For more than two decades, Sue Schardt has been committed to building a stronger and more inclusive media industry, including as CEO of the Association of Independents in Radio in Dorchester, MA. Beginning in 2010, Sue Schardt began building Localore, a new local journalism ecosystem involving hundreds of independent and station-based producers working in partnership with individuals and organizations based in communities across the U.S.
Local journalism has declined significantly across the country in recent years, with thousands of local news outlets closing or operating with significantly diminished resources. One important factor in this decline is the consolidation of newspapers and local radio stations over two decades. The traditional business model of local newspapers is all but obsolete. As more people get their news online, it’s increasingly difficult to attract the kind of advertising revenue necessary to keep local newsrooms afloat and, while podcasting represents a boon for audio producers, the pipeline for new voices is quickly narrowing as the most resourced players begin to dominate the field. This now includes players such as Facebook and Google who command enormous attention from news consumers by aggregating content, yet with few of the safeguards provided by traditional journalism. As a consequence, advertising revenues are drawn away from local newsrooms and at a time when making the leap into digital is already beyond the resources and abilities of many smaller news organizations.
These are among the factors contributing to the erosion of a community-based news culture and at a time of national crisis, when local connection is more important than ever.
