I have to be honest with you, Jack, 2023 was rough.

I am sure I am not the only one that feels that way, but when you take a look back at the year, 2023 was the worst year for the news outlets since the pandemic—that says a lot. I mean, during the pandemic news outlets had so many layoffs it was dubbed a "Media Extinction Event."

This past year was so much worse than during the pandemic that as Slate put it, "it doesn't matter if you were an "upstart, legacy, online-only, print, audio, video, niche, general-interest, award-winning, bottom-barrel, for-profit, nonprofit, public, private—almost no type of publication was spared some kind of cost-cutting during this mediapocalypse"—unfortunately, Daily Kos couldn't escape the carnage either.

The problem is that almost every news outlet relies on advertising revenue to cover expenses. Unfortunately, Big Tech like Facebook, Google, and Amazon have taken an ever-growing share of this coveted revenue stream. On top of that, many businesses are spending less of their budgets on advertising—leading to decreased demand and pricing.

I would love to say that as we head into the new year, things are looking better, but at this time, I can't say that. The collapse of our news industry has been decades in the making and there is little indication there will be improvement in 2024.

Thankfully, Daily Kos has you, Jack, and thousands of other readers and activists that value our news content and effective actions. Grassroots donations from the Daily Kos community now account for 60% of our overall income to cover our expenses.

Daily Kos has survived for over 20 years because of the support of our community. That's why I am asking for your help: Please support progressive news and activism by making a $5 or more donation to Daily Kos today.

DONATE
Thank you for all you do,
Amanda McKay, Daily Kos

If you wish to donate by mail instead, please send a check to Daily Kos, PO Box 70036, Oakland, CA, 94612. Contributions to Daily Kos are not tax deductible.