Nicole Cardoza Nicole Cardoza Nicole Cardoza Nicole Cardoza

Support local journalism.

Local journalism needs your support now more than ever. Resources for local publications have been dwindling for years, spurred nearly a decade ago when readers shifted from print to digital publications. Moving news consumption from online to offline enabled national outlets to attract more readers, siphoning readership – and advertising revenue – from local publications. Beyond that, local advertising revenue has moved towards tech behemoths like Facebook and Google, who offer more cost-effective, segmented opportunities to reach an audience (Washington Post). Over 2,000 local newspapers have shuttered since 2004. By the close of 2019, over 65 million Americans live in counties with only one local newspaper—or none at all (Brookings).

Happy Monday and welcome back to the Anti-Racism Daily! We've been reporting on the rise of anti-Asian violence this year. Despite the work of local reporting, many of those stories failed to gain national news, which may have shielded many from the pain the Asian community has been experiencing until the tragedy last week.

It was a good reminder to reflect on the role of local and independent journalism to keeping us informed. If you're reading this, you've already taken a chance on an independent publication committed to sharing stories often overlooked and unheard, so THANK YOU! But even we won't report on every injustice in every community. Today's call-to-action is to add more local reporting to your reading list. It won't just keep you resourced to support your neighbors, it'll invest in the space for life-saving information in the future.

This newsletter is a free resource made possible by our paying subscribers. We'd love you to consider making a monthly recurring donation on our website or Patreon. You can also give one-time on PayPal or Venmo (@nicoleacardoza). Thank you for all your support!

Nicole

TAKE ACTION

  • Find a local newspaper and, at minimum, subscribe for updates. Here’s a directory of nonprofit local news organizations created by INN.

  • If you have the funds, make a recurring subscription to your local news outlet. See if they’re listed on NewsMatch, an initiative that matches donations to local news outlets.

  • Check your local newspaper and identify issues related to white supremacy and systemic oppression that you may read about in the national news. Notice how broader trends affect your community each day.

  • See how you can support local journalism programs in your community, including (and not limited to) contributing to scholarships, mentoring, and sharing their work on your social media accounts.

GET EDUCATED

By Nicole Cardoza (she/her)

Local journalism needs your support now more than ever. Resources for local publications have been dwindling for years, spurred nearly a decade ago when readers shifted from print to digital publications. Moving news consumption from online to offline enabled national outlets to attract more readers, siphoning readership – and advertising revenue – from local publications. Beyond that, local advertising revenue has moved towards tech behemoths like Facebook and Google, who offer more cost-effective, segmented opportunities to reach an audience (Washington Post). Over 2,000 local newspapers have shuttered since 2004. By the close of 2019, over 65 million Americans live in counties with only one local newspaper—or none at all (Brookings).


Like many, these issues have been exacerbated by COVID-19, when local journalism is most needed. A joint survey conducted by the Tow Center for Digital Journalism and the International Center for Journalists showed that 21% of respondents reported that their salaries had been cut, 6% experienced furloughs, and 6% were laid off. The US Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that journalism jobs are projected to decline by 11% over the next ten years (Columbia Journalism Review).

This is an issue because local publications can be life-saving resources for your community. No national media organization can mobilize as effectively as a local team can. Here in Texas, the Texas Tribune was an invaluable source of information during the winter freeze and blackout in February. The organization shared lists of warming stations and places to find food, organizations to support, and even set up a text platform to offer regular alerts. L.A. TACO, which reports on all things Los Angeles, launched a daily text platform for unhoused residents & advocates with copies of sanitation schedules, updates on COVID, and other resources (L.A. TACO). Even if you don’t personally think you’ll benefit, consider those that rely on fast, free, and accurate reporting to navigate issues related to transportation, safety, and housing.

In addition, many of the injustices the U.S. has rallied around this past year were sparked by local reporting that raised awareness and mobilized thousands of people to take notice. The Brunswick News had published seven stories on the murder of Ahmaud Arbery before the story was picked up by the New York Times, gaining national recognition. Similarly, Kentucky’s Courier-Journal was the only outlet – aside from national Black-led platforms The Root and Blavity – to publish reporting on the death of Breonna Taylor until May, two months after her death. Their deaths deserved accountability and justice well before they came nationally-recognized stories. We must pay attention to advocating for justice in our communities instead of waiting for national headlines.

