Local news reflects the interests and concerns of residents, and promotes accountability and transparency by identifying public officials who may be violating their trust. It also encourages civic engagement and participation by highlighting important community issues that affect people’s daily lives. Its role in fostering community identity and connection is especially significant, as it can be difficult to maintain a sense of belonging when local news outlets disappear.
Local news provides essential information to citizens, from everyday events such as school closures and weather updates, to civic information about local government and crime, to cultural news about the arts and sports. Despite the decline of traditional local newspapers, a majority of Americans say they still get their local news, and this is true across political partisanship and most demographic groups.
Most local news is consumed through television, either through a standalone local newscast or a segment included in the evening news. For example, on SVT, the public broadcaster in Sweden, a 13-minute standalone local newscast airs every weekday evening on SVT1. It is followed by Sportnytt (the sports news) and then Aktuellt (the evening news).
While the number of local TV stations continues to grow, many have consolidated ownership and affiliations. This has reduced the number of independent local news sources, whose financial troubles are exacerbated by dwindling advertising revenue. However, new business models are emerging, and entrepreneurs ranging from journalists to television station owners to founders of digital news sites are finding ways to fill the local news void.