How one town’s government brought the local paper back to life

Around this time in 2014, a practically defunct newspaper in a suburb of Madison (WI) embarked on an experiment: With a one-year direct financial boost from city hall -- about $30,000 to cover monthly postage, plus the shuttering of a city newsletter that competed for ad dollars -- the paper would return to print. Then, it would see if it could stand on its own in 2015 without a government subsidy. So, a year later, how’s it working out? Pretty well, say the locals.

The Fitchburg Star is now printing a monthly edition and mailing it to the more than 12,000 residences and businesses in town. All of the paper’s revenue these days comes from advertising, though it is still getting some city support: local officials committed $16,800 in 2015 to buy a full-page ad in every issue.