CassandraThe morning of Nov. 4, on the eve of perhaps one of the most important U.S. presidential elections in history, I heard yet another story on the radio about a gutted news outlet. This one was bought out by a large corporation that RIFed the staff except one editor left to do all the jobs for $41,000 a year. That’s not an uncommon story and may well describe some local news outlets in Vermont.
A day earlier, the Washington Post reported that former president Donald Trump told a crowd that he wouldn’t mind if someone shot at the news media, specifically those covering his rally. In an Oct. 23 story for NPR, David Folkenflik reported on the many threats that Trump has made to the news media, including shutting it down, jailing journalists, and taking over the Federal Communications Commission, to name just a few.
Globally, more journalists than ever are getting killed on the job. The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) reports that thus far in 2024, 87 journalists and media workers have been killed on the job. And since Oct. 7, 2023 in the Israel-Gaza conflict, CPJ reports that 137 journalists have been killed and 71 have been imprisoned; 41 were injured, and two are missing. Many of those journalists are local reporters.
While I in no way intend to draw a parallel between The Bridge and those who are reporting from war zones, it does give me pause to consider that it is the local journalists — those who know the area the most intimately — who are relied upon to report what’s happening on the ground in a deadly conflict.
The Bridge has been — and likely will remain — insulated from the kind of physical danger that has taken the lives of our colleagues across the globe, but the writing is on the wall. Journalism is a beleaguered profession and, increasingly, a dangerous one. And a good number of journalists — like the editor mentioned earlier in this article, working for peanuts with her proverbial finger in the dam — do what they do because democracy cannot function without it.
Yet Americans’ access to solid local news is eroding as newspapers are shuttered, and digital alternatives do not always fill the void. One-fifth of Americans live in a “news desert” or are at risk of doing so, according to the 2022 Medill State of Local News report. Every news journalist is working to keep that drought at bay and keep the news flowing so people can make informed choices about their lives.
It is within this uncertain climate that The Bridge begins our annual fundraising campaign. Please keep an eye out for our invitation to support The Bridge. As an independent, nonprofit newsroom, we depend on the support of our community to keep bringing you the in-depth, local, and free news you’ve come to expect from us.
The Bridge builds community, one story at a time, and that’s never been more important than now. Your stories — and they are your stories — and your support make that possible. Thank you.
