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.
Topic: Information Ecosystem Assessment
Engaged Journalism: Listening to Salem’s Hispanic Community
Guided by the Listening Post Collective’s Playbook, the team conducted a bilingual survey, held a listening session with 80 students, and visited community gathering spaces. The assessment revealed that while residents—especially youth—are highly connected through personal networks, social media, and local Spanish-language radio, there remain gaps in access to trusted, timely, and bilingual civic information.
Community Perspectives on Rogue Valley’s Information Ecosystem (2023)
The study revealed a community deeply interested in local events, politics, and safety, yet hampered by a fragmented and uneven information landscape. The closure of the Medford Mail Tribune in 2023 left a significant gap, prompting the emergence of new outlets like the Rogue Valley Times and the expansion of existing media.