Bolivia, Peru and Colombia. The volume critically assesses heterogeneous audiovisual practices and subaltern agents, elucidating existing tensions, contradictions and resistances with respect to ... more

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Survival-Guide für lokale Medien: Wie der Journalismus Innovationen schafft, um nachhaltige Wege zur Unterstützung lokaler Gemeinschaften auf der ganzen Welt zu finden und gegen Desinformation vorzugehen

Jacqui Park

Potsdam; Wien: Friedrich Naumann Stiftung; International Press Institute (IPI) (2022), 20 pp.

"Die Schlüsselfragen für den Erfolg lokaler Nachrichtenmedien sind die folgenden: Lösen Sie ein Problem für ihre Zielgruppe? Identifizieren und füllen sie eine Nachrichten- oder Informationslücke für ihre Gemeinschaft bzw. Gemeinschaften? In diesem Bericht beschäftigen wir uns damit, wie Jou ... more

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Marmato: Entre la minería y el olvido de los medios

Esteban Sánchez Molina

Bogotá: Fundación para la Libertad de Prensa (FLIP) (2022), 33 pp.

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Misinformation Across Digital Divides: Theory and Evidence from Northern Ghana

Elena Gadjanova, Gabrielle Lynch, Ghadafi Saibu

African Affairs, volume 121, issue 483 (2022), pp. 161-195

"Social media misinformation is widely recognized as a significant and growing global problem. Yet, little is known about how misinformation spreads across broader media ecosystems, particularly in areas with varying internet access and connectivity. Drawing on research in northern Ghana, we seek to ... more

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Greening Africa’s News Deserts: The Search for Sustainable Local Media in Sub-Saharan Africa
Deep Insights

Franz Krüger

Johannesburg: Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung (KAS) (2022), 38 pp.

"Among principles that should underpin policy choices are: a focus on systemic impact; particular attention on the areas where information poverty is greatest; platform-neutrality, while preferring platforms used most commonly; ongoing monitoring of developments in and around media at local levels t ... more

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Local Media Survival Guide 2022: How Journalism is Innovating to Find Sustainable Ways to Serve Local Communities Around the World and Fight Against Misinformation
Deep Insights

Jacqui Park

Vienna: International Press Institute (IPI) (2021), 81 pp.

"This report is meant to share the experiences and lessons of local media practitioners globally, and to build a community for networking and support. It’s about telling their story in their own voice – and helping all involved learn from one another. By talking to both new digital start-ups and ... more

The Local News Playbook: Creating Value for a Sustainable Future Deep Insights

Greening Africa’s News Deserts: The Search for Sustainable Local Media in Sub-Saharan Africa Deep Insights

Local Media Survival Guide 2022: How Journalism is Innovating to Find Sustainable Ways to Serve Local Communities Around the World and Fight Against Misinformation Deep Insights

The Local News Playbook: Creating Value for a Sustainable Future
Deep Insights

Greening Africa’s News Deserts: The Search for Sustainable Local Media in Sub-Saharan Africa
Deep Insights

Local Media Survival Guide 2022: How Journalism is Innovating to Find Sustainable Ways to Serve Local Communities Around the World and Fight Against Misinformation
Deep Insights