The Medill Local News Initiative just published the State of Local News report. They note that 213 counties in the U.S. are now news deserts—in other words, they no longer have a local news source (radio, newspaper, local TV, etc.). In addition, there are 1,524 counties that are down to only one local news source, and that’s usually a weekly paper. The report notes, “Taken together, that means that one in seven Americans, almost 50 million people, live with limited or no access to local news.” Digital news sites are growing, but their local news is almost entirely concentrated in metro areas, they report. They estimate that there are only some 60+ standalone digital news outlets located in rural counties.

A startling fact: “More than one-third (38%) of the 8,891 U.S. newspapers that existed 20 years ago have since shuttered.”

Axios reports, “Newspapers owned by small, independent groups—often families or businesses invested in their local communities—are shuttering at an alarming pace compared to those owned by large investment companies,” explaining “Independent newspapers are more likely to represent rural communities that are at greater risk of becoming news deserts, or areas with extremely limited or zero access to local news sources.”