Deserted
Life Without Local News in Rural America
Will be published approx. on 15. September 2026
Book
Hardback
168 pages
978-0-252-05981-0 (ISBN)
Description
The devastation of local news organizations has left rural areas of the US marooned in information deserts. Nick Mathews offers a boots-on-the-ground examination of the human toll of local news's erosion by the winds of de-localization and corporate indifference.
It's no secret that ownership transfers, corporate mergers, and hedge-fund takeovers have relentlessly consolidated and closed local news organizations. Mathews exposes the impact of that process on journalism, journalists, and news consumers hungry for outlets that tell their stories. A fundamental breakdown within journalism itself, the abandonment of community news has left disgruntled and disconnected locals to piece together news and information themselves. Mathews draws on the personal experiences of news gatherers and consumers to illuminate why local news cannot be scaled. Mass-produced content inevitably severs ties to communities while distant ownership is indifferent to local concerns.
Nuanced and sympathetic, Deserted provides a vivid portrait of the people and places forsaken by journalism's corporate owners.
It's no secret that ownership transfers, corporate mergers, and hedge-fund takeovers have relentlessly consolidated and closed local news organizations. Mathews exposes the impact of that process on journalism, journalists, and news consumers hungry for outlets that tell their stories. A fundamental breakdown within journalism itself, the abandonment of community news has left disgruntled and disconnected locals to piece together news and information themselves. Mathews draws on the personal experiences of news gatherers and consumers to illuminate why local news cannot be scaled. Mass-produced content inevitably severs ties to communities while distant ownership is indifferent to local concerns.
Nuanced and sympathetic, Deserted provides a vivid portrait of the people and places forsaken by journalism's corporate owners.
More details
Language
English
Place of publication
Baltimore
United States
Target group
Professional and scholarly
Dimensions
Height: 229 mm
Width: 152 mm
ISBN-13
978-0-252-05981-0 (9780252059810)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Person
Nick Mathews is an assistant professor of journalism at the University of Missouri. He is the co-author of Reviving Rural News: Transforming the Business Model of Community Journalism in the US andBeyond.
Content
Introduction
1. How did we get to this barren state?
2. The News Desert: "Something is missing in my life"
3. The Lived News Desert: "That's not our paper"
4. The Oasis: 'It's our home'
5. The Journalists: "You just need to get away sometimes"
Conclusion: What is the path out of the desert?
1. How did we get to this barren state?
2. The News Desert: "Something is missing in my life"
3. The Lived News Desert: "That's not our paper"
4. The Oasis: 'It's our home'
5. The Journalists: "You just need to get away sometimes"
Conclusion: What is the path out of the desert?