Artificial Intelligence is no longer a side conversation in the news business — it’s the headline. Generative AI is advancing at breakneck speed, and while some publishers see efficiency and opportunity, others see risk and disruption. To cut through the hype, E&P recently surveyed news publishers of all sizes, from tiny weeklies to major media companies. The responses reveal a split industry: eager adopters using AI for transcription, copyediting and audience insights on one side; skeptics warning of accuracy problems, copyright concerns and eroding trust on the other. more

As federal dollars vanish and the Corporation for Public Broadcasting winds down, Tom Davidson is asking a blunt question: What is public media without public funding? A longtime reporter, PBS executive and now professor at Penn State, Davidson argues the industry must stop clinging to outdated definitions tied to transmitters and towers — and instead embrace a wider ecosystem of nonprofit newsrooms that embody the true mission of public service journalism. more

Strong reporting has always been the backbone of newspapers. But as Gary Randazzo argues in this Shoptalk column, the industry has overlooked something just as vital: brand. “We didn’t just run ads. We ran a brand,” he recalls of his time at the Houston Chronicle. Without a clear, consistent expression of value, newspapers risk losing ground not only with readers but also with advertisers and communities. more

The Hagadone Newspaper Media Group has built its reputation on stewardship, storytelling and stability. But its role comes into sharp relief in moments of crisis — like when the Coeur d’Alene Press covered the shocking ambush that left two firefighters dead on Canfield Mountain. In this profile, learn how Hagadone’s commitment to community journalism has kept its newsrooms strong while much of the industry has struggled. more

When floodwaters swept through Kerr County, national media crews rushed in, grabbed their dramatic shots, and just as quickly moved on. But Louis Amestoy and his small team didn’t pack up. They stayed. They documented the aftermath, told the stories of neighbors helping neighbors, and pressed for accountability long after the TV trucks rolled away. For Amestoy, that persistence wasn’t just reporting — it was a reminder of what only local journalism can do: stay rooted when the national spotlight fades. more

Fact-checking has always been a tough business, but in today’s AI-saturated media landscape, it’s bordering on impossible. As misinformation spreads unchecked across social platforms and newsrooms lose resources to chase it down, the very idea of holding power accountable is under siege. Rob Tornoe reports on what happens when fact-checking falters — and why journalism’s role as truth-teller has never been more vital. more

The greatest threat facing publishers today isn’t just artificial intelligence — it’s hesitation. As consumer behavior shifts at lightning speed, driven by new technologies and shrinking referral traffic, the window to act is closing fast. The rules of engagement are being rewritten, and those who cling to old playbooks risk being left behind. To survive — and grow — media companies must rethink business models around what audiences actually value, scenario-plan for an AI-powered future and double down on trust, relevance and experiences that algorithms alone can’t deliver. more

Nearly 500 nonprofit journalists and news leaders converged in Minneapolis this June for the largest INN Days in history, and the timing could not have been more urgent. With lawsuits mounting, public media funding under threat and newsroom safety concerns rising, the Institute for Nonprofit News framed its record-breaking conference around one central message: embattled newsrooms are not alone. INN’s expanding network, legal partners and donor programs offered both lifelines and solidarity, underscoring what CEO Karen Rundlet called “a critical juncture for facts, for access, for journalist safety, digital and physical.” more

Local journalism’s future depends on more than new business models and revenue streams — it depends on people. Report for America (RFA) is helping fill that need by placing bright, ambitious reporters in newsrooms across the country, where they’re covering critical beats and building trust in the communities they serve. According to RFA’s 2025 Impact Report, the program has grown from just three placements in 2018 to 97 in this year’s class, with more than half securing permanent newsroom positions. Four of those corps members share what it means to “hit the ground reporting,” offering an inside look at their daily work and the impact they’re making on local news. more

When The Paper debuted this week on Peacock, it promised laughs — but inside America’s newsrooms, the reaction was anything but simple. Co-created by Greg Daniels of The Office fame, the mockumentary follows a struggling local paper. For publishers and editors who’ve lived that story, the premiere raised big questions: can a sitcom capture the grit, humanity, and relentless optimism of real journalism, or will it play into tired clichés? We want to hear your take — join the conversation on our LinkedIn page and be part of the story. more

