Understanding what audiences want from local news

[Commentary] My colleagues and I at Rutgers University’s Media + the Public Interest Initiative have been collaborating with local news outlets in New Jersey on the task of understanding how those audiences see the news and information ecosystem, and what they want from local news organizations. Thus far we have conducted focus groups in three New Jersey communities: Newark, New Brunswick, and Morristown. Given the extent to which similar findings emerged across all three communities, we think they may represent broader insights about the nature of the contemporary local news audience:

‘Outside’ news sources are seen as unreliable: Our focus group participants were universally critical of the local news coverage offered by sources from outside of their communities.
A desire for more ‘follow-up’ reporting: Our focus group participants were very consistent in their desire for more “follow-up” reporting -- that is, reporting that revisits events and issues to determine if and how they are being resolved, in order to hold local governments, service providers, and leaders accountable for their actions (or inaction).
The self-reliant news consumer: Participants consistently expressed an understanding -- and acceptance -- of how the contemporary news environment works, particularly in terms of the increasing responsibility (or “burden” as some referred to it) that falls on the individual news consumer to stay informed.
The infrequency of citizen journalism: When we asked participants to discuss if and how they engage in activities related to sharing and producing news and information for their communities, we were struck by how brief these conversations were.
Interpersonal networks are still important: Finally, we found it striking the extent to which, even in this era of seemingly abundant news and information sources, mobile access, and social media, interpersonal networks still play an important role the way we share and receive local news and information.

[Philip M. Napoli is a professor of Journalism & Media Studies at Rutgers University in New Brunswick(NJ) where he is also the principal investigator for the News Measures Research Project]