Local News Matters

Corey Hutchins looks back at local news trends in 2022 with Bay Edwards and host Tim Regan-Porter. They discuss the growing role of nonprofit newsrooms, collaborative efforts across the country, government support of local news and public notices.

Next, Bay and Rachel Pickarski do a quick fact check of the first episode's interview with the Sopris Sun team. Then, Tim and Rachel discuss takeaways from that interview.

This is an experimental episode, in terms of the segments, whether and how often we'll do them, and whether we'll release them as standalone episodes like this or integrate them into the interview episodes. Let us know what you think.

Note: There's a lot of talk about the Colorado news ecosystem in this episode. (Sorry; not sorry.) We did not intend it to be an ad for Colorado, and future episodes will explore interesting works all over the U.S.

Episode chapters: (0:48) Local news trends with Corey Hutchins (42:09) Fact check of Sopris Sun episode (44:53) Takeaways from Sopris Sun episode

Visit https://localnewsmatterspodcast.com/ for show notes, transcripts and more.

In the first full episode of the Local News Matters podcast, host Tim Regan-Porter sits down with executive director Todd Chamberlain and editor Raleigh Burleigh of the Sopris Sun, a weekly print newspaper and nonprofit in the small town of Carbondale, Colorado. The paper's budget has doubled in the past two years, and Raleigh won the 2022 Innovation Award from the Colorado Press Association for the work he's done there. Over the course of roughly an hour, we discuss the various projects they've launched, their distinctive voice, how they've served more of the community and integrated them into the newsroom, and how those efforts have led to more impact and a more sustainable business.

Episode breakdown:

(4:40) - Background of Sopris Sun + Raleigh, Todd & innovation award

(12:50) - Overview of Carbondale, CO

(17:28) - Projects for and with Latino communities

(26:13) - Business growth, freelancers and community ties

(44:52) - Design & voice

(49:56) - Biggest challenges + balancing hard and soft news

(58:29) - Digital evolution and the lifespan of a print product

(1:05:22) - Rapid-fire questions

Visit https://localnewsmatterspodcast.com/ for show notes, transcripts and more.

In this preview episode, host Tim Regan-Porter introduces the podcast with excerpts from the first four full episodes. Across interviews with journalists and executives of very different organizations, some common themes emerge, including: what it takes to innovate with limited time and money, focusing on service to the community, how to integrate empathy and community listening into journalism, the importance of being authentic, engagement as a step toward diversity and inclusion, the importance of local news for democracy, and maintaining healthy cultures and your own mental health.

Episode breakdown:

(1:11) – Todd Chamberlin (executive director) and Raleigh Burleigh (editor) of the Sopris Sun

(3:32) – Jennifer Brandel (CEO and co-founder) of Hearken and Zebras Unite

(9:55) – Eve Pearlman (CEO and co-founder) and Erica Anderson (engagement journalist) of Spaceship Media

(18:07) – Michael Bolden (CEO and executive director) of the American Press Institute.

Visit https://localnewsmatterspodcast.com/ for show notes, transcripts and more.