Philanthropy steps up for local news

Predictions are not exactly the business of the AP, where I work — rather, our mission is trusted, fact-based, independent journalism that is free from influence. And the facts about the current state of the news business are well known — to the point where they’re not exactly news:

• State and local news sources are among the most trusted, but newsrooms have been shutting down and bleeding journalism jobs thanks to market failure brought on by decline in advertising.
• The public has a hunger for news but has developed new habits of where they seek it, leading them to encounter rampant misinformation accelerated by changes in technology.
• Philanthropy is increasing support of news organizations — helping news organizations fill the gaps in information needs of the public.

At AP, for example, support from philanthropy helped us deepen our coverage of democracy ahead of the election, and then additional support helped AP provide that content beyond traditional AP members to small, local newsrooms. That meant, for example, that small outlets such as AZ Luminaria, The Colorado Sun, and the Vernon Reporter could run AP’s election result interactives, as well as use AP photos and election coverage. A number of newsrooms told AP that this helped free up newsroom staff to do other needed reporting.

In 2025, we’ll need more of this, please. Philanthropy needs to step up even more to support local newsrooms along with the underlying infrastructure that helps them succeed.

AP has launched a new nonprofit sister organization, the AP Fund for Journalism, to help support local journalism. This is a natural fit in an organization that got its start in 1846, when five New York City newspapers came together and chipped in for a pony-express route through Alabama to get news of the Mexican War to readers in the north. The crisis in news has led to the blooming of many new, digital-first newsrooms to meet local and issue-related news needs, from education to criminal justice. AP’s role is to help other newsrooms succeed by helping them fill in gaps and needs.

I choose to take the rosy view that in 2025, funders will step up and increase investment in a whole host of efforts working to strengthen newsrooms across the nation and continued experimentation on new ways to meet audience where they are.