Small Press, Big Ideas

By Paul Gewuerz

Small Press, Big Ideas is a podcast about the business of local news and community journalism in the US. Host Paul Gewuerz interviews entrepreneurs and journalists in the field to get their take on wh... more

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FAQs about Small Press, Big Ideas:

How many episodes does Small Press, Big Ideas have?

The podcast currently has 122 episodes available.

Small Press, Big Ideas episodes:

October 06, 2025 Reimagining Local Media at Scale
In this episode, Paul sits down with Ryan Heafy, COO and Co-Founder of 6AM City, one of the fastest growing local media companies in the U.S.
Ryan shares how his background in aerospace engineering and process driven thinking collided with traditional journalism to create a scalable, sustainable local news model. The conversation explores 6AM City's unique approach to content, how they’re leveraging AI for efficiency and expansion, and how 6AM is positioning itself for the future of news without relying on paywalls or nonprofit dollars.
Links:
Ryan Heafy - LinkedIn
6AM City
Behind the Newsletter Slack community
6AM City Newsletter Studio
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This podcast is sponsored by ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠LocalPod.co⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠, helping local news publishers produce revenue generating podcasts. ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Click here to schedule a call⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
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Subscribe to the Local News Industry Pulse newsletter to receive a weekly briefing of news, policy, trends, and more in the local news industry: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://localnewsindustrypulse.beehiiv.com/subscribe

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...more
39min
October 02, 2025 Bonus: The Journalism Salute
Today I'm airing an episode from another podcast that you may be interested in: The Journalism Salute hosted by Mark Simon.
On The Journalism Salute, Mark Simon interviews working journalists about who they are and what they do. The emphasis is on a diverse guest list. Half the guests are people of color, more than 60% are women, and there's representation from all 50 states. Gain insight on what you need to know to be a successful journalist in 2025.
pod.link/journalismsalute
Mark Simon - LinkedIn
Jai Smith - LinkedIn
Lehigh Daily
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This podcast is sponsored by ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠LocalPod.co⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠, helping local news publishers produce revenue generating podcasts. ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Click here to schedule a call⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
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Subscribe to the Local News Industry Pulse newsletter to receive a weekly briefing of news, policy, trends, and more in the local news industry: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://localnewsindustrypulse.beehiiv.com/subscribe

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
...more
27min
September 29, 2025 News That Stays Local, Infrastructure That Scales
Today Paul talks with Warwick Sabin, President and CEO of Deep South Today, about how his organization is rethinking local journalism in the South through a collaborative, nonprofit model. Based in Mississippi and New Orleans, Deep South Today supports two award winning newsrooms, Mississippi Today and Verite News, and is laying the groundwork for broader regional expansion.
Links
“Multi-local” newsrooms aim to get more news to more people
Deep South Today
Mississippi Today
Verite News
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This podcast is sponsored by ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠LocalPod.co⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠, helping local news publishers produce revenue generating podcasts. ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Click here to schedule a call⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
---
Subscribe to the Local News Industry Pulse newsletter to receive a weekly briefing of news, policy, trends, and more in the local news industry: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://localnewsindustrypulse.beehiiv.com/subscribe

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
...more
35min
September 15, 2025 Pulitzers and playbooks for local news
Today Paul sits down with Ken Doctor, Founder and CEO of Pulitzer Prize winning newsroom and Lookout Local, to discuss how local journalism can not only survive but thrive in the digital era. From launching a digital first newsroom in Santa Cruz to expanding across the West Coast, Ken shares the strategic building blocks behind Lookout's success: strong models, sustainable funding, and mission driven people.

Links:
Ken Doctor - LinkedIn
Lookout Local
Lookout in the Classroom
Google News Initiative Catalyst Project
The Knight Growth Challenge Fund
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This podcast is sponsored by ⁠⁠⁠⁠LocalPod.co⁠⁠⁠⁠, helping local news publishers produce revenue generating podcasts. ⁠⁠⁠⁠Click here to schedule a call⁠⁠⁠⁠
---
Subscribe to the Local News Industry Pulse newsletter to receive a weekly briefing of news, policy, trends, and more in the local news industry: ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://localnewsindustrypulse.beehiiv.com/subscribe

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
...more
29min
September 08, 2025 Inside the Mission Driven News Revolution
Today Paul sits down with Matthew Watkins, Editor-in-Chief of The Texas Tribune, for a conversation on nonprofit journalism, civic engagement, and navigating polarization in today’s media environment. Matthew shares his journey from local Texas reporting to leading one of the nation's premier nonprofit newsrooms, and offers candid insights into what makes The Tribune unique, from its funding model and newsroom culture to its commitment to transparency and nonpartisanship.

