Local newsrooms are often asked to cover the economy — but rarely have the tools to cover economic mobility at a granular, data-driven level. One year ago, Local Media Association, Comcast NBCUniversal, and Opportunity Insights launched the Economic Opportunity Lab to change that.

In this episode of Keep It Local, host Ryan Welton talks with Dana Piccoli, Managing Director of News Is Out and Project Manager of the Economic Opportunity Lab, about what the first year produced: original reporting from 48 newsrooms and 10 NBC Telemundo stations across five regions (Chicago, Philadelphia, Miami, the Bay Area, and DC/Baltimore), and a new, free playbook for any newsroom, chamber of commerce, or city government that wants to do similar work in their own community.

They dig into how newsrooms partnered directly with researchers from Opportunity Insights to translate dense data — including the Opportunity Atlas — into personal, place-based stories on housing, education, and employment. Dana shares the story behind one of the Lab's most impactful pieces, a report on credit scores in Baltimore's Black community by the AFRO's Victoria Mejicanos, which prompted local bankers to convene a session to address the findings. She also talks about the role of trust and vulnerability in reporting on personal finances, and why public listening sessions were central to several newsrooms' approach.

The conversation closes with a look at what's next: making the playbook a living resource, helping communities find funding for similar collaboratives, and a reminder of News Is Out's LGBTQ+ media mapping project, which tracks coverage gaps for queer communities nationwide.

In this episode:

• Introducing the Economic Opportunity Lab and its one-year mark
• The scope: 48 newsrooms, 10 NBC Telemundo stations, 5 regions
• What's in the new playbook — and who it's for
• Common threads in the reporting: housing, education, employment
• Working with Opportunity Insights and the Opportunity Atlas
• The Afro's credit-score investigation and its real-world impact
• Building community trust through listening sessions
• Covering economic opportunity in the LGBTQ+ community
• News deserts, the $1 billion cost of losing local news, and why it matters most for marginalized communities
• What's next for the Lab

Links:

• Economic Opportunity Lab Playbook: https://playbook.economicopportunitylab.com/eol
• Contact Dana Piccoli: dana.piccoli@localmedia.org

Guest: Dana Piccoli, Managing Director, News Is Out; Project Manager, Economic Opportunity Lab

Host: Ryan Welton, Local Media Association

The loudest members of your audience may not be the most representative.

New research from Pew Research Center divides Americans into four broad groups based on how they participate in news, politics, civic life and religion: mobilizers, connectors, spectators and outsiders.

On this episode of Keep It Local, Local Media Association host Ryan Welton talks with Pew Research Center research associate Luxuan Wang about what those groups can teach local newsrooms about their audiences.

One group in particular should get publishers’ attention: spectators. They closely follow news and engage with information online, but they are far less likely to participate publicly in civic or political life. That means traditional engagement signals such as comments and public shares may miss a significant portion of a newsroom’s real audience.

Wang also explains why younger Americans may be more connected to news than conventional wisdom suggests, how social media and creators are reshaping news discovery, and why local journalism continues to enjoy greater trust than national news.

The conversation offers newsroom leaders a different way to think about one of journalism’s favorite words: engagement.

Read Pew Research Center’s report, “How Americans Are Engaged With News, Politics, Religion and Civic Life,” at PewResearch.org.

Keep It Local is a podcast from Local Media Association exploring innovation, strategy and the future of local journalism. Interested in sponsoring Keep It Local or appearing as a guest? Contact Lindsey Estes at lindsey.estes@localmedia.org and Ryan Welton at ryan.welton@localmedia.org.

What makes a local media company valuable to its community — and sustainable as a business?

Leo Cusimano has spent 34 years with Dallas Voice, including the past 13 as publisher. He joins Keep It Local host Ryan Welton at Local Media Fest 2026 to explain how his background in marketing and advertising shapes the way he runs one of the country’s most established LGBTQ+ media organizations.

Cusimano argues that publishers should stop thinking about simply “selling an ad” and instead build genuine relationships with advertisers, understand their marketing goals, and become long-term media partners.

He also discusses philanthropic funding, lessons from the Lab for Journalism Funding, expanding Dallas Voice journalism into an underserved community, and the powerful story of a reader who said discovering Dallas Voice helped save his life.

Plus, Cusimano shares what he teaches small and independent publishers about sales: You don’t necessarily have to become a salesperson. You have to learn how to build relationships and partnerships.

Keep It Local is a podcast from Local Media Association.

If you'd like to be a guest on the podcast or sponsor it and reach news organizations across North America, reach out to Lindsey Estes (lindsey.estes@localmedia.org) and Ryan Welton (ryan.welton@localmedia.org).

Local news is losing more than two newspapers a week—but that is only one side of the industry’s story.

Tim Franklin, professor and John M. Mutz Chair in Local News at Northwestern University’s Medill School, says local journalism is experiencing both troubling decline and encouraging growth. Digital-only publications, local news networks and independent content creators are emerging as the industry searches for sustainable ways to serve communities.

Franklin joins Keep It Local host Ryan Welton at Local Media Fest 2026 in Chicago to discuss what he calls the greatest transformation in local news since the penny press of the 1830s.

The conversation explores the civic and economic consequences of news deserts, the urgency of experimentation and the need for news organizations to reach audiences through platforms such as Instagram, TikTok, WhatsApp and text messaging.

