School of Journalism and Communication
The forum for the future of local news and civic health
The closure of the Dead Mountain Echo in 2020 and limited capacity of the Highway 58 Herald have left Oakridge relying heavily on Facebook, word of mouth, and bulletin boards. While residents expressed deep pride in their community, they voiced frustration over fragmented, biased, or outdated information.
With a population that skews older and a patchwork of information channels—ranging from Facebook groups to library bulletin boards—Florence faces the challenge of keeping residents informed without a single, consistent hub. The project, conducted by University of Oregon students, included a co-designed survey with 106 responses, a well-attended listening session, and weekly planning meetings with community partners.
This 2025 report builds on our 2022 assessment, providing an updated snapshot of Oregon’s evolving local news landscape—highlighting challenges, emerging solutions, and key initiatives shaping the future of civic information in our state.
Researchers and journalists Lisa Heyamoto and Todd Milbourn hosted a series of community workshops in public libraries around the country to get a ground-level understanding of how trust operates in people’s personal lives, and identify strategies for producing more trustworthy journalism.
This report explores how local newsrooms around the Pacific Northwest are grappling with the new opportunities and imperatives of engaging with audiences. Beyond new technological ways to tell compelling stories, Radcliffe’s report finds journalists learning to listen more deeply to their communities.
Through a community-wide survey, stakeholder interviews, and listening sessions, the project aimed to identify strengths, gaps, and opportunities in La Pine’s information ecosystem. The findings revealed that while residents value staying informed—particularly on local events, public safety, and community development—there is no single, centralized source of information.