Thankfully, this past year has brought a broader realization that more independent, homegrown, local journalism is essential for accurate reporting. Part of this was fueled by the rise of misinformation and disinformation that took off on social media platforms and perpetuated by conservative political leaders quick to cry “fake news.” It may also be accelerated by the racial reckoning that’s swept nearly all national media outlets. From Bon Appetit to the New York Times, the Inquirer, and Refinery29, many had top executives step down since June 2020 (Washington Post). Local journalism is facing the same calls for accountability, which we can only hope strengthens its capacity to accurately reflect the diversity of your community and its needs.

It’s also accelerated an uptick of independent journalism, which is another worthy place to invest. Many writers and editors, particularly those from marginalized backgrounds, left (or were fired) traditional media to start their own. This past year introduced a surge of micro publications hosted on websites, social media, or newsletters to the industry (including the Anti-Racism Daily, thank you for being here!). This freedom allows writers to write more candidly about current events and bring their own perspectives into the storytelling. I recommend searching for newsletters, blogs, or podcasts based on your city to find independent writers to support. 

Similarly, growing non-profit, independent publications are diving into critical issues around racial equity. According to a Knight Foundation study, nonprofit news organizations tend to be more diverse than traditional outlets (although still less than the general public). This is likely to provide broader perspectives and insights in its reporting (Knight Foundation). Even if they’re not local, they may be an excellent place to learn about specific issues facing your community. Prism is a reporting platform that focuses on topics related to the BIPOC community. The Forge reports on organizing work across the U.S. The Fuller Project focuses on global reporting of injustice to women. ProPublica’s Local Reporting Network pays covers the cost of reporters at news organizations across the country so they can spend a year working on an accountability journalism project of importance to their communities. And More Perfect Union is following stories on labor rights for the working class.

With so much unfolding this year, it might feel like the best bet to read national news. But the urgent issues that make national headlines have action items that start in your backyard. Become a more active member of your local and independent news and help build a more equitable community.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

  • Local journalism is essential for understanding how larger systemic issues directly impact your community

  • Disinformation, the economic impact of COVID-19, and declining advertising revenue have all contributed to negatively impacting local journalism

  • There's new and emerging independent writers and publications that are focused on issues especially relevant to marginalized communities.

RELATED ISSUES

PLEDGE YOUR SUPPORT

Thank you for all your financial contributions! If you haven't already, consider making a monthly donation to this work. These funds will help me operationalize this work for greatest impact.

Subscribe on Patreon | Give one-time on PayPal | Venmo @nicoleacardoza

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Ida Yalzadeh Nicole Cardoza Ida Yalzadeh Nicole Cardoza

Celebrate zines.

In a previous newsletter, I wrote about the pros and cons of using new media as a way to imagine and organize around collective change and liberation. Despite the fast and global reach of these digital tools, there is also something to be said about distributing knowledge through a more low-tech option: the zine.

Happy Wednesday, and welcome back! Today we're looking at the original newsletters as part of Ida's ongoing series of investing in new media. If you subscribed to 28 Days of Black History, you may have read the history of the Negro History Bulletin, which served a similar purpose decades ago.

Thank you all for your support. This newsletter is made possible by our subscribers. Consider subscribing for $7/month on Patreon. Or you can give one-time on our website or PayPal. You can also support us by joining our curated digital community.

Nicole

Ps – be sure to sign up for 28 Days of Black History.

TAKE ACTION

  • Support the work of BIPOC zinesters by donating to community projects like POC Zine Project and Brown & Proud Press.

  • Check out the zines featured in the electronic archives of the Barnard Zine Library and the Sherwood Forest Zine Library. Read through some that speak to you. If the zine’s author(s) have an online presence, write to them to thank them for their work.

  • Make your own zine about something that you are passionate about and share it with your community.

  • Check out your local bookstore’s zine collection & buy a zine to support the bookstore and the zine’s author(s)! (Women & Children First in Chicago, IL and Trident Booksellers & Cafe in Boston, MA are only two of many indie bookstores that sell amazing, self-published zines!)

