A Blueprint for Local News: What If Pennsylvania Created a Civic Media Fund?
Taking a cue from California’s bold new plan to strengthen local journalism through public infrastructure
Editor's Note: This article was originally published on my LinkedIn profile on June 20, 2024. I'm republishing it here on Backstory & Strategy as part of our "Mind the Gap" theme, which explores the crucial, often challenging, intersection of mission and money in nonprofit media. This piece offers a concrete example of bold strategic thinking for sustainable journalism.
Last month, California Assemblymember Buffy Wicks announced a pioneering partnership between the California State Library and the state’s journalism ecosystem: a Civic Media Fund to support community-focused, trustworthy local news.
This collaboration brings together state government, philanthropy, and tech funders with a single goal: to make public-interest journalism more accessible, more impactful, and more sustainable.
The California State Library will administer and distribute funds aimed at enhancing local news coverage, with a focus on civic life, underserved communities, and improving the quality of public information available to residents.
“This is a first-of-its-kind model,” Wicks said, “but we don’t want it to be the last.”
Why not Pennsylvania?
The Keystone State has no shortage of news deserts. Local journalism has been shrinking here for years. At the same time, we have a deep bench of public libraries, a growing ecosystem of nonprofit newsrooms, and a strong tradition of civic engagement.
This is fertile ground for a Pennsylvania version of the Civic Media Fund.
What Could It Look Like?
Imagine a public-private initiative led by the Office of Commonwealth Libraries (currently led by Susan Banks), in collaboration with:
Nonprofit and independent newsrooms
Library systems and community media centers
Philanthropic foundations
Civic tech and public-interest organizations
Together, they could:
Provide direct funding to local journalists to cover underserved communities
Create partnerships between libraries and newsrooms to expand civic literacy
Host public events and listening sessions to strengthen trust in local media
Support data journalism, translation efforts, and accessibility initiatives
Why Libraries?
Libraries are trusted. They are embedded in local communities. They already support digital access, information literacy, and civic engagement.
Pairing libraries with local journalism isn’t a gimmick—it’s a strategy for rebuilding
trust, reach, and relevance.
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What’s Next?
California has provided the blueprint. Now it’s time for others to iterate and adapt.
If you're in journalism, public service, state government, or library leadership in Pennsylvania—or anywhere else grappling with these challenges—I’d love to connect. Let’s talk about what it would take to build something like this here. The infrastructure exists. The urgency is real. And the opportunity is right in front of us.
📬 Let’s Connect & Discuss
If this resonates with your work—or your vision—I invite you to reach out or comment below. Let’s sketch the next version of civic media together.
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