Our country has lost over a fourth of its local newspapers and journalists since 2005 and may lose a third by the end of 2025. Those people who most need local journalism live where it’s difficult to sustain either print or digital news organizations. Notably, such a loss has been accompanied by the spread of misinformation, political polarization, eroding trust in media, and a yawning digital and economic divide among citizens—creating a crisis for our democracy and society. Abernathy will explain what we, as informed citizens, can do to save local news and nurture grassroots democracy.
Penelope (Penny) Muse Abernathy is visiting professor at Northwestern University’s Medill School of Journalism and is a former senior executive at the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, and Harvard Business Review. She focuses on preserving quality journalism by developing strategies to help news organizations succeed economically in the digital environment.
