Steve Waldman, lead author of a Federal Communications Commission (FCC) report on the state of local media coverage, adresses the East Austin panel.

 

Panel Discusses Challenges of Local Media Coverage in East Austin
By Caitlin Meredith

 

“We don’t have enough news coverage in the country, in the State of Texas or in our local communities like East Austin,” said Glenn Frankel, director of the School of Journalism at the University of Texas at Austin, introducing a panel discussion on Sunday, November 6. “The crisis didn’t happen yesterday, it’s been happening for a very long time. We’re here to discuss what’s been wrong and how we can begin to improve it.”

Frankel’s remarks kicked off a community forum in East Austin co-sponsored by UT, Huston-Tillotson University (HTU), an independent, historically black university, and KAZI-FM, a community radio station. Local media representatives, journalism faculty and students from both schools as well as community members participated in the discussion about how the crisis in local media coverage influences the quantity and quality  of news and information in East Austin. Journalist Steven Waldman, lead author of a Federal Communications Commission (FCC) report on the state of local media coverage, led the discussion with the findings of his research. The event was funded by the Miami-based Knight Foundation.

As has been widely reported, traditional media outlets are shrinking - extensive cuts in newsrooms have resulted in fewer journalists covering more beats nationwide. At the same time, there has been a proliferation of internet media startups, both large and small. Waldman was tasked by FCC ChairmanJulius Genachowski to find out what this media crossroads meant for the ever-widening gap in local news coverage. 

While the overall outlook is bleak for traditional media outlets, Waldman’s research revealed that the picture is even worse for minority ownership and employment in the journalism industry. “Things are moving backwards,” he said. Only six TV stations and less than two percent of radio stations in the US are owned by African Americans. The numbers are similar for Latinos. While in 2007 there were 7,400 minority employees in media outlets, by 2010 the number had decreased to 5,300. “The trends are very worrisome,” said Waldman.

The reduction in traditional media’s staffing is only part of the story, Waldman added. The rise of digital technology – and the significant reduction in the cost of producing media that has accompanied it - has created the potential for more diverse voices. “It used to be that in order to start a newspaper you needed to be a millionaire,” said Waldman. “Now, all you need to start a blog is a computer.” The downswing in minority participation in mainstream media would be less concerning if the proliferation of internet news sites had picked up the slack, he added, but that’s not necessarily the case.

Access  new media has democratized news production, but it hasn’t changed socio-economic structural barriers. Lower income communities, for instance, tend to have less access to broadband internet, according to the FCC report. “Not only is access to broadband necessary to economic development,” said Waldman, citing the fact that even McDonald’s now requires online job applications, “it’s a civil rights issue.” Increasing broadband is one of the FCC’s main priorities, said Waldman.

After Waldman’s presentation, a panel of local media experts discussed how these trends are playing out in Austin.

Representatives from local mainstream media outlets said their newsrooms have not suffered as much as some cited in the report. Alberta Phillips, editorial writer and columnist for the Austin American-Statesman, said “even though the profit margin has shrunk we’ve been lucky – we’ve never had an unprofitable year.”

While there have been buyouts at the Statesman, Phillips said, there haven’t been any staff layoffs and the newspaper has formed an investigative reporting team to cover local and state issues. Panelist Michael Fabac, news director at local NBC affiliate KXAN, said his station has expanded its enterprise reporting team in recent years and has increased its emphasis on investigative and in-depth reporting.

Smaller media outlets told a different story. “In September we lost 30 percent of our budget,” said panelist Karla Saldaña, training director for channelAustin, a Community Access Public Television channel. “Community media centers haven’t been able to raise enough money so they’re closing across the country.”

Tommy Wyatt, editor and publisher of the East Austin-based community service weekly, the Villager, said he was also trying to do more with less. “It’s true that the production is getting easier because of technology,” said Wyatt, “but filling ad space and distribution is getting harder.” Whereas East Austin historically was the center of the city’s African-American community, the demographics have shifted. “Now the community has expanded and moved to Pflugerville and Round Rock,” said Wyatt, “and we have to follow them where they are.” Expanding distribution for the print version is expensive, and such a small target publication doesn’t attract advertisers. In the end, said Wyatt, the Villager still provides news and information, “but we’re not making any money.”

Slim financial margins are also the reality for KAZI, the community radio station. “I’m happy to report that we’ve had no budget cuts at KAZI,” said panelist Richard Smith, the interim news director. “Nothing from nothing leaves nothing.”

Such low-to-no budget operations often rely on volunteers for reporting but this business model doesn’t provide consistent or sustainable news production. Two station volunteers at KAZI produce weekend news wrap-ups, said Smith---not enough for the kind of coverage they would like to provide. Finding people with the time and skills who are willing to work for free is difficult at best, he said.

Many in the audience expressed frustration over the limited community coverage. “Most of the stuff in the local paper is negative stuff and crime stories,” said Jose Cabrera, a marketing and business administration senior undergraduate at Huston-Tillotson. “I feel like anything good I do will be left to the side.” Carol Adams Means, associate professor of the communications program at H-T, complained that an upcoming meeting about development in the 11^th and12^th Street area was not receiving any media attention even though it has major economic and demographic implications for East Austin.

The lack of reporting for such events illustrates one of the concerns expressed in the FCC report. Without adequate journalism, said Waldman, it follows that communities won’t have adequate schools, hospitals or other public institutions. A recent Statesman editorial criticizing city school officials for planning major education reforms without adequate community involvement raised the same concerns.

In the absence of mainstream media reporting, Saldaña encouraged community members to take advantage of the resources available at channelAustin. “It’s time for people to do their own reporting,” said Saldaña. “We can put the tools in your hands to get the word out about what’s happening in your neighborhood.”

Michael Fabac of KXAN said the station depends on local engagement to draw its attention to events that might not be on its radar. “The community tipline has been a goldmine for getting good stories that the community cares about,” he said. Of the three investigative stories broadcast each week, he said, at least one comes from citizen tips. Alerting news outlets of potential stories ahead of time, getting to know who the beat reporters are and contacting them directly can help increasing local news coverage, said Fabac.

One of the potential solutions for local non-profit news outlets seeking to cover and disseminate local public affairs stories is to develop partnerships with mainstream media operations, said Waldman. In San Diego, for example, a local TV news station has begun regularly featuring stories from Voice of San Diego, a non-profit online news provider. These complementary partnerships, said Waldman, provide a potential model for others.

Such integration of the old and new models might be the key to the best local coverage we’ve ever had, said Waldman. “We have more opportunity than ever through technology, and a lot of passion and interest, but there’s still a missing piece.” What’s missing is the economics. “How can we make the business part work?”