May 14, 2024 - In recent contract negotiations with parent company Gannett, a local newsroom union is fighting over the extent to which generative AI will be used for news content generation. more

A longtime McAlester (Oklahoma) News-Capital journalist and editor who died unexpectedly is being remembered as “an old-fashioned reporter.” more

It’s a million dollar question. And one that every publisher with a digital subscriptions model has asked themselves at least once. more

Seattle Times publisher and CEO Frank Blethen will step down at the end of 2025 after four decades leading the family-owned company. more

The tech giant is rolling out AI-generated answers that displace links to human-written websites, threatening millions of creators. more

Brier Dudley of The Seattle Times says he can’t stop thinking about the Pew Research Center’s survey, which found people are paying less attention to news and turning to non-journalism sources to get informed. This further highlights the urgent need for solutions that universally address America’s local journalism crisis, as if more evidence was needed. more

May 13, 2024 - AP has updated its guidance on the use of generative AI in the news report to allow for some experimentation around the use of the technology in specific use cases. more

The University of Florida College of Journalism and Communications (UFCJC)  and Democracy Fund have announced a $225,000 grant to support a multi-university research project that will aid government agencies in handling unduly burdensome public records requests without restricting the flow of civic information. more

May 8, 2024 - April saw an uptick in legislative activity surrounding public notice issues as many states approached the date they’re scheduled to adjourn. Press groups in Minnesota and Louisiana found themselves in scramble mode as public notice bills they opposed began moving. more

May 8, 2024 - AI is disrupting the local news industry: Will it unlock growth or be an existential threat? more

The state of New York, led by a powerful coalition of local publishers, has just approved game-changing legislation in the fight to preserve local news outlets and community journalism. By including a $90 million payroll tax credit for hiring and retaining local journalists in the state's 2025 budget, New York has become the nation's first to take such a major step to protecting this vital industry. This is a commitment to local journalism that the U.S. Congress should urgently build upon.

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El Rito Media, LLC has agreed to purchase from Gannett three newspapers in New Mexico: the Alamogordo Daily News, the Carlsbad Current Argus and the Ruidoso News. more

The inaugural report of the Pew-Knight Initiative reveals that despite fewer U.S. adults following local news and few paying for it directly, 85% still consider these outlets important to their community and 63% believe they are in good financial shape. more

Meredith Delaney has been appointed president and CEO of the Scripps Howard Fund, the philanthropic arm of The E.W. Scripps Company, effective May 8. She succeeds Liz Carter, whose retirement was announced in January. more

Here are some specific points for newspapers to consider as they evaluate how to build trust this year — plus resources and inspiration for getting started. more

May 7, 2024 - Pennsylvania is the latest state that could stop jurisdictions from paying newspapers for publishing their legal notices.  more

In a message to readers, Greg Farmer, executive editor of The Kansas City Star, introduced a new and improved digital experience: The Star’s Edition. He wrote: "Consider this a 'Best of The Star' Edition where we’re sharing every day the must-see stories, videos, photos and other content you can’t find anywhere else." more

Jeremy Gulban was trying to pause, after a spree of acquiring newspapers in small towns where Wall Street firms had milked their local papers dry. But he couldn’t resist the opportunity when Alden Global Capital closed a group of six Minnesota papers in late April. more

Challenges and opportunity for local news are spelled out starkly in a new survey by Pew Research Center. Most U.S. adults appreciate local news, Pew found, but fewer are paying close attention, only 15% pay for it and most don’t know it’s in a financial crisis. more

ProPublica was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for Public Service for the work of Joshua Kaplan, Justin Elliott, Brett Murphy, Alex Mierjeski and Kirsten Berg. The award was presented for groundbreaking and ambitious reporting that pierced the thick wall of secrecy surrounding the Supreme Court to reveal how a small group of politically influential billionaires wooed justices with lavish gifts and travel, pushing the Court to adopt its first code of conduct. more