GET EDUCATED

By Ida Yalzadeh (she/her)

In a previous newsletter, I wrote about the pros and cons of using new media as a way to imagine and organize around collective change and liberation. Despite the fast and global reach of these digital tools, there is also something to be said about distributing knowledge through a more low-tech option: the zine.

Zines (pronounced “zeen,” like “magazine”) are low-budget, independently produced publications, often made up of sheets of paper xeroxed, folded, and stapled together. Their content can encompass anything from fiction and poetry to art, photography, personal narratives, interviews, how-to guides, manifestos, and so much more. These publications have a small distribution run due to their DIY nature, usually not going outside of the authors’ own networks. Most importantly, zines have a tradition of operating outside of mainstream publication channels, and by doing so, creating tight-knit communities among its readers (Barnard College).

This practice of zine-making began with science fiction magazine readers who created their own self-published fanzines from mimeographs (The Creative Independent). In the 1970s, the tradition of the DIY spirit picked up; zines were used in the punk scene to promote underground bands(The Public). In the 1980s and 1990s, zines would again be central to the Queercore and Riot Grrrl movements. These “zinesters”—producers and/or readers of zines—wrote about their personal experiences with gender formation and sexual identity, and distributed their work to other fellow zinesters who also were thinking about the same questions (From Codex to Hypertext).


In addition to these uses, zines have a long history in political movements and activism, both within and outside of the United States. Zines’ low barriers to entry—publishing and distributing a publication only requires office supplies and a copy machine—contributed to their popularity.  Zines allowed people without much power or capital to distribute information about U.S. systems of imperial oppression and domestic racial discrimination, as well as how these marginalized communities were resisting such systems. 

Particularly in the mid-twentieth century United States, during the Civil Rights and Third Worldist movements, communities fighting for social change would use zines to distribute information about their anti-imperial and cross-coalitional work (Third World Studies). La Raza, a bilingual publication that ran from the late 1960s to the late 1970s, emerged out of Los Angeles’ Chicano movement and was critical to the wider recognition of the Chicano struggle for social justice at the time (Autry Museum of the American West). During the same period, from 1969 to 1974, Asian American students at UCLA wrote and produced the monthly zine, Gidra, which became known to many as the “voice of the Asian American movement” (Densho). 

Bearing in mind these broader purposes of social justice and political change, many of today’s zine collectives honor the traditions of previous zine movements in their own publications and collection practices. Fifty years after its initial publication, Asian American and Mixed Asian students from UCLA and USC came together to restart the work of Gidra’s first iteration and translate its purpose to the twenty-first century (Gidra Media). POC Zine Project is only one example of a number of online venues that have been working toward collecting, archiving, and distributing zines for other like-minded individuals to find. Collectives such as the Queer Zine Archive Project and Printed Matter, Inc. are also doing the work of amplifying publications that speak to marginalized perspectives. Moreover, these digital spaces have created communities for zinesters to gather and read work with similar political and intellectual projects to their own.

While zines may not have the same potential of going viral as a social media or blog post, their ability to form tightly networked collectives and communities are historically embedded within their primary purpose. The zines’ low barriers to entry, moreover, allows for information to be produced and distributed without the need for mainstream approval. By forging strong community networks and giving greater informational access to marginalized folks, zines continue to be an option for slow-form communication among advocates and activists for political and social change.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

  • Zines have a tradition of operating outside of mainstream publication channels, and in doing so, forge closely networked communities with those who find connection with its contents.

  • During the Civil Rights and Third Worldist movements of the mid-twentieth century, zines’ low barriers to entry contributed to their popularity for distributing information about U.S. systems of imperial oppression and domestic racial discrimination, as well as how these marginalized communities were resisting such systems. 

  • Many of today’s zine collectives honor the traditions of previous zine movements in their own publications and collection practices.

RELATED ISSUES

PLEDGE YOUR SUPPORT

Thank you for all your financial contributions! If you haven't already, consider making a monthly donation to this work. These funds will help me operationalize this work for greatest impact.

Subscribe on Patreon | Give one-time on PayPal | Venmo @nicoleacardoza

Read More