📊 Data shows how important newsletters are for news publishers

Plus: A new model for local news on streaming platforms / Can we fix social media’s news problem? / Kiosks, retention & real ROI

Author

Paul Gewuerz
February 26, 2026

Your weekly briefing of stories from around the local news space about business, policy, trends, and more

Hello! Here’s what’s in this week’s issue:

» Data shows how important newsletters are for news publishers

» A book club to strengthen local news

» Inside a local news trust initiative

» How are freelancers using AI?

🎧 Small Press, Big Ideas Podcast:

📺 A new model for local news on streaming platforms

📱 Can we fix social media’s news problem?

💡 Kiosks, retention & real ROI

📊 Data shows how important newsletters are for news publishers

New research shows that email newsletters are carving out a meaningful role in how Americans get news, with a growing share saying they rely on them for regular updates. The audience is still smaller than social media or TV, but newsletter readers tend to be more engaged and loyal to specific outlets, signaling a shift toward direct and trusted connections with publishers

📚 A book club to strengthen local news

The Tampa Bay Times has launched a monthly “news story book club,” where readers gather at a local bookstore to read and talk about a Times article with the reporter who wrote it, aiming to demystify journalism and build community engagement. The free events mix discussion of the story’s content with behind the scenes insight into how it was reported, and organizers hope it might also draw new subscribers.

🤝 Inside a local news trust initiative

This piece from E&P highlights how The Dallas Morning News is pushing beyond slogans to rebuild audience confidence by hosting pop-up newsrooms, community events, and other trust building activities that bring journalists and readers together in person. Their effort includes transparency initiatives like adding a public editor and creating forums for direct feedback, aiming to close the gap between the newsroom and the communities it covers.

🤖 How are freelancers using AI?

AI is accelerating freelance journalism by speeding up reporting and content production, but it is also fueling hoaxes and deepening public mistrust in news. The technology is reshaping workflows and pay structures, forcing freelancers to balance efficiency gains with ethical risks and growing skepticism from audience.

💰 Multiply Your Ad Space With LocalPod

Readers aren’t the only audience. LocalPod.co gives you listeners too: automated podcasts that multiply ad space, expand reach, and generate new income streams.

Small Press, Big Ideas

A podcast about the business of local news

📺 A new model for local news on streaming platforms

First up on the podcast this week I was joined by Todd Landfried, co founder and CEO of N2 Media Holdings, to discuss a bold reimagining of local news in the streaming era.

Todd tells me about The Local: a nationwide, streaming first local news model built specifically for platforms like Netflix, Amazon, and Apple TV.

📱 Can we fix social media’s news problem?

Jack Brewster, founder and CEO of Newsreel, joins the show to talk about reinventing journalism for the algorithmic age. A former politics reporter at Forbes and investigative editor at NewsGuard, Jack has reported on misinformation, social media manipulation, and the structural incentives that shape today’s digital landscape.

Now, he’s building a new kind of platform, one designed to compete with social media not by maximizing time spent, but by maximizing understanding.

💡 Kiosks, retention & real ROI

I also sat down with Lon Haenel, publisher of Decorah News, founder of Local News ROI, and Chief Client Officer at Newspaper Subscription Services.

Lon shares his unconventional path through local media from selling ads in the late 1990s to launching digital services, leading circulation teams at major dailies, and ultimately building businesses focused on sustainable audience growth.

Sponsor this newsletter - Contact us