At States Newsroom, more than 200 reporters and editors in every capitol work to fill crucial coverage gaps in state politics.
The nonprofit news organization was founded in 2019 and is based in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. Now with its own newsrooms in 39 states and partner newsrooms in the remaining 11, States Newsroom’s reporters focus on accessible, local reporting from their state government.
During a Thursday afternoon session at MediaFest 25, three editors from State Newsroom’s bureaus in Washington, D.C., Utah and Arkansas highlighted the severe dip in the amount of reporting on state legislature from the last decade. Tightening budgets at local news organizations across the country have forced many to pull reporters from statehouse beats.
“Politicians loved that there are fewer reporters because they can hide,” said Sonny Albardo, editor of the Arkansas Advocate. “Corruption grows in darkness.”
Between 2014 and 2022, the number of state house reporters in the United States decreased by 25 percent and newspaper employment fell 57 percent between 2008 and 2020, Pew Research polls found. In highlighting these statistics during the session, McKenzie Romero, editor of States Newsroom’s Utah News Dispatch, set the scene for the gap she believes State Newsroom fills.
“Our reporters are on the ground, doing the reporting that their communities care about and need,” said Romero. “We’re able to prioritize content over clicks, and that makes all the difference.”
When students are planning their futures, Romero hopes some have their sights set on the places they already know best — their home states.
“Everyone wants to make it big in these big cities, but someone also needs to make it big in the place you call home,” said Romero.
All of State Newsroom’s work is free for other outlets to republish, a component of the organization that fits into its larger mission, said Romero.
“I love hearing that another small, local outlet republished one of our stories and that it furthered their own coverage,” she said.
During her time as a reporter and editor in legacy media, including more than a decade at Deseret News in Salt Lake City, Utah, Romero could start to see the demands of the industry changing. Namely, she does not agree with requirements for reporters to hit minimum online clicks and subscription numbers. She believes the nonprofit model can provide some answers for a changing industry.
“Nonprofit news is not the final solution, but it is absolutely a part of the recipe,” said Romero. “For me, it’s such a bright spot in the industry.”