How this headline may connect to industries in New Jersey. Technical scores are below — click any ? for what a metric means.
Can local news help unite America again?Morris Museum panel sees reason for optimism - Morristown Green.By Marion Filler Where do you get your local news?Not long ago, it came from a hometown newspaper, delivered to your doorstep, packed with stories about local government, schools, businesses, taxes and neighborhood life.But as print media have declined and newsrooms have shrunk, many communities have lost a common source of information — and perhaps some of the shared understanding that comes with it.That challenge was the focus of a discussion this week at the Morris Museum presented by the League of Women Voters of the Morris Area and the Corporation for New Jersey Local Media (CNJLM).CNN media analyst Brian Stelter, Rutgers historian Andrew Shankman and state Assemblywoman Aura Dunn (R-25th Dist.) explored the question during a panel discussion moderated by Joe Territo, CEO and publisher of CNJLM.Their conversation traced the role of local journalism from the nation’s founding to the challenges of today’s fractured media environment.“Can local news help unite our country again?” asked Lisa Bhimani, chair of CNJLM, as she welcomed the audience to the America at 250 event.Territo framed Tuesday’s conversaton through a local lens, recalling lessons he learned as a student at Morristown High School about the town’s role in the American Revolution.Shankman looked even further back, describing how Colonial-era printers helped connect far-flung communities and spread ideas that ultimately united the colonies.“They were really mobilizing ideas and making ideas salient and available to large portions of the communities that they were serving,” he said.Though newspapers were scarce, copies circulated widely and often were read aloud in taverns and public spaces, helping create a shared understanding among a diverse population.Stelter contrasted that era of information scarcity with today’s abundance.“We live in this era of abundance, of information overload, of everyone being a publisher,” he said.That abundance has brought challenges, including declining trust in institutions and a fragmented media landscape.Dunn said the problem extends beyond journalism to elected officials.“It’s at an all-time low,” she said of public trust, noting that far fewer reporters cover state government today than in the past.Yet the panelists suggested local news as a potential antidote.“I think local is a better, more likely route back to a reality-based conversation,” Stelter said.TRUST, TURMOIL AND ’60 MINUTES’ One audience member steered the discussion toward one of the week’s biggest media stories: The turmoil at 60 Minutes.The controversy erupted when veteran correspondent Scott Pelley was fired for accusing new leadership at CBS News of undermining the program’s journalistic independence, charging that executives were effectively “murdering” 60 Minutes to curry favor with President Trump.Paramount, led by the son of billionaire Trump ally Larry Ellison, recently acquired CBS and now seeks federal approval to purchase Warner Brothers Discovery, including CNN.Although many legal analysts said the case was flimsy, Paramount paid Trump $16 million to settle his lawsuit over editing of a 60 Minutes interview with Kamala Harris.Stelter, who said he has known new 60 Minutes Executive Producer Nick Bilton for years, indicated he was not sure Paramount aims to kill the program.It’s profitable, after all.But he said the Pelley dispute illustrated how quickly trust can erode when audiences and journalists perceive a gap between a news organization’s stated values and its actions.“Paramount is trying to build trust, but the actions they take have eroded trust” in CBS, he said.The lesson, he suggested, applies equally to local news organizations.Audiences are more likely to trust institutions that are transparent, accountable and responsive to the communities they serve.Subscribers, he added, help shape that relationship by supporting local journalism, sharing story ideas and holding news organizations accountable.A GROUNDBREAKING JERSEY INITIATIVE, IN TROUBLE The evening’s message was ultimately hopeful: While Americans may disagree on politics, local news still offers common ground — a place where neighbors can learn about schools, taxes, government and community issues that affect them all.If journalism helped unite communities in the nation’s earliest days, the panel suggested, it may still have a role to play in bringing them together again.Less discussed was the question of sustainability.In 2018, New Jersey became the first state in the nation to establish a public fund for local journalism through the New Jersey Civic Information Consortium.Mikie Sherrill has proposed eliminating that funding in her budget, and consortium members are lobbying lawmakers to restore it.If local news is to help unite communities, supporters argue, it also must survive economically.Disclosure: The Corporation for New Jersey Local Media and Morristown Green have received grants from the New Jersey Civic Information Consortium.Kevin Coughlin contributed to this report.Morristown has a long history of people stepping forward in pivotal moments.When you chip in to Morristown Green, you’re helping your neighbors stay informed, strengthening our civic backbone, and carrying on the spirit that’s defined this town since its earliest days.Rally for local news.