Links:
The Texas Tribune
The Brief
T-Squared Blog
Texas Tribune Festival
Who Funds Us page
Matthew Watkins - LinkedIn

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This podcast is sponsored by ⁠⁠⁠LocalPod.co⁠⁠⁠, helping local news publishers produce revenue generating podcasts. ⁠⁠⁠Click here to schedule a call⁠⁠⁠
---
Subscribe to the Local News Industry Pulse newsletter to receive a weekly briefing of news, policy, trends, and more in the local news industry: ⁠⁠⁠https://localnewsindustrypulse.beehiiv.com/subscribe

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
...more
29min
August 18, 2025 Local news without an audience is just creative writing
Today sits down with Jonathan Kealing, Chief Network Officer at the Institute for Nonprofit News (INN), to explore the future of local journalism and the challenges of building, and keeping, an audience.

Links:
Jonathan Kealing - LinkedIn
Institute for Nonprofit News (INN)
Journalism without an audience is just creative writing - Jonathan's piece in Editor & Publisher
FindYourNews.org – Discover nonprofit news outlets near you
NewsMatch – Year-end matching gift campaign for nonprofit news
Trusting News – Project focused on rebuilding trust in journalism
LION Publishers
Local Media Association
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This podcast is sponsored by ⁠⁠LocalPod.co⁠⁠, helping local news publishers produce revenue generating podcasts. ⁠⁠Click here to schedule a call⁠⁠
---
Subscribe to my newsletter: ⁠⁠https://localnewsindustrypulse.beehiiv.com/subscribe

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
...more
41min
August 11, 2025 The Poisonous Metric That Could Kill Your Newsroom
Today Paul sits down with veteran journalist turned UX consultant David LaFontaine to break down what local and niche publishers really need to know about analytics, design, and building trust. From the myths of "data-driven" decisions to the hidden costs of bad UX, David explains how small publishers can use data not just to survive, but to thrive.
Links:
True Path Analytics
FouAnalytics
Connect with David:
[email protected]
David LaFontaine - LinkedIn

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
...more
1h 8min
August 05, 2025Reinventing Local Journalism in Toronto
In this episode, Paul sits down with Anita Li, founder, publisher, and CEO of The Green Line, Toronto’s award-winning hyperlocal news outlet. Anita shares her journey from starting in journalism at age 14 to leading innovative, community-driven media.
The Green Line: thegreenline.to

TikTok: @greenlineto

Instagram: @thegreenlineto and @tglhelps

Anita Li’s newsletter, The Other Wave: Subscribe on Substack

Reynolds Journalism Institute guide to the Action Journey model
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This podcast is sponsored by ⁠⁠⁠LocalPod.co⁠⁠⁠, helping local news publishers produce revenue generating podcasts. ⁠⁠⁠Click here to schedule a call⁠⁠⁠
---
Subscribe to my newsletter: ⁠⁠⁠https://localnewsindustrypulse.beehiiv.com/subscribe⁠

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
...more
36min
July 28, 2025 Partnering with Local Micro Influencers
In this episode, Paul sits down with the leadership team at Pittsburgh's Public Source, a nonprofit newsroom based in Pittsburgh, PA, to explore how they’re tapping into micro-influencer partnerships to reach new audiences. What began as an experimental outreach has evolved into a promising strategy to bridge traditional journalism with today’s creator-driven platforms.

Read Halle's LinkedIn piece that inspired the episode

📰 Public Source: publicsource.org

📸 Instagram: @publicsource

👤 Follow Halle, Jennie, and Natasha on LinkedIn
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This podcast is sponsored by ⁠LocalPod.co⁠, helping local news publishers produce revenue generating podcasts. ⁠Click here to schedule a call⁠
---
Subscribe to my newsletter: ⁠https://localnewsindustrypulse.beehiiv.com/subscribe

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
...more
50min
March 31, 2025 Season Three Has Wrapped!
Today Paul has a quick message about the podcast, when to expect new episodes, and info on an upcoming event that you won't want to miss!

Links:
Upcoming workshop - Wednesday, April 16th, 9AM MST: Create a Profitable AI Powered Podcast - Register Today
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This podcast is sponsored by LocalPod.co, helping local news publishers produce revenue generating podcasts. Click here to schedule a call
---
Subscribe to my newsletter: https://localnewsindustrypulse.beehiiv.com/subscribe

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
...more
3min

FAQs about Small Press, Big Ideas:

How many episodes does Small Press, Big Ideas have?

The podcast currently has 122 episodes available.

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