Reading List
The following articles, books, reports and websites were referenced by interviewees or were linked in their written work. They may provide helpful background for future work on this project.
Bowling Alone, Robert Putnam
“In a groundbreaking book based on vast data, Putnam shows how we have become increasingly disconnected from family, friends, neighbors, and our democratic structures– and how we may reconnect. Putnam warns that our stock of social capital—the very fabric of our connections with each other —has plummeted, impoverishing our lives and communities.” Both Jennie and Terry referenced Bowling Alone as guiding their vision of the big-picture goals of library + news partnerships. These partnerships should ultimately seek to build the types of interconnected and informed communities we want to live in.
Civic Media Census, Nina Wiengrill, Future of Local News Network (now News Futures)
“A research report aimed at understanding the characteristics, values, and practices of local civic media — a growing movement of organizations advocating that journalism is a tool for change and should not be limited to merely informing the public. The report offers insights into patterns among these organizations, such as methods of community participation and engagement, mechanisms for measuring local impact, and the emergence of a new journalistic ethos.”
Civic Media Series, The Objective, Free Press, and the Future of Local News Collective
Personal essays from local news leaders in the emerging field of civic media highlighting impactful local projects and partnerships across the U.S.
Info Districts, Simon Galperin, The Community Information Cooperative
“A public policy program that advances media policy to establish local news as a public utility. The Info Districts program enables the development of special service districts and other public media institutions that meet the local news needs of BIPOC and working-class people by supporting participatory, public service news models like The Jersey Bee.”
Is Your Journalism a Luxury or Necessity?, Harry Backlund
An article in City Bureau which documents the “information pyramid” framework developed by several community journalists as a way of re-conceptualizing journalism to better meet a given community’s information needs.
Journalism is a public good. Let the public make it, Darryl Holliday
An essay in the Columbia Journalism Review in which Darryl makes the case for the necessity of participatory civic media.
“Librarianship as Citizenship”: The Promise of Community-Based Learning in North American Library and Information Science Education, Poole, Agosto, Lin, and Yan
This journal article details a program at Drexel in which library students are embedded at either the Philadelphia Free Library or a local nonprofit where they partner with staff and community members to co-design new information services. This could be a model for the type of collaboration between MLIS programs and public libraries that Terry mentioned as a way to seed and sustain more Library Newsroom projects.
Library Futures + Albany Public Library + Hearken project outputs
Supporting Equitable Access to Local News, Jennie Rose Halperin
A blog post announcing LF’s 2021 collaboration with the Albany Public Library and Hearken to provide more equitable access to local news for Albany residents and library patrons. Features an interview with both partners laying out the local context of the project.
Library Futures & Albany Public Library Discovery Insights – Initial Findings, Hearken
A report detailing the results of initial research and listening with Albany Public Library staff, librarians, patrons, and Albany residents.
Improving Digital Access to Local News Through Library-Newsroom Collaboration – Case Study, Prepared for Library Futures Written by Aria Joughin and Jennifer Brandel
“A case study of the pilot program of a 3-month collaboration between the Albany Public Library (APL) and Times Union (TU) news organization. The program focused on producing content in partnership with the public and each other using a specific reporting methodology called public-powered journalism.”
“A 100-page essay examining the history of anti-Black harm in the U.S. media system. From the critical role that trafficking of enslaved Africans played in making our nation’s earliest newspapers financially viable, to decades of targeting of Black press and journalists, the history of harm runs deep. This dynamic is then traced to the present day, when deregulation has resulted in very few Black owners of traditional media – while racist algorithms amplify the voices of white supremacists across online platforms like Facebook, Twitter and YouTube.”
Meet Me at the Library, Shamichael Hallman
“Shamichael Hallman argues that the public library may be our best hope for bridging these divides and creating strong, inclusive communities. While public libraries have long been thought of as a place for a select few, increasingly they are playing an essential role in building social cohesion, promoting civic renewal, and advancing the ideals of a healthy democracy.” Sierra recently moderated a book talk with Shamichael for LF and was encouraged by how many people from the NF community attended—she believes this speaks to the appetite for collaboration.
New Jersey Civic Info Consortium
“A first-in-the-nation project, the Consortium builds on the foundation laid by public media in the United States, and reimagines how public funding can be used to address the growing problem of news deserts, misinformation, and support more informed communities.” It funds nonprofit news startups across New Jersey, but its funding is currently under threat.
The guiding ethos which connects all those in the News Futures community of practice.
News Futures Dominant to Emergent Values
A chart laying out how the values of the News Futures community of practice differ from dominant values in mainstream journalism.
Reporting in the “Post-Truth” Era: Uncovering The Research Behaviors of Journalism Students, Practitioners, and Faculty, Boss et al. (including April Hines)
A study that sheds light on how librarians may be able to better support journalists in researching/fact-checking. “This paper uses the (ACRL) Framework to shed light on the expert information-seeking behaviors and assumptions of journalism students, educators, and practitioners. More specifically, this paper presents the methodology and preliminary analysis of an interview study examining journalism students’, educators’, and practitioners’ roles as intentional information consumers, users, and creators.”
Revitalizing America’s News Deserts, Victor Pickard
An article in which media and journalism scholar Pickard makes the case for “systemic projects that guarantee a baseline level of news and information for all members of society, not just the privileged few who live in affluent neighborhoods.” He believes that post offices and libraries are the ideal public institutions at which these projects should be seeded.
Roadmap for Local News, Elizabeth Green, Darryl Holliday, and Mike Rispoli
The result of “a year-long research effort informed by a broad and diverse coalition of newsroom leaders, journalists, and innovators in the field of local news. These contributors shared ‘a vision of a world in which people everywhere are equipped to improve their communities through abundant access to high-quality information, on urgent health and safety emergencies, the environment, the people and processes of local government, and daily social services like healthcare, education, and transportation.’”
Root Shock, Mindy Thompson Fullilove
Jennie referenced Fullilove’s concept of root shock as a metaphor for what has happened to journalism over the past 20+ years. “Fullilove reveals the disturbing effects of decades of insensitive urban renewal projects on communities of color. For those whose homes and neighborhoods were bulldozed, the urban modernization projects that swept America starting in 1949 were nothing short of an assault.”
The State of Local News: The 2024 Report, Medill Local News Initiative at Northwestern
A great source for the latest statistics and trends on the state of the local news industry across the country. Updated annually.
