Courthouse News Service: The United States once boasted a range of competing newspapers with thick national and local news sections. Today, most cities and towns across the country offer only one local newspaper, if that, and its few pages carry far more syndicated content than local reporting by journalists living in the community.

Places with little or no local news coverage, called “news deserts,” pose perils to civil society, according to Sarah Stonbely, director of the State of Local News Project at Northwestern’s Medill School of Journalism, Media and Integrated Marketing Communications.

“Fewer newspaper reporters means power is not being watched,” Stonbely said. “Leaders are not being held accountable. Local government corruption of all sorts increases. Fewer people run for election. Voter turnout goes down, so democracy itself suffers.”

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