On this Fourth of July, Grumpy Editor notes newspapers in the U.S. are vanishing at the rate of two a week, reveals a new report.
Areas without reliable sources of local news tend to be poorer, older and less educated than those covered well, finds Northwestern University’s Medill School of Journalism, Media and Integrated Marketing Communications.
The U.S. had 6,377 newspapers at the end of May, down from 8,891 in 2005, the report tallies, adding 360 newspapers have shut down since the end of 2019, all but 24 of them weeklies serving small communities.
Northwestern says about 75,000 journalists worked on newspapers in 2006 vs. 31,000 now, while annual revenue slipped to $21 billion from $50 billion in the same period.
IN CASE YOUR FAVORITE NEWS OUTLETS MISSED THESE…
WORLD WAR II DESTROYER FOUND. World War II U.S. Navy destroyer USS Samuel B. Roberts is found by ocean explorers close to 23,000 feet down off the coast of Samar Island in the Phillippines.
MAJOR HURRICANE SEASON LOOMS. The Atlantic hurricane season continues through Nov. 30 and experts warn this year’s storms could be more intense. With 21 possible hurricanes forecast, 21 names are ready to be used for each storm.
CONDORS FLY AGAIN OVER CALIFORNIA. Last spotted in the area in 1892, condors soar again over California coastal redwoods. The California condor is the largest native North American bird with a wingspan of nearly 10 feet.
‘FLASHY MOTHS’ APPEAR. Described as “very flashy,” moth species not seen since 1912 are found at Detroit airport, arriving in the luggage of a traveler arriving from the Philippines.
HUGE STINGRAY REELED IN. A fisherman in Cambodia’s Mekong River reels in a 660-pound stingray, world's largest recorded freshwater fish. Residents nickname the giant stingray "Boramy," or "full moon," because of its round shape.
THOUSANDS OF BEES BUZZ OMAHA HOME. About 6,000 bees, attracted by bee-friendly flowers outside a home in Omaha, are removed from inside the walls of an Omaha couple's 100-year-old home. The bees likely infiltrated through a hole in the mortar of the home’s brick exterior.
VA PLAN EYED. A Department of Veterans Affairs plan that contains nearly $2 trillion in facility closures, consolidations and upgrades in the nation could be in jeopardy after 12 senators announce they oppose the agency’s reassessment of its facilities, reports Stars & Stripes.
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