The Local News Matters Podcast
Ideas and insights for leaders shaping the future of local news
Local News Matters is the podcast where current and emerging local news leaders explore the challenges, opportunities and big questions shaping the industry. Hosted by Tim Regan-Porter, CEO of the Colorado Press Association, each episode features in-depth conversations with journalists, publishers, funders, entrepreneurs and innovators working to strengthen and sustain local news as a pillar of healthier communities.
We explore actionable strategies, leadership insights and industry shifts that impact newsrooms, business models and the communities they serve.
Join the Conversation
Whether you’re leading a news organization, launching a media startup, funding journalism, or simply invested in the future of news, this podcast is for you. Subscribe in your favorite podcast player and be part of the movement to strengthen journalism, build sustainable news organizations and empower communities.
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Browse our latest episodes below.
Newest episode
Finding calm in the chaos with 10% Happier’s Dan Harris (LNM Episode 52)
Dan Harris, podcast host, author of 10% Happier and former ABC News anchor, shares his journey from covering war zones to discovering mindfulness and meditation. He discusses the toll of high-stress journalism on mental health, including his on-air panic attack, and...
Past episodes
Evolving the business model of community news with Reviving Rural News’ Teri Finneman, Nick Mathews and Pat Ferrucci (LNM Episode 45)
Teri Finneman, Nick Mathews and Pat Ferrucci, authors of "Reviving Rural News: Finding a Sustainable Future for Community Journalism," explore the unique challenges facing rural newspapers in the wake of the local news industry's financial crisis. They discuss their...
The fight for local news in the world’s media capital with THE CITY’s Nic Dawes (LNM Episode 44)
Nic Dawes, executive director of THE CITY, discusses the vital role the outlet plays in New York’s shrinking local news ecosystem. He explains how his organization fills coverage gaps left by retrenching legacy media, focusing on investigative reporting and service...
Strengthening democracy through local journalism and collaboration with Allison Taylor Levine of Delaware’s Local Journalism Initiative (Episode 43)
Allison Taylor Levine, founder and CEO of the Local Journalism Initiative, shares her insights into building a nonprofit collaborative newsroom and the importance of local news to democracy. She discusses the challenges of launching the initiative in Delaware, from...
Rethinking local news for BIPOC communities in rural America with Black by God’s Crystal Good (LNM Episode 42)
Crystal Good, founder and publisher of Black by God | The West Virginian, discusses her journey from poet and advocate to media entrepreneur, building a publication that centers on Black voices and stories in Central Appalachia. She shares her approach to rural...
Fostering civic participation and community resilience through journalism with Baltimore Beat’s Lisa Snowden (LNM Episode 41)
Lisa Snowden, co-founder and editor-in-chief of Baltimore Beat, shares her journey from being a reporter to running a Black-led newsroom dedicated to covering Baltimore’s diverse communities. She discusses the challenges and opportunities of sustaining a nonprofit...
It’s going to take a multifaceted approach to save informed communities with INN’s Karen Rundlet (LNM Episode 40)
Karen Rundlet, CEO and executive director of the Institute for Nonprofit News (INN), discusses the increasing importance of philanthropy in sustaining local journalism. She shares insights from her time at Knight Foundation, where she helped launch initiatives like...
Past guests on the Local News Matters podcast include: Dan Harris (10% Happier), Samantha Ragland (American Press Institute), Randy Picht and Andrew Finlayson (RJI Burnout Report), Laura Frank (COLab), Jennifer Larino (Lede New Orleans), Katherine Ann Rowlands (Bay City News), Jim O’Rourke (O’Rourke Media Group), Teri Finneman, Nick Mathews and Pat Ferrucci (Reviving Local News), Nic Dawes (THE CITY), Allison Taylor Levine (Local News Initiative Delaware), Crystal Good (Black by God), Lisa Snowden (Baltimore Beat), Karen Rundlet (INN), Jim Brady (Knight Foundation), Candice Fortman (Exit interview, Outlier Media), Jean Friedman-Rudovsky (Resolve Philly), Jay Rosen (NYU), Sue Cross (Exit interview, INN), Mary Margaret White (Mississippi Today), Amy Kovac-Ashley (Tiny News Collective), Michael Shapiro (TAPinto), Kenny Katzgrau (redbankgreen and Broadstreet), John Garrett (Community Impact), Shannon Kinney (Dream Local Digital), Larry Ryckman (The Colorado Sun), Frank Mungeam (Local Media Association), Kelly Ann Scott (Alabama Media Group), Sara Lomax and S. Mitra Kalita (URL Media), Elizabeth Hansen Shapiro (National Trust for Local News), Mike Rispoli and Richard Young (via When the People Decide), Sarabeth Berman (American Journalism Project), Rabbi Hillel Goldberg and Shana Goldberg (Intermountain Jewish News), Lyndsay C. Green (via The Journalism Salute), Rashad Mahmood and Mark Glaser (New Mexico Local News Fund), Christian Vanek and Barbara Hardt (The Mountain-Ear), Dan Grech (BizHack), Zack Richner (Easy Tax Credits), Tracie Powell (Pivot Fund), Dan Oshinsky (Inbox Collective), Linda Shapley (via What Works), Yehong Zhu and Jake Seaton (Zette, Column), Charity Huff (January Spring), Joaquin Alvarado and Dave Perry (Aurora Sentinel), Steve Waldman (Rebuild Local News), Maritza Félix (Conecta Arizona), Michael Bolden (American Press Institute), Jeff Roberts and Corey Hutchins (CFOIC, Colorado College), Eve Pearlman and Erica Anderson (Spaceship Media), Jennifer Brandel (Hearken, Democracy SOS), Corey Hutchins with Bay Edwards, Todd Chamberlain and Raleigh Burleigh (Sopris Sun).