Being a beat reporter on the local news industry means I can point to examples of smart experiments, I’ve interviewed people who devote their work to making local news better, and I get to learn from some of the best local journalists out there.

I also, from time to time, get to talk with my colleague and Poynter’s media business analyst, Rick Edmonds, to help me fill in some blind spots. At the beginning of a new year, it felt like time for that again. I asked Rick what he thinks is coming for local news, about the status of legislation to support local news and what worries him the most for the industry.

Here’s what he told me: 

Kristen: What are you watching this year in local news that the rest of us should be thinking about?

Rick: Whether newspaper companies’ revenue can at last level out — or even increase. The next twists and turns in the growth of nonprofit and for-profit digital startups. Collaborations and cross-platform combinations like the Chicago Sun-Times merger into the public radio station there. I also have an eye on trust issues. Is there a way to tell it straight on the lies of former President Donald Trump and the Trumpies and their media lackeys but open minds and dialogue to more reasonable conservative opinion, especially in local communities? Unless you think reasonable conservatism is an oxymoron.

Kristen: You wrote last week about the growth of Axios Local and what it might mean for existing local newsrooms. That story made me think of the news that another national org is making a play into local space with the announcement that The New York Times is buying The Athletic. What should we know about both of these organizations and the potential impact they might have on local news, good, bad and otherwise?

Rick: Neither is going to crush the local paper, but collectively they and other niche offerings whittle away at what’s left of the franchise. I worry that investors have soured on putting capital into the industry (although newspaper stocks have been doing better of late). At the same time the venture capital crowd and upstream buyers like The New York Ttimes lavish money on launches, front-loaded with big salaries and expenses, and years from turning a profit. Not exactly a level playing field.

Kristen: What’s the latest on federal legislation aimed at supporting local news?

Rick: Nothing about it is easy — from breaking through political inertia to framing a fair formula that minimizes First Amendment issues. If the pending proposal for a subsidy of local journalists’ salaries doesn’t make it into law in the next several months, I hope that and/or related help lives to see another day.  

Kristen: What’s worrying you the most for local news in 2022, and what makes you feel the most optimistic? 

Rick: Green shoots are not the same as sustainable business models for the established players or the new ones in local news. We are not up to cruising speed yet. At the same time there has been growing recognition of the importance of local news to local civic life. Philanthropy has very much woken up to the need and is addressing it. Also I am delighted to see so many new outlets and initiatives addressing segments of cities and states that have been long neglected — and doing so with great energy and creativity.