Franklin also explains why strong local sports coverage can attract audiences, build community and drive subscriptions or memberships. And as a former Chicago Tribune sports editor, he offers an insider’s perspective on the Cubs-White Sox rivalry.

Franklin is the founding director of the Medill Local News Initiative, which conducts the State of Local News Project and supports news organizations through research, acceleration, leadership training and other programs designed to strengthen local journalism.

Learn more at localnewsinitiative.northwestern.edu.

Keep It Local is a podcast from Local Media Association. If you'd like to be a guest on an episode or to sponsor the podcast, reach out to Lindsey Estes (lindsey.estes@localmedia.org) and Ryan Welton (ryan.welton@localmedia.org).

Sustainable local journalism requires more than a single source of revenue. It requires experimentation, collaboration and a culture willing to embrace transformation.

Local Media Association coach and consultant Liz White joins Keep It Local host Ryan Welton at Local Media Fest 2026 in Chicago to discuss how Local Media Association helps news organizations develop new ideas and build stronger business models.

White explains how LMA’s labs combine peer learning with hands-on coaching, giving local media leaders a place to discuss shared challenges and experiment together. She also outlines the revenue pillars that can support long-term sustainability, including events, digital agencies and philanthropy—all built upon a foundation of trusted local journalism.

A fifth-generation family media owner and former publisher in central Connecticut, White previously participated in LMA programs and served eight years on the organization’s board. Now, she uses those experiences to coach other publishers through their own transformation.

In this episode:

• Why collaboration is so valuable for local media leaders

• How LMA’s labs combine peer learning and individual coaching

• Why transformation must become part of a company’s culture

• How multiple revenue pillars can strengthen a news organization

• Why trusted local journalism must remain the foundation

Keep It Local is a podcast from Local Media Association. If you'd like to be a guest on an episode or to sponsor the podcast, reach out to Lindsey Estes (lindsey.estes@localmedia.org) and Ryan Welton (ryan.welton@localmedia.org).

Former New York Times executive editor Dean Baquet believes the erosion of local journalism is helping drive America’s civic and political divisions.

In this conversation recorded at Local Media Fest 2026 in Chicago, Baquet explains why strong local reporting gives communities a shared identity, helps residents understand the decisions affecting their lives and strengthens democracy.

Baquet also shares a lesson local newsrooms can take from The New York Times: Ask what journalism you can provide every day that your audience cannot get anywhere else. He discusses the need for news organizations to communicate their value, become more transparent about editorial decisions and own their mistakes.

Baquet now leads The New York Times’ Local Investigations Fellowship, supporting reporters pursuing ambitious accountability journalism in communities across the country.

In this episode:

• Why the erosion of local news affects the entire country

• What local publishers can learn from The New York Times

• How news deserts weaken accountability

• Why communities must financially support local journalism

• How transparency can rebuild audience trust

• Baquet’s work supporting local investigative reporters

Keep It Local is a podcast of Local Media Association, hosted by Ryan Welton. If you'd like to be a guest on the podcast, or if you'd like to sponsor it — email Lindsey Estes at lindsey.estes@localmedia.org and Ryan Welton at ryan.welton@localmedia.org.

What does the local news crisis actually cost communities?

According to new research from Rebuild Local News, the answer is about $1.1 billion every year in higher borrowing costs alone.

Keep It Local host Ryan Welton sits down with Matt Baker, director of research at Rebuild Local News, to discuss the organization's latest report and why communities without watchdog journalism pay more to finance schools, roads and public infrastructure.

They also explore the broader consequences of news deserts, including civic engagement, public accountability, financial misconduct and the growing body of research showing that local journalism delivers measurable economic value.

• Why lenders charge more when local news disappears
• The connection between watchdog journalism and taxpayer costs
• Examples of communities where accountability reporting made a difference
• The broader economic impacts of news deserts
• Why rebuilding local journalism will require more than one solution

Guest: Matt Baker, Director of Research, Rebuild Local News

Learn more about Rebuilding Local News at https://www.rebuildlocalnews.org/

If you'd like to be a guest on the Keep It Local podcast or, perhaps, to sponsor Keep It Local — reach out to Lindsey Estes at lindsey.estes@localmedia.org and Ryan Welton at ryan.welton@localmedia.org

Artificial intelligence is creating new possibilities for local newsrooms — including finding stories that they might not otherwise know about.

In this episode of Keep It Local, host Ryan Welton sits down with Jim Haddadin, investigative editor at Connecticut Public, and Susan Bell, senior director of data and digital services, to discuss the organization's award-winning Public Meeting Monitor.

The AI-powered system analyzes government meetings, identifies potentially newsworthy developments, and helps reporters uncover stories happening across communities throughout Connecticut.

The conversation also explores Curio, Connecticut Public's audience-support chatbot, along with broader lessons about newsroom adoption, transparency, audience trust, and the future of AI in local journalism.

Topics discussed:

• Why Connecticut Public built the Public Meeting Monitor
• How AI reviews and summarizes public meetings
• The role of human journalists in the reporting process
• Stories that originated from AI-generated news tips
• Building audience-service tools with AI
• Lessons for local news organizations exploring AI
• Where newsroom innovation is headed next

Guests:

Jim Haddadin, Investigative Editor, Connecticut Public

Susan Bell, Senior Director of Data and Digital Services, Connecticut Public

Hosted by Ryan Welton for Local Media Association's Keep It Local podcast.