The Nevada County Community Forum hosted a discussion on the future of local media in western Nevada County, featuring leaders from three area media outlets talking about challenges ahead.
The forum is hosted by the Sierra College Foundation.
Forum host Cheryl Dell, former publisher of The Sacramento Bee, welcomed Pascale Fusshoeller of YubaNet.com, Chad Wingo, publisher of The Union newspaper, and KNCO Radio CEO Scott Robertson to discuss “What’s the future for KNCO, The Union & YubaNet?”
Western Nevada County continues to be blessed by multiple media outlets locally, a rarity in the trend of community newspapers, radio stations and digital media struggling with the realities of serving citizens with the information they need in the face of dwindling resources and revenue.
The Union and KNCO were both on hand to cover last Friday’s forum discussion, which also included what the local landscape would look like without our media agencies to cover local news.
“Over the last decade, more and more communities are suffering from what has become commonly known as a ‘news desert,” TheUnion.com reported.
“A news desert is a community that doesn’t have access to local news, and between 2005 and 2022, on average, two local newspapers a week have closed their doors nationwide.
“Over half the counties in America do not have one local news source; the number of journalists reporting is even bleaker.
“‘When there’s no local news sources, the local government is more corrupt; when there aren’t local sources, your tax rate is higher, because the borrowing tends to be at a higher rate. Employee wages for the government are higher,’” according to Dell.
“On the softer side, but not less important is that members of the public are less informed as voters.
“‘You just don’t have the places to go to make good decisions,’ Dell said.”
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