Over the past decade, Donald Trump has waged a relentless campaign against the press — not just in rallies or interviews, but in the 75,000 social media posts he’s fired off since 2015. More than 3,500 of them singled out journalists and news outlets by name, catalogued in a database that shows clear patterns of attack. What emerges is not off-the-cuff bluster but a deliberate strategy, one that senior reporter Stephanie Sugars says is reshaping how millions of Americans view the press — and raising alarms about the future of democracy itself. more

When the Guadalupe River rose more than 26 feet in less than an hour on July 4, it wasn’t just Kerrville, Texas, that was under siege — it was its people, homes, summer camps and way of life. National media swooped in to capture the devastation, but it was the town’s own journalists who stayed, delivering life-saving information, correcting misinformation and documenting both the tragedy and the resilience of their neighbors. From the Kerrville Daily Times’ all-hands-on-deck coverage to The Kerr County Lead’s relentless real-time updates, two small newsrooms proved that in a disaster of international scale, local press still matters most. more

With threats against journalists escalating in the tense post-election climate, five of the nation’s leading press freedom organizations have joined forces to launch the Journalist Assistance Network — a coordinated hub offering legal, safety and security resources to reporters under pressure. Announced in May, the alliance unites the Committee to Protect Journalists, Freedom of the Press Foundation, International Women’s Media Foundation, PEN America and the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press, formalizing years of informal cooperation into a one-call system that connects journalists with the help they need — fast. more

The gap between journalists and the funders who can sustain their work has long been wide — sometimes a chasm. This spring, two back-to-back conferences in Philadelphia set out to narrow it, bringing hundreds of newsroom leaders and philanthropists face-to-face to trade ideas, share hard truths and explore ways to keep local journalism alive. From practical fundraising bootcamps to frank conversations about power, equity and trust, the Lenfest Philanthropy Summit and the Media Impact Funders Forum offered a rare space where those who produce the news and those who finance it could meet as equals, united by a shared belief: a free and thriving press is worth investing in. more

At Long Lead, stories aren’t churned out for clicks — they’re commissioned, curated and crafted to endure. Co-founded by hedge fund manager and media patron Bill Perkins and led editorially by veteran journalist John Patrick Pullen, Long Lead is a journalism studio that treats deep reporting as an art form. In a media landscape dominated by speed, scale and algorithms, Long Lead is rejecting the race and building a body of work meant to be preserved, not just published. more

In the past two decades, local journalism in the United States has seen its reporting ranks decimated — dropping from an average of 40 journalists per 100,000 residents in 2002 to just 8.2 today, according to the new “Local Journalist Index 2025.” While other nations have responded to similar crises by forcing tech platforms to pay for the news content that fuels their businesses, U.S. publishers are still fighting for their share — and finding both bipartisan allies and formidable opposition along the way. more

As The Philadelphia Inquirer’s sole obituary writer since 2020, Gary Miles has chronicled the lives of nearly 1,000 people, from community leaders to his own newsroom colleagues. His work requires navigating grief, gathering memories and distilling entire lives into just a few hundred words — all while finding the humanity and hope that survive loss. And in one extraordinary case, it meant collaborating with a subject who knew her obituary would be written — and wanted to help tell it — before she died. more

You’ve got 30 seconds. That’s how long you have to prove to a prospect that you’re not just another rep with a rate card and a recycled pitch. In today’s crowded, distracted, AI-accelerated world, walking into a sales call unprepared isn’t just lazy — it’s a deal killer. Over the next several columns, I’ll give you the exact prompts, tools and tactics to research smarter, pitch better and close faster by ethically leveraging AI. Let’s start with the sales call prep that turns you from a vendor into a trusted adviser — before you ever say a word. more

A 2020 Pew Research Center survey found that three-fourths of Americans believe it’s possible to improve public confidence in the media. So, what can news organizations do to repair relationships with their most skeptical audiences? Stuart N. Brotman, a Digital Media Laureate and Distinguished Senior Fellow at The Media Institute, believes it's “especially timely to explore the possibility of a National News Council 2.0 as one way forward.” In this column, he suggests some essential principles and operating procedures to consider. more

For the first time, more Americans are getting their news from social media and video platforms than from television. The Reuters Institute’s 2025 Digital News Report marks this turning point — a wake-up call for legacy outlets and a signal that the next generation of news consumers is swiping past traditional models. Local newsrooms now face a choice: evolve into platform-native storytellers or risk losing their audience entirely. But behind the data lies a more urgent truth — trust, relevance and community connection may still be local journalism’s secret weapon. more