What are “News Deserts”?
News deserts are counties without any locally based source of local news. Special interests have an outsized influence in news deserts.
“The crisis in local news is deepening, and fewer Americans have access to news they need about their communities to be informed citizens,” said Tim Franklin, director of the Medill Local News Initiative and getREAL board member.
This hostile information environment is a key contributor to polarization and the ailing state of democracy; yet philanthropic funding for democracy protection is an estimated 0.7% percent of all philanthropic funding, with the majority going toward issue advocacy.
Media policy and misinformation/disinformation are considered to be the most important areas that need attention.