For close to two decades, journalist Vicki Larson brought the vibrant stories of Marin County to life as a lifestyles editor for the Marin Independent Journal (Marin IJ). When she joined the publication in 2004, the lifestyles department had 12 passionate journalists dedicated to capturing what makes Marin unique and bringing those accounts to our neighbors.

In May of 2021, towards the end of Larson’s 19 years at the Marin IJ, Alden Global Capital, a hedge fund located in New York, purchased the publication with little interest in serving the community in the way Larson had for so many years.

“[Alden’s] interest was not funding good journalism. Their interest was in buying properties [like that of the IJ] with real estate so they could move [the Marin IJ] out of the real estate into something smaller, slash the staff and then sell that property,” Larson said. 

By 2023, the lifestyles staff had been cut down to just two people. Frustrated, Larson decided to write a column calling out Alden on their unjust tactics but was told that if she were to publish it, she would be fired for insubordination. She published the article and then left the IJ promptly, unwilling to stick around at a publication that had become so far from her values. 

Unfortunately, Alden’s grasp on newspapers isn’t limited to Marin County. It is a national issue, given that the hedge fund owns upwards of 300 publications across the U.S., including Pulitzer Prize-winning publications like the Denver Post. 

“When Alden bought the Denver Post, they slashed their staff, as they do everywhere. The Denver Post was going to have nothing to do with that [nonsense],” Larson said. “So, they ran a photo of all the editors and reporters who had been a part of the Pulitzer Prize-winning team, and they blacked out [those who had been laid off], which was more than half of the staff. [Then the staff] wrote scathing editorials on the front page, and [eventually] all of them got fired by Alden. Every single one.”

Despite the Denver Post’s long list of accolades, Alden’s power over the media industry shows that even the highest-achieving publications are at risk. Beyond the trend of corporations taking over local publications, newspapers in general have become considered lower priorities in many places. 

In 2023, Edison, Georgia, was over half a million dollars in debt. The local community was lost, with no idea where their tax money was going, as clear necessities like the police department were left majorly defunded. The city faced other issues: with a lack of economic growth, many institutions – including local newsrooms – were forced to downsize. 

The Albany Herald, a publication in the area, was forced to shrink its 65-person newsroom to just two reporters over the last few decades. Lucille Lannigan, one of the two reporters on the current staff, moved to Albany at the height of the economic crisis. She began reporting on the issue, highlighting the city council’s failure to file a state audit and their persistent deficit spending. Lannigan’s reporting, along with help from many community advocates, eventually paved the way for an entirely different city council, as the newly informed community elected better-fit members.

Not only did her reporting open community members’ eyes to crucial issues, but it also showed the broader implications of having a strong local news presence. 

“Having [a local] newspaper anchors people in place because they have someone holding their politicians accountable to make the best decisions,” Lannigan said. “It’s also important to have strong newspapers to tell people’s stories because it really humanizes a region that has had backs turned on it in the past.”

Lannigan’s experience in a four-person newsroom is the new reality for many publications nationwide. The impact local journalism has isn’t just specific to rural Georgia: nationwide, local newspapers provide community-specific information that national publications simply cannot supply.

“[Local news] is essential to preserving democracy. Things are still going on, like local politics, but [if] you don’t have a newspaper that’s paying attention to everything that’s going on, [information] can slip through the cracks,” Lannigan said. 

According to the UNC Hussman School of Journalism and Media, between 2004 and 2019, California alone lost around 24 percent of its newspapers, mirroring national trends. Even in Marin, several community newspapers, including the Mill Valley Herald, Ross Valley Reporter and San Rafael Newspointer, have either shut down or merged. 

This contributes to the cycle of news deserts, leaving places like Marin with limited access to essential information. The reduction in resources also threatens community engagement as people must turn to other sources to stay informed. 

Natalie Hanson, a journalist who has reported on Northern California news for local and national audiences since 2018, has seen firsthand the consequences of corporate ownership of publications. 

“All this institutional knowledge gets lost, and I do think that that’s another sign of the times that the business people who run these corporations have so much say in what’s covered. But I also think [that when] interests don’t mesh, [publications] end up covering things that the business owner wants to be covered. Personally, I saw that at the [Marin] IJ, and I saw that [at] the [Chico Enterprise-Record]. I see it all over the place,” Hanson said. 

However, Hanson suggested there may be a solution: nonprofit journalism. Publications like CalMatters or ProPublica are donor-funded but have gained the same amount of traction as other outlets when it comes to covering issues on the state or local level. 

“I think nonprofits are probably the only way this is going to go at this point,” Hanson said. “[But] do I think that it’s the best way? Not necessarily.”

While relying on donors might seem like a good idea, nonprofit publications can become vulnerable to the personal interests of those donors, raising concerns about the newspaper’s influence and longevity.

“I’ve seen nonprofits start to veer back into the same land because it’s still the case [that] whoever’s giving you all this money has an interest,” Hanson said. “If you have a lot of money from certain commercial interests or the Chamber of Commerce, then that’s still going to affect how much you can actually cover, especially people who might be engaged in certain corruption.”

Despite all of these obstacles, many journalists remain committed to their work because they recognize the importance of the industry.  

“[Most] people don’t have the time to spend hours and hours poring over city council agendas, [so] that’s our job, and when we lose that, there’s just so much that the public is missing out on,” Hanson said.

Though it may seem as if there is no clear solution to this problem, one thing remains true: many student journalists across the country have the freedom that many publications are currently losing. 

“I love it when young people are fired up by journalism. Because we need you,” Larson said. 

Despite publications facing obstacles, local journalists around the country understand that the industry is changing and are doing everything in their power to continue storytelling and hold community members accountable.

“I think your role as a journalist is to speak truth to power. That’s what we do,” Larson said. “And if we’re not going to speak truth to power, then what are we doing in this business? Because certainly it doesn’t pay us enough for a living wage. We do it because this is who we are. This is what we stand for.”