Why newspapers collapse in some towns and not others is the subject of new analysis published by NiemanLab.

An article by Wisconsin-Madison School of Journalism & Mass Communication PhD candidate Abby Youran Qin looked at esearch that identified five key drivers – ranging from racial disparity to market forces – that determined which towns lose their papers and which ones beat the odds.

And it isn’t bad luck – it’s a systemic pattern. Qin says since 2005, the US has lost more than one-third of its local newspapers, creating ‘news deserts’ where corruption is more likely to spread and communities may become politically polarised.

The research, published in Journalism & Mass Communication Quarterly, and the subject of an original article in The Conversation, analysed factors behind the decline of local newspapers between 2004-2018.

–newspapers follow the money, not community needs: Local newspapers survive where affluent subscribers and deep-pocketed advertisers cluster, with low-income and diverse communities losing theirs.

–newspapers don’t adequately serve diverse communities, with a tendency for journalists in white-dominated newsrooms talking repeatedly to the same community leaders they always quote. The ‘parachute journalism’ approach also means a dearth of good news or other positive stories.

–population growth doesn’t always save newspapers: It depends on who is moving in: affluent newcomers bring subscriptions and advertisers’ attention. But growth driven by high birth rates, typically seen in less developed areas with more racial and ethnic minorities, doesn’t translate to revenue. The news gap experienced by fast-growing communities may persist where local journalism depends primarily on traditional advertising and subscription revenues rather than diversified revenue sources such as grants and philanthropic donations.

–neighbours’ newspapers can save yours: Rather than competing, neighbouring papers often become allies, sharing breaking news, splitting investigative costs and attracting advertisers who want regional reach. While this collaboration can sometimes cause papers to lose their local identity, having some local journalism is still better than none.

–left or right? Local papers die either way. In this highly polarised era, it turns out that there’s no significant link between a county’s partisan makeup and its ability to keep newspapers. Partisan battles might dominate national headlines, but local journalism’s survival hinges on practical factors such as money and market size. Saving local news isn’t a left vs. right debate ­– it’s a community issue that requires nonpartisan solutions.

Summarised from Why some towns lose local news – and others don’t