Community Governance First: Why Needs Must Drive Funding

Angilee Shah, Charlottesville Tomorrow As told to the team at the Local News 2035 project. When I think about the three Local News 2035 scenarios — where commerce dominates, where there's collapse, where the field reimagines its outcomes—I think the reimagined version and the very dystopian AI-driven commercial version are already here at the same time where I live. We’ve ... Read More

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The Crisis of Agency: Why It’s Time To Build What We Need For Ourselves

Richard Young, CivicLex As told to the team at the Local News 2035 project. The scenario that resonates most with me is “Trust, Justice and a New American Way.” It articulates a vision for the future of this field that addresses what I see as the crisis of our times: the crisis of agency. People don't feel any sense of ... Read More

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No Permanent Enemies: Local News Faces Existential Threats that Demand Unity

Darryl Holliday, Commoner Company As told to the team at the Local News 2035 project. There are threats to all of us right now — whether we're TV or newspaper or nonprofit — and we have to recognize that these threats threaten us all, even if we're in different parts of the field. Big tech companies and federal government actors ... Read More

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Looking Forward: Converting Cynicism Into Solutions

Amy Kovac-Ashley, Tiny News Collective As told to the team at the Local News 2035 project. It's a gift to be able to think about the future of journalism. That might sound strange, but this industry doesn't spend enough time looking ahead. We're constantly focused on what's happening right now, what's directly in front of us. Our inability to envision ... Read More

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The Moving Target: Building a Shared Language for Local News

Dale Anglin, Press Forward As told to the team at the Local News 2035 project. I've worked in a lot of different places in philanthropy — kids issues, community development, climate. I was at a foundation that did a little bit of everything, so you had to be a generalist. When I think back to all those different issues, certain ... Read More

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Starting from Community Need: Breaking Out of Our Usual Silos

Craig Aaron, Free Press As told to the team at the Local News 2035 project. What's really important as we think ten years out is: Where are we grounding this conversation? What's the goal? We've been through a long period where big media company profits have been the goal, and sometimes good journalism was a byproduct. We see what that ... Read More

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Centering Equity: Building a Future Where Information Is Not a Weapon

Kimberly Spencer, Director, Colorado Media Project As told to the team at the Local News 2035 project. The future I want to build is really defined by equity — a world where information is treated as civic infrastructure, ensuring everyone has access to the information that they need to navigate their lives. While we have made strides, since January, there ... Read More

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When ‘journalism’ and ‘democracy’ don’t land: How to talk about local news

December 15, 2025

By Katie Hawkins-Gaar

How do you talk about journalism when you can’t use the word itself?  That’s one of the surprising challenges raised by Words That Work: A Toolkit for Newsrooms, a new research-based resource commissioned by Press Forward and conducted by the Beekeeper Group. The project set out to understand what kinds of messages inspire trust and support for local news. Through … Read More

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Martin G. Reynolds, co-executive director of The Maynard Institute, leads a Press Forward cohort.

Beyond the dollar: Helping newsrooms reach sustainability

November 19, 2025

By Graham Ringo

When Press Forward announced its first round of Closing Local Coverage Gaps grants, we knew our impact would depend on more than how much money we gave. Dollars alone cannot rebuild a local news ecosystem. People, ideas, and infrastructure do that.  In our first year of working with grantees, we have been learning alongside them, listening closely to their needs, … Read More

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Paulette Brown-Hinds, publisher of Black Voice News and advisor to Press Forward Inland Empire.

Collaboration without competition: How Press Forward Inland Empire is building statewide momentum

November 16, 2025

By Katie Hawkins-Gaar

Paulette Brown-Hinds has spent her career strengthening local news in California’s Inland Empire. As the second-generation publisher of Black Voice News, she’s helped transform the half-century-old outlet into a solutions-focused newsroom rooted in data and community partnerships. In 2023, she brought that experience to a new role: senior advisor of Press Forward Inland Empire. The Inland Empire chapter is one … Read More

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