When I moved to Kentucky, I wrote a piece for the New York Times about what it was like for a lifelong New Jersey resident to settle in the Bluegrass state. When the article was reprinted in the Courier Journal, a local media publisher saw it and asked if I would be interested in a weekly column.
“You can write about anything,” he said, “as long as it’s not political or controversial.”
“No problem,” I replied, tongue planted firmly in cheek. After all, isn’t the point of commentary to raise questions and explore relevant issues?
I welcomed the challenge and have enjoyed 34 years writing a weekly column for three different media outlets, not always adhering to the original constraints. Of course, there were occasional letters, phone calls, and emails when anything political or controversial was explored, but no matter. Reader response comes with the territory.
Paperboys of long ago are long gone, and with the advance of technology, the news landscape has become increasingly barren. According to University of North Carolina’s Hussman School of Journalism and Media, between 2005 and 2020 more than one-quarter of the nation’s newspapers went out of business, creating vast news deserts in communities of all sizes.
At the same time, continuing rounds of layoffs gutted newsrooms, even in dailies and weeklies noted for excellence in journalism. What is left are “ghosts” or shells of their former selves. In Murray, the local paper has shrunk from six days a week down to five, and some days coverage is pretty thin.
The Messenger in Mayfield is down to three days a week from six. In Paducah, The Sun is in print Tuesday through Saturday. After nearly a hundred years of publishing at least five days a week, The Post-Intelligencer in Paris, Tenn., has trimmed its days-a-week in print to three.
Although there is plenty of news to report, the number of local news outlets is dwindling.
Not only has proliferation of social media eroded readership, increased preference for entertainment over substance also seems to be a factor in the decline in readers.
Nationwide, according to University of North Carolina, newspaper readers are vanishing at an accelerating rate. Over the past 15 years, “total weekday circulation – which includes both dailies and weeklies – declined 40 percent, from 122 million to 73 million, for a loss of 49 million. In the last four years alone, newspapers shed 20 million in circulation, an indication that the pace of downward slide may be increasing.”
As readership plummets and organizations are downsized, coverage declines. After a week away from home this month, I reviewed a week’s worth of the local paper and discovered the most important story was the opening of the Regional Cancer Center at Murray-Calloway County Hospital. The County Fair also received front page coverage that week, along with the ongoing drought, and news of a former “American Idol” contestant performing in town.
Other useful coverage included stories of a street closure, embezzlement of a half-million dollars from a business in Aurora and a response by the local hospital administrator to the closing of an obstetric unit of a hospital in nearby Paris, Tenn.
Some of the pieces that interested me were tagged “Special to the Ledger,” most from Murray State University and local organizations and non-profits. Pictures abound, from club meetings, to mural painting, and a demolition derby. Sports — local, regional, national, high school, college, and pro – are consistently featured, accompanied by colorful photos.
There is little that is political or controversial in the sample week, which makes me wonder how a small newspaper continues to cover crucial areas when revenue is tight and staff trimmed down. Research conducted by news site FiveThirtyEight claims that the public is mostly unaware of the media crisis. A poll conducted by the Pew Research Center revealed that 71 percent of Americans thought their local news media was doing at least somewhat well financially, even though only 14 percent said they had paid for local news in the past year. But if local papers go away or are weakened even more, serious consequences are likely.
Sage Journals has reported that “government is worse off when local news suffers. In addition, inadequate local news coverage has been linked to more corruption, less competitive elections, weaker municipal finances, and a prevalence of party-line politicians who don’t bring benefits back to their districts. Even worse, when local papers close, people don’t find another option. Relying on national outlets for local news tends to result in people being more likely to vote for one political party down the ballot.
An action step for individuals is to take responsibility for paying attention to the inner workings of city and county government. Information about meeting times and places, committees, budgets, etc. is available. Murray City Council meetings are broadcast live on Murray Electric Ch10 and Spectrum Ch 381. For more information reach the City Clerk by email or call 270-762-0300.